Outfit's Marcello sentenced to life in prison

Former Chicago mob boss James Marcello, convicted of racketeering and racketeering murders in the 2007 Family Secrets case, was sentenced yesterday to life in prison, according to reports by Jeff Coen of the Chicago Tribune and the Associated Press.

Prosecutors believe Marcello (right) was the highest ranking mob leader brought down in the case. Among other crimes, he was convicted of involvement in the 1986 murders of brothers Anthony and Michael Spilotro. The Spilotros beaten bodies were found buried in an Indiana cornfield. Anthony Spilotro led an Outfit arm in Las Vegas for more than a decade. The Spilotro story was fictionalized in the movie "Casino."

At sentencing, Marcello maintained his innocence, allowing his attorneys to speak for him: "Mr. Marcello has denied his involvement in the Spilotro brothers' murder... That's all he can do."

Marcello was also convicted of participating in the 1981 beating death of Nicholas D'Andrea. D'Andrea and Spilotro relatives spoke at the sentencing hearing yesterday.

"[Marcello] should have known better," said Patrick Spilotro, brother of the murdered Spilotros, "having lost his own father in a grisly, horrible fashion - stuffed into a 50-gallon barrel."

Video from WGN9.

Feds charge 13 suspected Mafiosi

The former acting boss of the Genovese Crime Family and a dozen underworld associates were charged yesterday with racketeering-related crimes, according to a press release from the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York.

Daniel Leo (left), former Genovese acting boss, and 11 other people were charged in a 38-count indictment charging violent extortion of individuals and businesses, loansharking, narcotics trafficking and illegal gambling. Federal prosecutors say Leo became acting boss of the family in about 2005 and supervised a crew engaged in loansharking and the operation of an illegal gambling operation. According to the prosecutors, Leo placed longtime Genovese soldier Anthony Palumbo in charge of the crime family's New Jersey operations in 2006.

A separate indictment charged Genovese Crime Family associate Thomas Tassiello with racketeering, extortion and other offenses. Prosecutors say Tassiello took an ownership interest in a Manhattan bar after its owner failed to keep up interest payments on $100,000 of loans.

Tassiello, Anthony Palumbo, 59, of New York City; Rocco Petrozza, 49, of Pompton Lakes NJ; Patsy Aversa, 67, of Wood Ridge NJ; Joseph Petullo, 30, of Fairfield NJ; and Arthur Boland, 62, of White Plains NY, were arrested yesterday morning at their homes. Felice Masullo, 37, of Brooklyn NY; Anthony Masullo, 33, of Middle Village NY; and Angelo Masullo, 39, of Maspeth NY, were expected to surrender during the day. Daniel Leo, Joseph Leo, Charles Salzano and Vincent Cotona were already in federal custody on other charges.

"Joey the Clown" to prison for life

Chicago Outfit big shot "Joey the Clown" Lombardo, convicted of racketeering and the 1974 racketeering murder of Daniel Seifert, was sentenced yesterday to life in federal prison, according to reports by Jeff Coen of the Chicago Tribune and Mike Robinson of the Associated Press.

Lombardo (right), now 80, and four other defendants were convicted of racketeering in the landmark Family Secrets trial of September 2007. Lombardo, Frank Calabrese Sr. and James Marcello were also convicted of racketeering murders. Calabrese was sentenced last week to life in prison.

Before sentencing, Lombardo remarked, "I suppose the court is going to send me to a life in prison for something I did not do... I did not kill Danny Seifert."

Seifert was shot to death by masked men at his Bensenville plastics company, as his wife and son looked on. Seifert was expected to testify against Lombardo in a 1974 case. After Seifert's death, the charges against Lombardo were dropped.

Trial witnesses described Lombardo as boss of the Outfit's Grand Avenue crew and indicated that he extorted "street tax" payments from area businesses.

Calabrese sentenced to life in prison

Frank Calabrese Sr., 71, convicted of racketeering and racketeering murders in Chicago's Family Secrets trial of 2007, was sentenced Wednesday to life in prison, according to reports by Jeff Coen of the Chicago Tribune and Steve Warmbir of the Chicago Sun-Times.

A jury found Calabrese (right) guilty of participating in seven killings related to Chicago organized crime. His victims were William and Charlotte Dauber, Michael Cagnoni, John Fecarotta, Michael Albergo, Richard Ortiz and Arthur Morawski. The panel could not reach a decision on whether he had a part in six other killings.

At sentencing, Calabrese told the judge, "I'm no big shot. I'm not nothing but a human being, and when you cut my hand, I bleed like everybody else."

