Geoffrey S. Berman, United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, William F. Sweeney Jr., the Assistant Director-in-Charge of the New York Field Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (“FBI”), and James P. O’Neill, Commissioner of the New York City Police Department (“NYPD”), announced the unsealing of a federal indictment charging ROBERT ACOSTA and JOSE DIAZ, a/k/a “Cano,” with the December 22, 1997, murders of Alex Ventura, 25, and Aneudis Almonte, 20.
U.S. Attorney Geoffrey S. Berman said: “Today’s indictment alleges that more than two decades ago, Robert Acosta orchestrated, and Jose Diaz carried out, the murders of Alex Ventura and Aneudis Almonte. Now, thanks to the outstanding work of the NYPD and FBI, the long arm of the law has reached back over two decades to charge Acosta and Diaz with those terrible crimes.”
FBI Assistant Director-in-Charge William F. Sweeney Jr. said: “This case proves why there is no time limit on holding someone responsible for murder; taking a human life is the worst crime a person can commit. Our agents and law enforcement partners work daily, pursuing suspects in crimes that seem unsolvable. The time and dedication make it worth the effort.”
NYPD Commissioner James P. O’Neill said: “After more than twenty years on-the-run, NYPD detectives and FBI agents have arrested two defendants for a double homicide in the Bronx. The focus and precision this case embodies is what has enabled this city to become the safest city in America. We will continue rooting out crime and violence wherever we find it, until every neighborhood and block of this city is safe.”
According to the Indictment unsealed in Manhattan federal court:
In late 1997, ACOSTA agreed with DIAZ and others to pay DIAZ and others to kill persons who had stolen drug money from ACOSTA. As a result of this agreement, Alex Ventura and Aneudis Almonte were murdered by DIAZ and others on December 22, 1997, in the vicinity of 2769 University Avenue in the Bronx, New York.
ACOSTA, 46, of Yonkers, New York, and DIAZ, 52, of the Bronx, New York, were arrested by the NYPD and the FBI. The defendants were presented later before United States Magistrate Judge Kevin Nathaniel Fox. The case has been assigned to United States District Judge P. Kevin Castel.
The Indictment charges each of the defendants in six counts: murder while engaged in a conspiracy to distribute five and more kilograms of cocaine and aiding and abetting the same (Counts One and Two); murder-for-hire conspiracy (Count Three); murder-for-hire and aiding and abetting the same (Counts Four and Five); and use of a firearm to commit murder in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime and aiding and abetting the same (Count Six). ACOSTA and DIAZ each face a maximum sentence of life in prison or death. The statutory maximum penalties are prescribed by Congress and are provided here for informational purposes only, as any sentencing of the defendants would be determined by the judge
This case is being handled by the Office’s Violent and Organized Crime Unit. Assistant United States Attorneys Laurie A. Korenbaum, Michael Kim Krouse, and Nicholas Chiuchiolo are in charge of the prosecution.
Monday, February 26, 2018
Friday, February 23, 2018
Former Mob Boss of Colombo Crime Family, @MichaelFranzese, to speak at @Penn_State Berks Arts and Lecture Series
Former mob boss Michael Franzese will speak about his life in organized crime at 7 p.m. March 21, in Perkins Student Center Auditorium at Penn State Berks. This event is free and open to the public.
Franzese grew up as the son of the notorious Underboss of New York’s violent and feared Colombo crime family. He made his own mark, generating an estimated $5 to $8 million per week from legal and illegal businesses. In 1986, Vanity Fair named Franzese one of the biggest money earners the mob had seen since Al Capone. At the age of 35, Fortune Magazine listed him as No. 18 on its list of the “Fifty Most Wealthy and Powerful Mafia Bosses.”
Despite his success, he wanted to make a change and today he is the only high ranking official of a major crime family to ever walk away, without protective custodies, and survive. Determined to use the compelling experiences of his former life for the benefit of anyone seeking the inspiration to beat the odds and make positive changes in their lives, he has become a highly regarded motivational speaker and a source of invaluable information.
He speaks about how he engaged bankers, corporate executives, union officials and professional and student athletes in a wide variety of financial scams. His open and honest true stories of his personal experiences in organized crime captivate audiences.
Penn State Berks reserves the right to limit the photography and/or recording of any program. The permitted or prohibited activities during a particular program will be announced at the beginning of the event and/or included in the printed program. All media requesting interviews and/or access to photograph and/or tape any program must contact the Office of Strategic Communications at 610-396-6053.
This event is sponsored by the Penn State Berks Arts and Lecture series. For more information, contact the Office of Campus Life at 610-396-6076.
Franzese grew up as the son of the notorious Underboss of New York’s violent and feared Colombo crime family. He made his own mark, generating an estimated $5 to $8 million per week from legal and illegal businesses. In 1986, Vanity Fair named Franzese one of the biggest money earners the mob had seen since Al Capone. At the age of 35, Fortune Magazine listed him as No. 18 on its list of the “Fifty Most Wealthy and Powerful Mafia Bosses.”
Despite his success, he wanted to make a change and today he is the only high ranking official of a major crime family to ever walk away, without protective custodies, and survive. Determined to use the compelling experiences of his former life for the benefit of anyone seeking the inspiration to beat the odds and make positive changes in their lives, he has become a highly regarded motivational speaker and a source of invaluable information.
He speaks about how he engaged bankers, corporate executives, union officials and professional and student athletes in a wide variety of financial scams. His open and honest true stories of his personal experiences in organized crime captivate audiences.
Penn State Berks reserves the right to limit the photography and/or recording of any program. The permitted or prohibited activities during a particular program will be announced at the beginning of the event and/or included in the printed program. All media requesting interviews and/or access to photograph and/or tape any program must contact the Office of Strategic Communications at 610-396-6053.
This event is sponsored by the Penn State Berks Arts and Lecture series. For more information, contact the Office of Campus Life at 610-396-6076.
Thursday, February 22, 2018
Leonardo Rizzuto and Stefano Sollecito, Alleged Mafia Leaders, Acquitted of Criminal Charges
Two men alleged to have been the leaders of the Mafia in Montreal were acquitted of criminal charges after a judge ruled the police illegally wiretapped them in the offices of their lawyer.
Leonardo Rizzuto and Stefano Sollecito were acquitted of charges of gangsterism and conspiracy to traffic cocaine by Quebec Superior Court Judge Eric Downs after the judge excluded the wiretap evidence gathered by a joint police task force in 2015 as a violation of the constitutional right to solicitor-client privilege. Most of the Crown’s evidence against the pair came from a conversation that was intercepted in a meeting room and in the reception area of the law office.
“The judge recognized that you don’t enter a law office like you do a warehouse” to conduct a wiretap operation, Daniele Roy, the lawyer representing Sollecito, said on Monday evening.
The wiretap was a first in Canada because the police installed hidden microphones around the law office, Roy said. The judge ruled in favour of Sollecito and Rizzuto’s request to have the evidence excluded because the authorities had not put in place sufficient measures to prevent the interception of conversations between lawyers and other clients at the office, she added.
Sollecito and Rizzuto were arrested in 2015.
Rizzuto, the son of Mafia boss Vito Rizzuto, who died in 2013, had been detained since his arrest. Sollecito, whose father, Rocco Sollecito, was murdered in Laval in 2016, was granted bail by a court in 2016 to so he could undergo treatment for cancer.
Rizzuto is still facing charges of possession of a firearm and drug possession. However, he was expected to be released on bail to await the outcome of the other case.
Leonardo Rizzuto and Stefano Sollecito were acquitted of charges of gangsterism and conspiracy to traffic cocaine by Quebec Superior Court Judge Eric Downs after the judge excluded the wiretap evidence gathered by a joint police task force in 2015 as a violation of the constitutional right to solicitor-client privilege. Most of the Crown’s evidence against the pair came from a conversation that was intercepted in a meeting room and in the reception area of the law office.
“The judge recognized that you don’t enter a law office like you do a warehouse” to conduct a wiretap operation, Daniele Roy, the lawyer representing Sollecito, said on Monday evening.
The wiretap was a first in Canada because the police installed hidden microphones around the law office, Roy said. The judge ruled in favour of Sollecito and Rizzuto’s request to have the evidence excluded because the authorities had not put in place sufficient measures to prevent the interception of conversations between lawyers and other clients at the office, she added.
Sollecito and Rizzuto were arrested in 2015.
Rizzuto, the son of Mafia boss Vito Rizzuto, who died in 2013, had been detained since his arrest. Sollecito, whose father, Rocco Sollecito, was murdered in Laval in 2016, was granted bail by a court in 2016 to so he could undergo treatment for cancer.
Rizzuto is still facing charges of possession of a firearm and drug possession. However, he was expected to be released on bail to await the outcome of the other case.
Tuesday, February 20, 2018
Chicago Trader, Joseph Kim, from Consolidated Trading, Facing Fraud Charge for Allegedly Misappropriating $2 Million in #Cryptocurrency
In the first criminal prosecution in Chicago involving the cryptocurrency trading industry, a Chicago trader was charged with fraud for allegedly misappropriating $2 million in Bitcoin and Litecoin.
JOSEPH KIM, 24, of Chicago, was charged in a federal criminal complaint with one count of wire fraud.
Kim worked as an assistant trader for Consolidated Trading LLC, a Chicago trading firm that recently formed a cryptocurrency group to engage in cryptocurrency trading, the complaint states. Over a two-month period in the fall of last year, Kim misappropriated at least $2 million of the firm’s Bitcoin and Litecoin cryptocurrency for his own personal benefit, and he made false statements and representations to the company’s management in order to conceal the theft, according to the complaint.
The complaint was announced by John R. Lausch, Jr., United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois; and Jeffrey S. Sallet, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
According to the complaint, from September through November 2017, Kim transferred more than $2 million of the trading firm’s Bitcoin and Litecoin to personal accounts to cover his own trading losses, which had been incurred while trading cryptocurrency futures on foreign exchanges. In order to conceal the transfers, Kim lied to the firm’s management about the location of the company’s cryptocurrency and his trading of the company’s cryptocurrency, the complaint states. Consolidated’s management team discovered the misappropriation in late November, the complaint states.
Wire fraud is punishable by up to 20 years in prison. If convicted, the Court must impose a reasonable sentence under federal statutes and the advisory U.S. Sentencing Guidelines.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Sunil Harjani and Sheri Mecklenburg.
JOSEPH KIM, 24, of Chicago, was charged in a federal criminal complaint with one count of wire fraud.
Kim worked as an assistant trader for Consolidated Trading LLC, a Chicago trading firm that recently formed a cryptocurrency group to engage in cryptocurrency trading, the complaint states. Over a two-month period in the fall of last year, Kim misappropriated at least $2 million of the firm’s Bitcoin and Litecoin cryptocurrency for his own personal benefit, and he made false statements and representations to the company’s management in order to conceal the theft, according to the complaint.
The complaint was announced by John R. Lausch, Jr., United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois; and Jeffrey S. Sallet, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
According to the complaint, from September through November 2017, Kim transferred more than $2 million of the trading firm’s Bitcoin and Litecoin to personal accounts to cover his own trading losses, which had been incurred while trading cryptocurrency futures on foreign exchanges. In order to conceal the transfers, Kim lied to the firm’s management about the location of the company’s cryptocurrency and his trading of the company’s cryptocurrency, the complaint states. Consolidated’s management team discovered the misappropriation in late November, the complaint states.
Wire fraud is punishable by up to 20 years in prison. If convicted, the Court must impose a reasonable sentence under federal statutes and the advisory U.S. Sentencing Guidelines.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Sunil Harjani and Sheri Mecklenburg.
Thursday, February 15, 2018
How to Survive an #ActiveShooter Event Video #RunHideFight
Tuesday, February 13, 2018
Excellent Analysis of #MS13 on Tonight's Episode of @FrontlinePBS - The Gang Crackdown
Given the inflammatory coverage the violent gang MS-13 receives on Fox News, which in turn disproportionately influences President Trump’s statements about immigration policy, it’s great to have the evenhanded reporting Frontline has done for its new edition titled The Gang Crackdown, premiering Tuesday on PBS. While making terrifyingly clear the horrible violence that MS-13 has inflicted upon innocent Americans, The Gang Crackdown also confirms what you might suspect: that the Trump administration policies to combat the gang’s real menace often make things more difficult for law-abiding people and has fostered racial animosity toward legal and illegal immigrants.
The hour-long documentary traces the Central American gang violence that is being exported to the U.S. in the form of MS-13, a vicious group that bullies young people into joining on the threat of death. Producer Marcela Gaviria focuses on Long Island, N.Y., which has been a particular target of gang violence and where MS-13 gang members occupy forested areas of Suffolk County. At least 25 dead bodies were found in that county in 2016, victims of gang violence, brutally killed with machetes and other weapons. Most of the dead are from local immigrant communities.
You’d think there’d be lots of concern for the victims and their families. Instead, right-wing media forces have seized upon the gang’s activities as a justification for all sorts of broad-brush, anti-immigration advocacy, calling for the deportation of people who have nothing to do with gang culture. Once Fox News talking heads like Tucker Carlson and Sean Hannity started inflating the size and scope of MS-13 out of all proportion, it was only a matter of time before avid Fox News watcher Donald Trump began invoking MS-13 as being essentially synonymous with illegal immigrants.
The Gang Crackdown profiles a couple of young people who were rounded up in anti-gang efforts by local police and government ICE agents. These youths were held in high-security prisons for months with no due process, no access to their lawyers, until their cases were examined. Some were ultimately freed for lack of evidence of gang involvement. The Frontline report makes clear that the Latino population on Long Island is being doubly wronged: victimized by MS-13 but also made hesitant of going to the police for protection, out of a fear of being suspected of illegal immigration status. Thanks to Frontline for crediting us with enough intelligence to recognize the evil of MS-13 without also obliging us to become rabid anti-immigrationists. Is it any wonder that Trump’s newly released budget proposal eliminates funding for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting?
Thanks to Ken Tucker.
The hour-long documentary traces the Central American gang violence that is being exported to the U.S. in the form of MS-13, a vicious group that bullies young people into joining on the threat of death. Producer Marcela Gaviria focuses on Long Island, N.Y., which has been a particular target of gang violence and where MS-13 gang members occupy forested areas of Suffolk County. At least 25 dead bodies were found in that county in 2016, victims of gang violence, brutally killed with machetes and other weapons. Most of the dead are from local immigrant communities.
You’d think there’d be lots of concern for the victims and their families. Instead, right-wing media forces have seized upon the gang’s activities as a justification for all sorts of broad-brush, anti-immigration advocacy, calling for the deportation of people who have nothing to do with gang culture. Once Fox News talking heads like Tucker Carlson and Sean Hannity started inflating the size and scope of MS-13 out of all proportion, it was only a matter of time before avid Fox News watcher Donald Trump began invoking MS-13 as being essentially synonymous with illegal immigrants.
The Gang Crackdown profiles a couple of young people who were rounded up in anti-gang efforts by local police and government ICE agents. These youths were held in high-security prisons for months with no due process, no access to their lawyers, until their cases were examined. Some were ultimately freed for lack of evidence of gang involvement. The Frontline report makes clear that the Latino population on Long Island is being doubly wronged: victimized by MS-13 but also made hesitant of going to the police for protection, out of a fear of being suspected of illegal immigration status. Thanks to Frontline for crediting us with enough intelligence to recognize the evil of MS-13 without also obliging us to become rabid anti-immigrationists. Is it any wonder that Trump’s newly released budget proposal eliminates funding for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting?
Thanks to Ken Tucker.
Monday, February 12, 2018
Uniformed Law Enforcement Officer, from @TNWildlife, Refused Dinner with Wife by @Outback Steakhouse, Due to Police Hating Customer
The word “Outback” used to conjure images of Australia’s tenacious frontier spirit; of hunters, ranchers, and other adventurers who carved out a harsh existence from an unforgiving land. Thanks to a decades-long campaign to distance the island nation from certain elements of its rugged heritage and the proliferation of an Australian-themed casual dining restaurant chain, today the word “Outback” is more likely to bring to mind a 3,000 calorie deep-fried onion.
