Stefano Badami (December 10, 1888 – March 31, 1955) was an Italian-American organized crime leader who operated as the initial boss of the Elizabeth-based Mafia faction in New Jersey during the early to mid-20th century.^]Born in Corleone, Sicily, to Francesco Badami and Calogera di Giovanni, he immigrated to the United States and rose within criminal networks centered in Elizabeth and Newark, where he managed rackets including garment manufacturing fronts while overseeing a group of Sicilian Mafiosi. His tenure in the 1920s and 1930s involved consolidating a loose organization of mobsters into a more structured entity, establishing ties with New York’s Five Families as well as outfits in Philadelphia and Chicago to expand influence in the Garden State underworld ^]Badami’s rule, however, fueled factional strife between Elizabeth and Newark elements, contributing to a disruptive “civil war” in New Jersey organized crime that persisted until his assassination by multiple stab wounds at Vito’s Clam Bar in Newark, an event that quelled the immediate violence and paved the way for successors like Simone Rizzo DeCavalcante. While mainstream mob histories credit him as the progenitor of what evolved into the DeCavalcante crime family, some accounts question the extent of his formal authority, attributing his prominence partly to post-mortem narratives amid the opaque power dynamics of pre-Castellammarese War era factions.

On March 31, 1955, Stefano Badami, aged 66 and residing at 335 Academy Street in South Orange, New Jersey, was stabbed 39 times to death at Vito’s Clam Bar, located at 372 15th Avenue in Newark. The attack took place during a period of intensifying internal rivalries within the Elizabeth crime family, where Badami had maintained control over gambling, extortion, and other rackets despite earlier challenges to his authority.The murder stemmed from a power struggle among faction leaders vying for dominance after Badami’s long tenure, exacerbated by expansions into Newark territories previously contested under figures like Gaspare D’Amico. Contemporary accounts described the scene as a brutal ambush in the clam house, with Badami, publicly known as a dress manufacturer, targeted by associates disillusioned with his leadership amid shifting alliances in New Jersey organized crime. No arrests were made, though underworld sources alleged involvement by Frank Monaco, brother of Badami’s underboss Sam Monaco, in the stabbing. The incident highlighted vulnerabilities in the family’s structure, contributing to its eventual reorganization under new bosses.