Friends of ours: Nick Calabrese, James "Jimmy the Man" Marcello, Joseph "Joey Doves" Aiuppa, Alphonse "Al the Pizza Man" Tornabene, Tony "Joe Batters" Accardo, Sam "Wings" Carlisi, Anthony "Little" Zizzo
Friends of mine: Leo Caruso
Federal documents reveal a new name in the upper crust of the Chicago outfit, a man that some mob experts believe may have become the mob's "elder statesman."
Documents filed by federal prosecutors in the case against 14 top mob figures revealed the identity of what some mobwatchers say is the Chicago outfit's current consigliere. The man's name was blotted out -- redacted --from the government filing. But, the ABC7 I-Team reveals the name behind the black mark.
Mafia initiation ceremonies are not open to the public. The only pictures are cheesy Hollywood reenactments. So when Chicago wiseguy Nick Calabrese started deep dishing outfit details to federal authorities a few years ago, one story stood out. It is explained in a government filing known as a proffer, or play-by-play, of the case that federal prosecutors plan to put on against Chicago hoodlums charged in Operation Family Secrets. The proffer states that Nick Calabrese will testify that a number of individuals were "made" (or inducted) with him in 1983, including co-defendant James "Jimmy the Man" Marcello.
During the "making ceremony," each 'inductee' was accompanied by his crew boss or "capo," according to the government. Two men "conducted the ceremony, which included an oath of allegiance to the organization."
One of the concelebrants was the late Joseph "Joey Doves" Aiuppa, then considered the top ranking boss of the mob. Aiuppa's partner in the blood ceremony was blacked out in publicly filed documents. But, the ABC7 I-Team has seen an un-redacted copy of the filing. We can reveal the name under the black mark: Alphonse Tornabene.
Tornabene is now 84 years old. He is known in mob circles as "Al the Pizza Man." A suburban pizza parlor is still in his family. Even though he owns a summer home in William's Bay, Wisconsin, the I-Team found Tournabene at the front door of his suburban Chicago house and asked him whether he was the grand mobster at an outfit initiation.
GOUDIE: "Know about that?"
TORNABENE: "I don't remember."
GOUDIE: "You don't remember?"
TORNABENE: "No."
GOUDIE: "You and Mr. Aiuppa?"
TORNABENE: "I don't remember."
GOUDIE: "You administered the oath of the Outfit according to the feds?"
TORNABENE: "I don't remember."
"Well, it shows significance, one that they took him under their trust to make such a significant ceremony, in making some mob guys," said Robert Fuesel, former federal agent.
Former IRS criminal investigator Bob Fuesel says Tornabene grew up as an outfit bookie but was apparently being groomed for higher office. With the three elder statesman of the outfit all dead, Joey Aiuppa, Tony "Joe Batters" Accardo and Sam "Wings" Carlisi, some federal lawmen believe that the role of consiglieri has fallen on Carlisi's cousin, Al Tornabene, who may have a hard time getting around these days, but is still meeting with known outfit associates.
GOUDIE: "The Crime Commission is saying that you run the mob?"
TORNABENE: (laughs) "I can't even move..."
On several days I-Team surveillance spotted Leo Caruso at Tornabene's home. Seven years ago Caruso was permanently barred from the Laborers' International Union after a federal investigation linked him to the mob's 26th Street crew. A Justice Department report stated that Caruso was "deeply involved with organized crime figures in a substantial manner."
TORNABENE: "He's just a friend..."
GOUDIE: "Mr. Caruso is a friend?"
TORNABENE: "Yes."
The FBI is currently investigating the disappearance of Tornabene's top lieutenant, Anthony "Little" Zizzo. The two men met frequently until last August, when Zizzo mysteriously vanished after leaving his west suburban condo for a meeting on Rush Street.
"Well, these indictments through the US attorney's office, just put everything in disarray, and so do they know what happened to Zizzo. I'm sure somebody does. It's hard for me to believe based upon his reputation that he has not been uncovered and/or is probably deceased," said Fuesel.