Despite its namesake and decor, culinary critics have long questioned whether Outback Steakhouse offers an authentic Down Under dining experience. However, these detractors should know that in recent years the chain has gone to great lengths to replicate for their guests Australia’s culture of civilian disarmament by prohibiting diners from carrying firearms onto the premises. This commitment to reproducing Australia’s defenseless society is so profound that earlier this month a uniformed law enforcement officer was asked to leave an Outback in Cleveland, Tenn. because he was armed.
The incident occurred when Tennessee Wildlife Resource Agency Officer Andrew Ward and his wife went to the restaurant for dinner. In a Facebook post, Ward explained,
Rightfully disturbed by the encounter, Ward added,
In an update to his initial post, Ward noted that he was asked to leave after Outback management bent to the will of an unhinged customer. According to Ward, “There was another customer who was ‘scared for her life’… because ‘police are shooting people.’” Ward explained that “the customer went on to demand to be escorted to her vehicle out of fear of being shot.”
Given the decades of statistics showing the law-abiding character of Right-to-Carry permit holders, Outback’s gun free zone policy is foolish. However, that the company would cite their gun-free policy as justification to yield to the ravings of an unreasonable individual to the detriment of a uniformed law enforcement officer is radical.
There is a general consensus that uniformed and ununiformed current and former law enforcement officers should be allowed to carry a firearm for the public benefit. That is why in 2004 Congress passed and President George W. Bush signed the Law Enforcement Officer’s Safety Act (LEOSA). Under LEOSA, current and former law enforcement officers who meet certain basic criteria, such as carrying qualified identification, are permitted to carry a firearm throughout the country.
Showing the strong bipartisan support for this measure, the original legislation, H.R. 218, had 297 co-sponsors in the House of Representative and passed the Senate unanimously. Subsequent changes that have been made to increase the number of officers able to take advantage of this protection have been similarly popular.
Sensing a growing public outrage, Outback reached out to the Wards and offered them a $100 gift card and an apology. Outback’s parent-company, Bloomin’ Brands, Inc., issued a statement to Chattanooga’s WTVC that contended it is not company policy to prohibit law enforcement officers from carrying at their restaurants. The statement went on to blame the incident on the individual restaurant manager.
While the manager might have handled the situation better, Bloomin’ Brands shares some responsibility for creating the irrational gun free zone policy that the employee was forced to interpret. Outback Steakhouse ads have long carried the tagline “Outback: No Rules, Just Right.” In order to better reflect company values and bolster ongoing efforts at authenticity, we submit for consideration, “Outback: No Rights, Just Rules.”
Thanks to NRA.
Despite its namesake and decor, culinary critics have long questioned whether Outback Steakhouse offers an authentic Down Under dining experience. However, these detractors should know that in recent years the chain has gone to great lengths to replicate for their guests Australia’s culture of civilian disarmament by prohibiting diners from carrying firearms onto the premises. This commitment to reproducing Australia’s defenseless society is so profound that earlier this month a uniformed law enforcement officer was asked to leave an Outback in Cleveland, Tenn. because he was armed.
The incident occurred when Tennessee Wildlife Resource Agency Officer Andrew Ward and his wife went to the restaurant for dinner. In a Facebook post, Ward explained,
I was approached by the manager and asked if I would put my gun in my truck. I let her know that I couldn’t because I was in uniform. She then went and made a call and came back and we were asked to leave because Outback is a gun free zone.
Rightfully disturbed by the encounter, Ward added,
What is this country coming to? A uniformed Law Enforcement Officer who is sworn to protect and serve the public, is refused service because they have a firearm! I am disgusted and have no other words!!!
In an update to his initial post, Ward noted that he was asked to leave after Outback management bent to the will of an unhinged customer. According to Ward, “There was another customer who was ‘scared for her life’… because ‘police are shooting people.’” Ward explained that “the customer went on to demand to be escorted to her vehicle out of fear of being shot.”
Given the decades of statistics showing the law-abiding character of Right-to-Carry permit holders, Outback’s gun free zone policy is foolish. However, that the company would cite their gun-free policy as justification to yield to the ravings of an unreasonable individual to the detriment of a uniformed law enforcement officer is radical.
There is a general consensus that uniformed and ununiformed current and former law enforcement officers should be allowed to carry a firearm for the public benefit. That is why in 2004 Congress passed and President George W. Bush signed the Law Enforcement Officer’s Safety Act (LEOSA). Under LEOSA, current and former law enforcement officers who meet certain basic criteria, such as carrying qualified identification, are permitted to carry a firearm throughout the country.
Showing the strong bipartisan support for this measure, the original legislation, H.R. 218, had 297 co-sponsors in the House of Representative and passed the Senate unanimously. Subsequent changes that have been made to increase the number of officers able to take advantage of this protection have been similarly popular.
Sensing a growing public outrage, Outback reached out to the Wards and offered them a $100 gift card and an apology. Outback’s parent-company, Bloomin’ Brands, Inc., issued a statement to Chattanooga’s WTVC that contended it is not company policy to prohibit law enforcement officers from carrying at their restaurants. The statement went on to blame the incident on the individual restaurant manager.
While the manager might have handled the situation better, Bloomin’ Brands shares some responsibility for creating the irrational gun free zone policy that the employee was forced to interpret. Outback Steakhouse ads have long carried the tagline “Outback: No Rules, Just Right.” In order to better reflect company values and bolster ongoing efforts at authenticity, we submit for consideration, “Outback: No Rights, Just Rules.”
Thanks to NRA.
Thursday, February 08, 2018
When Life Gives You Lemons, Give the #Mafia their Street Tax or Else...
Researchers from Queen’s University Belfast, in collaboration the University of Manchester and the University of Gothenburg (Sweden),
have uncovered new evidence to suggest that the Sicilian mafia arose to notoriety in the 1800s in response to the public demand for citrus fruits.
Arguably one of the most infamous institutions in the Western world, the Sicilian mafia, first appeared in Sicily in the 1870s and soon infiltrated the economic and political spheres of Italy and the United States.
Dr Arcangelo Dimico, Lecturer in Economics from Queen’s Management School, and the research team hypothesized that the Sicilian mafia rose to power due to the high public demand for oranges and lemons following physician James Lind’s discovery in the late eighteenth century that citrus fruits could prevent and cure scurvy, due to their high levels of vitamin c.
Dr Dimico said: “Although outcomes of the mafia’s actions such as murders, bombings, and embezzlement of public money have been observed during the last 140 years, the reasons behind its emergence are still obscure.
The researchers used two unique data sets from Sicilian towns and districts gathered from a parliamentary inquiry conducted between 1881–1886 (Damiani 1886) and from 1900 (Cutrera 1900). They found that mafia presence in the 1880s is strongly associated with the prevalence of citrus cultivation.
Dr Dimico added: “Given Sicily’s dominant position in the international market for citrus fruits, the increase in demand resulted in a very large inflow of revenues to citrus-producing towns during the 1800s. Citrus trees can be cultivated only in areas that meet specific requirements, such as mild and constant temperature throughout the year and abundance of water, guaranteeing substantial profits to relatively few local producers.
“The combination of high profits, a weak rule of law, a low level of interpersonal trust, and a high level of local poverty made lemon producers a suitable target for predation, as there was little means to effectively enforce private property rights. Lemon producers, therefore, resorted to hiring mafia affiliates for private protection and to act as intermediaries between the retailers and exporters in the harbours.”
Until now the Sicilian mafia’s origins have always thought to have been a consequence of the weak institutional setting related to the failure of the feudal system present in Sicily and from the political instability in Italian history. However this research is the first piece of evidence to suggest that their rise to power was actually due to the boom in the economy.
Arguably one of the most infamous institutions in the Western world, the Sicilian mafia, first appeared in Sicily in the 1870s and soon infiltrated the economic and political spheres of Italy and the United States.
Dr Arcangelo Dimico, Lecturer in Economics from Queen’s Management School, and the research team hypothesized that the Sicilian mafia rose to power due to the high public demand for oranges and lemons following physician James Lind’s discovery in the late eighteenth century that citrus fruits could prevent and cure scurvy, due to their high levels of vitamin c.
Dr Dimico said: “Although outcomes of the mafia’s actions such as murders, bombings, and embezzlement of public money have been observed during the last 140 years, the reasons behind its emergence are still obscure.
The researchers used two unique data sets from Sicilian towns and districts gathered from a parliamentary inquiry conducted between 1881–1886 (Damiani 1886) and from 1900 (Cutrera 1900). They found that mafia presence in the 1880s is strongly associated with the prevalence of citrus cultivation.
Dr Dimico added: “Given Sicily’s dominant position in the international market for citrus fruits, the increase in demand resulted in a very large inflow of revenues to citrus-producing towns during the 1800s. Citrus trees can be cultivated only in areas that meet specific requirements, such as mild and constant temperature throughout the year and abundance of water, guaranteeing substantial profits to relatively few local producers.
“The combination of high profits, a weak rule of law, a low level of interpersonal trust, and a high level of local poverty made lemon producers a suitable target for predation, as there was little means to effectively enforce private property rights. Lemon producers, therefore, resorted to hiring mafia affiliates for private protection and to act as intermediaries between the retailers and exporters in the harbours.”
Until now the Sicilian mafia’s origins have always thought to have been a consequence of the weak institutional setting related to the failure of the feudal system present in Sicily and from the political instability in Italian history. However this research is the first piece of evidence to suggest that their rise to power was actually due to the boom in the economy.
Wednesday, February 07, 2018
Towns Where Even the Police Fear to Tread #MexicanCartels
Jorge lives in an improvised campsite in Práxedis, a silent town in the north of Mexico where few cars or people venture out on the streets. He is a member of the state police force, sent in by the Chihuahua state governor to combat the terrifying rate of violent crime. It is the state police that now handle a substantial portion of law enforcement in the area.
The Valley of Juárez, a region of Chihuahua bordering the US, has been a war zone riddled with organized crime for the past 10 years, due to its location at the crossroads of the routes used by drug traffickers and people smugglers. “We’ve been here since 2015 – there were no local police left because they had either been killed or abducted,” says Jorge at the precinct. When he first arrived here, he felt as though he were driving through a ghost town. “People didn’t come out on the streets, but bit by bit things have gone back to normal,” he says.
Práxedis and Guadalupe belong to the Valley of Juárez, a region surrounded by desert that was previously a prosperous cotton-growing area. But since the drug traffickers moved in more than 10 years ago, the territory has been a battleground for the Sinaloa and La LÃnea cartels smuggling drugs and people across the inhospitable gulf dividing this part of Mexico from the US.
The violence was largely responsible for the high number of murders in the state of Chihuahua in 2010, when it racked up a historic 3,903. The murder rate dropped dramatically in 2013, and though it began to climb again after 2016, the death toll in 2017 was still less that half of that at 1,566. In the volatile years between 2007 and 2015, any local police officer who had escaped death or abduction simply fled.
Lourdes López explains how her son was “carried off” along with four other policemen in Práxedis in 2009. “That was nine years ago and there’s been no justice,” she says. Her son had never used a gun and was never trained to do so. “He wanted to be a policeman ever since he was a boy and he was a good person who didn’t deserve what he got,” says the 62-year- old mother, who left town several days after her son was seized.
MartÃn Hueramo, a former mayor of Guadalupe, says that the municipal police were not prepared for the situation they found themselves in. “Towns had to confront organized crime with unarmed police officers whose only experience was with minor offenses. Nine policemen were killed in Guadalupe in various shoot-outs, and three human heads were left in an icebox. It was a terrifying era,” says Hueramo, who was granted political asylum in Texas. In that period, the population of Guadalupe fell from 13,000 to 2,000, he adds, although it has since bounced back to 5,000.
The last municipal policeman to work in Guadalupe, JoaquÃn Hernández, was killed in July 2015 after being lured to a phony crime scene. The municipal police department there was among the most frequently attacked. Between 2007 and 2010, it often closed down completely. In December 2010, it was shut down definitively when its head, Erika Gándara was “carried off” by a criminal group who sought her out in her own home. She was the last police officer left in the precinct following the death, disappearance or resignation of her colleagues. In 2014, the police station reopened with Máximo Carrillo at the helm, but he was killed in June 2015. He was then replaced by JoaquÃn Hernández, who was killed only three weeks later.
The situation wasn’t much different in Práxedis. The last police officer in town was Marisol, a young 20-year-old criminology student who made international headlines as “The Bravest Woman in Mexico.” She lasted less than four months before death threats forced her to flee across the border into the US. After she’d gone, no one else offered to step up to the plate and the state police moved in on surveillance shifts.
To date, Guadalupe’s police precinct has no plans to reopen, according to the town council secretary, Fausto González Pérez. “It exposes people to danger,” he says. “If we issue a job notice, some courageous soul might come forward, but it’s a delicate matter.” The prison cells of the precinct are currently being used to store wine, and the money that once went towards the town’s security has been otherwise spent on sport and cultural activities. “These are difficult times,” says González Pérez. “Right now we are in a wilderness, but we are rebuilding the town.”
Chihuahua’s municipal police force is not equipped to deal with serious crime. A recent report in a Juárez newspaper reveals that there are towns such as Guachochi with 53 police officers but only 15 bulletproof vests. Meanwhile, in Rosales, there are 42 police officers without vests working on an average salary of $200 a month. The state government has had to intervene in as many as nine towns, either because the police are ill equipped or because the police department has become corrupt. Last year, in Ahumada, the director of Public Security, Carlos Alberto Duarte, and six of his men were arrested on criminal charges. Several months later, however, Duarte was back in his job.
Thanks to Cludad Juarez.
The Valley of Juárez, a region of Chihuahua bordering the US, has been a war zone riddled with organized crime for the past 10 years, due to its location at the crossroads of the routes used by drug traffickers and people smugglers. “We’ve been here since 2015 – there were no local police left because they had either been killed or abducted,” says Jorge at the precinct. When he first arrived here, he felt as though he were driving through a ghost town. “People didn’t come out on the streets, but bit by bit things have gone back to normal,” he says.
Práxedis and Guadalupe belong to the Valley of Juárez, a region surrounded by desert that was previously a prosperous cotton-growing area. But since the drug traffickers moved in more than 10 years ago, the territory has been a battleground for the Sinaloa and La LÃnea cartels smuggling drugs and people across the inhospitable gulf dividing this part of Mexico from the US.
The violence was largely responsible for the high number of murders in the state of Chihuahua in 2010, when it racked up a historic 3,903. The murder rate dropped dramatically in 2013, and though it began to climb again after 2016, the death toll in 2017 was still less that half of that at 1,566. In the volatile years between 2007 and 2015, any local police officer who had escaped death or abduction simply fled.
Lourdes López explains how her son was “carried off” along with four other policemen in Práxedis in 2009. “That was nine years ago and there’s been no justice,” she says. Her son had never used a gun and was never trained to do so. “He wanted to be a policeman ever since he was a boy and he was a good person who didn’t deserve what he got,” says the 62-year- old mother, who left town several days after her son was seized.
MartÃn Hueramo, a former mayor of Guadalupe, says that the municipal police were not prepared for the situation they found themselves in. “Towns had to confront organized crime with unarmed police officers whose only experience was with minor offenses. Nine policemen were killed in Guadalupe in various shoot-outs, and three human heads were left in an icebox. It was a terrifying era,” says Hueramo, who was granted political asylum in Texas. In that period, the population of Guadalupe fell from 13,000 to 2,000, he adds, although it has since bounced back to 5,000.
The last municipal policeman to work in Guadalupe, JoaquÃn Hernández, was killed in July 2015 after being lured to a phony crime scene. The municipal police department there was among the most frequently attacked. Between 2007 and 2010, it often closed down completely. In December 2010, it was shut down definitively when its head, Erika Gándara was “carried off” by a criminal group who sought her out in her own home. She was the last police officer left in the precinct following the death, disappearance or resignation of her colleagues. In 2014, the police station reopened with Máximo Carrillo at the helm, but he was killed in June 2015. He was then replaced by JoaquÃn Hernández, who was killed only three weeks later.
