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Three: John Gotti

John Gotti

Gotti loved the spotlight, maybe a little too much.

Known as the "Teflon Don" or "The Dapper Don," Gotti took over as the head of the Gambino crime family in New York City following the demise of boss Paul Castellano in 1985; Castellano was believed to have been killed by Gotti and his men. A public figure that often got in scrapes with the law, Gotti bribed jurors and used police informants to stay one step ahead, thus earning his "Teflon" nickname; nevertheless, he served brief prison stints throughout his career for crimes including hijacking, larceny and burglary.

The law eventually caught up with Gotti, when he was charged with life in prison without parole in 1992 for racketeering, 13 murders, tax evasion, loan-sharking, gambling and other offenses. Gotti died of throat cancer in 2002 in a prison medical facility.