How a small-time mob associate became the most famous informant in American history
In short: Henry Hill spent decades as a Lucchese crime family associate, participating in everything from arson to the historic Lufthansa heist. When his own crew marked him for death, he turned FBI informant. His testimony dismantled a criminal empire, inspired the film Goodfellas, and forever changed the American mob narrative.
Born in 1943 to a Sicilian mother and Irish father, Henry Hill grew up in Brooklyn, where he was drawn to the local mobsters at a nearby cabstand. By age 13, he was running errands for Lucchese caporegime Paul Vario and notorious hijacker James "Jimmy the Gent" Burke. Because of his Irish ancestry, Hill could never become a "made man," but he proved his value through his willingness to commit crimes and his refusal to cooperate with authorities, even after his first arrest at age 16.
Hill’s criminal career escalated through the 1960s and 1970s, involving arson, an organized stolen car ring, and high-stakes robberies. In 1967, he and Tommy DeSimone pulled off an Air France cargo terminal heist, netting $420,000. Later, in 1978, he was connected to the massive Lufthansa cargo terminal robbery, which saw $5.875 million stolen. His life of crime eventually intersected with brutal violence, including the murder of William "Billy Batts" Bentvena, whose body was disposed of in a car crusher.
By 1980, Hill’s drug trafficking and his associates' fears that he would implicate them in the Lufthansa heist led to a contract on his life. Facing a long prison sentence, he signed an agreement with the Brooklyn Organized Crime Strike Force on May 27, 1980. His testimony led to 50 convictions, including those of Vario and Burke. While he entered the Witness Protection Program, his life remained turbulent, marked by subsequent arrests for drug trafficking, public intoxication, and a divorce from his wife, Karen.
Hill’s legacy was cemented by Nicholas Pileggi’s 1985 book Wiseguy, which served as the basis for the 1990 film Goodfellas. While the film brought him fame, Hill struggled with personal demons, including alcoholism, until his death in 2012. His story remains a defining account of the internal mechanics of the New York Mafia, illustrating the thin line between the mob’s "outwardly impressive lifestyle" and the inevitable betrayal that followed.
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- Summary by Intellect · source: Henry Hill
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