The situation wasn’t much different in Práxedis. The last police officer in town was Marisol, a young 20-year-old criminology student who made international headlines as “The Bravest Woman in Mexico.” She lasted less than four months before death threats forced her to flee across the border into the US. After she’d gone, no one else offered to step up to the plate and the state police moved in on surveillance shifts.
To date, Guadalupe’s police precinct has no plans to reopen, according to the town council secretary, Fausto González Pérez. “It exposes people to danger,” he says. “If we issue a job notice, some courageous soul might come forward, but it’s a delicate matter.” The prison cells of the precinct are currently being used to store wine, and the money that once went towards the town’s security has been otherwise spent on sport and cultural activities. “These are difficult times,” says González Pérez. “Right now we are in a wilderness, but we are rebuilding the town.”
Chihuahua’s municipal police force is not equipped to deal with serious crime. A recent report in a Juárez newspaper reveals that there are towns such as Guachochi with 53 police officers but only 15 bulletproof vests. Meanwhile, in Rosales, there are 42 police officers without vests working on an average salary of $200 a month. The state government has had to intervene in as many as nine towns, either because the police are ill equipped or because the police department has become corrupt. Last year, in Ahumada, the director of Public Security, Carlos Alberto Duarte, and six of his men were arrested on criminal charges. Several months later, however, Duarte was back in his job.
Thanks to Cludad Juarez.
1,400 #OrganizedCrime #GangMembers Arrested
More than 1,400 suspects have been arrested in a crackdown on organized crime, police in northwestern Shaanxi province said, according to reports from Xinhua News Agency, the official press agency of the People's Republic of China.
Shaanxi Public Security Department launched a campaign against gang crime in November 2017. Police in the province have busted 202 gangs involved in 532 cases, seizing more than 9.21 million yuan.
In Jiangxi province, police said they had busted 173 gangs, arresting 1,111 suspects.
Shaanxi Public Security Department launched a campaign against gang crime in November 2017. Police in the province have busted 202 gangs involved in 532 cases, seizing more than 9.21 million yuan.
In Jiangxi province, police said they had busted 173 gangs, arresting 1,111 suspects.
Tuesday, February 06, 2018
Judge Rules Jurors' Names will be Kept Secret in #ElChapo Trial
A federal judge in Brooklyn has ruled that the identities of jurors expected to decide the fate of accused Mexican drug lord at a trial later this year will be kept secret.
US district Judge Brian Cogan said jurors’ names, addresses and places of employment will be shielded from Guzmán, his lawyers, prosecutors and the press. He also ordered that jurors be transported to and from the courthouse by federal marshals, and sequestered from the public while there.
Prosecutors offered “strong and credible reasons” why the jury needs protections, including Guzmán’s use hitmen to carry out thousands of acts of violence over more than two decades, Cogan wrote in the order, released by the prosecutor’s office.
That history “would be sufficient to warrant an anonymous and partially sequestered jury, but that many of the allegations involve murder, assault, kidnapping or torture of potential witnesses or of those suspected of assisting law enforcement makes the government’s concerns particularly salient”, he said.
Guzmán’s attorney, Eduardo Balarezo, said that his client was disappointed by the ruling. The defense had argued that an anonymous jury would give the false impression that Guzmán is dangerous. “All he is asking for is a fair trial in front of an impartial jury,” Balazero said in a statement.
Guzmán has pleaded not guilty to charges of running a massive international drug trafficking operation.
Since his extradition in January 2017, he has been held in solitary confinement at a high-security federal jail in Manhattan, with US officials mindful of how he twice escaped from prison in Mexico, the second time via a mile-long tunnel dug to the shower in his cell.
In the past, Guzmán used his connections to continue to run his drug empire from behind bars, prosecutors said. They also claim that in the United States, Guzmán had the support of criminals who are not under his direct control.
In court papers, prosecutors cited media reports about a YouTube video made last year – and since removed from the internet – by a group of federal prisoners in California in which they boasted in Spanish that they were “hitmen” at his service.
Guzmán is due back in court on 15 February for a pre-trial hearing. The judge has indicated he expects the trial to begin in the fall.
US district Judge Brian Cogan said jurors’ names, addresses and places of employment will be shielded from Guzmán, his lawyers, prosecutors and the press. He also ordered that jurors be transported to and from the courthouse by federal marshals, and sequestered from the public while there.
Prosecutors offered “strong and credible reasons” why the jury needs protections, including Guzmán’s use hitmen to carry out thousands of acts of violence over more than two decades, Cogan wrote in the order, released by the prosecutor’s office.
That history “would be sufficient to warrant an anonymous and partially sequestered jury, but that many of the allegations involve murder, assault, kidnapping or torture of potential witnesses or of those suspected of assisting law enforcement makes the government’s concerns particularly salient”, he said.
Guzmán’s attorney, Eduardo Balarezo, said that his client was disappointed by the ruling. The defense had argued that an anonymous jury would give the false impression that Guzmán is dangerous. “All he is asking for is a fair trial in front of an impartial jury,” Balazero said in a statement.
Guzmán has pleaded not guilty to charges of running a massive international drug trafficking operation.
Since his extradition in January 2017, he has been held in solitary confinement at a high-security federal jail in Manhattan, with US officials mindful of how he twice escaped from prison in Mexico, the second time via a mile-long tunnel dug to the shower in his cell.
In the past, Guzmán used his connections to continue to run his drug empire from behind bars, prosecutors said. They also claim that in the United States, Guzmán had the support of criminals who are not under his direct control.
In court papers, prosecutors cited media reports about a YouTube video made last year – and since removed from the internet – by a group of federal prisoners in California in which they boasted in Spanish that they were “hitmen” at his service.
Guzmán is due back in court on 15 February for a pre-trial hearing. The judge has indicated he expects the trial to begin in the fall.
Thursday, February 01, 2018
Roadmap to Hell: Sex, Drugs, and Guns on the Mafia Coast
From sex slaves to drug mules
, The Daily Beast's Rome Bureau Chief uncovers a terrifying and intricate web of criminal activity right on Europe's doorstep. Caught between Camorra gunrunners selling to ISIS and Nigerian drug gangs along Italy's picturesque coast, each year thousands of refugees and migrants are lured into their underworld, forced to become sex slaves, drug mules, or weapon smugglers.
In this powerful expose, investigative journalist Barbie Latza Nadeau follows the weapons trail, meets the trafficked women trapped by black magic, the brave nuns who try to save them, and the Italian police who turn a blind eye as the most urgent issues facing Europe play out in broad daylight.
Roadmap to Hell: Sex, Drugs, and Guns on the Mafia Coast.
, The Daily Beast's Rome Bureau Chief uncovers a terrifying and intricate web of criminal activity right on Europe's doorstep. Caught between Camorra gunrunners selling to ISIS and Nigerian drug gangs along Italy's picturesque coast, each year thousands of refugees and migrants are lured into their underworld, forced to become sex slaves, drug mules, or weapon smugglers.In this powerful expose, investigative journalist Barbie Latza Nadeau follows the weapons trail, meets the trafficked women trapped by black magic, the brave nuns who try to save them, and the Italian police who turn a blind eye as the most urgent issues facing Europe play out in broad daylight.
Roadmap to Hell: Sex, Drugs, and Guns on the Mafia Coast.
Monday, January 29, 2018
An Underboss is Whacked, Because Even Mobsters Don’t Like Heroin
John Turano was working a shift at his father’s Italian-American restaurant, Joe and Mary’s, on July 12, 1979, when Carmine “Lilo” Galante walked through the door. A mob strongman and regular patron, Galante was escorted — along with two Sicilian bodyguards — to his usual table in the back courtyard. Temperatures soared that summer day in New York City, but the guards still wore full leather jackets to hide their heavy artillery. Galante, after all, had plenty of enemies.
Having served a stint in prison for attempted robbery in the late 1930s, Galante transitioned from strong-arm work for Vito Genovese to establishing his power base in Williamsburg, Brooklyn — Bonanno family territory. He shared a couple common enemies with Joe Bonanno, the most prolific being Carlo Gambino, and eventually rose to rank of underboss in the Bonanno family. While known as a cold-blooded killer — the NYPD suspected him of numerous mob-related murders — authorities could never find anyone to testify against the feared mobster.
“[Galante’s] foray into the drug world really got kicked into high gear in the ’50s,” says Christian Cipollini, author of Murder Inc.: Mysteries of the Mob’s Most Deadly Hit Squad. Galante traveled to Canada and Sicily to oversee narcotics trafficking, “and it wasn’t long before he gained recognition by law enforcement as a major player in drug trafficking.” The feds busted Galante, sending him to prison in 1962 for 20 years. Finally paroled in the early 1970s, Galante set out to regain his control of the dope business. The problem? His fellow mobsters didn’t like it.
That fateful afternoon, Galante, 69, was having lunch with a friend and bodyguard Leonard Coppola, 40, and Turano’s father, Giuseppe, 48 — also a Bonanno associate. Smoking a cigar and enjoying the conversation, Galante certainly didn’t expect what happened next. John remembers three masked men walking into the restaurant. One pointed a gun at him, telling him not to move. But before the shooters reached the courtyard, the son shouted a warning to his father. The gunman turned and fired, wounding the young Turano before joining his cohorts in the courtyard, where they unleashed a barrage of bullets.
“They blew Lilo away while he was eating lunch, in broad daylight,” says Mafia historian Ed Scarpo, author of Cosa Nostra News: The Cicale Files, Volume 1: Inside the Last Great Mafia Empire. John hid throughout the onslaught, and after the gunmen and bodyguards fled, he found the bodies. Galante had been blown off his chair and flung into the tomato patch behind him — a cigar in his mouth and a Zippo lighter in his hand. Coppola also was killed, and Turano was mortally wounded, dying later in the hospital.
Galante had reckoned he was untouchable as a former underboss to Joe Bonanno, and as a man who’d held to the code of omertà doing his jail time, he felt he deserved to get back what he lost. Assuming a leadership role without permission was one thing, but Galante had also started killing off his rivals in the Gambino family to take over the drug trade — and that was a step too far.
“His apparent desire to basically reap all the rewards of the New York Mafia’s lucrative drug trade — by cutting out most of the other mafiosi from the profits — became Galante’s ultimate downfall,” says Cipollini. Someone at Galante’s level in the mob hierarchy doesn’t usually get assassinated without a lot of other important peers giving the OK. But Bonanno family crime boss “Joseph Massino wanted him out of the way,” Scarpo explains.
Galante paid the ultimate price for “hubris and greed,” says Scott Burnstein, author of Motor City Mafia: A Century of Organized Crime in Detroit. “He came out of prison and went against typical mob protocol by declaring himself boss without the universal approval of [the Bonanno] crime family.” To further complicate things, Galante isolated himself from his troops by creating his own handpicked inner circle of young native Sicilians to do his drug trafficking and strong-arm work. The irony? It was those very Sicilians — his bodyguards — who sold him out. Those armed bodyguards at his side weren’t killed that day because they had, in fact, betrayed Galante.
Galante’s rackets and drug dealings were taken over by Massino and the others who had plotted to take him down. Anthony “Bruno” Indelicato, a Bonanno soldier, was convicted of the murder in 1986 at the famous Mafia Commission trial and sentenced to 40 years.
Since then, the picture of Galante’s last meal has become an iconic image, representing what can happen when an ambitious mobster makes a power grab. While certainly not the first mobster to dabble with drugs, says Burnstein, “he was one of the first to do it so brazenly and unapologetically.” Rather than let him consolidate as a drug kingpin, the Bonnanos decided Galante had overstepped and that he had to pay the ultimate price.
Thanks to Seth Ferranti.
Having served a stint in prison for attempted robbery in the late 1930s, Galante transitioned from strong-arm work for Vito Genovese to establishing his power base in Williamsburg, Brooklyn — Bonanno family territory. He shared a couple common enemies with Joe Bonanno, the most prolific being Carlo Gambino, and eventually rose to rank of underboss in the Bonanno family. While known as a cold-blooded killer — the NYPD suspected him of numerous mob-related murders — authorities could never find anyone to testify against the feared mobster.
“[Galante’s] foray into the drug world really got kicked into high gear in the ’50s,” says Christian Cipollini, author of Murder Inc.: Mysteries of the Mob’s Most Deadly Hit Squad. Galante traveled to Canada and Sicily to oversee narcotics trafficking, “and it wasn’t long before he gained recognition by law enforcement as a major player in drug trafficking.” The feds busted Galante, sending him to prison in 1962 for 20 years. Finally paroled in the early 1970s, Galante set out to regain his control of the dope business. The problem? His fellow mobsters didn’t like it.
That fateful afternoon, Galante, 69, was having lunch with a friend and bodyguard Leonard Coppola, 40, and Turano’s father, Giuseppe, 48 — also a Bonanno associate. Smoking a cigar and enjoying the conversation, Galante certainly didn’t expect what happened next. John remembers three masked men walking into the restaurant. One pointed a gun at him, telling him not to move. But before the shooters reached the courtyard, the son shouted a warning to his father. The gunman turned and fired, wounding the young Turano before joining his cohorts in the courtyard, where they unleashed a barrage of bullets.
“They blew Lilo away while he was eating lunch, in broad daylight,” says Mafia historian Ed Scarpo, author of Cosa Nostra News: The Cicale Files, Volume 1: Inside the Last Great Mafia Empire. John hid throughout the onslaught, and after the gunmen and bodyguards fled, he found the bodies. Galante had been blown off his chair and flung into the tomato patch behind him — a cigar in his mouth and a Zippo lighter in his hand. Coppola also was killed, and Turano was mortally wounded, dying later in the hospital.
Galante had reckoned he was untouchable as a former underboss to Joe Bonanno, and as a man who’d held to the code of omertà doing his jail time, he felt he deserved to get back what he lost. Assuming a leadership role without permission was one thing, but Galante had also started killing off his rivals in the Gambino family to take over the drug trade — and that was a step too far.
“His apparent desire to basically reap all the rewards of the New York Mafia’s lucrative drug trade — by cutting out most of the other mafiosi from the profits — became Galante’s ultimate downfall,” says Cipollini. Someone at Galante’s level in the mob hierarchy doesn’t usually get assassinated without a lot of other important peers giving the OK. But Bonanno family crime boss “Joseph Massino wanted him out of the way,” Scarpo explains.
Galante paid the ultimate price for “hubris and greed,” says Scott Burnstein, author of Motor City Mafia: A Century of Organized Crime in Detroit. “He came out of prison and went against typical mob protocol by declaring himself boss without the universal approval of [the Bonanno] crime family.” To further complicate things, Galante isolated himself from his troops by creating his own handpicked inner circle of young native Sicilians to do his drug trafficking and strong-arm work. The irony? It was those very Sicilians — his bodyguards — who sold him out. Those armed bodyguards at his side weren’t killed that day because they had, in fact, betrayed Galante.
Galante’s rackets and drug dealings were taken over by Massino and the others who had plotted to take him down. Anthony “Bruno” Indelicato, a Bonanno soldier, was convicted of the murder in 1986 at the famous Mafia Commission trial and sentenced to 40 years.
Since then, the picture of Galante’s last meal has become an iconic image, representing what can happen when an ambitious mobster makes a power grab. While certainly not the first mobster to dabble with drugs, says Burnstein, “he was one of the first to do it so brazenly and unapologetically.” Rather than let him consolidate as a drug kingpin, the Bonnanos decided Galante had overstepped and that he had to pay the ultimate price.
Thanks to Seth Ferranti.
Friday, January 26, 2018
Young and Scantless #YNS Street Gang Members Charged with Racketeering, Kidnapping, and Trafficking Crack Cocaine #DetroitOne
New charges were filed in the prosecution of the northwest Detroit street gang Young and Scantless (YNS).
