Ominous Explanations Behind Infamous Mobsters' Nicknames Unfortunately Make A Lot Of Sense

Arguably the most infamous mobster of all time, Capone earned his iconic nickname while working as a bouncer at the Harvard Inn nightclub in New York City. After accidentally insulting the sister of Frank Galluccio, a local mobster, Galluccio slashed Capone with a knife three times on the left side of his face.

The "street boss" of the Gambino crime family from 2005 to 2011, D'Amico wasn't too big on his "Jackie Nose" moniker. According to mobster Michael DiLeonardo, D'Amico had undergone a rhinoplasty to fix his formerly oversized nose — and no one ever let him forget it.

The infamous Winter Hill crime boss is perhaps best known for evading law enforcement for 16 years before ultimately being captured in 2011. Bulger actually preferred being called "Jim," "Jimmy," or even "Boots" early on in his criminal career, though after local police dubbed him "Whitey" because of his blond hair, the nickname stuck.

This Chicago Outfit boss actually had two nicknames, each with very different origins. Accardo's "Joe Batters" moniker was allegedly gifted by Al Capone, who remarked he was "a real Joe Batters" after he beat three mobsters to death with a baseball bat; his "Big Tuna" nickname, on the other hand, was coined by the press, who photographed him holding a large tuna while on a fishing trip.

Also called "The Dapper Don" for his flamboyant style and big personality, Gotti earned his "Teflon" nickname after getting off scot-free during three separate high-profile criminal trials. While the proceedings were later revealed to have been tainted, it wasn't until his own underboss ratted on him that Gotti was ultimately convicted in 1992.

While he did have a pretty sizeable chin, Gigante's nickname came from his early career as a professional boxer and his ability to take a few good knocks. Later, in a bid to avoid prosecution, Gigante feigned insanity for 30 years and was dubbed "The Oddfather" by the media.

While only someone with a death wish would call him "Bugsy" to his face, Siegel was legendary for his unusual nickname. The moniker referred to the Las Vegas mobster's quick temper, with one associate calling him "crazy as a bedbug."

Despite being considered "the father of modern organized crime," no one knows for sure how Luciano earned his "Lucky" nickname. One theory posits that it was given to him after he survived an attempt on his life in 1929, another that it came about because of his gambling luck. Some even believe the name stemmed from a mispronunciation of "Luciano."

The boss of the Colombo crime family for nearly 50 years, Persico earned his nickname during the First Colombo War. After betraying the Gallo brothers and siding with crime boss Joe Profaci, the Gallos began referring to Persico as "The Snake."

Born Lester Joseph Gillis, "Baby Face Nelson" was called as such thanks to his most commonly used alias — "George Nelson" — as well as his youthful appearance. However, there was nothing innocent about this mobster: during his lifetime, he killed more FBI agents than any other criminal in history.

Testa's reign as boss of the Philadelphia crime family was short-lived, as just a year after taking control, he was blown to bits by a nail bomb hidden under his porch. So why'd they call him "The Chicken Man?" Well, he was also involved in the poultry business. Not exactly the most intimidating origin story.

Another mobster with a food-related nickname, Terranova was dubbed the "Artichoke King" thanks to his habit of purchasing artichokes from California and selling them in New York for three times the price. Unfortunately, during the 1930s, New York mayor Fiorello LaGuardia banned the sale of artichokes and effectively ended Terranova's operation.

Though his kill count has been disputed over the years, this infamous hitman once claimed to have murdered around 200 men, including Jimmy Hoffa. Kuklinski was known for his brutal killing methods, and he was nicknamed "The Iceman" by police after they discovered one of his victims frozen in ice.

"Gaspipe" seems like a pretty threatening nickname, though for Casso, it was actually passed down to him from his father, Michael. As for how the elder Casso got the name, there are two theories: one, that he used a gas pipe to threaten anti-union workers; or two, that he made extra money on the side by hooking up illegal gas connections.

