Michele Miranda

Michele "Big Mike" Miranda (July 26, 1896 – July 16, 1973) was an Italian-American mobster who became a longtime member and later the consigliere of the Genovese crime family of New York City.

Early life Miranda was born in San Giuseppe Vesuviano, near Naples, and immigrated to the United States as a child in 1905, settling in New York City. In later years, his reported residence was in Forest Hills, Queens.

Criminal career Miranda became involved in crime as a teenager and was arrested in 1915 for petty theft and assault. During Prohibition, he was associated with Gaetano Lucchese and had ties to the Reina crime family. In the 1940s and 1950s, he was described in organized-crime reference works as a senior figure involved in gambling, loansharking, and labor racketeering, and he rose into the top ranks of the Genovese family.

Consigliere and Apalachin After Genovese consolidated power in 1957, Miranda served as the Genovese family consigliere, alongside underboss Gerardo Catena.

Genovese imprisoned; later arrests After Genovese was imprisoned on narcotics charges in 1959, Miranda was identified in reference works as part of a ruling panel that helped oversee the Genovese family's day-to-day operations.

Retirement and death Miranda retired from active involvement in family affairs in 1972 and died of natural causes in Boca Raton, Florida, on July 16, 1973.