Acting Assistant Attorney General John P. Cronan of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division; U.S. Attorney Matthew J. Schneider of the Eastern District of Michigan; Special Agent in Charge James Dier of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) Detroit Field Division; and Police Chief James E. Craig of Detroit made the announcement.
The second superseding indictment charges George Eubanks, 30, of Detroit, and James Bowens, 37, of Detroit with taking part in the YNS racketeering enterprise. The charges describe YNS as one of the most dangerous in the city of Detroit, known for its ruthless reputation and violent acts including seeking to intimidate, injure and kill rival drug dealers to eliminate competition; attempting to instill fear in the community in order to discourage cooperation with police and witnesses from reporting YNS-related crime; and posting numerous intimidating photographs and videos to social media.
Five YNS members, including alleged leader Edward Tavorn, 31, of Detroit, were previously charged with a variety of crimes including a murder, robberies that turned into murders, shootings, a home invasion, arson, and narcotics distribution.
The latest indictment also charges Tavorn, Eubanks and Bowens with a narcotics conspiracy in which Eubanks and Bowens agreed to sell drugs in West Virginia on Tavorn’s behalf while Tavorn was incarcerated on pending charges. The indictment alleges that in furtherance of the plot, Eubanks and Bowens possessed firearms; Bowens kidnapped and fired gunshots at a victim to force the victim to rent a vehicle for gang members to use to transport narcotics to West Virginia; and Eubanks and Bowens possessed with intent to distribute approximately 550 grams of cocaine base.
The charges are the result of the Detroit One initiative, a collaborative effort between law enforcement and the community to reduce violent crime in Detroit.
Acting Assistant Attorney General John P. Cronan of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division; U.S. Attorney Matthew J. Schneider of the Eastern District of Michigan; Special Agent in Charge James Dier of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) Detroit Field Division; and Police Chief James E. Craig of Detroit made the announcement.
The second superseding indictment charges George Eubanks, 30, of Detroit, and James Bowens, 37, of Detroit with taking part in the YNS racketeering enterprise. The charges describe YNS as one of the most dangerous in the city of Detroit, known for its ruthless reputation and violent acts including seeking to intimidate, injure and kill rival drug dealers to eliminate competition; attempting to instill fear in the community in order to discourage cooperation with police and witnesses from reporting YNS-related crime; and posting numerous intimidating photographs and videos to social media.
Five YNS members, including alleged leader Edward Tavorn, 31, of Detroit, were previously charged with a variety of crimes including a murder, robberies that turned into murders, shootings, a home invasion, arson, and narcotics distribution.
The latest indictment also charges Tavorn, Eubanks and Bowens with a narcotics conspiracy in which Eubanks and Bowens agreed to sell drugs in West Virginia on Tavorn’s behalf while Tavorn was incarcerated on pending charges. The indictment alleges that in furtherance of the plot, Eubanks and Bowens possessed firearms; Bowens kidnapped and fired gunshots at a victim to force the victim to rent a vehicle for gang members to use to transport narcotics to West Virginia; and Eubanks and Bowens possessed with intent to distribute approximately 550 grams of cocaine base.
The charges are the result of the Detroit One initiative, a collaborative effort between law enforcement and the community to reduce violent crime in Detroit.
Thursday, January 25, 2018
Thomas Lindstrom, Chicago Futures Trader, Pleads Guilty to Causing More Than $13 Million in Losses from Fraudulent Trading Scheme
A Chicago futures trader admitted in federal court that he caused more than $13 million in losses through a fraudulent trading scheme that resulted in the collapse of his firm.
Thomas Lindstrom used deep out-of-the-money options on ten-year Treasury Note futures to make it fraudulently appear that his trading at Chicago-based Rock Capital Markets LLC was profitable, thereby obtaining greater financial compensation for himself. Over a six-month period in 2014 and 2015, Lindstrom obtained compensation of $285,000, while his fraud scheme caused a loss of more than $13.7 million and led to the collapse of Rock Capital.
Lindstrom, 55, of Winnetka, pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud. U.S. District Judge Harry D. Leinenweber set sentencing for June 19, 2018. Lindstrom acknowledged in the plea agreement that at the time of sentencing, the Court will order him to make full restitution in the amount of $13,776,518.
The guilty plea was announced by John R. Lausch, Jr., United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois; and Jeffrey S. Sallet, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Sunil Harjani and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Lindsey Evans of the Securities and Commodities Fraud Section of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Chicago. The Commodity Futures Trading Commission, which filed a civil enforcement lawsuit against Lindstrom, provided assistance.
A tick is the minimum price increment at which an option on a futures contract could trade. Prior to 2016, the Chicago Board of Trade set the minimum settlement value of all options on futures contracts at one tick, even if the actual value of the option was considerably less. For options on ten-year Treasury Note futures contracts, one tick was approximately $15.63.
Lindstrom admitted in a plea agreement that he acquired hundreds of thousands of deep out-of-the-money options on ten-year Treasury Note futures, and on certain occasions he used spread transactions to pay effectively less than one tick apiece. Lindstrom made the trades knowing that these options would likely expire worthless – resulting in losses – but would temporarily appear to have substantial value in his trading account because the minimum settlement value was one tick.
Lindstrom concealed the scheme by telling Rock Capital’s owner that the options were profitable, when in reality Lindstrom’s trading was causing substantial losses.
Wire fraud is punishable by a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison.
Thomas Lindstrom used deep out-of-the-money options on ten-year Treasury Note futures to make it fraudulently appear that his trading at Chicago-based Rock Capital Markets LLC was profitable, thereby obtaining greater financial compensation for himself. Over a six-month period in 2014 and 2015, Lindstrom obtained compensation of $285,000, while his fraud scheme caused a loss of more than $13.7 million and led to the collapse of Rock Capital.
Lindstrom, 55, of Winnetka, pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud. U.S. District Judge Harry D. Leinenweber set sentencing for June 19, 2018. Lindstrom acknowledged in the plea agreement that at the time of sentencing, the Court will order him to make full restitution in the amount of $13,776,518.
The guilty plea was announced by John R. Lausch, Jr., United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois; and Jeffrey S. Sallet, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Sunil Harjani and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Lindsey Evans of the Securities and Commodities Fraud Section of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Chicago. The Commodity Futures Trading Commission, which filed a civil enforcement lawsuit against Lindstrom, provided assistance.
A tick is the minimum price increment at which an option on a futures contract could trade. Prior to 2016, the Chicago Board of Trade set the minimum settlement value of all options on futures contracts at one tick, even if the actual value of the option was considerably less. For options on ten-year Treasury Note futures contracts, one tick was approximately $15.63.
Lindstrom admitted in a plea agreement that he acquired hundreds of thousands of deep out-of-the-money options on ten-year Treasury Note futures, and on certain occasions he used spread transactions to pay effectively less than one tick apiece. Lindstrom made the trades knowing that these options would likely expire worthless – resulting in losses – but would temporarily appear to have substantial value in his trading account because the minimum settlement value was one tick.
Lindstrom concealed the scheme by telling Rock Capital’s owner that the options were profitable, when in reality Lindstrom’s trading was causing substantial losses.
Wire fraud is punishable by a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison.
Thursday, January 18, 2018
Minestrone for the Mobster's Soul: Life Lessons from the Movie Mafia
14 Life Lessons gathered from growing up on the west Side of Chicago in the 60's and 70's
, utilizing Mob and Mafia movies. This is a self-help book for mob wannabes who can gather valuable insights into applying concepts such as loyalty, honor, respect and the law of omerta into their daily lives. Each chapter features a story followed by a lesson influenced by movie characters from our favorite films like THE GODFATHER, GOODFELLAS, CASINO, BRONX TALE, etc. Two cousins grow up fast as the they become "associates" of "the Outfit" in Chicago and learn what it takes to survive in this environment. The book concludes with a list of the top 100 mob movies of all time, complete with reviews.
Minestrone for the Mobster's Soul: Life Lessons from the Movie Mafia.
, utilizing Mob and Mafia movies. This is a self-help book for mob wannabes who can gather valuable insights into applying concepts such as loyalty, honor, respect and the law of omerta into their daily lives. Each chapter features a story followed by a lesson influenced by movie characters from our favorite films like THE GODFATHER, GOODFELLAS, CASINO, BRONX TALE, etc. Two cousins grow up fast as the they become "associates" of "the Outfit" in Chicago and learn what it takes to survive in this environment. The book concludes with a list of the top 100 mob movies of all time, complete with reviews.
Minestrone for the Mobster's Soul: Life Lessons from the Movie Mafia.
Indictments Announced against 10 Mafia Suspects from the Bonanno, Genovese and Luchese Crime Families
Federal authorities indicted ten suspected members of the Sicilian mafia with extortion, loansharking, wire and mail fraud, narcotics distribution, and conspiracy to commit murder on behalf of the Cosa Nostra.
After several raids in the New York city area—including one at the “Xcess Gentlemen’s Club” on Staten Island—nine of the ten accused mobsters were taken into custody. Eight of the men worked for the Bonanno family, while the other two are members of the Genovese and Luchese crime families, respectively.
All of the suspects have been charged with racketeering conspiracy, according to a news release from US Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Each man faces up to 20 years in prison per charge.
Joseph Cammarano Jr., one of the accused, is also known as “Joe C” and is the Acting Boss of the Bonanno Family, according to US federal agents.
Cammarano reportedly took over as leader of the Bonanno family in 2015, when the group was still rebuilding itself after a series of federal round-ups which took place in the early 2000s, according to The New York Daily News.
The 58-year-old Brooklyn native has pleaded “not guilty” to all charges.
Albert Armetta, known as “Al Muscles”, faces an indictment for assaulting a victim on Halloween night in 2015 “for the purpose of gaining entrance” to the Bonanno crime family.
Two other indictments include a gun-running operation and a scheme to defraud FEMA of US$ 80,000 in Superstorm Sandy recovery money, according to CBS New York.
Among the others charged are George “Grumpy” Tropiano, Eugene “Boobsie” Castelle and John “Porky” Zancocchio, captain and “Consigliere” of the Bonanno Family.
After several raids in the New York city area—including one at the “Xcess Gentlemen’s Club” on Staten Island—nine of the ten accused mobsters were taken into custody. Eight of the men worked for the Bonanno family, while the other two are members of the Genovese and Luchese crime families, respectively.
All of the suspects have been charged with racketeering conspiracy, according to a news release from US Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Each man faces up to 20 years in prison per charge.
Joseph Cammarano Jr., one of the accused, is also known as “Joe C” and is the Acting Boss of the Bonanno Family, according to US federal agents.
Cammarano reportedly took over as leader of the Bonanno family in 2015, when the group was still rebuilding itself after a series of federal round-ups which took place in the early 2000s, according to The New York Daily News.
The 58-year-old Brooklyn native has pleaded “not guilty” to all charges.
Albert Armetta, known as “Al Muscles”, faces an indictment for assaulting a victim on Halloween night in 2015 “for the purpose of gaining entrance” to the Bonanno crime family.
Two other indictments include a gun-running operation and a scheme to defraud FEMA of US$ 80,000 in Superstorm Sandy recovery money, according to CBS New York.
Among the others charged are George “Grumpy” Tropiano, Eugene “Boobsie” Castelle and John “Porky” Zancocchio, captain and “Consigliere” of the Bonanno Family.
Tuesday, January 09, 2018
Steve Bannon Group Promoted Document Alleging @RealDonaldTrump Had Mafia Connections
Before Donald Trump and Steve Bannon were enemies, they were allies. And not long before that, Bannon was part of an effort to sink Trump's presidential hopes -- even if Trump didn't know it.
A conservative watchdog group led by Bannon tried to discredit Trump in the early stages of the 2016 Republican presidential primary by shopping a document alleging that Trump had ties to mobsters, according to conservative sources and a copy of the document reviewed by CNN.
The anti-Trump opposition research was the work of author Peter Schweizer for the Government Accountability Institute, which he cofounded with Bannon in 2012. It described years of alleged business connections between Trump companies and organized crime figures, allegations that have circulated among Trump detractors for years.
The New York Times reported on the document on Friday.
The GAI is backed by the Mercer family, one of the largest benefactors for Trump's campaign. Rebekah Mercer, the daughter of hedge fund billionaire Robert Mercer, is listed as the group's chairwoman on its website. But in 2015, when the document was produced, the Mercers were backing the campaign of one of Trump's rivals, Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, and Bannon had not yet joined the Trump campaign.
In early 2016, at the height of the Republican primary fight, Cruz cited possible mob ties as one reason for Trump to release his taxes. Cruz and his campaign cited published news accounts at the time as the basis for making the charge.
The document offers a glimpse at behind-the-scenes efforts by conservatives to derail Trump's presidential bid. The document is similar to opposition research produced for both Republicans and Democrats targeting Trump. The best known of those is one produced by the Washington firm Fusion GPS alleging ties between Trump and Russians, which now has helped spawn a broad investigation led by special counsel Robert Mueller.
"We research political figures from all political parties and our basic premise is follow the money. That's what guides our research approach," Schweizer told CNN.
A source familiar with GAI's work said the group conducted research on all Republican and Democratic candidates running in the 2016 election. Bannon and the Mercers were not involved in the "day to day machinations of the research," but the source said they were aware of the effort to drill down on candidates and share some of that research with news organizations.
A GOP operative provided CNN a copy of the anti-Trump document. Two sources confirmed that GAI shopped copies of the document to donors for Trump rivals during the GOP primary.
"We did not and would not share that with any candidates," the source familiar with GAI's work said. "There would be no sharing with candidates, with political operatives or anybody of that category."
Bannon declined to comment.
Bannon, Schweizer and the Mercers went on to curry favor with Trump when he became the GOP nominee and, later, the President.
Trump brought on Bannon as CEO of his presidential campaign in August 2016. But Bannon's subsequent West Wing tenure as Trump's chief political strategist was brief. He was fired in August 2017, but remained in contact with the President. Their friendship hit rocky times last week with the publication of comments by Bannon in Michael Wolff's book disparaging Trump and his family.
The President issued a blistering statement against his former political guru, saying Bannon has "lost his mind," and later slapped him with the nickname "Sloppy Steve" via Twitter.
Bannon said Sunday he regretted not responding sooner to comments attributed to him in Wolff's book that were critical of Donald Trump Jr.
It's not clear whether Trump knew of Bannon's and the Mercers' ties to the document aimed at discrediting him when they became his allies in 2016. However, the Mercers' prior support for Cruz was widely known.
Trump regularly cited some of Schweizer's other work on the campaign trail, notably that on Hillary Clinton and alleging corruption. He touted Schweizer's 2015 anti-Clinton book "Clinton Cash", which made use of research by GAI, and urged an investigation of allegations of corruption involving the Clinton Foundation.
The book's allegations formed at least part of the basis for some FBI field offices to open preliminary inquiries into the Clinton Foundation. Those investigations stalled in 2016 amid the election. But CNN reported Friday that the inquiries have been given new life and are now led by the FBI office in Little Rock, Arkansas.
Thanks to Sara Murray, Evan Perez and Jeremy Diamond.
A conservative watchdog group led by Bannon tried to discredit Trump in the early stages of the 2016 Republican presidential primary by shopping a document alleging that Trump had ties to mobsters, according to conservative sources and a copy of the document reviewed by CNN.
The anti-Trump opposition research was the work of author Peter Schweizer for the Government Accountability Institute, which he cofounded with Bannon in 2012. It described years of alleged business connections between Trump companies and organized crime figures, allegations that have circulated among Trump detractors for years.
The New York Times reported on the document on Friday.
The GAI is backed by the Mercer family, one of the largest benefactors for Trump's campaign. Rebekah Mercer, the daughter of hedge fund billionaire Robert Mercer, is listed as the group's chairwoman on its website. But in 2015, when the document was produced, the Mercers were backing the campaign of one of Trump's rivals, Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, and Bannon had not yet joined the Trump campaign.
