Career
He was also brother-in-law to Kansas City crime boss Anthony Civella. Born in Brooklyn, New York, DeLuna rose through the ranks of the family to eventually become underboss and second-in-command to Nicholas Civella. A well-respected and trusted mobster, DeLuna maintained the family’s close ties with the Chicago Outfit, the Frank Balistrieri family in Milwaukee, and the Cleveland family during the mob infiltration of several Las Vegas casinos in the mid-1970s.
Artie Piscano (portrayed by Vinny Vella) in the film Casino was based in large part on Carl DeLuna.
In the film, Piscano dies of a heart attack during a Federal Bureau of Investigation (Federal Bureau of Investigation) raid on his home. In reality, DeLuna"s home was raided on February 14, 1979 and it was found that he kept extensive cryptic notes hidden in his basement which, together with wiretaps, connected all the dots the Federal Bureau of Investigation needed in linking the mob to illegal control of Las Vegas casinos.
DeLuna, though, was arrested, tried and sentenced to 30 years. DeLuna was released from prison in 1998 and died in Kansas City in 2008.
