Vercetti Gang

Not to be confused with the Vercotti Gang.

Type	GANG
Vercetti Crime Family
Members of the Vercetti crime family outside the Vercetti Estate.
Group information
Status	Active
Locations	Starfish Island Prawn Island Little Haiti Little Havanna Viceport
Leader	Tommy Vercetti
Type	Criminal organization
Enemies	Forelli crime family Haitians Patrol Invest Group Sharks (during missions only) Diaz' Gang Counterfeit Syndicate
Affiliations	Cubans Bikers Haitians (formerly) Diaz' Gang (formerly)
Colors	Blue white
Vehicles	Admiral Sentinel Stretch Infernus Sentinel XS
Weapons	Pistol Uzi (after Keep Your Friends Close...) Tec-9 (if Keep Your Friends Close is failed)
Businesses	Armed Robbery Protection Drug trade and trafficking Prostitution Extortion Auto-theft Pornography Counterfeiting Money laundering Racketeering Loansharking Gun-Running Smuggling Illegal Gambling Bookmaking Hijacking Contract killing
Fronts	Vercetti Estate Kaufman Cabs Boatyard Malibu Club Pole Position Club InterGlobal Films Print Works Sunshine Autos Cherry Popper Ice Cream Factory Phil's Place El Swanko Casa
Members	Tommy Vercetti (Leader) Avery Carrington (co-Leader) Mercedes Cortez Lance Vance (Formerly) Ken Rosenberg (Formerly) Mario Mike
Game information
Appearance(s)	Grand Theft Auto: Vice City

The Vercetti Gang or Vercetti crime family is a powerful criminal organization based in and around Vice City. They are led by Tommy Vercetti and are essentially a splinter group of the Forelli Family, of which Vercetti was previously recognized as a member. They first appear midway through Grand Theft Auto: Vice City, and are later mentioned in passing in Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas.

Descriptio​​n

The Vercetti Family is headed by Tommy Vercetti, a renegade Forelli Family member who has assumed control of many businesses and property ventures during the events of Grand Theft Auto: Vice City, circa 1986. The organization is known to be involved in various illegal enterprises, including extortion, drug dealing, counterfeit and pornography. They are very territorial, and hostile towards the other gangs in the city, even the Cubans and Vice City Bikers, who are on friendly terms with Tommy Vercetti.

Though some might consider the Vercetti Gang a Mafia family, due to being led by a former mafia member, it cannot be a true mafia family because there are high ranking members, such as Lance Vance, Avery Carrington, Mercedes Cortez and Ken Rosenberg, who are not Italian, however they could be considered high ranking associates which are common in Mafia families, various high ranking members of the Five Families are not Italian. It does appear that Tommy structured it to resemble a Mafia family. The Vercetti Gang are mentioned in passing in Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas by The Truth, who mentions that Dwaine and Jethro had their business bought out by "The Mob".

History

Tommy Vercetti was originally dispatched by the Forelli Family to Vice City to oversee a drug deal funded by Forelli family money; the drug deal was supposed to be the beginning of the Forelli expansion down south towards Vice City.

After the deal was ambushed by the Diaz Cartel, Vercetti was forced to start over with no money or property and aided only by Ken Rosenberg, a bent lawyer with Forelli connections. He eventually killed the perpetrator of the drug deal attack, Ricardo Diaz, aided by his new friend Lance Vance.

Following the demise of Ricardo Diaz, he received ownership of Diaz's mansion on Starfish Island, using it as his main base of operations, and subsequently acquired various properties and businesses in the city, including a nightclub and porn studio. Tommy cut his ties with the Forelli Family, as his operation expanded greatly throughout Vice City, which thus made Tommy a very rich, powerful and influential man, infuriating Sonny Forelli who was demanding his cut of the profits.

Ricardo Diaz controlled a very lucrative protection ring across the island, prior to his death; on hearing of his passing, some of the stores in the North Point Mall were refusing to pay for protection, which led Tommy to vandalize them, sending a message.