"Pizza Al" has no criminal record but comes from a mob family. His late brother Frank was convicted of vote fraud and prostitution and authorities say was active in outfit vice rackets.
The Tournabenes are also related by marriage to Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich. Frank Tournabene was a great uncle to Blagojevich's wife Patty. A spokeswoman for the governor's wife says that while she is aware of her late uncle Frank Tornaebene, she doesn't recall a relative named Al and has no memory of ever meeting such a person.
The I-Team attempted to reach former union boss Leo Caruso about his relationship with pizza l Tornabene. A woman who answered the phone at Caruso's Bridgeport home said he wasn't interested in talking.
Thanks to Chuck Goudie
Thursday, June 21, 2007
Wednesday, June 20, 2007
The Shark Attacks
Attorney Joseph "The Shark" Lopez who is representing Frank Calabrese Sr. in the Chicago Family Secrets Mob Trial has agreed to provide updates with his observations regarding the daily court proceedings. In return, I am not allowed to make fun of his pink socks anymore. Well, maybe just one more time.Joseph Lopez:
"Today we finished picking the jury and tomorrow are the opening statements. I am writing mine now it should be about an hour and focus on Nick (Calabrese) and Frank (Calabrese) Jr., the rats in this case. Also, the focus on the murders is that Frank Calabrese Sr., had no particapation in the murders and no one knows why they occurred. Basically, we will tear down the conspiracy theory of the government." jrl
Drinking Wine to Fight the Mafia
A new Italian white wine has become a symbol of the fight against organized crime, incurring the wrath of gangsters from Naples because it was produced from grapes grown on land confiscated from a Mafia godfather.
Campo Libero, which means "Free Field", was presented this month as the first wine made in Lazio region with grapes grown on land taken from an important member of the Camorra -- as the Naples version of the Mafia is known.
The lightly sparkling white wine is made from Trebbiano grapes cultivated by Il Gabbiano ("The Seagull"), a charity that employs people with troubled backgrounds, such as drug addicts and former detainees.
"The fact that we could turn a land bought with illegal earnings into something totally clean is the most important message we could send," said Dario Campagna, chairman of Il Gabbiano.
Campagna, a 50-year-old with silver hair, had no previous expertise in wine-making. At the beginning he had to rely on the knowledge of local farmers and he is modest about Campo Libero's bouquet, calling it a "farmer's wine". But he hopes it will symbolize to consumers the value of fighting organized crime.
Thanks to a law passed in 1996 by the Italian parliament, property belonging to convicted Mafiosi can be used for social purposes. In 2003, Il Gabbiano was given 10 hectares of land that had been abandoned for years.
It once belonged to Francesco Schiavone, head of the most powerful and violent Camorra family of Naples, whose empire spread from Naples to the farmland only 60 kilometers (37 miles) from Rome.
Roberto Saviano, a Camorra expert, wrote in his bestseller "Gomorra" that the Schiavone clan ran illegal drugs and arms but also had semi-legal businesses such as cement production and property developing, a shady empire worth some 5 billion euros ($7 billion).
The land on which Campo Libero grows was confiscated after Schiavone was convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment. The gangster had already devoted part of this land to growing grapes that were illegally sold on the market.
There is evidence that the rest of the land was used for shadier activities. When Campagna first started digging to build a dirt road inside the property, he found old Italian lira banknotes, shredded and buried less than a meter underground.
The lira was replaced with the euro in Italy in 2001 and the old notes were supposed to be disposed of safely, to avoid their toxic lead content seeping into farmland. But the Camorra is infamous for taking money to get rid of waste illegally.
"I think Schiavone got paid to dispose of the banknotes and simply decided to hide them here," said Campagna. "When we got the land, it was like a rubbish dump. It took us three years and a lot of work to change it."
This year Il Gabbiano produced 10,000 bottles of wine, but it hasn't been an easy job. Campagna, a teetotaler, first asked local farmers for practical help and advice. But every time they made an appointment to start working, the farmers mysteriously failed to show up.
