Hijacking was extremely important to mob families. Many bosses were deeply engaged in the racket in the sense that they had key men in their borgatas, associates, soldiers, and capos also, who ran hijack crews. But most of the top bosses were never hijackers themselves.

Carlo Gambino, Joe N. Gallo, , Tommy Lucchese, Joe Profaci, Joe Magliocco, and later Joe Colombo, Joe Bonanno, Vito Genovese, Frank Tieri, Sam DeCavalcante, etc., never did that sort of thing....They earned off it.

Even most of the top capos were not hijackers per se. John Ormento, Joe Laratro, Joe Lucchese, Joe Rosato, Paul Castellano, Mike Adamo, Paul Sciacca, etc.., may have run hijack crews. A few may have even gone on hijackings themselves a few times as young guys, but by and large they only earned off it through crew members drawn to that sort of thing.

There are exceptions to every rule, but most went they way I just described.