NYC police dig for gang victims

New York City Police dug up a Brooklyn back yard yesterday, investigating a report that victims of gang murders were buried there, according to a story by Larry Celona and John Doyle of the New York Post.

The police were acting on a tip from a defendant in a drug case. The informant reportedly stated that his father buried three bodies in an old cesspool behind #724 Drew St. in Brooklyn. The site is just blocks away from the Ruby Street and Blake Avenue location where authorities discovered the remains of Alfonse "Sonny Red" Indelicato in 1981 and of Philip Giaccone and Dominick "Big Trin" Trinchera in 2004.

With bloodhounds standing by, police excavated a 3-foot-by-5-foot area of the backyard. No human remains were found. But police said they were considering returning to the site with a backhoe.

Bonanno Crime Family boss Joseph Massino was convicted of the murders of Indelicato, Giaccone and Trinchera - the "Three Capos" - in 2004.

Mass. father, son charged with running gambling ring

Elias Samia, 41, and his father Edward Samia, 68, were arrested yesterday for running a gambling ring in Worcester, MA, according to a story by Milton J. Valencia of the Worcester Telegram and Gazette.

The two men, both residents of 1 Carleton St., Rochdale, were arrested at the English Social Club, 29 Camp Street, in Worcester. Edward Samia is listed in Massachusetts records as the president and clerk of the social club. Elias Samia, according to police, has been linked with notorious figures in the local underworld. Detectives seized $10,000 in cash at the club.

Edward was charged with five counts of registering bets; setting up, promoting, permitting a lottery; selling lottery tickets; and permitting public gaming. His son was charged with registering bets; setting up, promoting, permitting a lottery; and selling lottery tickets.

Elias Samia is a suspect in the 1994 disappearance and probable murder of Kevin Harkins. He has previous arrests for drug charges and motor vehicle violations. He has been linked with convicted drug trafficker John R. Fredette and with Matteo Trotto, now jailed on a 1999 conviction on drug and gun charges. Trotto was shot in an apparent gang-related attack in 2004. Police believe he was targeted by a group led by Eugene A. "Gino" Rida, Jr., which was attempting to take over Massachusetts factions of the New England Mafia Family.

Ruggiero admits to being Genovese capo

Renaldi "Ray" Ruggiero, 73, admitted yesterday that he was a Genovese Crime Family capo in charge of operations in South Florida, according to a story by AP writer Curt Anderson published in the Miami Herald.

The admission came as part of a plea deal with federal prosecutors. Ruggiero had been charged with participating in racketeering offenses, including extortion, robbery, money laundering and possession of stolen property. The aging and ill Ruggiero signed a deal after his attorneys failed to have FBI wiretaps and tape recordings ruled inadmissable in the case.

Prosecutors have indicated that the FBI listened in on more than 12,000 telephone calls. They say the Palm Beach Gardens resident became the leading figure in local Genovese operations in 2003.

Ruggiero did not agree to cooperate with investigators. He faces a possible sentence of 20 years in prison and a $25,000 fine when sentenced on April 27.

Four other defendants charged with being part of a Genovese crew in South Florida have pleaded guilty to racketeering conspiracy. Two other defendants, including 96-year-old Albert "Chinky" Facchiano, are awaiting trial. Fiacchiano is also named in a New York indictment.

Fiacchiano's attorneys have requested that the federal cases be consolidated. It is believed that the attorneys are workin on a plea deal, according to a story by Vannessa Blum of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel. That story indicates that a plea deal, already approved by the Department of Justice, would call for Facchiano to serve any sentence under house arrest instead of in prison.

Related MobNews posts:

• Facchiano indicted in two states 01/04/07


• Guilty plea from Fla. Genovese associate 12-30-06


• Florida Mafia case based on wiretaps 08-16-06


• Four Floridians held without bail 07-08-06


• Feds break up Florida arm of Genovese family 07-01-06

FBI uses immigration sting to net racketeers

An FBI undercover operation involving an immigrations officer who gave the appearance of being on the take has resulted in the arrests of 11 alleged members and associates of the Gambino and Lucchese Crime Families and two alleged associates of the Sicilian Mafia, according to a press release from the U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of New York.