"Finally someone told us that one of Schiavone's relatives lived in the area and the people were afraid he would find out they were cooperating with us," said Campagna.
He called the police and got them to drop by twice a day on patrol. He also asked an agronomist from another town to help. Soon, when local farmers saw nothing bad had happened, they agreed to come and lend the charity workers a hand.
Sabotage
"This was our first real success," recalled Campagna, who has applied for public funding to renovate an old building on the property and adapt it to receive primary school students.
His dream is to create an educational farm to show youngsters how wine, flour and other natural products are made and, at the same time, teach them the value and importance of staying on the right side of the law. But his success appears to have displeased the former owners.
One night last September, just before the first harvest was due, unidentified saboteurs destroyed half the crop by cutting the metal wire supporting the vines, which collapsed under the weight of the ripe fruit.
"We woke up and saw we had lost around 50,000 kilos of grapes out of 140,000," said Campagna. "It was a real blow."
Police are investigating but Campagna has his suspicions. "I think the Camorra are to blame. They want the law letting their assets be confiscated to fail. It's in their interests for this land to stay untouched. It's a sign of power."
That is why Campagna and his workers did not give up and last March replanted the vines from scratch. "It will take years for the vines to grow again, but it's worth it," he said. "The more we fight for this wine, the better it will taste in the end."
Campo Libero, which means "Free Field", was presented this month as the first wine made in Lazio region with grapes grown on land taken from an important member of the Camorra -- as the Naples version of the Mafia is known.
The lightly sparkling white wine is made from Trebbiano grapes cultivated by Il Gabbiano ("The Seagull"), a charity that employs people with troubled backgrounds, such as drug addicts and former detainees.
"The fact that we could turn a land bought with illegal earnings into something totally clean is the most important message we could send," said Dario Campagna, chairman of Il Gabbiano.
Campagna, a 50-year-old with silver hair, had no previous expertise in wine-making. At the beginning he had to rely on the knowledge of local farmers and he is modest about Campo Libero's bouquet, calling it a "farmer's wine". But he hopes it will symbolize to consumers the value of fighting organized crime.
Thanks to a law passed in 1996 by the Italian parliament, property belonging to convicted Mafiosi can be used for social purposes. In 2003, Il Gabbiano was given 10 hectares of land that had been abandoned for years.
It once belonged to Francesco Schiavone, head of the most powerful and violent Camorra family of Naples, whose empire spread from Naples to the farmland only 60 kilometers (37 miles) from Rome.
Roberto Saviano, a Camorra expert, wrote in his bestseller "Gomorra" that the Schiavone clan ran illegal drugs and arms but also had semi-legal businesses such as cement production and property developing, a shady empire worth some 5 billion euros ($7 billion).
The land on which Campo Libero grows was confiscated after Schiavone was convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment. The gangster had already devoted part of this land to growing grapes that were illegally sold on the market.
There is evidence that the rest of the land was used for shadier activities. When Campagna first started digging to build a dirt road inside the property, he found old Italian lira banknotes, shredded and buried less than a meter underground.
The lira was replaced with the euro in Italy in 2001 and the old notes were supposed to be disposed of safely, to avoid their toxic lead content seeping into farmland. But the Camorra is infamous for taking money to get rid of waste illegally.
"I think Schiavone got paid to dispose of the banknotes and simply decided to hide them here," said Campagna. "When we got the land, it was like a rubbish dump. It took us three years and a lot of work to change it."
This year Il Gabbiano produced 10,000 bottles of wine, but it hasn't been an easy job. Campagna, a teetotaler, first asked local farmers for practical help and advice. But every time they made an appointment to start working, the farmers mysteriously failed to show up.
"Finally someone told us that one of Schiavone's relatives lived in the area and the people were afraid he would find out they were cooperating with us," said Campagna.
