Bonanno crime family mobster turned rat Joseph Galante Jr. has been sentenced to 10 years behind bars for his role in a New York mob murder.
Galante was part of the violent Queens-based mafia crew known as the Giannini Crew. In 1991, he helped get rid of the body of Thomas Sanjane a cocaine rip-off victim that had his throat cut. He hoped the service he provided Team America after flipping against his New York mafia pals would be enough to get him a pass.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Shreve Ariail said “The defendant committed one of the most heinous crimes you can conceive of committing,” when addresses Federal Judge Nicholas Garaufis. But the judge noted the extraordinary length of time Galante served the feds as an informant and the fact that he secured recordings of mobsters from several of New York’s Cosa Nostra families. It was because of that service that he was given a break and sentenced to only 10 years, even though he was facing 30 years to life under the sentencing guidelines.
Galante addressed the court saying “I want to apologize to the victim’s family. It’s haunted me for the last 25 years.”
