The Mafia Commission – the mob’s ultimate authority – authorized the grisly May 5, 1981 slayings of three upstart Bonanno capos because they were hell bent on orchestrating their own bloody coup to wrest control from boss Philip (Rusty) Rastelli, Gang Land has learned.

The Commission, which had sanctioned the storied execution of cigar-chomping Carmine (Lilo) Galante only two years earlier (right), initially vetoed the hits with a “no bloodshed” edict. But Commission members reversed themselves after learning that the rebel capos were planning an all out assault against Rastelli, sources said.

“It was a kill-or-be-killed situation for the two factions,” said one law enforcement official. “And when you think about it, it’s really no surprise that the Commission (made up of Mafia bosses) came down on the side of the sitting boss. It just took us a while to find out.”

A few months after the killings, when the infiltration of the family by an FBI agent became known, the Bonannos would lose their seat on the mob ruling body, but in May 1981, the family was in good standing with the panel.

The new insight about the slayings comes from Salvatore Vitale, (left) a longtime family underboss who admits taking part in the rubouts. According to court documents, Vitale wielded a machine gun during the

slayings of Alphonse (Sonny Red) Indelicato, Philip (Philly Lucky) Giaccone and Dominick (Big Trin) Trinchera.

Vitale is the key prosecution witness against Joseph Massino, who is charged with the murders of the capos and four others from 1981 to 1987. He has told the feds that Massino, his brother-in-law, got Commission approval from then-Gambino boss Paul Castellano, according to court documents.

In an affidavit, assistant U.S. attorney Nicolas Bourtin said that Massino acted after he “became aware that Indelicato, Giaccone and Trinchera were preparing to obtain automatic weapons” to use during a planned uprising against Rastelli, who was in prison at the time. Massino got the Commission’s okay for him and other Rastelli loyalists to “defend themselves” – in reality, take the offensive before they were whacked.  

Massino moved quickly. He gained the support of the family’s Sicilian faction and decided to import several gunmen from Canada who “could leave soon after the murders,” wrote Bourtin in the affidavit, which was filed in Montreal against alleged shooter Vito Rizzuto, the reputed Mafia boss of Montreal. Rizzuto faces an extradition hearing next month.

The attack on the three would-be rebel capos took place after they were summoned to a sitdown to resolve their ongoing disputes. When they arrived, however, wrote Bourtin, four hitmen were hiding in a closet wearing ski masks. Vitale had a “tommy gun,” while an older New York wiseguy held a shotgun. Rizzuto and another imported

shooter had handguns. The plan called for Rizzuto to jump out and announce a “stickup” and for the shooting to begin when Sicilian capo Gerlando (George) Sciascia, (right) who was also packing a piece, ran his fingers through his hair. The closet door was ajar just enough for the killers in waiting to see Sciascia give the signal.

“This is a stickup,” shouted Rizzuto who launched the carnage by shooting Trinchera first, according to Vitale, who said he also saw Sciascia “shoot Indelicato in the head” after he went down. “Massino later told (Vitale) that he hit Giaccone to prevent him from leaving,” wrote Bourtin.

The shooters fled, leaving Vitale behind to escort the other capos out to a waiting car. Vitale then went back for double duty with a cleanup crew headed by Dominick (Sonny Black) Napolitano.

“The bodies of Indelicato, Giaccone and Trinchera were wrapped in painter’s drop clothes (sic) and placed in a van that was driven to Howard Beach,” wrote Bourtin.

Two other wiseguys at the bloody murder scene – including then-soldier Frank (Curly) Lino, who drove the doomed trio to their deaths and ran for his life when

the shooting started – are also poised to testify about that night, according to Bourtin’s affidavit.

Lino (left) began cooperating last year, as did a Massino ally who drove the car that spirited the capos away, according to the affidavit. The second wiseguy has told the feds that after his chauffeur’s role, he later put up Massino, Rizzuto and the second Canadian gunman, identified only as Emmanuel, at his apartment.

A fourth turncoat, wrote Bourtin, has told the feds that Massino implicated himself in the slayings by providing many details about it, including the fact “that Trinchera had kept coming at them even as they were shooting.”

Despite the prosecution’s seemingly overwhelming case, Massino, who was acquitted of conspiring to kill the three capos in 1987, is confident he’ll be vindicated again, says lawyer David Breitbart.

“Mr. Massino was acquitted of the captains’ murders once, so fundamental fairness dictates he should not have to stand trial for those charges again,” said Breitbart. “But if the judge rules against us, Joe will be found innocent again.” The other murders, said Breitbart, “are more of the same lies by Vitale and other cutthroat killers looking to save their asses by pointing fingers at the man the government has singled out.” 

A federal jury convicted acting Luchese boss Louis (Louie Bagels) Daidone of murder and loansharking quickly last week, but not without examining the government’s case closely. Very closely.

Before reaching their verdict, the only thing the jurors asked for was a magnifying glass. The reason, observers easily deduced, was that they were trying to spot the birdie – the canary that the government said Daidone had stuffed down murder victim (right) Bruno Facciola’s mouth when he killed him.

Former acting boss Alphonse (Little Al) D’Arco testified that he had instructed Daidone to place a canary in Facciola’s mouth as a message to others not to cooperate and that Daidone had told him he did as instructed after first killing a bird and preserving it in a freezer.

During closing arguments, prosecutors Karl Metzner and Diane Gujarati had told jurors that if they looked closely at the picture of the slain gangster that was introduced into evidence, they “could see something in there.”

Less than two hours after receiving the unremarkable magnifying glass – furnished by the prosecutors – the jury had obviously found what they were looking for and pronounced Daidone, 57, (left) guilty on all counts. He faces a mandatory life sentence. His lawyers say they will appeal.