He called the police and got them to drop by twice a day on patrol. He also asked an agronomist from another town to help. Soon, when local farmers saw nothing bad had happened, they agreed to come and lend the charity workers a hand.
Sabotage
"This was our first real success," recalled Campagna, who has applied for public funding to renovate an old building on the property and adapt it to receive primary school students.
His dream is to create an educational farm to show youngsters how wine, flour and other natural products are made and, at the same time, teach them the value and importance of staying on the right side of the law. But his success appears to have displeased the former owners.
One night last September, just before the first harvest was due, unidentified saboteurs destroyed half the crop by cutting the metal wire supporting the vines, which collapsed under the weight of the ripe fruit.
"We woke up and saw we had lost around 50,000 kilos of grapes out of 140,000," said Campagna. "It was a real blow."
Police are investigating but Campagna has his suspicions. "I think the Camorra are to blame. They want the law letting their assets be confiscated to fail. It's in their interests for this land to stay untouched. It's a sign of power."
That is why Campagna and his workers did not give up and last March replanted the vines from scratch. "It will take years for the vines to grow again, but it's worth it," he said. "The more we fight for this wine, the better it will taste in the end."
Family Secrets Bomb Threat a Fake
Friends of ours: Frank Calabrese Sr., Joseph "Shorty" LaMantia, Nicholas Calabrese
On the day a historic Chicago mob trial began in federal court, the estranged son of one of the men on trial -- reputed mob hit man Frank Calabrese Sr. -- got the shock of his life on the back porch of his north suburban home: A plastic bag containing a digital clock, wires and what looked like three sticks of dynamite.
The device looked deadly but turned out to be a fake. But the fear it created was all too real as police evacuated homes around the Kenilworth house of Kurt Calabrese and his family.
The device was the latest in a series of anonymous threats Kurt Calabrese has received, from menacing letters to dead rats placed at his home, authorities said.
What's puzzling about the threats is that Kurt Calabrese has nothing to do with the current Family Secrets case involving his father, Frank Calabrese Sr.
Other family members do. Frank Calabrese Sr.'s brother, mob hit man Nicholas Calabrese, will testify against him and describe various mob killings the two allegedly did together.
Frank Calabrese Sr.'s oldest son, Frank Jr., also will testify against his father about secret tape-recordings Frank Jr. made of his dad while they were in prison together.
Kurt Calabrese has nothing to do with his father and had only a marginal role in the 1995 loan sharking case that put Frank Calabrese Sr. in prison for nearly 10 years.
There's no love lost between father and son. Frank Calabrese Sr. allegedly repeatedly physically and verbally abused Kurt over the years, family friends have told the Sun-Times.
What's more, a rift grew between Frank Calabrese Sr. and his brother Nick Calabrese over the way Frank Calabrese Sr. treated his own two sons, such as selling them out during plea negotiations during the 1995 case.
Kurt Calabrese hasn't been subpoenaed to appear at the trial, nor is he cooperating in the case, authorities said.
Frank Calabrese Sr.'s lawyer, Joseph Lopez, said late Tuesday his client had nothing to do with the bomb threat. "My client has the perfect alibi," Lopez said. "He was sitting in a federal courthouse."
Law enforcement sources said there was a note in the bag containing the fake bomb, but it was destroyed when law enforcement obliterated the package with a water cannon.
The package was discovered about 11:30 a.m. Tuesday as Kurt Calabrese headed to his backyard. He was home alone, sources said. As he went down his porch steps, he came upon a large, clear, plastic bag. Inside, he found what appeared to be three sticks of dynamite wrapped at both ends by black tape. In the middle was a digital clock connected to two wires.
There were reports of a strange car with its lights off cruising around the Calabrese neighborhood early Tuesday, but it's unclear what connection, if any, it had to the threat.
Authorities ran a bomb-sniffing dog through the Calabrese home, which is modest for the affluent suburb, and through Calabrese's car but found nothing. Residents were allowed to return to their homes about 3:30 p.m., police said. Neighbors were stunned by the development, with one calling Calabrese and his wife "nice people who keep to themselves."
