'Goodfellas mobster' Vincent Asaro arrested for heist

POLICE have arrested an alleged mobster in relation to the 1978 Lufthansa heist in New York which was the inspiration for the movie Goodfellas.

Few details are known but FBI agents arrested an alleged member of the Bonanno crime family, 78-year-old Vincent Asaro of Howard Beach, New York, during a pre-dawn raid on his house.

The crime saw thieves take more than $5 million in cash and $1 million in jewels back in December 1978 at JFK airport - the single-biggest heist ever pulled off on US soil at the time.

But Asaro would be the first accused mobster to face charges for the crime. Louis Weer, an airport worker who provided critical inside information to the robbers, is the only other person to have been identified.

Only one suspect is being charged in connection with the heist while the others are being charged with a variety of other crimes, including murder and extortion, according to CBS News.

ABC News says four other alleged mobsters, including underboss Thomas "Tommy D" DiFiore of Commack, New York, have also been arrested.