The operation reportedly began when Joseph Orlando, alleged Gambino soldier, approached a family associate, believing him to have connections to corrupt government officials. Orlando allegedly sought to pass a bribe through the associate to an immigration official in order to acquire legal residence status for his girlfiend. The associate was unable to deliver, was allegedly threatened and contacted the FBI for protection. Through the associate's cooperation, the Bureau arranged for Orlando to meet with an undercover agent, posing as a corrupt official.

According to the U.S. Attorney's Office, "Orlando told other members and associates of the Gambino family of the cooperating witness’s purported contact with corrupt government officials; this in turn led other defendants to contact the cooperating witness in attempts to further other criminal schemes."

Those schemes reportedly included the smuggling of gold bars into the U.S. from the Philippines and the release of a reputed Sicilian Mafia associate from U.S. federal detention.

FBI Assistant Director-in-charge Mark J. Mershon seemed especially pleased at the arrest of George DeCicco (right), 77, reputed captain in the Gambino Family. Mershon designated DeCicco the "Cal Ripken" of the American mob.

"George DeCicco has operated continuously for so long that his arrest today is like the end of Cal Ripken’s consecutive-game streak," said Mershon. "The difference is that Ripken’s streak ended when he voluntarily took himself out of the lineup."

A story by Stefanie Cohen in today's New York Post called DeCicco, "the last of the Gotti gang." The story noted that DeCicco was the only member of Gotti's inner circle who had never been busted.

(Several DeCiccos have held important positions with the Gambino family since John Gotti's reign. Frank DeCicco, brother of George, allegedly lured Gambino boss Paul Castellano to his death in 1985 and served as Gotti's underboss until he was blown up by a remote controlled bomb outside of a Brooklyn social club in 1986. Joseph "Joe Butter" DeCicco, another brother, reputedly served the family as an associate for many years.)

Officials noted that the undercover operation revealed the close working relationship between American and Sicilian Mafiosi.

The 13 individuals arrested were:

Joseph "Joey Boy" Orlando, DOB March 19, 1949
George DeCicco, DOB March 20, 1929
Robert DeCicco (George's son), DOB July 27, 1950
James Avalone, DOB Aug. 3, 1943
Jerry DeGerolamo, DOB April 1, 1971
Steven "Rigatoni" Famiglietta, DOB Feb. 14, 1962
Michael Fichera, DOB Sept. 14, 1962
Richard Juliano, DOB March 26, 1940
Richard J. Juliano, DOB Jan. 15, 1975
Francesco Nania, DOB Jan. 19, 1967
Vito Rappa, DOB Oct. 15, 1967
Kurt Ricci, DOB Sept. 15, 1965
Joseph "Joey Zack" Zuccarello, DOB April 24, 1954

Related MobNews post:

• FBI busts alleged Gambino, Lucchese members 01-30-07

FBI busts alleged Gambino, Lucchese members

A two-year racketeering investigation resulted today in the arrests of 10 alleged members of the Gambino Crime Family and three alleged members of the Lucchese Crime Family, according to a broadcast report on WABC-TV in New York City.

George DeCicco, 77, an alleged captain in the Gambino family, was among those arrested and charged with participation in a criminal enterprise involving extortion, loan sharking, money laundering and bribery.

FBI spokesman Jim Margolin told reporters that a cooperating witness helped as the FBI accumulated hundreds of hours of taped evidence.

Book review: Brasco returns

Donnie Brasco: Unfinished Business
Philadelphia: Running Press, 2007, $22.95.

Two decades after wowing us with Donnie Brasco-related revelations, former undercover FBI agent Joe Pistone returns to tie up some loose ends.

I must admit I was skeptical that Pistone could find enough loose ends in the Donnie Brasco story to fill another book. However, while there is some repetition, the ex-agent provides enough new information to keep us very interested. And, frankly, the repetitive parts are quite entertaining - Donnie Brasco's thrilling adventures are worth recalling.

