The Life and Times of a Mafia Insider - Tough Guy: A Memoir by Louis Ferrante

Hear the words "Mafia boss" and you think: olive-skinned with dark, slightly bloodshot eyes and a sharp suit. Louis Ferrante fulfils some of those preconceptions.

He is New York Italian, powerfully built, and was wearing a black shirt when interviewed for HARDtalk by Sarah Montague.

He worked for John Gotti of the infamous Gambino crime family, which pulled off some of the most lucrative heists in American history. But he is younger than you would think, given that he ran his own "crew" and did nine years in jail before deciding to change his life and become a writer.

Ferrante's moment of truth came when a prison guard at the Brooklyn Metropolitan Detention Center described him and his kind as "animals".

Two months in solitary forced him to ponder the question: was he an animal? If so, why was he one? "I thought about the people I'd victimised... and I realised I did deserve to be in a zoo," he recalls.

For the first time in his life he started reading books, looking deeper into himself and searching for some answers. He set himself the challenge to read the entire prison library.

"Prison was the greatest thing that happened to me, because it gave me time to look inside myself, the solitude that I needed to take a closer look at everything around me; to analyse myself."

He educated himself and converted to Judaism.

Given his experience behind bars, Ferrante believes the prison services should be about giving inmates the opportunity to change their lives. But before his own transformation, Ferrante's "greatest aspiration" was always to be a member of the Mafia.

He started off as a kid, sawing the tops of meters to get the coins, and hijacked his first truck as a teenager, using a gun.

"I was 17 years old. I liked girls. I liked to drive fast cars. I liked hamburgers and French fries.

"And I'd just realised that I liked to hijack trucks".

A common misconception about the Mafia is that you have to have a genetic link to a "family" in order to be a member. Not so, says Ferrante. The most famous Mob bosses were not born into "the Life".

Lucky Luciano, Thomas Lucchese, Carlos Marcello and Vito Genovese all started out as petty thieves, graduating to bigger crimes as the years passed. So did John Gotti and so did Ferrante.

Whether he is accurately described as a "boss" is debatable.

His memoir, Tough Guy, more modestly describes him as a "Mafia insider". But he was on the list being passed around the five Mafia families and was on the verge of being "made" when he was arrested for racketeering.

"I had a dozen good men under me... I was already equal to a made man, since I answered directly to the heads of my family."

In a legitimate business he would be considered middle management.

At the height of his criminal career Ferrante had the trappings of wealth. "I'd drop $10,000 at the tables in Atlantic City, pick up a $500 tab at a steakhouse, and hand out hundreds to anyone with a story."

He made his money robbing trucks, selling on bent goods bought with fake credit cards made from stolen numbers, dealing with anything from high quality white goods to government bonds.

In an early mistake he robbed a truck load of cheap underwear. "I was stuck with 500 boxes of brassieres I couldn't sell as slingshots".

But mostly his jobs were highly lucrative.

His book enables you to check what you think you know about the New York Italian underworld with reality.

You have to be Italian to be "made"? True.

Under no circumstances do you take your beef with another gangster to his home, involving his family. Also true.

He consorted with characters like Bert the Zip, Tony the Twitch and Barry the Brokester, who always maintained he could not pay you because he was broke.

Bobby Butterballs he leaves us to work out for ourselves.

He maintains that there is honour amongst thieves:

"Jimmy and I had no contract, no lawyers, no bill of sale; a handshake sealed the deal. Try that in the straight world".

And he would have you believe that he was a nice cuddly gangster. He maintains he never murdered anyone. But that was perhaps more by luck than judgement.

Ferrante glosses over quite how much he injured people, and he admits in his book that he beat someone up and left him not knowing whether he was alive or dead.

Collecting money, he says, was easy for him. "I collected $20,000 from a guy who owned a dress company in a garment centre. I threatened to hang him out the window. He paid, even though his office was on the first floor."

When HARDtalk presenter Sarah Montague asked him how he asserted himself in prison he used elliptical phrases like: I would have to "declare myself" or "express myself".

Writing his life story cannot have been an easy decision. The Mafia are not keen on insiders discussing their modus operandi.

He has changed the names to protect the innocent and conceal the guilty, and says as a matter of honour he has never ratted on his former associates.

Thanks to Bridget Osborne

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FBI Raises Reward for Whitey Bulger to $2 Million

The FBI is raising the reward for Top Ten fugitive James “Whitey” Bulger to 2 million dollars and has released new age-enhanced photos to help catch him.

James Bulger is wanted for his role in numerous murders in the 1970s and 80s. He was head of an organized extortion and drug ring in the Boston area.

The newly enhanced images show Bulger with and without a mustache and glasses. The images supplement surveillance video and audio the FBI has already released in hopes the public might recognize the fugitive.

In the video from 1980, Bulger is chatting with another man at the Lancaster Street Garage and at the Howard Johnsons in Boston, Massachusetts.

Born in 1929, Bulger has been known to alter his appearance using disguises. He’s traveled extensively in Europe, Mexico and Canada. He’s an avid reader with an interest in art and is know to frequent historic sites. He stays fit by walking on beaches and in parks with a female companion.

