Vincent John Basciano (pronounced bah-sha-noh) (born November 14, 1959) is an American mobster who became acting boss of the Bonanno crime family after the arrest of boss Joseph Massino.
Basciano is nicknamed "Vinny Gorgeous," due to owning a Bronx beauty salon called "Hello Gorgeous," and for his fastidious grooming, hairstyle and looks. In 2011, reporters noted that despite being imprisoned the past four years, Basciano still looked perfectly groomed in the courtroom.
On May 6, 2006, Basciano was convicted in a racketeering trial for running illegal gambling and attempted murder. However, due to a hung jury, Basciano was not convicted of the 2001 murder of Frank Santoro.
After Basciano's first murder trial, prosecutors again indicted him on the Santoro murder. On August 1, 2007, Basciano was convicted of murdering Santoro, who tried to kidnap Basciano's son, and was subsequently sentenced to life imprisonment.
On May 16, 2011, Basciano was convicted of ordering the 2004 murder of Randolph "Randy" Pizzolo, On June 1, 2011, a jury rejected a prosecution request for the death penalty and instead sentenced Basciano to life in federal prison. Basciano was initially serving his life sentence at the supermax prison ADX Florence, but has since been transferred to the nearby United States Penitentiary, Florence High in Florence, Colorado.
Vincent is currently incarcerated at USP Big Sandy.
Basciano is the cousin of indicted lawyer Stephen diCarmine who is on trial for a $250 million bond fraud while Executive Director of white shoe law firm Dewey & LeBoeuf.