This guy John Pappa. I understand that his dad was in the life bla bla bla. But his mom moved the family to jersey. How the hell did John Pappa start hanging out in brooklyn and join a crew? What was his connection? How did he even start hanging there? He grew up in jersey.

https://gangstersinc.org/profiles/blogs/colombo-associate-john-pappa

John Pappa didn't become a crazy killer right away, in fact it looked like Pappa wouldn't go the same route his father had taken. After her gangster husband had been whacked John Pappa's mother moved to Holmdel, N.J.. There everything seemed to go just like she had wanted. Pappa did well in school and became a high school soccer star. But little Pappa secretly had different aspirations, he still wanted to become a made Mafia member. "He could not stay out of Brooklyn and Staten Island," said a source close to the Pappa family. "He was straddling two worlds." Pappa was so entranced by the mob, authorities said, that he had the credo "morte prima di disonore" (=death before dishonor) tattooed across his back. Pappa believed it applied to him and his father. Pappa started selling drugs and pretty soon tried to hook up with a crew run by James "Froggy" Galione a Lucchese mobster. John Pappa seemed to fit right in but Galione wouldn't take him in, Galione knew that back in 1975 Gerard Pappa, then a Genovese soldier, had fired the fatal shots that killed his father, a Gambino associate.

But the rejection didn't stop Pappa. Pretty soon thereafter he became close with the Colombo Crime Family. The Colombo Crime Family is one of the most troublesome Families in New York, having had several internal Family wars. In the early 90s the Colombo Family was caught up in a new internal war. This time it was the Persico faction led by official boss Carmine Persico against the faction led by acting boss Vic Orena, Orena started the war by wanting to be the official boss. John Pappa became an associate of a Mafia Family in serious problems and pretty soon his Family faction asked him to perform his duty as an Family associate: He had to go out and kill. The Persico faction was so weakened that they actually called upon the young associates to perform the hits. John Pappa however was willing and able and saw this as a good way to become a made member and so he went out to do his job and do it good.

But how did he even hook up with Gallione? How did he wind up hanging in brooklyn? There had to be a connection..

He must have had an obsession with them, that likely led to him getting involved. The tattoo seems to indicate he was a bit too caught up in it.

He was obsessed with the memory of his father. He wanted to be made and maybe in another family that wasnt that mess of Colombos was in the 1990s he would be made and free.

Be that as it may. You dont just stroll into brooklyn amd start hanging out, someone had to have brought him in. He must of new someone from his childhood. The question is who?

So being part of Froggy’s crew back in the day consisted of him giving one of his beepers and you driving around the neighborhood all day and night.

They had a 24/7 service selling crack, coke and pot.

So it was typically young idiot kids that wanted to walk around like they were tough guys etc.
They all got abused pretty bad

Def not what I think your thinking wasn’t a traditional LCN, Crew.

With that said someone would have had to know him for a long time to get him on the beeper.
The guys Pappa was hanging out with were from South Brooklyn, Carol Gardens section of Brooklyn.

The same area as Benny the Blade.

That area is actually closer to Manhattan than it is to BensonHurst

As for the Kid Carmine Joe Caves Killed him.
It wasn’t Pappa or DelRosa.

The last item, I doubt Tigger had anything to do with Pappa’s whose ever murder:

Tigger back then was a little kid just a teenager maybe 15-16

Joe Miccio from South Brooklyn was who actually brought him around. John knew guys who had known his father in the Genovese crime family, but they stopped by one in awhile in New Jersey but never led him into the life as they still respected his mom and his fathers wish that he would not become involved in the life. Joe was around the Lucchese and would be killed by Joey Caves.

Giacomo
Excellent feedback my friend. How did Pappa meet Joe Miccio ?

I believe they met at a party of a mutual friend on Staten Island.

Did Pappa have relatives in staten island? What was the staten island connection?

The drug business was really Mario Gallo’s drug business.

He started it out when he was a teenager working under Louie Tuzzio
After they hit Gus Farace, Tuzzio, Gallo and Froggy…

Tuzzio got whacked for messing up the hit.

Froggy took Gallo, in with him.

At some point Gallo, started shaking down other dealers and taking their beepers and route/customers.

Froggy was the button behind the crew
Wasn’t involved with the day to day.

The point is that Pappa atleast at first would have been introduced to Gallo.
To be recruited into the business.

So the connection would be through him.

Its seems that Pappa had a cousin in downtown brooklyn. That was probably his connection that brought him to brooklyn.

Do you know his cousins name?

I think his cousin may have been called “ johnny boy”. Pappa also killed him.

I don’t think Jonny Boy Sparicino was his cousin atleast I never heard that.

I think you are right. However, he had cousins in brooklyn, i think downtown and thats how he hooked up with the brooklyn kids. He then moved from NJ to staten island I believe.

What a waste of a life.
I wonder if he still wants his button?
After all this

He was more of a serial killer than anything else. Im convinced his days were numbered, he would have been killed.

He killed Scopo and his same friend that feared could take credit for the hit.

the answer to that is NO,,, for all accounts hes doing life sentence on his own nobody made him unless the warden of Allenwood prick his finger