'Big Ang' Star Linda Torres Dead at 67 Due to COVID-19

Linda Torres, who frequently appeared on the Mob Wives spin-off series Big Ang, died Thursday after a short bout with the coronavirus. Angela "Big Ang" Raiola's sister Janine Detore told TMZ that Torres died Thursday at Staten Island University Hospital. Torres was 67.

Torres died shortly after she was diagnosed with COVID-19. She was put on a ventilator after her diagnosis, but it was not enough, TMZ reports. Torres also had underlying conditions, which meant she was at a higher risk of severe COVID symptoms. She also had breast cancer and recently had surgery for a chemotherapy port.

The former reality TV star's daughters took care of her after the chemo port surgery. After Torres got home, she developed a fever and they took her back to the hospital because they thought her chemo port was infected. Torres tested positive for COVID at the hospital.

Torres had cameos on Mob Wives, the VH1 reality TV series that ran from 2011 to 2016. The show was successful, earning several spin-offs, including Mob Wives Chicago, and Mob Wives: The Sit-Down. Mob Wives' second season introduced viewers to Raiola, the niece of Genovese crime family member Salvatore "Sally Dogs" Lombardi. She was featured in two Mob Wives spin-offs, Big Ang in 2012, and Miami Monkey in 2013. Torres was featured as one of Raiola's friends on Big Ang but did not appear in Miami Monkey.

In 2015, Raiola's doctors discovered cancer and she had surgery to remove it and lymph nodes on the side of her neck. In December that year, she learned cancer returned. In January 2016, the tumor was no longer responding to chemotherapy. She filmed an episode of The Dr. Oz Show that focused on her illness and appeared in the last season of Mob Wives. She died on Feb. 18, 2016, at age 55 in New York City from stage 4 lung cancer. A source told the New York Daily News Raiola suffered from pneumonia before her death. Torres attended the funeral, according to photos published by Page Six.