A MARTÍNEZ, BYLINE: Last year, I got to speak with Louis Ferrante for the first time. (SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED NPR BROADCAST) LOUIS FERRANTE: I was a criminal from when I was 13. I led a hijack and ...

NPR's A Martinez talks to Louis Ferrante about the first volume of his Borgata trilogy on the history of the American Mafia. Ferrante is a former high-ranking member of the Gambino crime family.

In 1986, Italian authorities built a fortified bunker inside a Palermo prison to hold the largest mafia trial in history.

Modern organized crime traces back to the 19th century, with one of the most infamous groups being the Italian-American syndicate Cosa Nostra, or the Sicilian Mafia. Originating in Sicily, the group ...

LOUIS FERRANTE: I was a criminal from when I was 13. I led a hijack and heist crew of armed robbers within the Gambino crime family. The FBI hunted me. To their credit, they got me. I never informed, ...

A MARTÍNEZ, BYLINE: You could fill a whole library with books about the mob and the history of the Mafia. A brand-new edition stands out thanks to the background of its author, Louis Ferrante. His new ...