Not too long after, Tommy drives a security firm out of Ocean Beach so that he can assume control of their protection racket at the Front Page Café, and eventually consolidates his control over the lucrative protection ring by blowing up the Tarbrush Café at the North Point Mall along with Lance, while disguised as police officers.

While building up his gang's illicit and legitimate businesses, Tommy also established ties with various criminals and gangs in the city, including the Cubans, Vice City Bikers, crooked property developer Avery Carrington, and smuggler and narcotics trafficker Colonel Juan Garcia Cortez.

Tommy's refusal to cut Sonny into the profits, however, prompted him to send collectors to Vice City in an attempt to "tax" his businesses, even going so far as to ordering his men to badly beat Earnest Kelly, which resulted in Tommy killing all of the men that Sonny had sent to collect from his businesses.

Following this, Sonny personally confronted Tommy at his mansion, and revealed that Lance had informed him about Tommy's plan to con Sonny with counterfeit money, which ultimately ended with Tommy killing everyone at the mansion in a large shootout, including several Forelli gangsters, Lance Vance and Sonny Forelli.

Tommy claimed to be "untouchable" now in Vice City, as Sonny Forelli, the man who wanted him dead the most, had been killed in the massacre, and it was implied that with the death of their boss, the Forelli Family would be weakened too much by his death to be able to send men to take care of Tommy.

Following Sonny's death, the Vercetti Family is assumed to have total domination of Vice City. The Vercetti Family, or at least Tommy Vercetti himself, is presumed to remain in power for an undisclosed time. In The Introduction, the prequel film to Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, Ken Rosenberg, a close friend and business accomplice of Tommy, is assumed to have been abandoned by Tommy after Ken is forced into rehabilitation for prolonged cocaine abuse. Following his release from the Fort Carson Medical Center, Vercetti no longer takes his calls and their relationship is dissolved. This led to Ken's subsequent assignment as a middleman for the Leone Family, the Forelli Family and the Sindacco Family over Caligula's Palace along The Strip, Las Venturas and then employment as an accountant to rapper Madd Dogg.

Members

• Tommy Vercetti - Boss
• Lance Vance - Underboss (Formerly/Deceased)
• Ken Rosenberg - Adviser (Formerly)
• Avery Carrington - Adviser (Deceased)
• Mike - Enforcer
• Mario

Associates

• Juan Cortez - Crime lord
• Kent Paul - Associate of Ken Rosenberg/manager of Love Fist
• Umberto Robina - Leader of the Cubans
• Big Mitch Baker - President of the Vice City Bikers
• Ricardo Diaz (Formerly/Deceased) - Leader of the Diaz Cartel
• Earnest Kelly - Owner of The Print Works
• Phil Cassidy - Gunman and arms dealer
• Sonny Forelli (Formerly/Deceased) - Don of the Forelli Family
• Steve Scott - Porn film director
• Cam Jones (Can be killed in The Job) - Safecracker/locksmith
• Hillary King (Deceased) - Driver

Prominent Appearances in Missions

GTA Vice City

• Rub Out
• Bar Brawl
• Cop Land
• Cap the Collector
• Keep Your Friends Close...

Trivia

• The Vercetti Gang are never formally named in the game. The name 'Vercetti Gang' came from Kaufman Cabs dispatcher Doris announcing Tommy Vercetti's takeover of the business to the drivers.
• Upon reaching 100% completion, three Vercetti gang members can be recruited and act as Bodyguards for $2000.
• Vercetti Gang members will fall to the ground If the player attacks them. If they accidentally shoot the player during a gun fight, no health or armor will be lost.
• The Vercetti Gang is the only gang in normal gameplay to use any firearm other than a pistol, as they begin to carry Uzis after the completion of Keep Your Friends Close...
• There is a cheat that turns the members of the gang into girls armed with M4 assault rifles.