The Council

Who is The Council?

The Council was a drug and crime syndicate in New York City created by Harlem gangster Nicky Barnes in the 1970s. The seven man organization was modeled after the Italian mob families. The Council settled disputes, handled distribution problems and other drug related issues. It was connected to the Lucchese crime family through family member Matthew Madonna who supplied the group with raw heroin which was then diluted and distributed, in New York State but also Pennsylvania, Canada and as far west as Arizona. Barnes was sentenced to life imprisonment in 1978 and in 1982 he became a federal informant. His testimony led to the dissolution of The Council in the mid-1980s.