Uploaded May 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
🍾 Join Me In Celebrating My 75th Birthday, Sign up for this free event here!: celebrate.michaelfranzese.com
🍷 Have you tried my wine yet?: yt.franzesewine.com
💪🏼 Join Franzese Family: michaelfranzese.com/family
I sat down with Greg Scarpa Jr. last week, and he told me a story I almost couldn’t believe. Now I’m sitting down with a second man who lived it from the other side, and he’s corroborating every word. Frankie Steele was a Colombo associate during the Persico-Orena War. He was 21 years old in the safe houses, in the wired cars, in the murder trials that put him away for over a decade. He’ll tell you exactly how the war started, how an FBI agent named Lin DeVecchio fed Greg Scarpa Sr. the addresses of the men they were trying to kill, why every trial after his ended in acquittal, and why my friend Michael Sessa is still rotting in a prison cell 34 years later for a murder he didn’t commit. This is the puzzle nobody could finish telling — until now. Two of the three living men who know the whole story are sitting in front of you. Listen to what they have to say.
Former Mob Boss and a Colombo Soldier: Expose the Truth Behind the Last Mob War
🤝 Book 1 on 1 Call With Me: michaelfranzese.com/book-1-on-1-call
🔥 Check out my store: store.michaelfranzese.com
🎙️ Michael Franzese Podcast on Spotify: spoti.fi/3Eo39qb
📧 Interested in partnerships? partnerships@michaelfranzese.com
00:00:00 - Introduction: The Puzzle 34 Years in Making
00:06:38 - Sitting Down With Frankie Steele
00:07:51 - Why Michael Sessa Is Still in Prison
00:08:40 - The 48 Jurors Who Acquitted Everyone Else
00:10:14 - The Prosecutor Clique
00:10:38 - "I Don't Want to Be Found Hanging in My Garage"
00:11:58 - How the Colombo War Really Started
00:13:25 - The Hit That Walked Jimmy Angelina to His Death
00:15:54 - Carmine Sessa Becomes Consigliere
00:16:50 - "You're Gonna Get Killed"
00:17:10 - The Night It All Changed
00:18:36 - The Burning of the Car
00:19:24 - The Choice: Dead or Life in Prison
00:20:01 - The Two Factions Form
00:22:55 - The Crew That Dominated the War
00:25:29 - "This Was Not 'The Godfather'"
00:26:53 - Why Greg Knew Where Everyone Was Hiding
00:28:02 - The FBI Agent Who Became an Accomplice
00:30:43 - The Murder Michael Didn't Commit
00:32:00 - The Hot Dog Guy Who Disrespected His Mother
00:33:50 - The Wired Car That Caught Everyone
00:36:11 - Michael Self-Surrenders Without Knowing
00:37:23 - The Indictment Was Written to Hide the Truth
00:39:17 - DeVecchio Lies Under Oath - pulled from every trial
00:43:01 - "Everyone in the Eastern District Knew"
00:43:53 - The Daily News Article That Almost Got Out
00:46:01 - The Three Trials That Acquitted Everyone
00:48:16 - Level 43: Life Until Death
00:49:19 - The Hit Set Up by an FBI Agent
00:51:30 - Inside the Judge's Chambers
00:54:00 - The Judge Who Knew Too Much
00:57:00 - The Appeal That Wasn't Answered for Seven Years
00:59:09 - Nikki DeCarlo Slips Him a Note
01:00:10 - "Don't Let Anyone Fly TWA"
01:00:33 - The Wild Lewisburg Operation
01:01:42 - Three Years in the Hole
01:02:48 - Four Months on the Jet Fuel Therapy Plane
01:04:01 - Arriving at Terminal Island
01:04:37 - Why They Wouldn't Make Greg Jr. Credible
01:05:30 - "Michael Is the Only One Left"
01:06:35 - The Sacrifice Michael's Daughter Lost Family For
01:07:43 - "He's the Only FBI Agent Ever Charged With Murder"
01:09:00 - The Coverup That Won't Die
01:10:51 - The Killer Who Did Four Months
01:12:20 - Why the Government Can't Let Him Out
01:13:23 - Surrounded by the ABs
01:14:09 - Frankie had Michael Franzese's bag
01:17:05 - The TV Series Locked in a Closet Since 1998
01:19:16 - Why Frankie Is Doing This Now
Backbone Media Group
🍾 Join Me In Celebrating My 75th Birthday, Sign up for this free event here!: celebrate.michaelfranzese.com
🍷 Have you tried my wine yet?: yt.franzesewine.com
💪🏼 Join Franzese Family: michaelfranzese.com/family
I sat down with Greg Scarpa Jr. last week, and he told me a story I almost couldn’t believe. Now I’m sitting down with a second man who lived it from the other side, and he’s corroborating every word. Frankie Steele was a Colombo associate during the Persico-Orena War. He was 21 years old in the safe houses, in the wired cars, in the murder trials that put him away for over a decade. He’ll tell you exactly how the war started, how an FBI agent named Lin DeVecchio fed Greg Scarpa Sr. the addresses of the men they were trying to kill, why every trial after his ended in acquittal, and why my friend Michael Sessa is still rotting in a prison cell 34 years later for a murder he didn’t commit. This is the puzzle nobody could finish telling — until now. Two of the three living men who know the whole story are sitting in front of you. Listen to what they have to say.