In early 2016, at the height of the Republican primary fight, Cruz cited possible mob ties as one reason for Trump to release his taxes. Cruz and his campaign cited published news accounts at the time as the basis for making the charge.
The document offers a glimpse at behind-the-scenes efforts by conservatives to derail Trump's presidential bid. The document is similar to opposition research produced for both Republicans and Democrats targeting Trump. The best known of those is one produced by the Washington firm Fusion GPS alleging ties between Trump and Russians, which now has helped spawn a broad investigation led by special counsel Robert Mueller.
"We research political figures from all political parties and our basic premise is follow the money. That's what guides our research approach," Schweizer told CNN.
A source familiar with GAI's work said the group conducted research on all Republican and Democratic candidates running in the 2016 election. Bannon and the Mercers were not involved in the "day to day machinations of the research," but the source said they were aware of the effort to drill down on candidates and share some of that research with news organizations.
A GOP operative provided CNN a copy of the anti-Trump document. Two sources confirmed that GAI shopped copies of the document to donors for Trump rivals during the GOP primary.
"We did not and would not share that with any candidates," the source familiar with GAI's work said. "There would be no sharing with candidates, with political operatives or anybody of that category."
Bannon declined to comment.
Bannon, Schweizer and the Mercers went on to curry favor with Trump when he became the GOP nominee and, later, the President.
Trump brought on Bannon as CEO of his presidential campaign in August 2016. But Bannon's subsequent West Wing tenure as Trump's chief political strategist was brief. He was fired in August 2017, but remained in contact with the President. Their friendship hit rocky times last week with the publication of comments by Bannon in Michael Wolff's book disparaging Trump and his family.
The President issued a blistering statement against his former political guru, saying Bannon has "lost his mind," and later slapped him with the nickname "Sloppy Steve" via Twitter.
Bannon said Sunday he regretted not responding sooner to comments attributed to him in Wolff's book that were critical of Donald Trump Jr.
It's not clear whether Trump knew of Bannon's and the Mercers' ties to the document aimed at discrediting him when they became his allies in 2016. However, the Mercers' prior support for Cruz was widely known.
Trump regularly cited some of Schweizer's other work on the campaign trail, notably that on Hillary Clinton and alleging corruption. He touted Schweizer's 2015 anti-Clinton book "Clinton Cash", which made use of research by GAI, and urged an investigation of allegations of corruption involving the Clinton Foundation.
The book's allegations formed at least part of the basis for some FBI field offices to open preliminary inquiries into the Clinton Foundation. Those investigations stalled in 2016 amid the election. But CNN reported Friday that the inquiries have been given new life and are now led by the FBI office in Little Rock, Arkansas.
Thanks to Sara Murray, Evan Perez and Jeremy Diamond.
Monday, January 08, 2018
The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness
The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness, is a stunning account of the rebirth of a caste-like system in the United States, one that has resulted in millions of African Americans locked behind bars and then relegated to a permanent second-class status—denied the very rights supposedly won in the Civil Rights Movement. Since its publication in 2010, the book has appeared on the New York Times bestseller list for more than a year; been dubbed the “secular bible of a new social movement” by numerous commentators, including Cornel West; and has led to consciousness-raising efforts in universities, churches, community centers, re-entry centers, and prisons nationwide. The New Jim Crow tells a truth our nation has been reluctant to face.
As the United States celebrates its “triumph over race” with the election of Barack Obama
, the majority of black men in major urban areas are under correctional control or saddled with criminal records for life. Jim Crow laws were wiped off the books decades ago, but today an extraordinary percentage of the African American community is warehoused in prisons or trapped in a parallel social universe, denied basic civil and human rights—including the right to vote; the right to serve on juries; and the right to be free of legal discrimination in employment, housing, access to education and public benefits. Today, it is no longer socially permissible to use race explicitly as a justification for discrimination, exclusion, and social contempt. Yet as civil-rights-lawyer-turned-legal-scholar Michelle Alexander demonstrates, it is perfectly legal to discriminate against convicted criminals in nearly all the ways in which it was once legal to discriminate against African Americans. Once labeled a felon, even for a minor drug crime, the old forms of discrimination are suddenly legal again. In her words, “we have not ended racial caste in America; we have merely redesigned it.”
Alexander shows that, by targeting black men through the War on Drugs and decimating communities of color, the U.S. criminal justice system functions as a contemporary system of racial control, even as it formally adheres to the principle of colorblindness.
The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness, challenges the civil rights community—and all of us—to place mass incarceration at the forefront of a new movement for racial justice in America.
As the United States celebrates its “triumph over race” with the election of Barack Obama
, the majority of black men in major urban areas are under correctional control or saddled with criminal records for life. Jim Crow laws were wiped off the books decades ago, but today an extraordinary percentage of the African American community is warehoused in prisons or trapped in a parallel social universe, denied basic civil and human rights—including the right to vote; the right to serve on juries; and the right to be free of legal discrimination in employment, housing, access to education and public benefits. Today, it is no longer socially permissible to use race explicitly as a justification for discrimination, exclusion, and social contempt. Yet as civil-rights-lawyer-turned-legal-scholar Michelle Alexander demonstrates, it is perfectly legal to discriminate against convicted criminals in nearly all the ways in which it was once legal to discriminate against African Americans. Once labeled a felon, even for a minor drug crime, the old forms of discrimination are suddenly legal again. In her words, “we have not ended racial caste in America; we have merely redesigned it.”Alexander shows that, by targeting black men through the War on Drugs and decimating communities of color, the U.S. criminal justice system functions as a contemporary system of racial control, even as it formally adheres to the principle of colorblindness.
The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness, challenges the civil rights community—and all of us—to place mass incarceration at the forefront of a new movement for racial justice in America.
Thursday, January 04, 2018
Thomas Anzalone, Alleged Gambino Crime Family Associate, Denied Bail by Judge
One of seven people charged by federal authorities with racketeering conspiracy and other illegal activities associated with organized crime on Long Island was denied bail in federal court.
Thomas Anzalone, 44, from Queens, an alleged associate of the Gambino crime family, was remanded back into custody after U.S. District Court Judge Sandra Feuerstein rejected a bail package offered by his attorney Jesse Siegel, of Manhattan.
Family and friends agreed to put up their homes and property to ensure he’d return to court, said Siegel, who also proposed that Anzalone wear an ankle bracelet as part of home confinement. But prosecutors argued the violent nature of his crimes as a loan shark, along with the discovery of a cache of weapons at his home made him dangerous.
“I have to say I can’t imagine any conditions that would protect the community,” Feuerstein said.
Authorities found rifles and a revolver inside Anzalone’s home Dec. 12, a discovery that they said will lead to an escalation of charges. That prompted Feuerstein to conclude that “the risk of flight becomes more of a possibility.”
Anzalone’s family as well as his attorney declined to comment.
Anzalone was one of seven alleged members and associates of the Gambino and Bonanno crime families arrested Dec. 12. Federal prosecutors said they ran gambling, loan sharking, drugs and other operations from January 2014 to December 2017.
Thanks to Mark Morales.
Thomas Anzalone, 44, from Queens, an alleged associate of the Gambino crime family, was remanded back into custody after U.S. District Court Judge Sandra Feuerstein rejected a bail package offered by his attorney Jesse Siegel, of Manhattan.
Family and friends agreed to put up their homes and property to ensure he’d return to court, said Siegel, who also proposed that Anzalone wear an ankle bracelet as part of home confinement. But prosecutors argued the violent nature of his crimes as a loan shark, along with the discovery of a cache of weapons at his home made him dangerous.
“I have to say I can’t imagine any conditions that would protect the community,” Feuerstein said.
Authorities found rifles and a revolver inside Anzalone’s home Dec. 12, a discovery that they said will lead to an escalation of charges. That prompted Feuerstein to conclude that “the risk of flight becomes more of a possibility.”
Anzalone’s family as well as his attorney declined to comment.
Anzalone was one of seven alleged members and associates of the Gambino and Bonanno crime families arrested Dec. 12. Federal prosecutors said they ran gambling, loan sharking, drugs and other operations from January 2014 to December 2017.
Thanks to Mark Morales.
Wednesday, January 03, 2018
Paulie Cicero of #Goodfellas, AKA Paul Sorvino, on Harvey Weinstein "He ought to hope he goes to jail...cause if not, he has to meet me and I will kill the motherfu**er"
Fire and Fury: Inside the Trump White House - with Details from Steve Bannon
With extraordinary access to the Trump White House, Michael Wolff tells the inside story of the most controversial presidency of our time in Fire and Fury: Inside the Trump White House.
The first nine months of Donald Trump’s term were stormy, outrageous―and absolutely mesmerizing
. Now, thanks to his deep access to the West Wing, bestselling author Michael Wolff tells the riveting story of how Trump launched a tenure as volatile and fiery as the man himself.
In this explosive book, Wolff provides a wealth of new details about the chaos in the Oval Office.
Among the revelations:
Never before has a presidency so divided the American people. Brilliantly reported and astoundingly fresh, Michael Wolff’s Fire and Fury: Inside the Trump White House, shows us how and why Donald Trump has become the king of discord and disunion.
The first nine months of Donald Trump’s term were stormy, outrageous―and absolutely mesmerizing
. Now, thanks to his deep access to the West Wing, bestselling author Michael Wolff tells the riveting story of how Trump launched a tenure as volatile and fiery as the man himself.In this explosive book, Wolff provides a wealth of new details about the chaos in the Oval Office.
Among the revelations:
- What President Trump’s staff really thinks of him
- What inspired Trump to claim he was wire-tapped by President Obama
- Why FBI director James Comey was really fired
- Why chief strategist Steve Bannon and Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner couldn’t be in the same room
- Who is really directing the Trump administration’s strategy in the wake of Bannon’s firing
- What the secret to communicating with Trump is
- What the Trump administration has in common with the movie The Producers
Never before has a presidency so divided the American people. Brilliantly reported and astoundingly fresh, Michael Wolff’s Fire and Fury: Inside the Trump White House, shows us how and why Donald Trump has become the king of discord and disunion.
Mafia Wife: My Story of Love, Murder, and Madness
The seamy world of the Gambino crime family first took book form thanks to notorious turncoat Salvatore""Sammy the Bull"" Gravano, who told his story to Peter Maas for the 1997 Underboss: Sammy the Bull Gravano's Story of Life in the Mafia.
Linda Milito
, the long-suffering wife of Sammy's partner Louie Milito (murdered in 1988 under Sammy's orders, Linda maintains, though Sammy""told the feds it was John Gotti's idea""), now tells her own tale of the mob life, as seen from the home front. Hers is not a glamorous account: she documents her husband's rise from a petty crook who robbed pay phones to a""straightened out"" tough who became a captain with the Gambinos.
The grinding monotony and terrible strife of her existence--struggling to make money legitimately while her husband languished in jail, trying to protect her son from bullies, coping with terrible physical abuse--is chilling. The image-conscious""wiseguys"" that formed her social circle (and who are rather hilariously obsessed with The Godfather) become pitiable figures, trapped in a cycle of murder and deceit.
On the whole, Milito manages to tell her story unflinchingly, without sounding self-pitying, even as she details her mental illness and her current abusive relationship. Collaborator Potterton does an excellent job of keeping the narrative running smoothly, organizing the tangle of names and connections, and maintaining Milito's honest and streetwise Brooklyn voice.
Mafia Wife: Revised Edition My Story of Love, Murder, and Madness.
Linda Milito
, the long-suffering wife of Sammy's partner Louie Milito (murdered in 1988 under Sammy's orders, Linda maintains, though Sammy""told the feds it was John Gotti's idea""), now tells her own tale of the mob life, as seen from the home front. Hers is not a glamorous account: she documents her husband's rise from a petty crook who robbed pay phones to a""straightened out"" tough who became a captain with the Gambinos.The grinding monotony and terrible strife of her existence--struggling to make money legitimately while her husband languished in jail, trying to protect her son from bullies, coping with terrible physical abuse--is chilling. The image-conscious""wiseguys"" that formed her social circle (and who are rather hilariously obsessed with The Godfather) become pitiable figures, trapped in a cycle of murder and deceit.
On the whole, Milito manages to tell her story unflinchingly, without sounding self-pitying, even as she details her mental illness and her current abusive relationship. Collaborator Potterton does an excellent job of keeping the narrative running smoothly, organizing the tangle of names and connections, and maintaining Milito's honest and streetwise Brooklyn voice.
Mafia Wife: Revised Edition My Story of Love, Murder, and Madness.
Tuesday, January 02, 2018
The Time My Friend Arrested John Gotti
Like many New Yorkers, I look forward to going to movies over the winter holiday break. So I was disappointed by the delay in releasing what was set to be a big prestige pic — “The Life and Death of John Gotti,” starring John Travolta as you-know-who. Hopefully, the National Enquirer headline “Mob Rubs out Travolta’s Gotti Movie” has it wrong.
As a boring professor, I used to be spellbound hearing stories from a cop friend I grew up with on Staten Island — none more than his tale of once “accidentally” arresting Gotti back in 1984.
Some New Yorkers find Gotti, the stylish “Dapper Don” and Gambino crime family boss, a fascinating, even likeable, character. Legend has it he respected cops and everyday people. But too often, the media glamorizes these gangsters. To their victims and police, they’re lowlifes, and with good reason.
My friend told me how, one more than 30 years ago, his squad car got a radio communication about a three-car collision. At the scene, two of the drivers said the other one was completely uncooperative and staying in his Lincoln Continental.
My cop friend asked him for license and registration. The perp blurted a two-word obscenity at him. Asked to get out of his Lincoln, the perp repeated the curse.
Realizing he was drunk, my friend reached into the car to help get him out — but was met with a kick just missing his groin.
Then, the thug attempted to hit him. My friend blocked the punch, countering his head butt with a right cross and knocking him to the ground, where he was cuffed and arrested for driving intoxicated and resisting arrest.
As soon as the driver was put into the police car and read his rights, he told my cop friend:
“You don’t know who I am. I’m John Gotti and I’m going to kill your mother. Then I’m going to kill you. First I’m going to rape you. Then I’m going to kill you slowly and then they’ll find you stuffed in a trunk in New Jersey. I did hard time for murder. I’ve been sleeping in jail with scum all my life.”
Only then did my cop friend realize his collar was the fortysomething Teflon Don just then approaching full glory, a few years before feds finally made stick charges of murder, conspiracy to murder, racketeering, extortion, loansharking, illegal gambling and tax evasion — not to mention his narcotics trafficking and related activities.
That wasn’t the end of the story. At the station, the desk officer, a lieutenant, asked Gotti, whose face was bleeding, “How did you get in this condition, sir?”
“I slipped and fell.”
The officer interrupted, “He didn’t slip. He resisted arrest and necessary force was used to affect that arrest.”
Gotti screamed, “What did you tell him that for?! That’s between me and you!”
He was searched. His ID confirmed his identity. The funds in his possession were $2,700. He laughed and said, “That’s chump change. I drop more in a crap game than all of you make in a year.”
“What’s your occupation?” my friend asked.
“Plumber.”
“What did you have to eat tonight?”
“The usual.”
“What did you drink tonight?”
“The usual.”
“What’s the usual?”
“You know. Wine, scotch.”
“Where were you coming from?”
“My girl friend’s house.”
At about this time, Gotti got a phone call from one of his lawyers. Gotti told him he was going to another precinct for a Breathalyzer. When the officer and Gotti got to the only facility in the area with an intoxicated-driver-testing unit, Gotti’s colleagues, three large men staring at the situation, were waiting in a black limousine.
My officer friend remembered Gotti “blowing a .27, three times the legal intoxication level.” He failed two tests, got a desk appearance ticket, and was released, eventually plea-bargaining his charges down to minor disorderly conduct and driving impaired violations.
But Gotti didn’t let anything go.
One week later, at approximately 5 a.m., my friend received a phone call at his home from an unidentified male caller.