In January the Bulger Fugitive Task Force released audio recordings of Bulger taken before he was a fugitive. The hope is that someone will recognize the unique characteristics of his voice and report it.

[James Bulger Audio recording: “Could I speak to Jack? Thank you. Hi, Jack. Is there any rentals up at that place up across from, umm, Kelly's? Okay. Gonna find out now...I think that's the Ma- Marine Park they call it. Ah, what do they call it, "The Marine Park"? Yeah, is it the Marine Park they call it? Okay. You had one for sale recently? Or is it for sale now? What floor is it on (UI) first floor? They're no good.”]

James Bulger goes by at least a dozen aliases. He has a violent temper and is known to carry a knife at all times. He should be considered armed and extremely dangerous.

New Wanted posters announcing the 2 million dollar reward have also been printed in Italian, German, Portuguese and Spanish.

If you have any information on Bulger’s whereabouts, contact your local FBI office or the nearest U.S. Embassy or Consulate.

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Kyle Knight, Explosives Supplier of Mob Pipe Bombings, Pleads Guilty

The man who supplied explosives in a mob- ordered pipe bombing of a Berwyn business pleaded guilty today and has agreed to testify against others in the case.

Kyle Knight of Merrillville, Indiana admitted transporting two bags of explosive powder to 84 year old Samuel Volpendesto, reputed to be a mob associate. Volpendesto, of Oak Brook and 41 year old Mark Polchan have been charged with the 2003 bombing of C&S Coin Operated Amusements, 6508 W. 16th St. in Berwyn, which leased vending and video machines and was targeted by the Chicago Outfit because it competed with the mob's $13 million illegal gambling operation. Polchan, also described by authorities as a mob associate and a member of the Outlaws motorcycle gang, and Volpendesto were charged last month with the 2003 bombing.

According to his indictment, Volpendesto talked on undercover tape about the bombings and connected an unnamed individual referred to only as the "Large Guy." The government refers to that man as Outfit Member A, who worked for Outfit boss Johnny "Apes" Monteleone.

In a report last month the ABC7 ITeam identified Outfit member A as Mike Sarno, formerly known as "Fat Boy." The Westchester home of the convicted gangster was raided by the FBI in connection with the bombing. Sarno, now known in mob circles as "the large guy," has not been charged in the case. He told the I-Team this summer that he would have nothing to say about the legal matter.

The Iteam report, Double-O Connection, focused on a criminal relationship between the Outfit and the Outlaws biker gang.

In court today, Knight also pleaded guilty to numerous robberies. He has agreed to cooperate with authorities in return for a sentence of 15 years in prison.

Thanks to Chuck Goudie and Ann Pistone

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7 Reputed Bonanno Associates Face Federal Charges

Seven men, believed to have ties to the Bonanno crime family, face charges including racketeering and illegal gambling, federal prosecutors announced last Thursday.

Three of the men, John Contello, 55, Vincent Disario, 47, and Michael Carucci, 38, were arrested about 5:30 a.m. in New York City on Thursday on charges including racketeering and conspiracy, according to an indictment unsealed in Brooklyn federal court. They were arraigned on Thursday afternoon. If convicted, they face up to 20 years in prison, according to a statement from the United States attorney’s office.

Mr. Contello is a reputed acting captain, and Mr. Disario is said to be a soldier in the Bonanno crime family, the statement said. The police did not detail Mr. Carucci’s reputed ties to the crime family.

Gerald Chilli, 74, also a reputed captain in the family, has been charged with extortion. He had already been in federal custody in Florida on unrelated charges. He faces up to 20 years in prison if convicted of the extortion charges.

George Miller, 68, who the authorities said is an associate of the family, was arrested near Canada and faces charges related to racketeering through the collection of unlawful debts, the statement said. If convicted, he faces up to 20 years in prison.

Richard Cendali, 40, who was arrested in New York City and was also arraigned on Thursday, and Anthony Zeni, 46, who had not been arrested by the afternoon, both face charges related to illegal gambling operations, the prosecutors’ statement said. The authorities that said Mr. Zeni was in Florida and that they expected to have him in custody soon. Both men face a maximum of five years in prison.

Mr. Carucci, Mr. Cendali and Mr. Contello all pleaded not guilty and were released on $250,000 or $500,000 bail, said a spokesman for the United States attorney’s office said. Mr. Disario also pleaded not guilty but was remanded and held without bail. A hearing for Mr. Miller will be held on Friday, the spokesman said.

Thanks to Christine Hauser

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Not Guilty Plea from Junior Gotti

John A. "Junior" Gotti has pleaded not guilty to federal racketeering charges in Tampa.

The 44-year-old son of the former Gambino family crime boss was arraigned in federal court Thursday afternoon. He faces conspiracy charges that link him to three mob slayings, cocaine distribution and other crimes.

Dressed in a blue jail jumpsuit and shackled at the ankles, Gotti appeared with his attorneys but didn't speak during the five-minute hearing.

Prosecutors say Gotti was a chief in an arm of the Gambino crime family that operated in Florida and other states going back to 1983.

Gotti denies the charges and has said he has long been retired from organized crime. His attorneys said they plan to ask that the trial be moved to New York.

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