Former Mob Boss and a Colombo Soldier: Expose the Truth Behind the Last Mob War
🤝 Book 1 on 1 Call With Me: michaelfranzese.com/book-1-on-1-call
🔥 Check out my store: store.michaelfranzese.com
🎙️ Michael Franzese Podcast on Spotify: spoti.fi/3Eo39qb
📧 Interested in partnerships? partnerships@michaelfranzese.com
00:00:00 - Introduction: The Puzzle 34 Years in Making
00:06:38 - Sitting Down With Frankie Steele
00:07:51 - Why Michael Sessa Is Still in Prison
00:08:40 - The 48 Jurors Who Acquitted Everyone Else
00:10:14 - The Prosecutor Clique
00:10:38 - "I Don't Want to Be Found Hanging in My Garage"
00:11:58 - How the Colombo War Really Started
00:13:25 - The Hit That Walked Jimmy Angelina to His Death
00:15:54 - Carmine Sessa Becomes Consigliere
00:16:50 - "You're Gonna Get Killed"
00:17:10 - The Night It All Changed
00:18:36 - The Burning of the Car
00:19:24 - The Choice: Dead or Life in Prison
00:20:01 - The Two Factions Form
00:22:55 - The Crew That Dominated the War
00:25:29 - "This Was Not 'The Godfather'"
00:26:53 - Why Greg Knew Where Everyone Was Hiding
00:28:02 - The FBI Agent Who Became an Accomplice
00:30:43 - The Murder Michael Didn't Commit
00:32:00 - The Hot Dog Guy Who Disrespected His Mother
00:33:50 - The Wired Car That Caught Everyone
00:36:11 - Michael Self-Surrenders Without Knowing
00:37:23 - The Indictment Was Written to Hide the Truth
00:39:17 - DeVecchio Lies Under Oath - pulled from every trial
00:43:01 - "Everyone in the Eastern District Knew"
00:43:53 - The Daily News Article That Almost Got Out
00:46:01 - The Three Trials That Acquitted Everyone
00:48:16 - Level 43: Life Until Death
00:49:19 - The Hit Set Up by an FBI Agent
00:51:30 - Inside the Judge's Chambers
00:54:00 - The Judge Who Knew Too Much
00:57:00 - The Appeal That Wasn't Answered for Seven Years
00:59:09 - Nikki DeCarlo Slips Him a Note
01:00:10 - "Don't Let Anyone Fly TWA"
01:00:33 - The Wild Lewisburg Operation
01:01:42 - Three Years in the Hole
01:02:48 - Four Months on the Jet Fuel Therapy Plane
01:04:01 - Arriving at Terminal Island
01:04:37 - Why They Wouldn't Make Greg Jr. Credible
01:05:30 - "Michael Is the Only One Left"
01:06:35 - The Sacrifice Michael's Daughter Lost Family For
01:07:43 - "He's the Only FBI Agent Ever Charged With Murder"
01:09:00 - The Coverup That Won't Die
01:10:51 - The Killer Who Did Four Months
01:12:20 - Why the Government Can't Let Him Out
01:13:23 - Surrounded by the ABs
01:14:09 - Frankie had Michael Franzese's bag
01:17:05 - The TV Series Locked in a Closet Since 1998
01:19:16 - Why Frankie Is Doing This Now
Backbone Media Group
