The Irish Gang So Violent Even The Mafia Feared Them
Mobs History
467,110 views
Before Hell’s Kitchen became luxury apartments and trendy restaurants, it belonged to the Westies—an Irish mob so brutal that the Gambino crime family subcontracted murders to them. Bodies weren’t just killed. They were dismembered, piece by piece, and scattered across the Hudson River.
In This Documentary You’ll Discover:
• How Jimmy Coonan seized control of Hell’s Kitchen after Mickey Spillane’s execution-style murder in 1977
• The partnership between the Westies and Gambino boss Paul Castellano that gave them protection and power
• The dismemberment method perfected by Roy DeMeo and adopted by the Westies to make bodies vanish completely
• Mickey Featherstone’s wrongful murder conviction and his devastating revenge as an FBI informant
• The sophisticated criminal enterprise behind the violence: labor racketeering, loan sharking, and millions in illegal profits
• How one betrayal destroyed twenty years of criminal operations and sent leaders to prison for life
Key Figures:
Jimmy Coonan – Westies boss, currently serving 75 years (release date: 2030)
Mickey Featherstone – Vietnam veteran turned enforcer turned FBI witness (now in witness protection)
Kevin Kelly – Enforcer serving 50 years without parole
Edna Coonan – Jimmy’s wife who served 15 years for racketeering
Paul Castellano – Gambino boss who partnered with the Westies
Roy DeMeo – Gambino killer who taught the Westies the art of dismemberment
Timeline: 1960s-1988 (Height of power: 1977-1986)
Why This Story Matters:
The Westies represented the last major Irish mob operation in New York City. Their fall marked the end of an era stretching back to the 1800s. Their story proves that violence without loyalty is temporary, and fear without structure always collapses. One cooperating witness—Mickey Featherstone—destroyed an entire criminal organization. His testimony didn’t just take down the Westies. It helped prosecute the Gambino family and exposed the underbelly of organized crime in 1980s New York.
Sources:
• “The Westies: Inside New York’s Irish Mob” by T.J. English (1990)
• Federal court records: United States v. Coonan (1988)
• “In 1980s New York, the Mob had its hands in everything” - The Mob Museum
This is MOBS HISTORY—where we uncover the untold stories of organized crime with deep research, insider details, and unflinching truth.
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#TheWesties #IrishMob #HellsKitchen #JimmyCoonan #MickeyFeatherstone #GambinoFamily #NYCMafia #MobDocumentary #CrimeHistory #TrueCrimeDocumentary #MafiaStories #GangHistory #MafiaHistory #OrganizedCrime #TrueCrime #mafiadocumentary
20 Comments
Coonan meekly said that he didn't know what happened to Stein and if he was missing then something must have happened to him on the way or something.
They didn't take that for an answer, and the issue dogged Coonan and The Westies with the larger Italian MAFIA because they have rules.
If you owe a legitimate debt, you pay like a gentleman or make suitable arrangements. You can't just eliminate others without good reason or permission of the higher ups. If not for rules about such things, chaos on the streets would abound.
That act would sour the standing of the Irish outfit with the MAFIA.
The Irish Gang So Violent Even The Mafia Feared Them
Mobs History
467,110 views
Before Hell’s Kitchen became luxury apartments and trendy restaurants, it belonged to the Westies—an Irish mob so brutal that the Gambino crime family subcontracted murders to them. Bodies weren’t just killed. They were dismembered, piece by piece, and scattered across the Hudson River.
In This Documentary You’ll Discover:
• How Jimmy Coonan seized control of Hell’s Kitchen after Mickey Spillane’s execution-style murder in 1977
• The partnership between the Westies and Gambino boss Paul Castellano that gave them protection and power
• The dismemberment method perfected by Roy DeMeo and adopted by the Westies to make bodies vanish completely
• Mickey Featherstone’s wrongful murder conviction and his devastating revenge as an FBI informant
• The sophisticated criminal enterprise behind the violence: labor racketeering, loan sharking, and millions in illegal profits
• How one betrayal destroyed twenty years of criminal operations and sent leaders to prison for life
Key Figures:
Jimmy Coonan – Westies boss, currently serving 75 years (release date: 2030)
Mickey Featherstone – Vietnam veteran turned enforcer turned FBI witness (now in witness protection)
Kevin Kelly – Enforcer serving 50 years without parole
Edna Coonan – Jimmy’s wife who served 15 years for racketeering
Paul Castellano – Gambino boss who partnered with the Westies
Roy DeMeo – Gambino killer who taught the Westies the art of dismemberment
Timeline: 1960s-1988 (Height of power: 1977-1986)
Why This Story Matters:
The Westies represented the last major Irish mob operation in New York City. Their fall marked the end of an era stretching back to the 1800s. Their story proves that violence without loyalty is temporary, and fear without structure always collapses. One cooperating witness—Mickey Featherstone—destroyed an entire criminal organization. His testimony didn’t just take down the Westies. It helped prosecute the Gambino family and exposed the underbelly of organized crime in 1980s New York.
Sources:
• “The Westies: Inside New York’s Irish Mob” by T.J. English (1990)
• Federal court records: United States v. Coonan (1988)
• “In 1980s New York, the Mob had its hands in everything” - The Mob Museum
This is MOBS HISTORY—where we uncover the untold stories of organized crime with deep research, insider details, and unflinching truth.
🔔 SUBSCRIBE for weekly mob documentaries
💬 COMMENT below: What mob story should we cover next?
#TheWesties #IrishMob #HellsKitchen #JimmyCoonan #MickeyFeatherstone #GambinoFamily #NYCMafia #MobDocumentary #CrimeHistory #TrueCrimeDocumentary #MafiaStories #GangHistory #MafiaHistory #OrganizedCrime #TrueCrime #mafiadocumentary