This nickname might seem self-explanatory, but Lansky did much more for the mob than cook the books. In addition to establishing a massive gambling empire, Lansky also aided the U.S. government during WWII, helped develop modern Las Vegas and Cuba, and even blackmailed the FBI. Not bad for an "accountant."

As the "greaser" for the Chicago Outfit, Guzik was responsible for paying off politicians and law enforcement officials so that Al Capone could expand his criminal empire. Because of how often he carried out this job, Guzik was said to have had a "Greasy Thumb."

The former boss of the Patriarca crime family, Salemme originally worked in an auto body shop, though the reason he was given the "Cadillac Frank" moniker is often disputed. One theory holds that Salemme specialized in Cadillac repair during his auto body career, while another states that the former mechanic had a friend who worked at a Cadillac dealership and would purposely scratch the cars so Salemme could fix them.

Who says mobsters can't have a sense of humor? Lombardo earned his "Joey the Clown" nickname after a number of his bizarre mugshots were released to the press. He also apparently told jokes during his trial and even hid from reporters by wearing a mask made from newspapers.

When you're the boss of a group of contract killers known as "Murder, Inc.," there's a good chance you've whacked more than your fair share of people. Because of his ruthless and bloodthirsty ways, as well as the respect he garnered throughout the mob underworld, Anastasia was dubbed "Lord High Executioner."

The man responsible for putting John Gotti behind bars, "Sammy" Gravano earned his nickname at the age of 13 after taking on a group of thieves who had stolen his bicycle. Fighting against multiple attackers, Gravano managed to get his bike back, causing a local "made man" who had been watching the skirmish to remark that he fought "like a bull."

A member of the Lucchese crime family, Burke earned his "Gent" nickname thanks to the snappy clothes he wore and his habit of giving out generous tips. But along with being the inspiration behind Robert DeNiro's character Jimmy Conway in Goodfellas (1990), Burke was also responsible for one of the most infamous mafia heists in history.

With the help of Lufthansa airline employee Louis Werner, Burke and several Lucchese associates managed to rob $6 million in cash and jewelry from the Lufthansa cargo terminal at JFK airport. Ultimately, only Werner was captured; Burke escaped and later ordered the murders of the remaining heist members. But despite this being the largest cash robbery committed on American soil at the time, criminal masterminds were still thinking bigger.

In 1971, a man known only by the alias "D.B. Cooper" hijacked a Boeing 727 and stole $200,000 before leaping out the plane mid-flight. While he's thought to have descended somewhere between Portland and Seattle, the FBI was never able to track him down. Still, this case remains active at the Bureau to this day, with over 60 volumes of theories accumulating over the years.

As Iraq was adjusting to its post-Saddam era, over $6 billion of the US's war effort funds was stolen. What was most peculiar, however, was the fact that the American Special inspector general for Iraq reconstruction, Stuart Bowen, was unable to account for the missing funds. It's almost as if the money vanished into thin air.

Between 2010 and 2012, anonymous shell companies purchased mines in the Democratic Republic of Congo for a 16th of their actual price, only to resell them at full value. As a result of siphoning off money that should have gone to the state, the DRC lost at least US$1.36 billion in revenue from these deals. That was nearly double the country's annual health and education budget at the time!

While many presidents enter office with the goal of building their nation's future, former Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos was not one of those leaders. Through a combination of bribes, government loans, embezzlement, and direct theft, Marcos stole between US$5 billion and US$10 billion in state funds. After being toppled by widespread protests, Marcos fled and died in Hawaii in 1989. So far, $4 billion has been recovered.

In 1963, 15 bandits climbed aboard a post office train that was transporting money. The crew managed to pull off the heist without the use of a single gun, stealing over £2.3 million — the equivalent of £40 million today! While the heist was a success, the crew inadvertently left fingerprints on the cash, and were eventually caught during a game on monopoly!

