Cosa Nostra is Alive and Well in New York

Friends of ours: Danny "The Lion" Leo, Vito Genovese, Genovese Crime Family, Vincent "the Chin" Gigante, "Fat Charlie" Salzano

New Yorkers have been given a rude awakening to the continued presence of the Mafia in their midst with the arrest of Danny "the Lion" Leo, the reputed boss of the city's most powerful crime family.

Many had assumed the tide of prosperity pouring through New York had washed away the Mafia clans who once terrorised their city. Instead, it appears the mafia is very much alive.

Prosecutors say that Leo, 65, arrested on charges of loan sharking and extortion, is head of the powerful Genovese family, one of the so-called "five families" that ruled the Mafia in New York for half a century. "Two hundred or so members of this violent, ruthless criminal organisation can only commit acts of violence with the approval of the acting boss," said Eric Snyder, the assistant US attorney. "That's the type of power he holds."

Leo's indictment reads like pages from Mario Puzo's bestseller The Godfather. There are "soldiers", the hit men, "capos" or captains, and defendants with colourful nicknames. Prosecutors claim that Leo's right-hand man is "Fat Charlie" Salzano, a 26½ stone enforcer caught on wiretaps threatening to shoot his victims.

Leo has been charged with conspiring to demand $250,000 protection from a Harlem taxi company owner, with Salzano promising in the wiretap evidence that he will "turn you out" if the money is not paid.

Leo, who lives in a mansion in New Jersey, across the Hudson River from New York, insists he is innocent, pleading not guilty to all charges.

His supporters point to his almost unblemished criminal record: he has a single conviction, 25 years ago, for contempt of court when he refused to testify in a murder trial. But prosecutors say he is proof of the continuing existence, and prosperity, of arguably the biggest and most successful criminal organisation in history - the infamous five families.

They were first revealed to the world in evidence in a 1959 investigation. The five families had been set up before the Second World War as an arrangement whereby the city's crime gangs attempted to rationalise their organisations. Killings of justice officials were banned, a "commission" set up to regulate disputes, and the omerta, the Sicilian vow of silence, was cemented in place with a promise of execution against any member breaking it.

The Genovese family, named after its founder, Vito Genovese, was arguably the most powerful, smashing its way to the top by bringing mass heroin smuggling to the United States.

Leo is accused of taking the mantle of leader from the former Genovese boss Vincent "the Chin" Gigante. When Gigante died in prison two years ago many assumed that his "family" - actually a grouping of several families - would plough their money into legal enterprises and leave the gangster life to the newer, hungrier, gangs from Russia and Central America.

Leo's arrest comes a fortnight after the justice department announced a separate trial of two men accused of being from the same crime family, charged with conspiracy to murder. And New Yorkers are waiting to see if it will mark the start of a new campaign by the authorities against organised crime.

Mr Synder insists that the Mafia remains potent and that the trial will expose the hold that criminal gangs have in the US.

Thanks to Chris Stephen

Tweet

America's Most Wanted on The Chicago Syndicate

America's Most Wanted and The Chicago Syndicate have partnered to highlight AMW's upcoming Episode.

Omar Mora is our lead story right now. Mora is an Indiana man who police say opened fire on his wife and another man in a deadly love triangle. According to cops, Mora should be considered armed and very dangerous.

Additional features include:

Jose Garcia: Kentucky police say that Jose “Joey” Garcia brutally attacked and raped a co-worker in 2004. A matching DNA test came back linking Garcia to the crime, but he went into hiding before police could get to him.

Alexis Flores: Flores had been convicted of felonies before, but now police suspect that he is responsible for the horrifying murder of 5-year-old Ariana DeJesus in 2000. The identity of Ariana’s killer was a mystery to investigators until 2007 when the FBI in Philadelphia got a break when DNA from the crime scene matched that of DeJesus.

Midtown Jane Doe: When construction workers started working to renovate a Manhattan apartment building once known for attracting prostitutes and pimps, they dug up something horrifying—the skeleton of a young woman. Investigators are now piecing together clues in hopes to figure out who she was, and who might’ve killed her.