The first portion of the book is basically a summary of the Donnie Brasco deep-undercover experience with many of the gaps filled in. Some details apparently had to be kept secret until court cases had been processed. Pistone also takes the opportunity to correct some impressions created by the movie based on his bestseller. He takes issue with some of the sentimental and self-critical Johnny Depp moments in the film:

"I never experienced any doubt, uncertainty, or reservation. I did not make Lefty [Ruggiero] a Mafia gangster... Lefty and his Mafia underground nation is America's enemy. I was an American FBI agent... In the end, I was proud to bring Lefty to justice, and I'm even more proud of the devastating short- and long-term effects on the Mafia that people have credited, in part, to my work."

Pistone recalls for us the criminal activities ("unauthorized by the Bureau") he engaged in while undercover as "Donnie," an associate of the Colombo and Bonanno Crime Families. His admitted crimes include a murder conspiracy, hijacking and a number of other offenses (he apparently beat two stick-up men to a pulp because they dared to rob money from connected guys). But Pistone admits he would have gone even further in order to protect himself.

Underworld associates like Brasco might be called upon by Mafia superiors to perform gang "hits." Pistone decided that, if confronted with a situation in which he had to kill an underworld character or face the certain wrath of the mob, "...the wiseguy would go. I knew the FBI would not stand behind me on something like that. Well, let me call it what it is - murder in the first degree."

The situation nearly came up in 1981, first in the murder of the Three Capos (when Bonanno bigshot Joseph Massino nixed Brasco's participation) and then as Brasco was assigned by Bonanno caporegime "Sonny Black" Napolitano to assassinate Bruno Indelicato. Indelicato went into hiding, and Pistone was pulled from his undercover assignment before the nightmare scenario had a chance to develop.

The rest of the book is devoted to Pistone's post-Brasco experiences as a courtroom witness against the Mafia. Working with prosecutors, like then-U.S. Attorney Rudy Giuliani of New York, he participated in some blockbuster trials, including the Bonanno Family case, the Pizza Connection, the Mafia Commission case, the conviction of Bonanno boss "Big Joey" Massino, and the Mafia Cops trial of 2006.

Pistone's description of the trials is anything but bland. He provides compelling and often gory detail, while recounting the defeats of the mob through the past 25 years.

Pistone has a different co-author for "Unfinished Business," former Delaware prosecutor Charles Brandt who wrote I Heard You Paint Houses. However, the writing style - using casual phrasing and rhythms that would be at home in city street corner conversations - remains uniquely Pistone.

This is an informative and entertaining book.

Tale of two Cicillines

Providence, R.I., anti-corruption Mayor David Cicilline (above) and his reputedly not-so-anti-corruption older brother John M. Cicilline are featured in a story by Ray Henry run in today's Boston Globe.

The story explains David Cicilline's uphill battle against public perception. His father Jack is a well-known defense lawyer, whose clients have included New England Mafia boss Raymond L.S. Patriarca, reputed boss Luigi Manocchio and a number of other accused mobsters. Brother John, in addition to piling up thousands of dollars in parking tickets, has been indicted in connection with a scheme to win two accused drug traffickers a light sentence.

According to prosecutors, John Cicilline and a now-disbarred attorney asked a couple facing drug charges for $100,000. For that amount, they offered to stage a drug deal that the couple could expose to federal authorities in exchange for a lighter sentence. John Cicilline and his alleged conspirator have pleaded not guilty to the charges.

David Cicilline, 46, became mayor of Providence in 2002. He is said to be the first openly gay mayor of a state capital. He took office after the brief administration of John J. Lombardi, which followed Mayor Vincent Albert "Buddy" Cianci's (left) 2002 conviction for criminal conspiracy. (Cianci's prison sentence expires in late July of this year, but some believe he will be released as soon as next month.)

Italian crimefighters tutor Macedonia

Macedonia is learning how best to fight organized crime from Mafia experts from Italy, according to a story published by Serbianna.com.

The Republic of Macedonia is looking forward to possible entry into the European Union. Official action against organized crime is seen as a prerequisite.