“Your mother’s dead,” said the voice.
His mother wasn’t dead. That was the last he heard from Gotti’s people. But it still haunts him.
However Travolta portrays the mob boss, that’s the man I will remember: a killer, an intimidator and a thug.
By Stephen Miller.
As a boring professor, I used to be spellbound hearing stories from a cop friend I grew up with on Staten Island — none more than his tale of once “accidentally” arresting Gotti back in 1984.
Some New Yorkers find Gotti, the stylish “Dapper Don” and Gambino crime family boss, a fascinating, even likeable, character. Legend has it he respected cops and everyday people. But too often, the media glamorizes these gangsters. To their victims and police, they’re lowlifes, and with good reason.
My friend told me how, one more than 30 years ago, his squad car got a radio communication about a three-car collision. At the scene, two of the drivers said the other one was completely uncooperative and staying in his Lincoln Continental.
My cop friend asked him for license and registration. The perp blurted a two-word obscenity at him. Asked to get out of his Lincoln, the perp repeated the curse.
Realizing he was drunk, my friend reached into the car to help get him out — but was met with a kick just missing his groin.
Then, the thug attempted to hit him. My friend blocked the punch, countering his head butt with a right cross and knocking him to the ground, where he was cuffed and arrested for driving intoxicated and resisting arrest.
As soon as the driver was put into the police car and read his rights, he told my cop friend:
“You don’t know who I am. I’m John Gotti and I’m going to kill your mother. Then I’m going to kill you. First I’m going to rape you. Then I’m going to kill you slowly and then they’ll find you stuffed in a trunk in New Jersey. I did hard time for murder. I’ve been sleeping in jail with scum all my life.”
Only then did my cop friend realize his collar was the fortysomething Teflon Don just then approaching full glory, a few years before feds finally made stick charges of murder, conspiracy to murder, racketeering, extortion, loansharking, illegal gambling and tax evasion — not to mention his narcotics trafficking and related activities.
That wasn’t the end of the story. At the station, the desk officer, a lieutenant, asked Gotti, whose face was bleeding, “How did you get in this condition, sir?”
“I slipped and fell.”
The officer interrupted, “He didn’t slip. He resisted arrest and necessary force was used to affect that arrest.”
Gotti screamed, “What did you tell him that for?! That’s between me and you!”
He was searched. His ID confirmed his identity. The funds in his possession were $2,700. He laughed and said, “That’s chump change. I drop more in a crap game than all of you make in a year.”
“What’s your occupation?” my friend asked.
“Plumber.”
“What did you have to eat tonight?”
“The usual.”
“What did you drink tonight?”
“The usual.”
“What’s the usual?”
“You know. Wine, scotch.”
“Where were you coming from?”
“My girl friend’s house.”
At about this time, Gotti got a phone call from one of his lawyers. Gotti told him he was going to another precinct for a Breathalyzer. When the officer and Gotti got to the only facility in the area with an intoxicated-driver-testing unit, Gotti’s colleagues, three large men staring at the situation, were waiting in a black limousine.
My officer friend remembered Gotti “blowing a .27, three times the legal intoxication level.” He failed two tests, got a desk appearance ticket, and was released, eventually plea-bargaining his charges down to minor disorderly conduct and driving impaired violations.
But Gotti didn’t let anything go.
One week later, at approximately 5 a.m., my friend received a phone call at his home from an unidentified male caller.
“Your mother’s dead,” said the voice.
His mother wasn’t dead. That was the last he heard from Gotti’s people. But it still haunts him.
However Travolta portrays the mob boss, that’s the man I will remember: a killer, an intimidator and a thug.
By Stephen Miller.
Monday, December 18, 2017
Bobby Kennedy: A Raging Spirit is a Revealing Portrait of #RFK from @HardballChris
Bobby Kennedy: A Raging Spirit, is a revealing new portrait of Robert F. Kennedy that gets closer to the man than any book before
, by bestselling author Chris Matthews, an esteemed Kennedy expert and anchor of MSNBC’s Hardball.
With his bestselling biography Jack Kennedy, Chris Matthews shared a new look of one of America’s most beloved Presidents and the patriotic spirit that defined him. Now, with Bobby Kennedy, Matthews returns with a gripping, in-depth, behind-the-scenes portrait of one of the great figures of the American twentieth century.
Overlooked by his father, and overshadowed by his war-hero brother, Bobby Kennedy was the perpetual underdog. When he had the chance to become a naval officer like Jack, Bobby turned it down, choosing instead to join the Navy as a common sailor. It was a life changing experience that led him to connect with voters from all walks of life: young or old, black or white, rich or poor. They were the people who turned out for him in his 1968 campaign. RFK would prove himself to be the rarest of politicians—both a pragmatist who knew how to get the job done and an unwavering idealist who could inspire millions.
Drawing on extensive research and interviews, Matthews pulls back the curtain on the public and private worlds of Robert Francis Kennedy. He shines a light on all the important moments of his life, from his early years and his start in politics to his crucial role as attorney general in his brother’s administration and his tragic run for president. This definitive book brings Bobby Kennedy to life like never before and is destined to become a political classic.
Bobby Kennedy: A Raging Spirit.
, by bestselling author Chris Matthews, an esteemed Kennedy expert and anchor of MSNBC’s Hardball.With his bestselling biography Jack Kennedy, Chris Matthews shared a new look of one of America’s most beloved Presidents and the patriotic spirit that defined him. Now, with Bobby Kennedy, Matthews returns with a gripping, in-depth, behind-the-scenes portrait of one of the great figures of the American twentieth century.
Overlooked by his father, and overshadowed by his war-hero brother, Bobby Kennedy was the perpetual underdog. When he had the chance to become a naval officer like Jack, Bobby turned it down, choosing instead to join the Navy as a common sailor. It was a life changing experience that led him to connect with voters from all walks of life: young or old, black or white, rich or poor. They were the people who turned out for him in his 1968 campaign. RFK would prove himself to be the rarest of politicians—both a pragmatist who knew how to get the job done and an unwavering idealist who could inspire millions.
Drawing on extensive research and interviews, Matthews pulls back the curtain on the public and private worlds of Robert Francis Kennedy. He shines a light on all the important moments of his life, from his early years and his start in politics to his crucial role as attorney general in his brother’s administration and his tragic run for president. This definitive book brings Bobby Kennedy to life like never before and is destined to become a political classic.
Bobby Kennedy: A Raging Spirit.
Friday, December 15, 2017
"Where's the Beef? History Tour at the @ChicagoMuseum
Get to know the history of meatpacking in Chicago with volunteer gallery interpreter Mike Johnson on this 30-minute tour of the Chicago History Museum's permanent exhibition Chicago: Crossroads of America.
Chicago History Highlights Tour:
"Where's the Beef?"
Monday, December 18 | 1:30 p.m.
Chicago History Highlights Tour:
"Where's the Beef?"
Monday, December 18 | 1:30 p.m.
Thursday, December 14, 2017
Al Capone: His Life, Legacy, and Legend
At the height of Prohibition
, Al Capone loomed large as Public Enemy Number One: his multimillion-dollar Chicago Outfit dominated organized crime, and law enforcement was powerless to stop him. But then came the fall: a legal noose tightened by the FBI, a conviction on tax evasion, a stint in Alcatraz. After his release, he returned to his family in Miami a much diminished man, living quietly until the ravages of his neurosyphilis took their final toll.
Our shared fascination with Capone endures in countless novels and movies, but the man behind the legend has remained a mystery. Now, through rigorous research and exclusive access to Capone’s family, National Book Award–winning biographer Deirdre Bair cuts through the mythology, uncovering a complex character who was flawed and cruel but also capable of nobility. At once intimate and iconoclastic, Al Capone gives us the definitive account of a quintessentially American figure.
Al Capone: His Life, Legacy, and Legend
.
, Al Capone loomed large as Public Enemy Number One: his multimillion-dollar Chicago Outfit dominated organized crime, and law enforcement was powerless to stop him. But then came the fall: a legal noose tightened by the FBI, a conviction on tax evasion, a stint in Alcatraz. After his release, he returned to his family in Miami a much diminished man, living quietly until the ravages of his neurosyphilis took their final toll.Our shared fascination with Capone endures in countless novels and movies, but the man behind the legend has remained a mystery. Now, through rigorous research and exclusive access to Capone’s family, National Book Award–winning biographer Deirdre Bair cuts through the mythology, uncovering a complex character who was flawed and cruel but also capable of nobility. At once intimate and iconoclastic, Al Capone gives us the definitive account of a quintessentially American figure.
Al Capone: His Life, Legacy, and Legend
.Wednesday, December 13, 2017
The Price of Politics - See how and why Washington is not functioning
Based on 18 months of reporting
, Bob Woodward's 17th book The Price of Politics, is an intimate, documented examination of how President Obama and the highest profile Republican and Democratic leaders in the United States Congress attempted to restore the American economy and improve the federal government’s fiscal condition over three and one half years.
Drawn from memos, contemporaneous meeting notes, emails, and in-depth interviews with the central players, The Price of Politics, addresses the key issue of the presidential and congressional campaigns: the condition of the American economy and how and why we got there. Providing verbatim, day-by-day, even hour-by-hour accounts, the book shows what really happened, what drove the debates, negotiations, and struggles that define, and will continue to define, the American future.
, Bob Woodward's 17th book The Price of Politics, is an intimate, documented examination of how President Obama and the highest profile Republican and Democratic leaders in the United States Congress attempted to restore the American economy and improve the federal government’s fiscal condition over three and one half years.Drawn from memos, contemporaneous meeting notes, emails, and in-depth interviews with the central players, The Price of Politics, addresses the key issue of the presidential and congressional campaigns: the condition of the American economy and how and why we got there. Providing verbatim, day-by-day, even hour-by-hour accounts, the book shows what really happened, what drove the debates, negotiations, and struggles that define, and will continue to define, the American future.
Friday, December 08, 2017
Brian Joyce, Former State Senator, Arrested and Charged in Federal Indictment on Racketeering, Extortion, and Other Charges
Brian Augustine Joyce, a former Massachusetts State Senator, was arrested by federal authorities for allegedly using his state senate office for private gain.
Joyce, 55, of Westport, Mass., was charged in a federal indictment unsealed with racketeering, extortion, honest services fraud, money laundering, conspiracy to defraud the IRS, and other charges. The indictment alleges that Joyce secretly profited from his position as state senator by accepting a stream of concealed bribes and kickbacks in exchange for his official action on matters before the state legislature and for exerting pressure on and advising state and municipal officials to take official action on government matters. The indictment further alleges that Joyce employed sophisticated methods to conceal his corrupt acts, including using a shell company and other entities to launder proceeds from his bribery and kickback schemes and to conceal his ongoing criminal activities.
Specifically, the indictment alleges that Joyce agreed to use his official position to exert pressure on and advise Town Administrators to use a particular energy broker in return for kickbacks in the form of commissions to a shell company, which Joyce controlled. It is further alleged that Joyce used his official position to pressure and advise members of the Milton Planning Board to approve a property subdivision waiver that a developer sought, in exchange for a kickback. Joyce allegedly concealed the kickback by, among other things, falsely telling a Milton Planning Board member that he had not been paid by the developer, and by accepting payment from the developer in the form of a Jeep from one of the developer’s car dealerships.
In addition, it is alleged that Joyce took official action, or pressured others to take official action, on behalf of a coffee-business franchise owner in exchange for hundreds of pounds of free coffee. Joyce took steps to conceal this by submitting backdated checks to the State Ethics Commission and instructed the franchise owner and his relative to falsely represent to the Ethics Commission that they had agreed to provide Joyce coffee in exchange for legal services.
According to the indictment, Joyce also exerted pressure on and advised officials at the Massachusetts Division of Insurance to take official action on matters in favor of an Energy Insurance Brokerage Company (EIB), who paid Joyce in exchange for his official assistance in promoting, sponsoring, and filing legislation that would benefit the EIB. The indictment also alleges that Joyce attempted to use his official position as state senator to collect money for “legal work” from representatives of a Philadelphia solar company who sought Joyce’s assistance with local permitting and pending legislation.
Joyce is also charged with conspiring to defraud the IRS in connection with his purchase of more than $470,000 in common stock from the EIB Company and falsely reporting the stock purchase as a tax-exempt retirement account rollover in his personal tax return.
Joyce, 55, of Westport, Mass., was charged in a federal indictment unsealed with racketeering, extortion, honest services fraud, money laundering, conspiracy to defraud the IRS, and other charges. The indictment alleges that Joyce secretly profited from his position as state senator by accepting a stream of concealed bribes and kickbacks in exchange for his official action on matters before the state legislature and for exerting pressure on and advising state and municipal officials to take official action on government matters. The indictment further alleges that Joyce employed sophisticated methods to conceal his corrupt acts, including using a shell company and other entities to launder proceeds from his bribery and kickback schemes and to conceal his ongoing criminal activities.
Specifically, the indictment alleges that Joyce agreed to use his official position to exert pressure on and advise Town Administrators to use a particular energy broker in return for kickbacks in the form of commissions to a shell company, which Joyce controlled. It is further alleged that Joyce used his official position to pressure and advise members of the Milton Planning Board to approve a property subdivision waiver that a developer sought, in exchange for a kickback. Joyce allegedly concealed the kickback by, among other things, falsely telling a Milton Planning Board member that he had not been paid by the developer, and by accepting payment from the developer in the form of a Jeep from one of the developer’s car dealerships.
In addition, it is alleged that Joyce took official action, or pressured others to take official action, on behalf of a coffee-business franchise owner in exchange for hundreds of pounds of free coffee. Joyce took steps to conceal this by submitting backdated checks to the State Ethics Commission and instructed the franchise owner and his relative to falsely represent to the Ethics Commission that they had agreed to provide Joyce coffee in exchange for legal services.
According to the indictment, Joyce also exerted pressure on and advised officials at the Massachusetts Division of Insurance to take official action on matters in favor of an Energy Insurance Brokerage Company (EIB), who paid Joyce in exchange for his official assistance in promoting, sponsoring, and filing legislation that would benefit the EIB. The indictment also alleges that Joyce attempted to use his official position as state senator to collect money for “legal work” from representatives of a Philadelphia solar company who sought Joyce’s assistance with local permitting and pending legislation.
Joyce is also charged with conspiring to defraud the IRS in connection with his purchase of more than $470,000 in common stock from the EIB Company and falsely reporting the stock purchase as a tax-exempt retirement account rollover in his personal tax return.
Thursday, December 07, 2017
Biopic #Gotti, Starring John Travolta and Directed by @MrKevinConnolly, Gearing Up for Huge,Wide Release & Awards in 2018
Producers of John Travolta’s “Gotti” have bought back the movie from Lionsgate, which had planned to release the mob biopic on Dec. 15 through its Lionsgate Premiere specialty division.
Emmett/Furla/Oasis Films is expected to begin meeting with other distributors about “Gotti.” The company, which produced the film with Highland Film Group and Fiore Films, exercised a provision in its deal allowing it to buy back the movie from Lionsgate in the hope of getting “Gotti” a wide theatrical release. The Lionsgate Premiere release would have been day-and-date for theatrical, VOD and streaming.
“Gotti” is directed by “Entourage” star Kevin Connolly from a script by Lem Dobbs and Leo Rossi. “Gotti” also stars Travolta’s wife Kelly Prestor, their daughter Ella Bleu Travolta, Pruitt Taylor Vince, Stacy Keach, Chris Mulkey, Lydia Hull and Spencer Lofranco.
Travolta portrays John Gotti, the flaboyant head of the Gambino crime family who spent the last decade of his life in prison before dying of throat cancer in 2002. Preston is starring as his wife Victoria Gotti. Keach is portraying Aniello Dellacroce, the underboss of the Gambino crime family who mentored Gotti. Taylor Vince plays Angelo Ruggiero, a friend of Gotti and caporegime in the Gambino crime family.
