20 Men Give Reputed Godfather Christmas Kiss in Federal Court

A line of men in leather jackets and trench coats strolled up the aisle in the Brooklyn federal courthouse Tuesday to give reputed Gambino godfather John Gotti his Christmas kiss.

More than 20 apparent followers of the man on trial for running the powerful crime family kissed Gotti on his cheek and shook his hand.

The government, meanwhile, provided the counterpoint to the scene by playing a tape recording of a bartender being told he had better pay on a loan or else.

The bartender for the Georgetown Inn in Queens had allegedly borrowed money from the Gambino loan-sharking operation, and Ralph Davino, who the government said was a street thug for defendant Nicholas Corozzo, told the bartender how the transaction would be settled.

“You’re going to have no more problems, because someone’s going to hurt you. If it ain’t me, it may be the next guy,” Davino said on the tape.

1,000 Pages of Transcripts

The conversation came from tapes taken from a recorder hidden in the bartender’s vest in April, 1982. It was the latest of more than 1,000 pages of transcripts from recordings of Gotti’s alleged loan-sharking and gambling activities.

Gotti and six co-defendants sat calmly in the 18th week of the trial of the leadership of the Gambino family, called by authorities the nation’s most powerful crime family. All face racketeering charges.