Shane Magan: Magan is a young man from California with a troubled past. As a child, he was placed in a foster home after his mother abandoned him. Now, what was bad has only gotten worse. Cops say Magan’s on the run after shooting a cop.

Unknown Chris Mader Update: Chris Mader was a 24-year-old Maryland man with big dreams of becoming a sports broadcaster. But then, on Thanksgiving morning in 2004, Mader was tragically shot and killed by an unknown assailant. Police are hoping a new sketch will give them what they need to get closure for Chris’ family.

Tweet

US Marshall Tells US Attorney and FBI He F@#%ed Up

Friends of ours: Nick Calabrese
Friends of mine: John Ambrose

As soon as the high-ranking deputy U.S. marshal sat down with U.S. Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald and FBI Chicago chief Robert Grant, he knew he was in trouble, federal documents allege.

"I fucked up," John Ambrose reportedly told both officials as they questioned him about whether he leaked sensitive information.

Ambrose, a member of the regional fugitive task force who also did a brief stint in witness protection, is charged with passing government material about protected mob witness Nick Calabrese to a third party. That information made its way to the mob, federal authorities contend.

Calabrese is a major government witness in the upcoming Operation Family Secrets mob trial. Ambrose was stripped of his duties last year and charged in January.

The allegations were taken so seriously that Grant and Fitzgerald took the rare move of sitting down with Ambrose last September. Prosecutors say they told him he faced criminal charges and risked losing his job -- but they contend they also told him he wasn't under arrest. If he were in custody, a Miranda warning would have been required. Federal prosecutors say Ambrose never asked for a lawyer and was free to leave whenever he pleased. "Mr Ambrose at times appeared anxious while reviewing some of the evidence against him," Grant said in a court affidavit filed Tuesday. "Mr. Ambrose on a number of occasions shook his head and repeated that he had fucked up."

Their contentions come in response to a filing last month in which Ambrose claimed that he was pressured into giving incriminating statements. "The pressure was so extreme that my body was shaking and my mind was racing," Ambrose said in court papers.

Ambrose's filing says he believed he was in custody. He is trying to get his statements tossed.

Thanks to Natasha Korecki

Tweet

Criminal Defense Attorney Compares Mob Work to Grocery Stocker

Friends of ours: James Marcello, Frank Calabrese Sr.,

Is working for a mob street crew like working for a corporate subsidiary -- or like working in a produce section?

Those analogies arose Tuesday as attorneys for two top mobsters, James Marcello and Frank Calabrese Sr., tried to get federal appellate justices to dismiss racketeering charges against the men.

Calabrese Sr.'s attorney, Joseph Lopez, argued it's unfair for the men to be charged with racketeering for being part of the Outfit now when they were charged years ago with the same crime for being part of mob street crews.

Federal prosecutor Mitch Mars said there's little overlap in the new and old cases.

While one appellate judge noted prosecutors can indict subsidiaries and then their parent corporations, Lopez compared mob employment with working for a grocery store -- whether you unload tomatoes or flowers, you're still working for the store.

Thanks to Steve Warmbir

Tweet

The Sopranos Sparks Interest in World of Gangsters

So you've ordered HBO and watched the first shocking episodes of The Sopranos, but how much do you really know about the show? Wondering what management style Tony Soprano uses to be an effective leader? What the symbolism is of the ducks in his pool? And did you ever wonder how Carmela Soprano makes her baked ziti? Lake Park reference librarian Karen Mahnk discusses Soprano-related books to help you get wise to everything you ever wanted to know about America's favorite Italian family. Mahnk, who is Italian, says she's been hooked since the second episode.

Q. Have you seen an increase in circulation of books related to the show?

A. Somewhat. Actually, we've noticed an increase in circulation of gangster movies such as Goodfellas, Donnie Brasco and, of course, the Godfather trilogy as well as earlier seasons of The Sopranos.

Q. Soprano-related books seem to run the gamut of topics from cookbooks to Tony Soprano-style management guides. What books about the show are most popular?