Through a two-year project funded by the EU's Agency for Reconstruction, Italian experts will make suggestions for anti-crime legislation, recruit and train a small core of crimefighters and help to upgrade Macedonian crime data systems.

Colombo had 'hook' in state prosecutor

Christopher Colombo bragged in 2001 that he had "a hook in" former New York State Attorney General Dennis Vacco that shielded him from prosecution, according to stories by Kati Cornell of the New York Post and Thomas Zambito of the New York Daily News.

A surveillance audio tape of the boast was played last week in Manhattan federal court, where Colombo and his brother Anthony are on trial for gambling, loan-sharking and extortion.

Christopher Colombo was taped during a conversation with contractor John Sitterly. Sitterly, charged with robbing elderly clients of over a million dollars, reportedly wore a wire to a Jan. 19, 2001, meeting. Discussing then-Attorney General Eliot Spitzer's investigation of Sitterly, Colombo said, "Spitzer is the worst. Vacco was the best. He didn't care about anything. I had a hook in him."

Vacco (left), now with a lobbying firm, told the Post that he had never before heard of the surveillance tape or of Christopher Colombo. "The guy's full of baloney," Vacco said. "...If I ever met him, he never registered on my radar screen."


Spitzer was inaugurated New York State's 54th governor on Jan. 1.

Christopher and Anthony Colombo are the sons of slain mob boss Joseph Colombo, after whom the Colombo Crime Family in New York was named.

Related MobNews posts:

• Colombo judge rules against the M-word 01-23-07
• Colombo admits gambling, denies intimidation 01-19-07
• Colombo's sons head to trial this week 01-16-07
• Colombo son objects to use of crime family name 11-30-06

Police: Drug dealers charged with murder

New York State Police say two men arrested over the weekend were responsible for killing an entire Fishkill NY family and setting the family home on fire to eliminate evidence, according to broadcast reports by WCBS-TV in New York. The homicides might have resulted from a drug dispute, say the police.

The remains of Manuel Morey, his wife Tina and their three sons, ages 6, 10 and 13, were found within their burned out home last week.

Prosecutors believe Morey was a partner in drug trafficking with Mark S. Sorrano, 29, and Charles W. Gilleo Jr., 31. The three are believed to have dealt in marijuana and cocaine, according to Dutchess County NY officials.

Sorrano and Gilleo have been charged with a single count of second degree murder. More charges could be filed soon. Sorrano turned himself in to police. Gilleo was arrested at his home in Hopewell Junction.

See:

• Cops: Drug Dealers Murdered Fishkill Family 01/26/2007 WCBS-TV
• Fishkill Murder Victim Alleged Drug Partner of Suspects 01/27/2007 WCBS-TV

D.A.: DeVecchio mistake led to Porco killing

Seventeen-year-old Patrick Porco, killed by a single gunshot to the mouth in May 1990, was the victim of misguided mob vengeance, according to a story by Alex Ginsberg of the New York Post.

The Colombo Crime Family had Porco (right) killed, believing he had cooperated with a police investigation into the 1990 drive-by shooting of Dominick Masseria, 17. According to the Kings County NY (Brooklyn) District Attorney, former FBI Agent Lindley DeVecchio told Colombo family capo Gregory "the Grim Reaper" Scarpa that Porco was talking to police.

That was reportedly an error. Papers related to Porco's unwilling interviews with police indicate that the teen would not reveal any information about the Masseria killing, even after a police official warned Porco that his life was in jeopardy.

Craig Sobel, 39, is now charged with the Masseria killing.

The Kings County D.A. has linked DeVecchio's relationship with Scarpa to several underworld killings. Scarpa reportedly served as an informant for DeVecchio (left). DeVecchio insists he is innocent of wrongdoing. A number of current and former FBI agents are strongly supporting DeVecchio.