The bomb scare happened as lawyers in the Family Secrets case made significant progress in selecting a jury Tuesday. Twelve jurors and six alternates could be selected by today, and opening statements could start as early as Thursday. The courtroom was crowed with observers, including Rocky LaMantia, the son of the late mob boss Joseph "Shorty" LaMantia.
Thanks to Steve Warmbir
On the day a historic Chicago mob trial began in federal court, the estranged son of one of the men on trial -- reputed mob hit man Frank Calabrese Sr. -- got the shock of his life on the back porch of his north suburban home: A plastic bag containing a digital clock, wires and what looked like three sticks of dynamite.
The device looked deadly but turned out to be a fake. But the fear it created was all too real as police evacuated homes around the Kenilworth house of Kurt Calabrese and his family.
The device was the latest in a series of anonymous threats Kurt Calabrese has received, from menacing letters to dead rats placed at his home, authorities said.
What's puzzling about the threats is that Kurt Calabrese has nothing to do with the current Family Secrets case involving his father, Frank Calabrese Sr.
Other family members do. Frank Calabrese Sr.'s brother, mob hit man Nicholas Calabrese, will testify against him and describe various mob killings the two allegedly did together.
Frank Calabrese Sr.'s oldest son, Frank Jr., also will testify against his father about secret tape-recordings Frank Jr. made of his dad while they were in prison together.
Kurt Calabrese has nothing to do with his father and had only a marginal role in the 1995 loan sharking case that put Frank Calabrese Sr. in prison for nearly 10 years.
There's no love lost between father and son. Frank Calabrese Sr. allegedly repeatedly physically and verbally abused Kurt over the years, family friends have told the Sun-Times.
What's more, a rift grew between Frank Calabrese Sr. and his brother Nick Calabrese over the way Frank Calabrese Sr. treated his own two sons, such as selling them out during plea negotiations during the 1995 case.
Kurt Calabrese hasn't been subpoenaed to appear at the trial, nor is he cooperating in the case, authorities said.
Frank Calabrese Sr.'s lawyer, Joseph Lopez, said late Tuesday his client had nothing to do with the bomb threat. "My client has the perfect alibi," Lopez said. "He was sitting in a federal courthouse."
Law enforcement sources said there was a note in the bag containing the fake bomb, but it was destroyed when law enforcement obliterated the package with a water cannon.
The package was discovered about 11:30 a.m. Tuesday as Kurt Calabrese headed to his backyard. He was home alone, sources said. As he went down his porch steps, he came upon a large, clear, plastic bag. Inside, he found what appeared to be three sticks of dynamite wrapped at both ends by black tape. In the middle was a digital clock connected to two wires.
There were reports of a strange car with its lights off cruising around the Calabrese neighborhood early Tuesday, but it's unclear what connection, if any, it had to the threat.
Authorities ran a bomb-sniffing dog through the Calabrese home, which is modest for the affluent suburb, and through Calabrese's car but found nothing. Residents were allowed to return to their homes about 3:30 p.m., police said. Neighbors were stunned by the development, with one calling Calabrese and his wife "nice people who keep to themselves."
The bomb scare happened as lawyers in the Family Secrets case made significant progress in selecting a jury Tuesday. Twelve jurors and six alternates could be selected by today, and opening statements could start as early as Thursday. The courtroom was crowed with observers, including Rocky LaMantia, the son of the late mob boss Joseph "Shorty" LaMantia.
Thanks to Steve Warmbir
Inside the Mind of Mobster Frank Cullotta
Friends of ours: Frank Cullotta, Joe Cullotta, Tony "The Ant" Spilotro, Joey "The Clown" Lombardo
Friends of mine: Jimmy Miraglia, John "Billy" McCarthy
In the high profile mob trial that began Tuesday in Chicago, one witness for the government is expected to be Frank Cullotta. For more than 25 years, Cullotta was part of the Chicago mob.