Racketeer Schiro gets 20 years in prison

Paul "the Indian" Schiro, 71, convicted of racketeering in the Family Secrets trial of September 2007, was sentenced yesterday to 20 years in prison, according to reports by CBS2Chicago and by Jeff Coen of the Chicago Tribune.

Though the Family Secrets jury did not convict Schiro (right) on a racketeering murder charge, U.S. District Court Judge James Zagel said he considered the 1986 murder of Emil Vaci when calculating Schiro's sentence. Vaci was killed in Phoenix, Arizona, after Chicago mob bosses felt he was cooperating in a federal investigation.

Schiro was indignant at his sentencing and denied that he was involved with Chicago's underworld. "There's no evidence of racketeering I can see at all," he said. "I went to trial with codefendants I never met in my whole life."

Federal officials say Schiro has been a career criminal and was once a close friend to Anthony Spilotro. The Chicago Outfit sent Spilotro to Las Vegas in the early 1970s to watch over its casino investments there. Spilotro was killed in 1986.

Former FBI agent Connolly gets 40 years, but...

John J. Connolly, a former FBI agent recently convicted of second-degree murder, has been sentenced to 40 years in prison, according to a story by Shelley Murphy of the Boston Globe. However, the judge in the case believes it is unlikely that the conviction will stand on appeal.

Judge Stanford Blake of Miami-Dade Circuit Court noted that a defense challenge citing the statute of limitations was legally correct. Blake said he could not throw out the conviction because the defense argument was not made until almost a month after the verdict was returned.

Connolly (left), 68, is already serving a sentence in federal prison that continues until 2011. He was recently convicted of leaking information to Boston area mobsters James "Whitey" Bulger and Stephen "the Rifleman" Flemmi that led to killing of potential government witness John B. Callahan. Callahan had knowledge of Bulger's and Flemmi's role in the 1981 killing of Jai Alai businessman Roger Wheeler. Callahan's body was found Aug. 2, 1982, in the trunk of his car at Miami International Airport.

Judge refuses Gotti bail request

A Manhattan federal judge has denied release on bail to John A. "Junior" Gotti, according to a story in the New York Daily News. Gotti (right) is awaiting yet another racketeering trial in New York. His last three such trials ended in hung juries.

Judge Kevin Castel also denied Gotti's request to have his latest case transferred to Judge Shira Scheindlin, who presided over the three Gotti mistrials. The defense argued that Scheindlin was familiar with the background of the case.

Gotti acknowledges having been a part of the Gambino Crime Family leadership but claims he gave up the Mafia life years ago. He was indicted in Tampa, Florida, for three racketeering murders and drug trafficking. He pleaded not guilty to the charges in August. Early in December, his lawyers succeeded in having his trial moved from Tampa back to New York.

Alite Targeted

Former mobster John Alite was targeted for assassination, Federal prosecutors revealed earlier this month, according to a story by Thomas Zambito of the New York Daily News. Alite, an old friend of Gotti, is expected to testify against Gotti in his upcoming racketeering trial. Alite was part of a Gambino Crime Family crew engaged in rackets in western Florida.

Prosecutors noted there is no evidence that Gotti was involved in plotting against Alite. Defense attorney Charles Carnesi said the prosecutors mentioned the murder plot in a bail motion related to Gotti, "to be inflammatory. Even they acknowledge he had nothing to do with it."

Imprisoned Scala, 65, succumbs to cancer

Salvatore "Fat Sal" Scala, 65, died Dec. 29 in Butner Federal Medical Center in North Carolina, according to a story by John Marzulli of the New York Daily News. Scala was serving a six-year sentence for extorting money from a Manhattan strip club.

Authorities suspect that Scala (right) was one of four men involved in the 1985 assassination of Gambino Crime Family boss Paul Castellano. That assassination allowed John J. Gotti to take command of the Gambino organization. However, Scala was never charged with Castellano's killing.

Battling liver cancer, Scala requested an early release. The request was denied by the federal prisons system, despite the recommendation of the judge who sentenced him last year. In a letter to prisons director Harley Lappin, federal Judge Lewis Kaplan wrote, "At the time of sentencing I made clear my view that his offense, though serious, did not in my view warrant his dying in prison. I respectfully urge you to look into this man's situation with a view to the possibility of compassionate release of this apparently dying man."

Uvino convicted of Long Island beatings

Michael Uvino, reputed captain in the Colombo Crime Family, was convicted by a federal jury on Christmas Eve of beating two men, according to a story by John Marzulli of the New York Daily News. The victims reportedly had set up a robbery of poker players at a Long Island social club. Uvino was convicted along with Philip Costanza and Brian Dono. Codefendant John Tripi was acquitted.

Gotti attorneys request Judge Scheindlin

Attorneys for John A. "Junior" Gotti have asked that their client's upcoming racketeering trial be held before Manhattan federal Judge Shira Scheindlin, according to a story by John Marzulli of the New York Daily News.

