What happened to John Stanfa now? Philadelphia Mob boss whereabouts explored

The infamous mafia boss, John Stanfa, is the subject of a new docuseries by Netflix titled Mob War: Philadelphia vs. The Mafia. Stanfa, who was born in Sicily, Italy, headed the Philadelphia mafia from 1990 onwards and was engaged in a war with his subordinate, Joey Merlino.

John Stanfa is currently incarcerated at the Federal Medical Center in Ayer, Massachusetts. As per Esquire, Stanfa was federally indicted on charges such as murder, conspiracy to commit murder, extortion and loansharking in March 1994. Despite the murder of one of the witnesses against Stanfa, the crime boss was convicted on 33 out of the 35 charges brought against him.

One of the main witnesses against Stanfa was one of his own men, an enforcer and hitman named John Veasey, as per The Cinemaholic. Veasey admitted that he was ordered to carry out several crimes by Stanfa, in addition to providing other insights into Stanfa’s crime syndicate’s business dealings, which helped prosecutors, according to the media outlet.

By 1995, Stanfa was convicted by a jury of murder and racketeering as well as illegal gambling, extortion and obstruction of justice, according to United Press International.

In 1996, Stanfa was sentenced to life in prison after he was given five life sentences without the possibility of parole, reports The Cinemaholic. He is currently 84 years of age.

A brutal mob war between John Stanfa and Joey Merlino plunges '90s Philadelphia into chaos and bloodshed in this captivating true-crime series.

True-crime docuseries #MobWar: #PhiladelphiaVsTheMafia S1 (2025), now streaming on @NetflixIndia. pic.twitter.com/cm7Djt4Xzx

— CinemaRare (@CinemaRareIN) October 22, 2025

It was John Stanfa’s feud with mobster Joey Merlino that eventually contributed to his downfall

After John Stanfa took over as the head of the Philadelphia mafia in 1990, Joey Merlino became the head of another crime group operating against Stanfa, as per law enforcement authorities, reported United Press International.

Merlino and the ‘Young Turks,’ as his group was known, were involved in plots to dethrone Stanfa as the head of the Philadelphia mob with another mobster named Ralph Natale, as per Esquire. According to the news outlet, Stanfa first attempted to bring Merlino into his own crime organization, but soon a full-scale mob war erupted between the two rival factions.

The mob war resulted in public, open violence in the city at the time. As per United Press International, authorities claim that a mob hit was ordered by Stanfa against Merlino and Michael Ciancaglini, an associate of the challenger. While Merlino was shot in his buttocks, he managed to survive even as Ciancaglini was fatally wounded.

In the string of violent incidents that followed, Merlino allegedly responded to the incident by ordering another hit against Stanfa, according to law enforcement. According to United Press International, Stanfa escaped a shooting aimed at his car, but his son Joseph was severely injured and was shot in the head.

The news outlet adds that a hit was ordered by Stanfa against Merlino’s friend, Frank Baldino, who was shot at outside the Melrose Diner.

Just before Stanfa was arrested and charged, Merlino was taken into custody by the FBI for violating the terms of a release from a previous prison sentence. According to Distractify, Merlino was eventually released and became a famed figure. His associate, Ralph Natale, became the head of the Philadelphia mob, but he was suspected of being a stand-in for Merlino, notes the news outlet.

However, Natale later led to Merlino’s arrest and conviction after he became an informant. As per Distractify, Merlino was released from jail in 2011 after serving 14 years. He now runs a podcast in addition to owning a restaurant.