Gambino prostitution ring busted

Prosecutors state that the Mafia hit "a new low" when members engaged in an interstate sex trafficking ring involving underage girls, according to a story by Alison Gendar and Rich Schapiro of the New York Daily News.

Fourteen alleged members of the Gambino Crime Family were named in an indictment charging a host of crimes, including loansharking, extortion and murder. The indictment also charges alleged Gambino soldier Thomas Orefice with devising a scheme to advertise teenage girls for prostitution on Internet site craigslist. Orefice's crew members allegedly drove the girls to appointments in New York and New Jersey and took half of their $200-per-session payments.

One of those charged in the indictment with racketeering offenses was reputed Gambino boss Daniel Marino. Marino is charged with conspiring with then boss John J. Gotti and Salvatore Gravano in the 1989 murder of suspected turncoat Thomas Spinelli. Marino is also charged with the 1989 murder of his own nephew Frank Hydell, also suspected of supplying information to federal investigators.

Jersey man linked to 1992 mob killing

A New Jersey man was charged April 19 with involvement in a 1992 Mafia killing, according to a story by Rocco Parascandola and John Lauinger of the New York Daily News. Paul "Doc" Gaccione is charged with participating in the June 1992 murder of Genovese Crime Family associate Angelo Sangiuolo. John "Johnny Balls" Leto was convicted last year of performing the killing. Authorities say the mob hit was arranged by Sangiuolo's cousin, Genovese capodecina Angelo Prisco, after Sangiuolo was found to be stealing money from Genovese gambling dens in the Bronx, NY. Vincent "the Chin" Gigante, then boss of the Genovese Family, is believed to have approved the hit.

Sangiuolo was lured to a Bronx social club. Prosecutors say Gaccione then drove Sangiuolo and Leto in a van to a McDonald's restaurant parking lot in Pelham Bay beneath elevated train tracks. Sangiuolo was in the front passenger seat with Leto behind him. As the train roared overhead, Leto shot Sangiuolo to death. Prisco reportedly picked Gaccione and Leto up at the McDonalds.

Prisco was sentenced to life in prison after a federal conviction last year.

Capozzi recaptured after two days

After eluding authorities for more than two days, escaped prisoner Derek Capozzi was found at 5:45 p.m., Saturday, April 17, in Versailles, Kentucky, according to a story by Jack Brammer and Ryan Alessi of the Lexington Kentucky Herald-Leader. Capozzi, exhausted and hungry, was found lying on railroad tracks behind a Versailles stair factory. Capozzi escaped April 15 from a prison van.

New Jersey's 'Eagle' Gatto dies at 65

Genovese Crime Family lieutenant Joseph "the Eagle" Gatto died April 9 in Hackensack, NJ, according to a story by Justo Bautista of the Bergen County Record. He was 65. The cause of Gatto's death was not made public.

A native of Paterson, NJ, Gatto was the son of the late Louis "Streaky" Gatto, a Genovese crew leader and manager of lucrative gambling rackets in northern New Jersey. The younger Gatto reportedly inherited those rackets when his father was convicted of racketeering and murder conspiracy and sentenced to 65 years in prison in June 1991. "Streaky" Gatto was reportedly friendly with late Genovese boss Vincent "the Chin" Gigante. Joseph Gatto's brother Louis Jr. died in federal prison in 2000. Their father "Streaky" died in prison in 2002 after suffering with prostate cancer.

Gatto was convicted of gambling and loansharking in 1999. He was sentenced to serve 61 months in prison. He was paroled from Ray Brook Federal Prison in upstate New York in October 2003, after serving 53 months of the sentence.In 2003, the New Jersey Commission of Investigation identified Joseph Gatto as a capodecina of one of the five larger crews of the Genovese Crime Family in New Jersey.

Gatto and 43 alleged accomplices were arrested in December 2004. They were charged with racketeering and gambling charges as a result of a state and local police investigation dubbed Operation Jersey Boyz. According to authorities, the group ran a massive offshore gambling operation that generated millions of dollars for the Genovese, Lucchese, Bonanno and Gambino crime families of the New York area. As they raided the operation, police seized 25 firearms and $1.3 million in cash. (One of those arrested in connection with the case was Frank Lagano, 67, of Tenafly, NJ. Lagano was shot to death in April 2007 outside a diner he owned in East Brunswick. Police believe the murder was a mob hit.)

As the Jersey Boyz arrests were made, Gatto was charged with violating the terms of his parole.
While prosecutors said Gatto controlled the Catalina Sports wire room in Costa Rica, a grand jury refused to indict him in the case last year. Problems in the Jersey Boyz case dated back to 2005, as prosecutors were criticized for their handling of informants.

Mafia-linked prisoner escapes in Kentucky

Kentucky law enforcement agencies are searching for escaped prisoner Derek Capozzi, 37, of Beverly, MA, who leaped from a prison van on April 16, according to stories in the Boston Globe and the Lexington Kentucky Herald-Leader. Capozzi was being taken to the Blue Grass Airport for transport to an out-of-state prison. He was reportedly handcuffed and shackled and held inside the van with nine other prisoners by a door locked on the outside. Somehow, he managed to free his legs from the shackles and to kick open the door as the van took the Kentucky Route 33 exit off the Blue Grass Parkway.

