Ercole DiMeo is believed to have become boss of the family in the s. The Sopranos were a key faction in the DiMeo Crime Family, Johnny Soprano was one of the most high profile capos of the family, with his brother Junior as his right-hand man.
They also had longstanding ties with the five New York Families particularly the Lupertazzi crime family , led by Carmine Lupertazzi. In , riots broke out in Newark after an African American taxi driver was randomly beaten up by cops. Johnny and Junior were arrested at an amusement park where they held meetings. Junior got off on bail, but Johnny was sentenced to 4 years in prison. In reality, he was killed by his son Dickie, who was angered about the way his father was treating his new wife Giuseppina Moltisanti.
In , when Johnny was released from prison, Harold McBrayer , an African-American gangster and former associate, began muscling in on the Newark numbers racket, which was controlled by Dickie, who was now a captain.
After Harold killed one of Dickie's men, Dickie and his crew broke into his car shop, and killed his cousin Cyril. As payback, Harold attacked Dickie, Johnny, and Buddha outside of their nightclub. Killing Buddha. Dickie and his crew then went on the lookout for Harold. Tension began boiling between Dickie and Junior, due to Dickie constantly undermining him, and Johnny comparing him to Dickie.
Eventually in the Christmas season of that year, Dickie was killed by an unknown hitman sent by Junior. During the s, many DiMeo crime family members and associates were arrested, causing the biggest blow to the family since its formation.