Unit 5's Carol Marin got a rare glimpse into the mind of a mobster. Her report is presented here verbatim:
The story of Frank Cullotta is a disturbing and twisted tale. The son of a gangster, he became one himself. He befriended many of the Outfit's top leaders. He stole. He beat people. And he killed twice -- all with little thought of the consequences of his actions.
Cullotta: "There were times that I muscled people."
Frank Cullotta loved the life of the mob. He loved the scores.
Marin: "How many burglaries would you estimate?"
Cullotta: "Minimum 300. Robberies, maybe 200."
He loved the thrills.
Marin: "Your two killings, how were they done?"
Cullotta: "One was a car explosion, and the other was a guy getting shot in the head."
Cullotta shot his victim in the side, back and front of the head.
Marin: "So, you shot him three times?"
Cullotta: "About 10 times."
Cullotta: "I come from a good family, loving mother, loving father. But my father was a shady guy."
Joe Cullotta was a thief and wheelman for the mob, who died in a high speed chase with police in hot pursuit.
Frank Cullotta: "I just felt like he was the model I wanted to follow after."
Over the years, Frank Cullotta graduated from small time thug to big time mobster, aided by his friendship with Tony "The Ant" Spilotro.
Cullotta: "We met each other on Grand Avenue in Chicago ... we became friends."
But Cullotta was soon to learn a lesson about friendship and the mob -- a lesson that years later helped him make the biggest decision of his life.
Jimmy Miraglia and John "Billy" McCarthy were members of Cullotta's burglary crew. When they carried out an unauthorized hit, they were tortured. The M&M boys fell victim to mob justice. McCarthy was the first to die.
Cullotta: "They stuck his head in a vice and start turning the vice. They didn't think the eyeball was going to pop out or whatever, and his eyeball popped out. And then he gave up Jimmy's name. Then they just cut his throat."
Cullotta lead McCarthy and then Miraglia to their deaths.
Cullotta: "It bothered me for a long time. But you know, you live in that world and you say, 'You know, if I don't give 'em up ... they are going to whack me."
When we met Cullotta two weeks ago in Las Vegas, we asked how the mob justifies killing another person.
Cullotta: "First of all you are told this guy could hurt you ... he's no good so you kill 'em."
Marin: "What if you know them or their family?"
Cullotta: "You just justify it, you are doing his family a favor by getting rid of this scumbag."
Marin: "Do you think about it? Does it stay with you?"
Cullotta: "You just forget about it."
In 1979, Cullotta moved to Vegas. He and his crew, the Hole in the Wall gang, stole with abandon under the protection of his pal, Tony Spilotro.
Cullotta: "He was a good friend. For many years, he was a good friend."
But in 1982, Cullotta says, he learned Spilotro was plotting to have him killed. He quit the mob and became a government witness against his former friends. Today, it's a pen and not a pistol you will find in Cullotta's hand. In Las Vegas, he was signing autographs in a new book about his life.
Rick Halprin: "It's just a cheap, trashy book full of stories, which he knows are not true."
Rick Halprin is the lawyer for Joey "The Clown" Lombardo. Cullotta says he will testify in the "Family Secrets" trial that Lombardo has long been a leader in the outfit.
Halprin: "Frank Cullotta is a two-bit burglar who has been telling the same story since 1982."
Cullotta: "I'm old now."
A grandfather, today he is cashing in on his notoriety. He's served as a technical advisor to the mob movie "Casino," and hopes the book will spawn a movie deal.
Marin: "But you are a killer, a burglar, a thug -- I mean you robbed big people and little people, didn't you?"
Cullotta: "I was, I was ... I probably couldn't kill a fly now, really. I've changed ... They tried to kill me ... I wasn't going to become part of the list of guys that were all murdered by their friends. I was a little smarter than them."
