The infamous New York City gangster Jimmy Burke, the inspiration for the character Jimmy Conway in Goodfellas, always had a knack for getting away with things.

As an Irish-American, Burke was never officially part of a Mafia family. He couldn't become a "made man" because he wasn't Italian, but this worked to his advantage. Despite not being an official member, Jimmy Burke maintained close friendships with high-ranking members of the Lucchese family in Brooklyn and Queens from the 1950s to the early 1980s, using those connections to his benefit.

Thomas Monaster/NY Daily News Archive via Getty ImagesAs depicted in the film “Goodfellas,” Jimmy “Gent” Burke, a member of the Lucchese family, was involved in countless robberies and murders starting from the 1950s.

As a kind of outsider, Jimmy Burke could operate like a free agent, orchestrating kidnappings, robberies, and murders — and he managed to escape from almost everything, even murder.

For instance, just days before his wedding, Burke learned that his fiancée's ex-boyfriend was bothering her and shared this with a few friends. On the wedding day, the bride's ex-boyfriend was found in his car in a dozen pieces.

And this is just one of many stories that illustrate how frightening Jimmy Burke was. Although he was immortalized as “Jimmy Conway” by Robert De Niro in Goodfellas, it was impossible to depict everything this terrifying gangster did, even for that beloved crime classic.

Warner Bros.Robert De Niro portrays the character Jimmy Conway, based on Jimmy Burke, in the 1990 film Goodfellas.

In addition to Burke's countless murders, the organization of the infamous $6 million Lufthansa heist in 1978 is the true story of Jimmy “Gent” Burke.

How Jimmy Burke's Troubled Beginnings Shaped Him

James Burke was born on July 5, 1931, in New York City and had a rough start in life. Burke never knew his real parents. He was adopted at the age of two and faced over ten years of violence, sexual abuse, and various hardships from different foster families.

At 13, Burke lost his adoptive father in a car accident involving his current foster family. After the accident, Burke's adoptive mother began to harbor resentment towards him, and the young boy's descent into a life of crime quickly escalated.

Just two months after the fatal car crash, Jimmy Burke was arrested for a minor public disorder charge but was acquitted; nevertheless, he continued his criminal lifestyle, spending most of his time in juvenile detention centers and eventually prisons.

In fact, according to Burke's obituary, he lived as a free man for only 86 days between the ages of 16 and 22 — which helped him gain the respect of local Mafia members. Jimmy Burke earned even more respect when he showed he was willing to kill for them.

Eventually, Burke connected with the Lucchese and Colombo crime families, engaging in numerous operations such as loan sharking, cigarette smuggling, drug trafficking, kidnapping, armed robbery, and murder. While committing these crimes and many others, his closest associates in the Lucchese family were Henry Hill, Tommy DeSimone, and Paul Vario; they were famously depicted in Goodfellas, and Burke's character was known as Jimmy Conway.

Wikimedia CommonsAs Goodfellas depicted, Henry Hill was one of Jimmy Burke's main accomplices.

And somehow, Burke always managed to get away with things. Thus, Jimmy Burke's greatest contribution to the Mafia was another crime he was never held accountable for: the organization of the Lufthansa heist.

Jimmy Burke and His Crew Pulling Off the Lufthansa Heist

In 1978, an unknown group executed the largest robbery ever carried out on American soil, which became one of the longest-investigated crimes in U.S. history. And while authorities could never prove it, this heist was organized by none other than Jimmy Burke.

Daily News Archive/Getty ImagesThe headline of the New York Daily News following the Lufthansa heist organized by Jimmy Burke, 1978.

Jimmy Burke began planning the Lufthansa heist several months before putting it into action. During a dinner with an accountant, his partner Henry Hill learned about a shocking arrangement happening at JFK airport in New York.

Every month, millions of dollars in untraceable American cash were flown into the airport; this was a result of currency exchanges for soldiers and tourists in West Germany.

When it arrived by plane, it was stored in a vault at JFK. A few years earlier, several airport workers had stolen $22,000 worth of currency from Lufthansa. In exchange for payment, they agreed to help organize the crime.

Jimmy “Gent” Burke selected six men from the Lucchese family, his own son, and a member of the Gambino family. They executed the entire operation in 64 minutes, netting Burke nearly $6 million (over $22 million by today's standards).

Many were arrested, a few were tried, and some were acquitted, but the mastermind behind the crime was never charged.

The Real Criminal Activities of Jimmy Conway

When Jimmy Burke wasn't pulling off million-dollar heists, he was organizing low-level crimes in Ozone Park, Queens.

Nick Sorrentino/NY Daily News Archive via Getty ImagesJimmy Burke in front of his tavern during the FBI's body search.

Burke owned a clothing factory called Moo Moo Vedda that he used for money laundering and a tavern called Robert's Lounge that served as a hub for Burke and his crew.

In daily life, Burke and his crew made a living by selling stolen goods, untaxed liquor, and cigarettes. Burke's favorite move was to hijack delivery trucks passing through Ozone Park. He would stop the trucks, take the drivers' licenses, and then give each driver fifty dollars, telling them to forget it.

This peculiar way of tipping earned him the nickname “Jimmy Gent” among his crew and later among the crime families.

Jimmy Burke also got along well with law enforcement, and over the years, he had several corrupt police officers working for him. He would bribe them to name their informants, who mysteriously disappeared. Among his close personal friends was Remo Cersani, whom he personally ordered and carried out hits on.

When Cersani got wind that he was going to be set up, Burke picked him up in his car and had Tommy DeSimone kill him, burying him next to a bocce ball court.

PhotobucketJimmy Burke with the wild Mafia member Tommy DeSimone, as depicted in Goodfellas.

According to Henry Hill, Burke and DeSimone would always start their bocce games with, “Hello Remo, how are you?”

Despite his gentlemanly reputation and his image as a nice guy, Jimmy Burke was quite tough; just like Jimmy Conway in Goodfellas.

He was known for locking the small children of his victims in refrigerators, strangling enemies with piano wire, and violently avenging those who spoke ill of him.

Hill claimed that Jimmy Burke was directly responsible for at least 60-70 murders; however, there could have been many more he didn't know about.

The Dramatic Fall of Jimmy “Gent” Burke

Public DomainJimmy Burke's mugshot from 1979, the year after the Lufthansa heist.

Around 1982, Henry Hill became an informant for the FBI, as accurately depicted in Goodfellas, and confessed that there were more than a dozen bodies buried at Robert's Lounge over the years. He also tipped off about Jimmy Burke fixing college basketball games.

Burke was ultimately sentenced to 20 years in prison, but the prosecutor tried to get more. During the trial, he attempted to prove Burke's involvement in the Lufthansa heist and several murders; however, miraculously for Burke, the connections in those events could never be proven (Vincent Asaro, a Mafia member from the Bonanno family, was later charged in connection with the Lufthansa heist but was ultimately acquitted).

During his time in prison, Burke was diagnosed with lung cancer and passed away in 1996 at the age of 64. He would have been eligible for parole in 2011.

Bureau of Prisons/Getty ImagesJimmy Burke faced no charges related to the Lufthansa heist.

Even today, his crimes continue to come to light.

In fact, in 2013, Jimmy Burke made headlines again; an investigation found human remains at his home, proving that the story of this infamous criminal genius could continue for many more years.