 Valachi was born on September 22, 1904, in the East Harlem area of New York City, United States, into an impoverished Italian immigrant family from the region of Campania.His father was a violent alcoholic, and Valachi would later blame his background for his turn to organized crime.Valachi's criminal career began with a small gang, known as the Minutemen, which was so called for carrying out smash and grab burglaries and escaping within a minute.