Related MobNews posts:

• DeVecchio case stays with D.A. 01-10-07
• Kings DA: Feds stonewalling DeVecchio probe 09-25-06
• FBI's DeVecchio denies complicity with mob 09-02-06
• DeVecchio case stays in NY state hands 08-10-06
• Scarpa mistress to testify against DeVecchio 07-05-06
• DeVecchio can watch July 4th fireworks 06-27-06
• DeVecchio defense wanted mobster witnesses at grand jury 06-24-06
• FBI support of DeVecchio concerns senator 06-19-06
• Sleuth ready to quit DeVecchio probe 06-19-06
  

UK's Hathaway faces extradition to Italy

Ann Hathaway, a 44-year-old housewife and mother of Boarshaw, England, is facing extradition to Italy as an alleged Mafia "godmother," according to a story in the Middleton Guardian.

Italian authorities charge that Hathaway, wife of imprisoned Sicilian Mafia boss Antonio Rinzivillo, helped to run her husband's illicit empire since he has been away. Rinzivillo is serving a 30-year prison sentence in Italy for drug trafficking and the murder of of lawyer Antonio Mirabelle.

Hathaway is specifically charged with running messages from Rinzivillo to underworld colleagues and with laundering cash from Mafia operations.

She denied any wrongdoing and said she was "bewildered" by the charges.

Related MobNews posts:

• UK 'Godmother' arrested 01-19-07
• UK press tracks Mafia 'godmother' 01-08-07

Uranium smuggling in former Soviet Union

Authorities of the Republic of Georgia last year arrested a Russian man attempting to smuggle 100 grams of highly enriched - weapons grade - uranium into the country, according to a story by Lawrence Scott Sheets and William J. Broad of the New York Times.

The incident was discussed by Georgian Interior Minister Ivane Merabishvili in a recent interview. Russian officials would not comment on the story.

Another man was apprehended in 2003 at the Georgia-Armenia border with 170 grams of uranium. In neither case was the amount of radioactive material sufficient to build a nuclear weapon, but international authorities are concerned about the apparent trade in nuclear material from the former Soviet Union.

Georgian authorities also intercepted a shipment of 2.2 pounds of raw uranium last August.

Yonkers NY police round up drug gang

Police have rounded up members of the "Jackson Street Crew" drug gang in Yonkers, NY, according to a report by WCBS-TV. Additional arrests are expected.

The gang is believed to have trafficked in crack cocaine. The drug activity is said to have taken place on sidewalks, in apartment building vestibules and in a park near Jackson Street.

Philly mobster to return to prison

Martin A. Angelina (left), convicted racketeer, has admitted violating the terms of his parole and will return to prison for another four months, according to a story by George Anastasia of the Philadelphia Inquirer. Angelina, 44, was paroled 15 months ago and was not to have any contact with his former underworld associates. Yesterday in Philadelphia U.S. District Court, he admitted that he met with known felons and Mafiosi after his release. The FBI and the Organized Crime Squad of the Philadelphia police had evidence of meetings and telephone calls. Those included a meeting with reputed mob boss Joseph Ligambi and reputed associates Steven Frangipanni, Damion Canalichio and Michael Lancelloti, as well as a series of telephone conversations with Canalichio, according to the Inquirer. Federal agents had been keeping an eye on Canalichio, recently indicted on drug trafficking charges (released on $75,000 bond in November) and under investigation in a gambling probe, and Canalichio's phone had been tapped. Canalichio reportedly served 27 months in prison after a 1997 drug conviction. Angelina will be returned to prison in two weeks. A former enforcer for reputed ex-boss of Philadelphia Joseph "Skinny Joey" Merlino, Angelina was convicted in 2000 with Merlino and several others of racketeering. He served 66 months of his 78-month sentence and was paroled in November 2005. The New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement Exclusion List states, "Mr. Angelina has been identified by law enforcement agencies as being a soldier within the Philadelphia La Cosa Nostra (LCN) organized crime family. He has been observed with Joseph Salvatore "Skinny Joe" Merlino and George Borgesi, respectively identified as the "Boss" and a "Capo," of the LCN." The exclusion list prevents Angelina from having anything to do with New Jersey casino gambling. Related MobNews posts:

• Philly mob back in the news 11-17-06
• Philly turncoat gets more time for forgotten murders 07-20-06

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