On this day in 1908 the underboss to Philip Testa in the Philadelphia Crime Family was born. Peter Casella was a prime suspect in the eventual death of Testa as he planned to takeover the family with assistance from Frank Narducci and Rocco Marinucci.

Testa was blown up in a nail bomb that was planted at the front porch of his house in 1981.

The Porch of Phil Testa

Casella was only made underboss by Testa in 1980, and soon after his death claimed the he was the new boss of the Philadelphia Crime Family, and had been granted the approval from the five families in New York. However, not everyone believed Casella’s story including Nicodemo Scarfo who took it upon himself to travel to New York to find out what was going on…he found that Casella had been lying.

A this point in time Casella escaped from Philadelphia because he was the main suspect behind the hit on his boss, due to his knowledge and expertise in creating bombs. He left behind Marinucci and Narducci who were both killed in 1982 allegedly by Testa’s son, Salvatore Testa.

Casella remained in Florida despite being marked for death by the mob, and he eventually died at the age of 76 through natural causes.

On this day in 1908, Peter Casella was born, a man who would rise through the ranks of the Philadelphia Crime Family to become one of its most notorious and treacherous figures. Operating in a city with deep ties to the American underworld — a city that had long maintained crucial relationships with the New York Five Families and the broader national crime syndicate — Casella would ultimately be remembered not for his loyalty, but for his spectacular act of betrayal.

Casella's ascent within the Philadelphia organisation was steady if unremarkable, until 1980 when boss Philip Testa elevated him to the position of underboss. It was a decision that would cost Testa his life. On 15th March 1981, Testa was killed by a nail bomb planted beneath the front porch of his South Philadelphia home — a brutal and calculated murder that bore the hallmarks of insider knowledge. Investigators and mob figures alike quickly turned their suspicions toward Casella, who was known to possess considerable expertise in explosives. He had allegedly orchestrated the hit in collaboration with fellow conspirators Frank Narducci and Rocco Marinucci, both of whom shared ambitions of reshaping the Philadelphia family's power structure.

With Testa barely cold in the ground, Casella made his boldest move, declaring himself the new boss of the Philadelphia Crime Family and claiming he had secured the blessing of the New York Five Families. It was a brazen lie, and one that would unravel swiftly. Nicodemo "Little Nicky" Scarfo, a fierce and ruthless figure who had his own designs on the Philadelphia throne, refused to accept Casella's version of events and personally travelled to New York to verify the claim. He found no such approval had been granted, exposing Casella as both a murderer and a fraudster within the world of organised crime.

Recognising that his life was now forfeit, Casella fled Philadelphia before retribution could find him. He left behind Narducci and Marinucci, who were not so fortunate — both men were killed in 1982, their deaths widely attributed to Salvatore Testa, the slain boss's son, who was settling scores on behalf of his father's memory. Casella, meanwhile, retreated to Florida, where he lived out his remaining years under the shadow of a mob death sentence that was never carried out. He died of natural causes at the age of 76, having outlasted many of his enemies.

His story remains a cautionary tale about the consequences of ambition unchecked by loyalty — the very currency upon which organised crime depends.