In 2010, a group of French cat burglars used a sophisticated network of underground tunnels to empty out over 200 safety deposit boxes at a Parisian bank. Not only did they escape capture, but these ingenious thieves also made sure to clean out those boxes that were managed confidentially by their owners, meaning that there was no record of what contents they actually managed to steal.

As everyone in Boston was celebrating St. Patrick's Day in 1990, two thieves in Boston Police uniforms entered the museum and stole 13 pieces of art, including one Rembrandt and a few Degas. Ultimately, $500 million worth of paintings were taken. Until this day, empty frames hang in the museum as tribute to the missing artworks.

You might be surprised to learn that even this multinational electronics and electrical engineering company has gotten its hands dirty on occasion. In fact, Siemens has been found guilty of paying millions of dollars in bribes to at least a dozen countries. This resulted in the company being compelled to fork over $1.6 billion — the largest corporate fine for foreign bribery in history!

The feared dictator of Iraq for more than two decades, Saddam Hussein was a man who always got what he wanted while in power. In fact, all it took was the delivery of a handwritten note to the bank to convince the bank governor to hand over US$920 million and €90 million in cash. No armed robbery was necessary.

In Sweden, a gang of robbers landed a helicopter on top of a cash depot building in 2009. After breaking into the building with sledgehammers, the robbers blew through the doors and took as much as they could before the police arrived. These cunning crooks also made sure to leave caltrops on the road, thereby slowing down any police en route to the crime scene.

Prior to losing power in 1986, the former Haitian president stole the equivalent of 1.7% to 4.5% of Haiti's GDP every year he was in office. This abuse of power severely crippled the impoverished nation, with the search for the stolen funds still ongoing.

This Russian hacker is notorious for creating a deadly malicious software called SpyEye. Using this software, Panin was able to steal bank account info, credit cards numbers, and passwords from over 1.4 million computers! It is believed that he has stolen hundreds of billions of dollars as a result.

Using his investment firm, Bernie Madoff would approach new investors with the promise of providing them high returns for their investments. These new funds would then be used to pay off older investors, while Madoff would keep some earnings for himself. It was only during the 2008 economic crash that investors came looking to reclaim their capital that Madoff's scheme collapsed. In total, he stole $65 billion.

On May 2, 1990, John Goddard was walking down a street in London when he was threatened at knifepoint. Little did the mugger know that the briefcase that he was about to pry out of John's hands contained £292 million in bonds! In an eery twist of fate, the thief was found and shot dead a while later.

In 1997, Allen Pace (safety inspector for the Dunbar Armored Trucking Company) and his crew entered the Dunbar facility in Los Angeles, assaulted two guards, and then nabbed $18.9 million. They loaded the cash into a U-Haul and sped off. They would've gotten away with it if one robber hadn't lent cash to a friend without removing the cash strap.

When subsidiaries of Shell and ENI paid the Nigerian government $1.1 billion for an offshore block of oil reserves, Nigeria transferred the same amount to a shell company called Malabu Oil & Gas. Dan Etete, the owner of the company, then awarded the oil block to himself when he became Nigeria's minister of petroleum. Only after years of legal battles did Shell and ENI receive what was rightfully theirs.

Valerio Vicce, wanted for more than 50 robberies in Italy, walked into a London bank in 1987 and asked to rent a safety deposit box. Once inside, he and his assistant pulled out guns, put a closed sign outside the bank, and emptied out as many boxes as possible. They made off with $97 million, and Vicce then fled to South America, where he splashed his earnings.

Dubbed the "Heist of the Century," Leonardo Notarbartolo lived beside the Antwerp diamond center for three years as he planned the heist. Posing as an Italian diamond merchant to build credibility, he and his crew emptied out 123 deposit boxes, stealing $20 million worth of gold, diamonds, and jewelry. Ultimately, Notarbartolo was the only member of the crew to ever be caught.