Scheindlin presided over Gotti's last three racketeering trials, all of which ended in mistrials. The Gotti camp believes that Scheindlin is fair and that her familiarity with Gotti history will ensure a swift trial.

Gotti, 45, is awaiting transfer from Florida back to New York. Prosecutors transported him south for arraignment and hoped to try him in the Tampa area. But a federal judge ruled that the trial should be held in New York.

NJ racketeer Prisco indicted in 1992 killing

Angelo Prisco, 69, of Toms River NJ, has been indicted for murder in the aid of racketeering, according to a story published today by Newsday. He is charged with killing Angelo Sangiuolo on June 3, 1992, on behalf of the Genovese Crime Family. Prisco has served jail time for arson and conspiracy and for authorizing the beating of an electrician competing with a Prisco friend.

A press release from the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York indicates that Prisco (right) has been a soldier and a captain in the Genovese family. As captain, he is charged with overseeing a crew operating in New York City and nearby New Jersey. Prosecutors say the crew engaged in home invasions and other armed robberies, extortion of a construction firm in Manhattan, gambling, and possession, transport and sale of stolen goods.

If convicted of the charges against him, Prisco could be sentenced to life in prison.

Racketeer indicted for murder of NYPD cop

Joel Cacace, former acting boss of the Colombo Crime Family, has been indicted for the 1997 murder of off-duty New York Police Officer Ralph Dols, according to a story by John Marzulli of the New York Daily News.

Cacace is currently serving a 20-year prison sentcned for racketeering and conspiring to murder a U.S. prosecutor.

Dols was linked to the Colombo clan through his marriage to Kimberly Kennaugh. Kennaugh was Cacace's ex-girlfriend. She also was the ex-wife of Colombo Crime Family soldier Enrico Carini. Dols, just 28 and the father of three children, was shot five times on his way home from work on Aug. 25, 1997. At the time, then-Mayor Rudolph Giuliani said the killing had been well planned and had been performed "execution-style."

Dino Calabro and Dino Saracino are also charged in the Dols killing, according to the Daily News.

Thomas "Tommy Shots" Gioeli, reputed to be the current boss of the Colombo family, has been indicted for participating in the 1999 killing of William "Wild Bill" Cutolo. The victim's remains were discovered buried at a site in Farmingdale NY. Former acting boss Alphonse "Allie Boy" Persico was convicted of participating in that killing.

Prosecutors credit information supplied by Colombo soldier Joseph "Joey Caves" Competiello for helping to solve the old murder cases.

Artuso sentenced to nine years for fraud

Vincent Artuso, 64, was sentenced Dec. 16 to nine years in federal prison for his involvement in real estate fraud, according to a story published by the International Herald Tribune.

Artuso was convicted of 41 fraud and racketeering charges in October. The charges stemmed from a number of real estate deals that cost ADT Security Services Inc. at least $11 million.

According to U.S. Attorney William T. Shockley, Artuso was a made member of the Gambino Crime Family supervising a crew based in Palm Beach, Florida. Artuso is believed to have been a close ally of the late Gambino boss John J. Gotti. Shockley said he has evidence indicating that Artuso was present at the Dec. 16, 1985, assassination of former boss Paul Castellano in Manhattan (left). That killing paved the way for Gotti to take control of the crime family.

Sicilian mobster dies in custody

Italian police say imprisoned reputed Mafia boss Gaetano Lo Presti, 52, hanged himself in his cell Dec. 16, according to stories by the BBC and UPI.

Lo Presti (right) had been arrested earlier in the day, part of a roundup of almost 100 alleged Mafiosi. Italian officials believed LoPresti was boss of a Mafia clan in a district of Palermo. Police say the Mafia leadership has been working to establish a ruling council and possibly a supreme boss of the organization. Bernardo Provenzano, the underworld organization's most powerful boss for many years, was arrested in April 2006. A successor, Salvatore LoPiccolo, was arrested in November 2007.

Officials say Lo Presti was found dead in his cell after he read police wiretap transcripts tying him to efforts to establish a provincial "commission."

Calabrese letter asks about his son

In a lengthy letter from Frank Calabrese Sr. to family friend Frank Coconate, the jailed Calabrese asks a series of questions about his son, who testified against him during the Family Secrets trial. The point of the questions seems to be that Frank Calabrese Jr. testified in order to profit financially from his father's underworld career. Frank Sr. also seemed to be trying to determine the whereabouts of his son and other members of his family. The discovery of the letter occurred at the same time that Frank Sr. was moved into solitary confinement.

Click for the text of the letter.

Click for a video report by ABC7-Chicago.