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“Big Ang” redirects here. For the TV series, see Big Ang (TV series).

Angela Joyce “Big Ang” Raiola (June 30, 1960 – February 18, 2016) was an American reality television personality. She was the niece of Salvatore “Sally Dogs” Lombardi (1941–2009), a caporegime (“capo”) and drug dealer in the Genovese crime family. Raiola dated gangsters and lived an opulent lifestyle.

Raiola starred in the VH1 reality television series Mob Wives from its second to sixth and final season in 2016. She was featured in her own spin-off series Big Ang in 2012 and Miami Monkey in 2013. At age 55, Raiola died from complications of lung cancer and pneumonia on February 18, 2016.

Life and career

Raiola was born in Brooklyn, New York.[1] She had two children, Raquel and Anthony (AJ) Donofrio.[2] She married Neil Murphy in 2009.[citation needed]

2001 arrest

In May 2001, Raiola was one of fifteen defendants indicted—and later convicted—for their roles in a narcotics operation, which distributed crack cocaine, powdered cocaine, and marijuana in Brooklyn and Manhattan. Federal agents described Raiola as an associate of the drug ring’s leader, who was sentenced to nearly thirteen years in prison. She was provided cocaine for “street level distribution,” according to an affidavit sworn by a DEA agent and an NYPD detective.[3] Raiola sold the drug from Brooklyn bars where she worked. The case against Raiola and her codefendants was built with the aid of wiretapped conversations, the work of an undercover NYPD detective posing as a drug trafficker, and a confidential informant (CI) who made cocaine buys at the direction of federal agents. Some targets of the federal investigation were low-level associates of the Colombo crime family.[3] Raiola was indicted in May 2001 on six felony counts. Along with a conspiracy-to-distribute charge, she was hit with five counts related to separate cocaine sales she made to the CI. At the time of her arrest, Raiola’s handbag contained fourteen small plastic bags containing cocaine.[3]

In March 2003, nearly two years after her arrest, Raiola—who was free on $100,000 bond—pleaded guilty to the indictment’s top count. In October 2003, she was sentenced to three years’ probation and ordered to spend four months under home confinement. Nine months later, in July 2004, a federal judge issued an order modifying Raiola’s probation conditions. She was directed by Judge Sterling Johnson Jr. to enroll in “an outpatient and/or inpatient drug treatment or detoxification program.” Court records do not indicate what prompted this order. Of the fifteen defendants indicted in the drug case, nine were sentenced to probation. The other six received prison terms ranging from 33 to 151 months.[3]

The Drunken Monkey

In 2007, Raiola opened a Staten Island bar, The Drunken Monkey, with her cousin SallyAnn Lombardi who held the license, but the bar was forced to shut down in 2015 due to Raiola’s past as a convicted felon.[4][5]

Reality television

In 2011, Raiola was filmed in what would become her break into reality television, Mob Wives. She made her debut as a regular cast member in the show’s second season, which premiered January 1, 2012. Raiola would remain as a series regular for the remaining duration of the show’s run, and while she filmed one reunion episode on February 13, she was on set for only two hours due to her illness.[6]

Illness and death

Raiola was first diagnosed with cancer in March 2015, which her doctors said was “positively” caused by smoking cigarettes. Raiola, a smoker of 40 years, quit smoking the day she was diagnosed. She was then told she had a “lemon-sized” tumor in her throat, for which she underwent surgery in June.[7] In August she revealed she was diagnosed with lung cancer.[8] By December 2016, Raiola had been declared cancer-free twice, however, by January, Raiola was diagnosed with stage four brain and lung cancer.[9]

Raiola died at 3:01 a.m. on February 18, 2016, at a hospital in New York City, due to excessive complications from the cancer.[10][11] At the time of her death, she lived in Ward Hill, New York.[12][13]

Raiola’s funeral mass was held on February 22, 2016, at Basilica of Regina Pacis church in Brooklyn, New York, and attended by Mob Wives co-stars Karen Gravano, Drita D’Avanzo, Carla Facciolo and Renee Graziano.[14][15]

Filmography

Year Title Character Notes
2012–2016 Mob Wives Herself Main cast member (seasons 2–6)
2012–2013 The Wendy Williams Show Herself Guest
2012 Big Ang Herself Main cast member
2013 Miami Monkey Herself Main cast member
Scary Movie 5 Real Housewife Feature film
2014 Bethenny Herself Guest
2015 The Real Herself Guest
Staten Island Summer Herself Feature film
Celebrity Wife Swap Herself Season 4, episode 10
Couples Therapy Herself Main cast member (season 6)
David Tutera’s CELEBrations Herself Season 8, episode 7
2016 The Dr. Oz Show Herself Guest; last television appearance before her death

Bibliography

  • Bigger Is Better: Real Life Wisdom from the No-Drama Mama; ISBN 1451699603 (2012)

References

  1. ^ https://people.com/celebrity/big-ang-dead-inside-her-dramatic-life/
  2. ^ Weigle, Lauren (February 17, 2016). “Big Angela Raiola’s Kids: Daughter & Son Raquel and Anthony Donfrio”. Heavy.com. Retrieved February 18, 2016.
  3. ^ a b c d Staff (January 27, 2012). ““Mob Wives” Star Once Worked As Cocaine Dealer”. The Smoking Gun. Retrieved February 19, 2016.
  4. ^ Steussy, Lauren (April 27, 2015). “Big Ang on Drunken Monkey closure: ‘I did nothing wrong’“. silive.com. Retrieved February 18, 2016.
  5. ^ Annese, John M. (March 11, 2015). “After state shuts it down, Big Ang’s Drunken Monkey bar issues statement on Facebook”. silive.com. Retrieved February 18, 2016.
  6. ^ Staff (February 18, 2016). “Big Ang ‘dragged herself off deathbed’ to do ‘Mob Wives’ reunion episodes”. New York Daily News. Retrieved February 19, 2016.
  7. ^ “Mob Wives: Angela “Big Ang” Raiola Opens up About Throat Cancer”. People.com. Archived from the original on 2024-12-08. Retrieved 2026-04-17.
  8. ^ Dickens, Aaron (August 21, 2015). ““Big Ang” Diagnosed with Lung Cancer”. ny1.com. Retrieved April 17, 2026.
  9. ^ “Reality Star Angela ‘Big Ang’ Raiola Has Stage 4 Brain and Lung Cancer”. ABC News. Retrieved April 17, 2026.
  10. ^ Respers France, Lisa (February 18, 2016). “‘Big Ang’ Raiola, ‘Mob Wives’ star, dead at 55″. CNN.
  11. ^ “‘Mob Wives’ reality star Angela ‘Big Ang’ Raiola has died”. ABC13 Houston. February 18, 2016. Retrieved April 17, 2026.
  12. ^ https://www.silive.com/news/2022/12/pete-davidson-is-not-the-first-celeb-with-a-staten-island-address-here-are-some-other-famous-borough-homeowners.html
  13. ^ https://www.silive.com/entertainment/2017/02/big_angs_colorful_dream_home_s.html
  14. ^ Macatee, Rebecca (February 22, 2016). “Big Ang’s Funeral: Mob Wives’ Karen Gravano, Drita D’Avanzo, Carla Facciolo & Renee Graziano Pay Respects”. E! Online. Retrieved April 17, 2026.
  15. ^ McRady, Rachel (February 22, 2016). “Big Ang Laid to Rest Following Funeral Service Attended by ‘Mob Wives’ Co-Stars”. Entertainment Tonight. Retrieved April 17, 2026.