Lofranco is portraying John Gotti, Jr., Gotti’s son and eventual caporegime and acting boss of the Gambino crime family before leaving the mobster life behind.
One of the film's executive producers, Keya Morgan, told TMZ the "Gotti" project was originally supposed to be distributed by Lionsgate Premiere ... a branch of the company that handles smaller, niche releases. Morgan says his team believes the movie could do gangbusters in wide release and he even believes Travolta could end up with some hardware on his mantle.
The original distro contract featured a buyback clause, so Morgan and others wired $10 million to prove to LGP they meant business and the company forked over the release rights. Morgan says LGP will profit big-time when the movie comes out.
Travolta's flick was scheduled to hit the screens next week, but Morgan says the new plan is to take it to Cannes or Venice first and then release it in at least 1,000 theaters. The release date is uncertain.
Emmett/Furla/Oasis Films is expected to begin meeting with other distributors about “Gotti.” The company, which produced the film with Highland Film Group and Fiore Films, exercised a provision in its deal allowing it to buy back the movie from Lionsgate in the hope of getting “Gotti” a wide theatrical release. The Lionsgate Premiere release would have been day-and-date for theatrical, VOD and streaming.
“Gotti” is directed by “Entourage” star Kevin Connolly from a script by Lem Dobbs and Leo Rossi. “Gotti” also stars Travolta’s wife Kelly Prestor, their daughter Ella Bleu Travolta, Pruitt Taylor Vince, Stacy Keach, Chris Mulkey, Lydia Hull and Spencer Lofranco.
Travolta portrays John Gotti, the flaboyant head of the Gambino crime family who spent the last decade of his life in prison before dying of throat cancer in 2002. Preston is starring as his wife Victoria Gotti. Keach is portraying Aniello Dellacroce, the underboss of the Gambino crime family who mentored Gotti. Taylor Vince plays Angelo Ruggiero, a friend of Gotti and caporegime in the Gambino crime family.
Lofranco is portraying John Gotti, Jr., Gotti’s son and eventual caporegime and acting boss of the Gambino crime family before leaving the mobster life behind.
One of the film's executive producers, Keya Morgan, told TMZ the "Gotti" project was originally supposed to be distributed by Lionsgate Premiere ... a branch of the company that handles smaller, niche releases. Morgan says his team believes the movie could do gangbusters in wide release and he even believes Travolta could end up with some hardware on his mantle.
The original distro contract featured a buyback clause, so Morgan and others wired $10 million to prove to LGP they meant business and the company forked over the release rights. Morgan says LGP will profit big-time when the movie comes out.
Travolta's flick was scheduled to hit the screens next week, but Morgan says the new plan is to take it to Cannes or Venice first and then release it in at least 1,000 theaters. The release date is uncertain.
Larcenous Romani crime boss Rita Marks Unleashed on #ShutEye
Isabella Rossellini’s TV alter ego, brooding, larcenous Romani crime boss Rita Marks, paced around “Shut Eye” last season like a caged tiger waiting to strike — and now she’s been unleashed.
The Season 2 premiere of Hulu’s quirky drama, premiering Wednesday, finds Rita dealing with a murder rap and the possibility of turning against her vengeful family — as we finally learn what’s been fueling her simmering fury and how it will impact everyone in her orbit.
“Rita is an interesting character,” says Rossellini, 65. “We’ve developed more of her background [this season] and we show where she comes from and why she became that way.” The season opener focuses on Rita’s history back in her native Yugoslavia (now Serbia) vis a vis the violence and harshness that accompanied her Romani upbringing — and how that shaped her character. “I always knew who she was. She’s very cold and calculating,” Rossellini says. “But Rita has bloomed much more this season.”
For the uninitiated, “Shut Eye” revolves around Charlie Haverford (Jeffrey Donovan) and his wife Linda (KaDee Strickland), Vegas-trained con artists who work for an insular Romani crime syndicate run by Rita and her volatile son, Fonso (Angus Sampson). They oversee an empire of shady fortune-teller franchises in LA with one goal in mind: swindling their wealthy clients. At the end of Season One, Charlie, plagued by psychic visions (turns out he really can see the future), stole nearly $2 million from his employers in a bid to start a new life, leading to a murder implicating Rita — and setting her on a path of revenge.
“In the series we’re Romani, or gypsies, but they don’t like to be called ‘gypsies,’” says Rossellini. “But it could be the story of any ethnicity. What amuses me the most about going back to the ‘old country’ [with Rita’s back story] is that women do have power, but it’s not overt or declared. In Italy, where I come from, it’s the land of machismo and men, but women run it — everyone is terrified of the grandmother, the mother, the wife. If they speak, they speak with a very soft voice.
“And that’s the part I love the most about Rita,” she says. “She’s the boss of an organized crime family but she’s not hot-headed. To me, she’s completely ruthless and immoral and a criminal … but she’s also a grandmother [to Fonso’s teenage daughter, Drina, played by Havana Guppy]. I think that makes her much more interesting. She really loves her family and protects them. She’s dedicated and attentive and tender and warm and that makes it more difficult because she’s a criminal.”
“Shut Eye” marks Rossellini’s first regular TV role after years of guest spots on shows including “30 Rock,” “Treme” and “The Blacklist.” (She snared a 1994 Emmy nomination for her guest-starring role on “Chicago Hope.”) She says she’s avoided being a series regular for several specific reasons. “It’s partially because it’s a very big commitment,” she says. “It’s five-to-six months a year and when my kids were small and I was offered a series it was not often that it was shot in New York City where we live. I didn’t accept [the roles] because I didn’t want to be separated from my family for six months at a time. “But now my kids are grown up — one is 24 (son Roberto) and one is 34 (daughter Elettra) — and they’re happy that I’m out of the house,” she says. “I’m kidding, but they don’t need me on a daily basis.”
Thanks to Michael Starr.
The Season 2 premiere of Hulu’s quirky drama, premiering Wednesday, finds Rita dealing with a murder rap and the possibility of turning against her vengeful family — as we finally learn what’s been fueling her simmering fury and how it will impact everyone in her orbit.
“Rita is an interesting character,” says Rossellini, 65. “We’ve developed more of her background [this season] and we show where she comes from and why she became that way.” The season opener focuses on Rita’s history back in her native Yugoslavia (now Serbia) vis a vis the violence and harshness that accompanied her Romani upbringing — and how that shaped her character. “I always knew who she was. She’s very cold and calculating,” Rossellini says. “But Rita has bloomed much more this season.”
For the uninitiated, “Shut Eye” revolves around Charlie Haverford (Jeffrey Donovan) and his wife Linda (KaDee Strickland), Vegas-trained con artists who work for an insular Romani crime syndicate run by Rita and her volatile son, Fonso (Angus Sampson). They oversee an empire of shady fortune-teller franchises in LA with one goal in mind: swindling their wealthy clients. At the end of Season One, Charlie, plagued by psychic visions (turns out he really can see the future), stole nearly $2 million from his employers in a bid to start a new life, leading to a murder implicating Rita — and setting her on a path of revenge.
“In the series we’re Romani, or gypsies, but they don’t like to be called ‘gypsies,’” says Rossellini. “But it could be the story of any ethnicity. What amuses me the most about going back to the ‘old country’ [with Rita’s back story] is that women do have power, but it’s not overt or declared. In Italy, where I come from, it’s the land of machismo and men, but women run it — everyone is terrified of the grandmother, the mother, the wife. If they speak, they speak with a very soft voice.
“And that’s the part I love the most about Rita,” she says. “She’s the boss of an organized crime family but she’s not hot-headed. To me, she’s completely ruthless and immoral and a criminal … but she’s also a grandmother [to Fonso’s teenage daughter, Drina, played by Havana Guppy]. I think that makes her much more interesting. She really loves her family and protects them. She’s dedicated and attentive and tender and warm and that makes it more difficult because she’s a criminal.”
“Shut Eye” marks Rossellini’s first regular TV role after years of guest spots on shows including “30 Rock,” “Treme” and “The Blacklist.” (She snared a 1994 Emmy nomination for her guest-starring role on “Chicago Hope.”) She says she’s avoided being a series regular for several specific reasons. “It’s partially because it’s a very big commitment,” she says. “It’s five-to-six months a year and when my kids were small and I was offered a series it was not often that it was shot in New York City where we live. I didn’t accept [the roles] because I didn’t want to be separated from my family for six months at a time. “But now my kids are grown up — one is 24 (son Roberto) and one is 34 (daughter Elettra) — and they’re happy that I’m out of the house,” she says. “I’m kidding, but they don’t need me on a daily basis.”
Thanks to Michael Starr.
American Gangsters, Then and Now: An Encyclopedia - A Quality Work by @NateHendley
From the James gang to Nicky Barnes to John Gotti
, the American gangster has become an iconic outsized American archetype, with the real criminals sometimes rivaling their fictional counterparts—like the Corleones and the Sopranos—for their ability to captivate the public and attain genuine folk antihero status.
A detailed compendium of American gangsters and gangs from the end of the Civil War to the present day.
American Gangsters, Then and Now: An Encyclopedia, ranges from Western outlaws revered as Robin Hoods to the Depression’s flamboyant bootleggers and bank robbers to the late 20th century’s drug kingpins and “Dapper Dons.” It is the first comprehensive resource on the gangster’s historical evolution and unshakable grip on the American imagination.
American Gangsters, Then and Now: An Encyclopedia, tells the stories of a number of famous gangsters and gangs—Jesse James and Billy the Kid, the Black Hand, Al Capone, Sonny Barger and the Hell's Angels, the Mafia, Crips and Bloods, and more. Avoiding sensationalism, the straightforward entries include biographical portraits and historical background for each subject, as well as accounts of infamous robberies, killings, and other events, all well documented with both archival newspapers and extensive research into the files of the FBI. Readers will understand the families, the places, and the times that produced these monumental criminals, as well as the public mindset that often found them sympathetic and heroic.
Features
Highlights
Nate Hendley is a freelance writer living in Toronto, Canada. His published works include Greenwood's Bonnie and Clyde: A Biography, Crystal Meth: North America's #1 Drug Problem, Al Capone: Chicago's King of Crime, Dutch Schultz: The Brazen Beer Baron of New York, and Edwin Alonzo Boyd: Life and Crimes of Canada's Master Bank Robber.
, the American gangster has become an iconic outsized American archetype, with the real criminals sometimes rivaling their fictional counterparts—like the Corleones and the Sopranos—for their ability to captivate the public and attain genuine folk antihero status.A detailed compendium of American gangsters and gangs from the end of the Civil War to the present day.
American Gangsters, Then and Now: An Encyclopedia, ranges from Western outlaws revered as Robin Hoods to the Depression’s flamboyant bootleggers and bank robbers to the late 20th century’s drug kingpins and “Dapper Dons.” It is the first comprehensive resource on the gangster’s historical evolution and unshakable grip on the American imagination.
American Gangsters, Then and Now: An Encyclopedia, tells the stories of a number of famous gangsters and gangs—Jesse James and Billy the Kid, the Black Hand, Al Capone, Sonny Barger and the Hell's Angels, the Mafia, Crips and Bloods, and more. Avoiding sensationalism, the straightforward entries include biographical portraits and historical background for each subject, as well as accounts of infamous robberies, killings, and other events, all well documented with both archival newspapers and extensive research into the files of the FBI. Readers will understand the families, the places, and the times that produced these monumental criminals, as well as the public mindset that often found them sympathetic and heroic.
Features
- Comprises 50 alphabetically organized entries on American gangsters and gangs from the post-Civil War era to the present
- Offers a wealth of primary sources, including newspaper articles dating back to the 1880s and FBI files obtained by the author
- Includes photographs of prominent American gangsters and the aftermaths of their crimes
- Presents a glossary of gangster slang, past and present
- Provides a comprehensive index
Highlights
- Spans the whole history of the gangster in the United States, from the post-Civil War era to the present
- Features the insights and writing skills of an accomplished author of crime books
- Makes the connection between gangsters from different eras
- Dispels a number of misconceptions about gangsters and the destruction they cause
Nate Hendley is a freelance writer living in Toronto, Canada. His published works include Greenwood's Bonnie and Clyde: A Biography, Crystal Meth: North America's #1 Drug Problem, Al Capone: Chicago's King of Crime, Dutch Schultz: The Brazen Beer Baron of New York, and Edwin Alonzo Boyd: Life and Crimes of Canada's Master Bank Robber.
Tuesday, December 05, 2017
Two Brooklyn Men Charged in Violent Extortion Scheme
A criminal complaint was unsealed in federal court in the Eastern District of New York charging Ruslan Reizin and Mark Krivoi with extortion conspiracy. The charges stem from the defendants’ alleged extortion and violent assault of a teenage victim who started an awning-cleaning business in Brooklyn that competed with a similar business operated by Reizin.
Bridget M. Rohde, Acting United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, William F. Sweeney, Jr., Assistant Director-in-Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation, New York Field Office (FBI), Leon Hayward, Acting Director, New York Field Office, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), and James P. O’Neill, Commissioner, New York City Police Department (NYPD), announced the charges.
“As alleged, the defendants sought to eliminate a business competitor by beating and intimidating him; they also lined their pockets with thousands of dollars in extortionate payments,” stated Acting United States Attorney Rohde. “This is no way to ensure a competitive edge. We will not abide this method of trying to assure a competitive edge.”
“This case illustrates a text book extortion, the suspects allegedly threatening violence because the victim decided to open his own business,” stated FBI Assistant Director-in-Charge Sweeney. “Our country thrives on a free market, and the ability of people to go out and start their own company is part of the American dream. The FBI and our law enforcement partners will always pursue those who think to bully others into submission, and threaten free commerce.”
“U.S. Customs and Border Protection is proud of the expertise we provide in support of investigations that result in the takedown of criminal enterprises,” said CBP Acting Director Hayward. “It is through interagency partnerships and collaborative efforts, like the one leading to today’s arrests, that law enforcement successfully combats today’s criminal organizations.”
According to the criminal complaint and other court filings, in May 2017, Reizin learned that the victim—who formerly worked for Reizin’s awning-cleaning company—had started a similar business in Brooklyn. Reizin and Krivoi brought the victim to a secluded location in Sheepshead Bay where Reizin allegedly grabbed the victim by the throat, brandished a knife and gave him the choice of having his ear cut off or his throat slashed. Krivoi allegedly suggested that they should kill the victim. Reizin then demanded that the victim shut down his business and pay $10,000 to Reizin and a local motorcycle club to which Reizin belongs, and which Reizin claimed supported the extortion. When the victim replied that he could not afford to pay, Reizin instructed Krivoi to hit the victim, which Krivoi did, repeatedly. Reizin then offered the victim a “discount,” requiring him to pay $5,000 in monthly installments. Reizin also told the victim that he and his family would suffer if the victim reported the assault to law enforcement. Over the next several months, the victim made regular payments to Reizin. During that period, in a recorded call with the victim, Reizin spoke about “cut[ting] out” the ear of one of the victim’s family members and “forc[ing him] to chew and swallow it.”
Bridget M. Rohde, Acting United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, William F. Sweeney, Jr., Assistant Director-in-Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation, New York Field Office (FBI), Leon Hayward, Acting Director, New York Field Office, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), and James P. O’Neill, Commissioner, New York City Police Department (NYPD), announced the charges.
“As alleged, the defendants sought to eliminate a business competitor by beating and intimidating him; they also lined their pockets with thousands of dollars in extortionate payments,” stated Acting United States Attorney Rohde. “This is no way to ensure a competitive edge. We will not abide this method of trying to assure a competitive edge.”
“This case illustrates a text book extortion, the suspects allegedly threatening violence because the victim decided to open his own business,” stated FBI Assistant Director-in-Charge Sweeney. “Our country thrives on a free market, and the ability of people to go out and start their own company is part of the American dream. The FBI and our law enforcement partners will always pursue those who think to bully others into submission, and threaten free commerce.”
