Joseph Colozzo was a Gambino syndicate capo who was closely affiliated with the Brooklyn waterfront dock workers. In 1951 Colozzo was accused of holding a gun on International Longshoremen's Association representative Frank Nawrocki. Nawrocki was attending a labor conference at the Hotel Commodore. He was assaulted on his way out of the hotel. His leg was broken but he later changed his testimony in court. Nawrocki claimed that he didn't know who had pointed the gun or attacked him. This earned him a perjury indictment. Colozzo had vied with Nawrocki because Gus wanted the ILA workers to return to work from a strike.