Thanks to Carol Marin
Friends of mine: Jimmy Miraglia, John "Billy" McCarthy
In the high profile mob trial that began Tuesday in Chicago, one witness for the government is expected to be Frank Cullotta. For more than 25 years, Cullotta was part of the Chicago mob.
Unit 5's Carol Marin got a rare glimpse into the mind of a mobster. Her report is presented here verbatim:
The story of Frank Cullotta is a disturbing and twisted tale. The son of a gangster, he became one himself. He befriended many of the Outfit's top leaders. He stole. He beat people. And he killed twice -- all with little thought of the consequences of his actions.Cullotta: "There were times that I muscled people."
Frank Cullotta loved the life of the mob. He loved the scores.
Marin: "How many burglaries would you estimate?"
Cullotta: "Minimum 300. Robberies, maybe 200."
He loved the thrills.
Marin: "Your two killings, how were they done?"
Cullotta: "One was a car explosion, and the other was a guy getting shot in the head."
Cullotta shot his victim in the side, back and front of the head.
Marin: "So, you shot him three times?"
Cullotta: "About 10 times."
Cullotta: "I come from a good family, loving mother, loving father. But my father was a shady guy."
Joe Cullotta was a thief and wheelman for the mob, who died in a high speed chase with police in hot pursuit.
Frank Cullotta: "I just felt like he was the model I wanted to follow after."
Over the years, Frank Cullotta graduated from small time thug to big time mobster, aided by his friendship with Tony "The Ant" Spilotro.
Cullotta: "We met each other on Grand Avenue in Chicago ... we became friends."
But Cullotta was soon to learn a lesson about friendship and the mob -- a lesson that years later helped him make the biggest decision of his life.
Jimmy Miraglia and John "Billy" McCarthy were members of Cullotta's burglary crew. When they carried out an unauthorized hit, they were tortured. The M&M boys fell victim to mob justice. McCarthy was the first to die.
Cullotta: "They stuck his head in a vice and start turning the vice. They didn't think the eyeball was going to pop out or whatever, and his eyeball popped out. And then he gave up Jimmy's name. Then they just cut his throat."
Cullotta lead McCarthy and then Miraglia to their deaths.
Cullotta: "It bothered me for a long time. But you know, you live in that world and you say, 'You know, if I don't give 'em up ... they are going to whack me."
When we met Cullotta two weeks ago in Las Vegas, we asked how the mob justifies killing another person.
Cullotta: "First of all you are told this guy could hurt you ... he's no good so you kill 'em."
Marin: "What if you know them or their family?"
Cullotta: "You just justify it, you are doing his family a favor by getting rid of this scumbag."
Marin: "Do you think about it? Does it stay with you?"
Cullotta: "You just forget about it."
In 1979, Cullotta moved to Vegas. He and his crew, the Hole in the Wall gang, stole with abandon under the protection of his pal, Tony Spilotro.
Cullotta: "He was a good friend. For many years, he was a good friend."
But in 1982, Cullotta says, he learned Spilotro was plotting to have him killed. He quit the mob and became a government witness against his former friends. Today, it's a pen and not a pistol you will find in Cullotta's hand. In Las Vegas, he was signing autographs in a new book about his life.
Rick Halprin: "It's just a cheap, trashy book full of stories, which he knows are not true."
Rick Halprin is the lawyer for Joey "The Clown" Lombardo. Cullotta says he will testify in the "Family Secrets" trial that Lombardo has long been a leader in the outfit.
Halprin: "Frank Cullotta is a two-bit burglar who has been telling the same story since 1982."
Cullotta: "I'm old now."
A grandfather, today he is cashing in on his notoriety. He's served as a technical advisor to the mob movie "Casino," and hopes the book will spawn a movie deal.
Marin: "But you are a killer, a burglar, a thug -- I mean you robbed big people and little people, didn't you?"
Cullotta: "I was, I was ... I probably couldn't kill a fly now, really. I've changed ... They tried to kill me ... I wasn't going to become part of the list of guys that were all murdered by their friends. I was a little smarter than them."
Thanks to Carol Marin
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