A. Who's Sorry Now: The True Story of a Stand-Up Guy by actor Joe Pantoliano with David Evanier and Wise Girl: What I've Learned About Life, Love, and Loss by actress Jamie-Lynn Sigler are the more popular of the related biographies.

The cookbooks seem to be the most popular. After all, food is an underlying theme throughout the series. In fact great food is an underlying theme for most Italians. Many of the scenes take place in front of a butcher shop. A few scenes, including a few unsavory ones, take place inside as well.

Baked ziti is featured and mentioned many times, as well as capicolla (spicy ham) and cannoli a crème-filled crunchy dessert item. It's a guess that many non-Italian viewers may become curious about these foods they see on the series. Many Italian viewers such as myself just get hungry for childhood favorites.

The latest cookbook, Entertaining with the Sopranos by Allen Rucker, is perfect to refer to if there's something you've seen in the show and would like to try yourself. Another is The Sopranos Family Cookbook: As Compiled by Artie Bucco by Allen Rucker and Michele Scicolone.

Q. What are books about the show like? Do the focus on the plot or characters?

A. They range from a number of issues focusing in particular on the characters' place in the fictional family, such as the latest releases: Reading The Sopranos: Hit TV from HBO (Reading Contemporary Television); This Thing Of Ours: Investigating The Sopranos; The Sopranos: A Family History and Bright Lights, Baked Ziti: The Unofficial, Unauthorised Guide to the Sopranos.

Others zone in on the psychological aspects: The Sopranos on the Couch: The Ultimate Guide; The Psychology of the Sopranos: Love, Death, Desire and Betrayal in America's Favorite Gangster Family.

Another looks at leadership from a Soprano boss's point of view: Leadership Sopranos Style: How to Become a More Effective Boss and Tony Soprano on Management: Leadership Lessons Inspired By America's Favorite Mobster.

Q. What attracts you to the show? Do you have a favorite character?

A. As a psychology minor in college, I'm intrigued by the metaphors, such as what the ducks are supposed to represent to Tony as well as the hypocrisy of the characters. Even Dr. Melfi, his shrink, is not without her moments of denial. I also find the dialect of the Italian words used interesting as the pronunciation varies not just from which part of Italy it is actually spoken but how many Italian words transform even further in the U.S. depending on region, such as New Jersey, Staten Island or New Orleans.

Q. Why do you think people connect with this show?

A. People have always been fascinated by gangsters and bad guys. The mix of glitz and guns is a safe escape on the screen vs. real life. While there is always the controversy that violence may be glorified, on The Sopranos, it seems everybody sooner or later gets their "just desserts." Some scenes, such as Tony's pronunciation and relating of Sun Tzu and the Art of War, are funny. Tony Soprano's America: The Criminal Side of the American Dream presents an interesting review of the sort of duality the Sopranos live and the way morality and family values are portrayed.

Q. What books would you recommend about the real Mafia?

A. There are several books discussing not only the history of the Mafia in New York and Italy but also closer to home:

Cigar City Mafia: A Complete History of the Tampa Underworld by Scott M. Deitche, and Five Families: The Rise, Decline, and Resurgence of America's Most Powerful Mafia Empires by Selwyn Raab. For a different perspective there's No Questions Asked: The Secret Life of Women in the Mob and On the Run: A Mafia Childhood by Gregg Hill. Hill, as many Goodfellas fans will recognize, is the son of real-life goodfella, Henry Hill. Also, I'd recommend American Mafia: A History of Its Rise to Power and Blood and Honor: Inside the Scarfo Mob, the Mafia's Most Violent Family by George Anastasia.

Q. Several groups have spoken out against The Sopranos, saying the show unfairly stereotypes Italians. Are there any books that expound on that?

A. There are several that do a very good job of covering the issue: Were You Always an Italian?: Ancestors and Other Icons of Italian America by Maria Laurino and La Storia: Five Centuries of the Italian American Experience by Jerre Mangione. Italian Pride: 101 Reasons to Be Proud You're Italian by Federico Moramarco is particularly a nice read since it includes those great Italian food dishes as many of those 101 reasons.

Tweet