Anthony "Tony Bender" Strollo

Anthony Strollo
Strollo (wearing hat) surrounded by newsmen as he enters his car.
Born	(1899-06-18)June 18, 1899 New York City, New York, U.S.
Died	April 8, 1962(1962-04-08) (aged 62) New York City, U.S.

Anthony C. Strollo (June 18, 1899 – April 8, 1962), a.k.a. "Tony Bender", was a New York mobster who served as a high-ranking capo of the Genovese crime family for several decades.

Anthony Strollo was born in New York City, the son of Calabrian immigrants Leone and Giovannina Nigro. Strollo grew up in Manhattan near the Manhattan Bridge.

Strollo had two brothers, Emilio and Dominick. He married a woman named Edna Goldenberg who bore him several children. Strollo was a cousin of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania mobster Lenine Strollo and Dante Strollo, a member of the Youngstown, Ohio Cosa Nostra family.

Strollo was of medium height and weight with sandy brown hair. Associates described him as usually having a doleful look. Strollo's legitimate job was that of a real estate salesman.

During Prohibition, Strollo gained a formidable reputation as a bootlegger and hitman. In the early to mid-1920s, Strollo worked for gang boss Giuseppe "Joe the Boss" Masseria. However, after the Castellammarese War began in 1931, Strollo defected to Masseria's rival, Salvatore Maranzano, and become a trusted lieutenant and gunman.

Following the death of Maranzano, Strollo joined the Luciano crime family, headed by boss Charles "Lucky" Luciano. Strollo became a capo (lieutenant) for Luciano and underboss Vito Genovese. Strollo assumed control of the Greenwich Village Crew, operating illegal gambling in New York's Greenwich Village and Lower Manhattan districts.