“U.S. Customs and Border Protection is proud of the expertise we provide in support of investigations that result in the takedown of criminal enterprises,” said CBP Acting Director Hayward. “It is through interagency partnerships and collaborative efforts, like the one leading to today’s arrests, that law enforcement successfully combats today’s criminal organizations.”
According to the criminal complaint and other court filings, in May 2017, Reizin learned that the victim—who formerly worked for Reizin’s awning-cleaning company—had started a similar business in Brooklyn. Reizin and Krivoi brought the victim to a secluded location in Sheepshead Bay where Reizin allegedly grabbed the victim by the throat, brandished a knife and gave him the choice of having his ear cut off or his throat slashed. Krivoi allegedly suggested that they should kill the victim. Reizin then demanded that the victim shut down his business and pay $10,000 to Reizin and a local motorcycle club to which Reizin belongs, and which Reizin claimed supported the extortion. When the victim replied that he could not afford to pay, Reizin instructed Krivoi to hit the victim, which Krivoi did, repeatedly. Reizin then offered the victim a “discount,” requiring him to pay $5,000 in monthly installments. Reizin also told the victim that he and his family would suffer if the victim reported the assault to law enforcement. Over the next several months, the victim made regular payments to Reizin. During that period, in a recorded call with the victim, Reizin spoke about “cut[ting] out” the ear of one of the victim’s family members and “forc[ing him] to chew and swallow it.”
John Ambrose, Ex-Deputy US Marshal, Who Leaked Info in the #FamilySecrets Mob Case is Punched by High School Wrestler
John Ambrose, the former deputy U.S. marshal convicted of leaking confidential information to a reputed Outfit associate, was punched out at a high school wrestling meet Friday after an altercation in the stands.
Joliet police wouldn’t identify the man who was struck, but Ambrose told the Tribune he was “the victim of an aggravated battery attack” at the meet. He declined to comment further.
According to Joliet Police Deputy Chief Al Roechner, a visiting fan in the stands was being “very vocal” during a match at Plainfield South High School and was confronted by the parent of a Plainfield South wrestler. Providence Catholic was the visiting team, witnesses said.
The wrestler, who is 17, saw his parent arguing and ran into the stands, punching the visiting fan in the face, Roechner said.
Police arrested the student, Roechner said. Though the visitor was bleeding, Roechner said he declined medical treatment.
The boy was released to his parents, Roechner said. Kendall County State’s Attorney Eric Weis said his office, which covers Plainfield South, has not yet received a referral for prosecution on the matter.
Tom Hernandez, spokesman for Plainfield Community Consolidated School District 202, said the district was aware of an "incident" that took place at Friday's meet.
He declined further comment but said the district was looking into whether any student would be disciplined.
“We are doing our own investigation, as we always do,” Hernandez said Sunday. “We will take appropriate steps as warranted.”
In 2009, a federal judge sentenced Ambrose to four years in prison after he was convicted of telling a reputed mob associate that hit man Nicholas Calabrese was secretly cooperating with authorities.
Ambrose’s attorney said the decorated former deputy U.S. marshal was just bragging to a family friend about being in Calabrese’s security detail, but prosecutors said Ambrose knew the information would be relayed to the mob.
Calabrese’s testimony in the 2007 Family Secrets trial helped convict five alleged organized crime members, including his brother Frank Calabrese Sr.
Thanks to By John Keilman and Alicia Fabbre.
Joliet police wouldn’t identify the man who was struck, but Ambrose told the Tribune he was “the victim of an aggravated battery attack” at the meet. He declined to comment further.
According to Joliet Police Deputy Chief Al Roechner, a visiting fan in the stands was being “very vocal” during a match at Plainfield South High School and was confronted by the parent of a Plainfield South wrestler. Providence Catholic was the visiting team, witnesses said.
The wrestler, who is 17, saw his parent arguing and ran into the stands, punching the visiting fan in the face, Roechner said.
Police arrested the student, Roechner said. Though the visitor was bleeding, Roechner said he declined medical treatment.
The boy was released to his parents, Roechner said. Kendall County State’s Attorney Eric Weis said his office, which covers Plainfield South, has not yet received a referral for prosecution on the matter.
Tom Hernandez, spokesman for Plainfield Community Consolidated School District 202, said the district was aware of an "incident" that took place at Friday's meet.
He declined further comment but said the district was looking into whether any student would be disciplined.
“We are doing our own investigation, as we always do,” Hernandez said Sunday. “We will take appropriate steps as warranted.”
In 2009, a federal judge sentenced Ambrose to four years in prison after he was convicted of telling a reputed mob associate that hit man Nicholas Calabrese was secretly cooperating with authorities.
Ambrose’s attorney said the decorated former deputy U.S. marshal was just bragging to a family friend about being in Calabrese’s security detail, but prosecutors said Ambrose knew the information would be relayed to the mob.
Calabrese’s testimony in the 2007 Family Secrets trial helped convict five alleged organized crime members, including his brother Frank Calabrese Sr.
Thanks to By John Keilman and Alicia Fabbre.
Monday, December 04, 2017
Irish Godfather, "Dapper Dan" Hogan, killed by car bomb #OnThisDay
“Dapper Dan” Hogan, a St. Paul, Minnesota saloonkeeper and mob boss, is killed on this day in 1928 when someone plants a car bomb under the floorboards of his new Paige coupe. Doctors worked all day to save him–according to the Morning Tribune, “racketeers, police characters, and business men” queued up at the hospital to donate blood to their ailing friend–but Hogan slipped into a coma and died at around 9 p.m. His murder is still unsolved.
Hogan was a pillar of the Twin Cities underworld. His downtown saloon, the Green Lantern, catered to (and laundered the money of) bank robbers, bootleggers, safecrackers and all-around thugs. He was an expert at defusing petty arguments, keeping feuds from getting out of hand, and (the paper said) “keep[ing] the heat out of town,” which made him a friend to many lawbreakers and a valuable asset to people (like the crooked-but-well-meaning police chief) who were trying to keep Minneapolis and St. Paul from becoming as bloody and dangerous as Chicago.
Hogan and the police both worked to make sure that gangsters would be safe in the Twin Cities as long as they committed their most egregious crimes outside the city limits. If this position made him more friends than enemies–“his word was said to have been ‘as good as a gold bond,'” the paper said, and “to numbers of persons he was something of a Robin Hood”–it also angered many mobsters who resented his stranglehold on the city’s rackets. Police speculated that some of his own associates might have been responsible for his murder.
As the newspaper reported the day after Hogan died, car bombs were “the newest form of bomb killing,” a murderous technology perfected by New York gangsters and bootleggers. In fact, Hogan was one of the first people to die in a car bomb explosion. The police investigation revealed that two men had entered Dapper Dan’s garage early in the morning of December 4, planted a nitroglycerine explosive in the car’s undercarriage, and wired it to the starter. When Hogan pressed his foot to that pedal, the bomb went off, nearly severing his right leg. He died from blood loss.
The first real car bomb–or, in this case, horse-drawn-wagon bomb–exploded on September 16, 1920 outside the J.P. Morgan Company’s offices in New York City’s financial district. Italian anarchist Mario Buda had planted it there, hoping to kill Morgan himself; as it happened, the robber baron was out of town, but 40 other people died (and about 200 were wounded) in the blast. There were occasional car-bomb attacks after that–most notably in Saigon in 1952, Algiers in 1962, and Palermo in 1963–but vehicle weapons remained relatively uncommon until the 1970s and 80s, when they became the terrifying trademark of groups like the Irish Republican Army and Hezbollah. In 1995, right-wing terrorists Timothy McVeigh and Terry Nichols used a bomb hidden in a Ryder truck to blow up the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City.
Hogan was a pillar of the Twin Cities underworld. His downtown saloon, the Green Lantern, catered to (and laundered the money of) bank robbers, bootleggers, safecrackers and all-around thugs. He was an expert at defusing petty arguments, keeping feuds from getting out of hand, and (the paper said) “keep[ing] the heat out of town,” which made him a friend to many lawbreakers and a valuable asset to people (like the crooked-but-well-meaning police chief) who were trying to keep Minneapolis and St. Paul from becoming as bloody and dangerous as Chicago.
Hogan and the police both worked to make sure that gangsters would be safe in the Twin Cities as long as they committed their most egregious crimes outside the city limits. If this position made him more friends than enemies–“his word was said to have been ‘as good as a gold bond,'” the paper said, and “to numbers of persons he was something of a Robin Hood”–it also angered many mobsters who resented his stranglehold on the city’s rackets. Police speculated that some of his own associates might have been responsible for his murder.
As the newspaper reported the day after Hogan died, car bombs were “the newest form of bomb killing,” a murderous technology perfected by New York gangsters and bootleggers. In fact, Hogan was one of the first people to die in a car bomb explosion. The police investigation revealed that two men had entered Dapper Dan’s garage early in the morning of December 4, planted a nitroglycerine explosive in the car’s undercarriage, and wired it to the starter. When Hogan pressed his foot to that pedal, the bomb went off, nearly severing his right leg. He died from blood loss.
The first real car bomb–or, in this case, horse-drawn-wagon bomb–exploded on September 16, 1920 outside the J.P. Morgan Company’s offices in New York City’s financial district. Italian anarchist Mario Buda had planted it there, hoping to kill Morgan himself; as it happened, the robber baron was out of town, but 40 other people died (and about 200 were wounded) in the blast. There were occasional car-bomb attacks after that–most notably in Saigon in 1952, Algiers in 1962, and Palermo in 1963–but vehicle weapons remained relatively uncommon until the 1970s and 80s, when they became the terrifying trademark of groups like the Irish Republican Army and Hezbollah. In 1995, right-wing terrorists Timothy McVeigh and Terry Nichols used a bomb hidden in a Ryder truck to blow up the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City.
Friday, December 01, 2017
Mob Fest '29: The True Story Behind the Birth of Organized Crime
Bill Tonelli arrives on the scene with his brilliantly subversive Byliner Mob Fest ’29: The True Story Behind the Birth of Organized Crime. Tonelli investigates the long-standing myth of the mob’s founding—a legendary week in May 1929 in which a who’s who of American crime (Al Capone, Lucky Luciano, Meyer Lansky, and Frank Costello, among many others) were said to have assembled in Atlantic City
, the hedonistic Playground of America, to make peace and divvy up the country’s illegal enterprises. But what really happened that criminally star-studded week on the Jersey Shore?
At this informal summit, mobster bosses allegedly gathered to invent the concept of “organized crime” in America. Prohibition had transformed all of them from two-bit thugs into underworld bigwigs, and they had a vested interest in keeping illicit booze flowing easily across state lines. In Atlantic City, these hoods played as hard as they worked—if indeed they worked at all. “As legend has it,” writes Tonelli, “as many as thirty top gangsters [enjoyed] wild parties and heroic feasts, with fancy ladies provided for any who hadn’t brought his own. In short, this was nothing like the office meetings you and I have been made to attend.”
How many of these accounts are actually true, and why do they vary wildly in their retelling? Did the mobsters really wheel around the Boardwalk in rolling chairs, smoking cigars and cutting deals? Did they threaten one another in swank conference rooms in the Ritz-Carlton? Did they force Al Capone, fresh from the St. Valentine’s Day Massacre in Chicago, to turn himself in to the cops in order to take the heat off everyone else? And what about the infamous photo of Nucky Johnson—“the benevolent but undisputed king” of Atlantic City, better known as Nucky Thompson on Boardwalk Empire—strolling the boards arm in arm with Capone? Was this a staged shoot caught by early paparazzi or a Prohibition-era Photoshop job designed to ignite conspiracy theories that would thrive for years to come?
At a time when the early mob days are all the rage, Tonelli sifts the facts from the malarkey and in so doing shows that when it comes to the birth of organized crime, a good lie is hard to beat.
, the hedonistic Playground of America, to make peace and divvy up the country’s illegal enterprises. But what really happened that criminally star-studded week on the Jersey Shore?At this informal summit, mobster bosses allegedly gathered to invent the concept of “organized crime” in America. Prohibition had transformed all of them from two-bit thugs into underworld bigwigs, and they had a vested interest in keeping illicit booze flowing easily across state lines. In Atlantic City, these hoods played as hard as they worked—if indeed they worked at all. “As legend has it,” writes Tonelli, “as many as thirty top gangsters [enjoyed] wild parties and heroic feasts, with fancy ladies provided for any who hadn’t brought his own. In short, this was nothing like the office meetings you and I have been made to attend.”
How many of these accounts are actually true, and why do they vary wildly in their retelling? Did the mobsters really wheel around the Boardwalk in rolling chairs, smoking cigars and cutting deals? Did they threaten one another in swank conference rooms in the Ritz-Carlton? Did they force Al Capone, fresh from the St. Valentine’s Day Massacre in Chicago, to turn himself in to the cops in order to take the heat off everyone else? And what about the infamous photo of Nucky Johnson—“the benevolent but undisputed king” of Atlantic City, better known as Nucky Thompson on Boardwalk Empire—strolling the boards arm in arm with Capone? Was this a staged shoot caught by early paparazzi or a Prohibition-era Photoshop job designed to ignite conspiracy theories that would thrive for years to come?
At a time when the early mob days are all the rage, Tonelli sifts the facts from the malarkey and in so doing shows that when it comes to the birth of organized crime, a good lie is hard to beat.
Thursday, November 30, 2017
Member of #MS13, "Street Danger", Pleads Guilty to RICO Conspiracy Involving Murder of 15 Year Old
An MS-13 member pleaded guilty in federal court in Boston to racketeering conspiracy involving the murder of a 15-year-old boy in East Boston.
Henry Josue Parada Martinez, a/k/a “Street Danger,” 22, a Salvadoran national formerly of East Boston and Montgomery County, Md., pleaded guilty to conspiracy to conduct enterprise affairs through a pattern of racketeering activity, more commonly referred to as RICO conspiracy. U.S. District Court Judge F. Dennis Saylor IV scheduled sentencing for March 1, 2018.
During an investigation of MS-13 in Massachusetts, Parada Martinez was identified as a member of MS-13’s Molinos clique, which operated in East Boston and other parts of Massachusetts. Parada Martinez admitted that on Sept. 7, 2015, he was one of four individuals who murdered a 15-year-old boy on Constitution Beach in East Boston. Agents subsequently recorded conversations with Parada Martinez in which he acknowledged being a member of MS-13, admitted that he was one of the men who murdered the victim, and identified other MS-13 members who committed the murder with him.
After a three-year investigation, Parada Martinez was one of 61 individuals named in a superseding indictment targeting the criminal activities of alleged leaders, members, and associates of MS-13 in Massachusetts. Parada Martinez is the 26th defendant to plead guilty in this case.
Parada Martinez faces up to life in prison, five years of supervised release, and will be subject to deportation upon completion of his sentence. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
Henry Josue Parada Martinez, a/k/a “Street Danger,” 22, a Salvadoran national formerly of East Boston and Montgomery County, Md., pleaded guilty to conspiracy to conduct enterprise affairs through a pattern of racketeering activity, more commonly referred to as RICO conspiracy. U.S. District Court Judge F. Dennis Saylor IV scheduled sentencing for March 1, 2018.
During an investigation of MS-13 in Massachusetts, Parada Martinez was identified as a member of MS-13’s Molinos clique, which operated in East Boston and other parts of Massachusetts. Parada Martinez admitted that on Sept. 7, 2015, he was one of four individuals who murdered a 15-year-old boy on Constitution Beach in East Boston. Agents subsequently recorded conversations with Parada Martinez in which he acknowledged being a member of MS-13, admitted that he was one of the men who murdered the victim, and identified other MS-13 members who committed the murder with him.
After a three-year investigation, Parada Martinez was one of 61 individuals named in a superseding indictment targeting the criminal activities of alleged leaders, members, and associates of MS-13 in Massachusetts. Parada Martinez is the 26th defendant to plead guilty in this case.
Parada Martinez faces up to life in prison, five years of supervised release, and will be subject to deportation upon completion of his sentence. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
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