Capozzi was sentenced in 2005 to 23 years in prison for helping to cut up and dispose of the body of 19-year-old mob murder victim Aislin Silva of Medford, MA. The young woman was killed by the Decologero Crew of the New England Mafia when it feared she would expose its drug and theft operations. Several other members of the gang were convicted of involvement in the Silva murder and its coverup. Gang member Kevin Meuse, who allegedly stranged Silva to death on Nov. 13, 1996, hanged himself in prison in 1997. Capozzi also was sentenced to 30 years upon conviction on attempted extortion and illegal firearms charges in 2003.

Gallo allowed to remain in Canada

Canadian officials decided April 12 against deporting Moreno Gallo, 64, according to a story by Paul Cherry of the Montreal Gazette. Gallo was granted day-parole at a halfway house on March 30 after serving time for associating with known mobsters in violation of earlier parole conditions. Canada Border Services Agency immediately took him into custody as it considered his deportation. On April 12, the agency determined that conditions placed on Gallo's latest release were sufficient to manage any risk to society.

Gallo is regarded as an influential character in the Montreal Mafia. He is believed to have moderated underworld disputes, including one between the Mafia and the local Hells Angels. He was sentenced to life in prison in 1974 after pleading guilty to the murder of Montreal drug dealer Angelo Facchino. He was paroled from that sentence in September 1983 but rejailed in 2007 after evidence surfaced of regular visits to the headquarters of the Rizzuto Mafia within the now-defunct Cosenza Social Club.

Montreal hopes for YouTube help

Montreal police posted surveillance videos on the Internet's YouTube service in the hope of identifying the gunmen who murdered two men and injured two others on March 18, according to a story by Catherine Solyom of the Montreal Gazette. Authorities believe 41-year-old Ducarme Joseph, owner of the Flawnego clothing store and alleged leader of a strong street gang, was the target of the attack. Joseph escaped out a back door of the store as the shooting began. His bodyguard Peter Christopoulos, 27, and store manager Jean Gaston, 60, were killed in the attack. Police believe the shooting may have been in retaliation for the December killing of Nicolo Rizzuto, son of jailed local Mafia boss Vito Rizzuto.

Canada releases Gallo, may deport him

Canadian officials granted imprisoned Montreal racketeer Moreno Gallo (left), 64, release to a halfway house at the end of March, even while they warned him that he might soon be rearrested for deportation, according to a story by Paul Cherry of the Montreal Gazette.

Gallo, an Italian native, arrived in Canada with his family in 1954. He never became a citizen. He was convicted of the 1973 vendetta murder of 26-year-old drug dealer Angelo Facchino. He was paroled in 1983 on the condition that he have no association with underworld figures. Authorities learned that he made regular visits to the Cosenza Social Club on Jarry Street East, headquarters of the Rizzuto Mafia organization. Gallo was arrested in 2007 on evidence gathered in Operation Colisee. He was imprisoned for associating with mobsters.

Basciano prefers solitary to supermax

A former boss of the Bonanno Crime Family would rather remain in solitary confinement in a Brooklyn detention facility than be sent to the supermax prison in Colorado. Vincent "Vinny Gorgeous" Basciano, already sentenced to life in prison for past convictions, will remain in custody as he awaits a spring 2011 death penalty trial. On March 25, he asked a Brooklyn federal judge to leave him in Brooklyn during the wait, according to a story by John Marzulli of the New York Daily News.

Basciano has been held under strict lockdown conditions in Brooklyn for the past 44 months. He was placed in solitary when evidence surfaced of an apparent Basciano plot against government witnesses, a prosecutor and a judge. In Brooklyn, he receives regular visits from his ex-wife.

Leo's sentence grows by 18 months

A conviction for loansharking and gambling has increased the prison sentence of a jailed former Genovese Crime Family boss by 18 months, according to a story by Bruce Golding of the New York Post. Daniel "the Lion" Leo, 69, is 34 months into a five-year prison sentence. Manhattan federal Judge Richard Holwell decided March 24 that the more recent loansharking and gambling charges should have been part of the original 2007 case against Leo. The judge sentenced Leo to 70 months for the additional charges but decided that Leo should be credited for the 34 months served and that half of the remaining time be served concurrently with the original five-year sentence.

Feds grab treasure at Calabrese home

Federal agents executed a search warrant March 23 at the home of convicted Chicago mobster Frank Calabrese Sr. (left) and came away with a sensational haul, according to a story by Craig Wall of Fox Chicago News.

Behind a family portrait in the basement of Calabrese's Oak Brook home, agents found a compartment in the wall paneling. Inside they reportedly discovered seven loaded handguns, 15 manila envelopes containing a total of $728,481 in cash, about 1,000 items of jewelry, recording devices and casette tapes. The items and cash were seized by the government. As part of his Family Secrets Case sentence, Calabrese owes the government $20 million and owes the families of his victims $4.4 million. Calabrese was convicted of racketeering and of participation in 13 gangland murders.

Records of the Chicago Crime Commission indicate that Calabrese was involved in criminal activities since he was a teenager. A former mob loan shark who demanded interest as high as 520% a year, he was convicted in 1954 in federal court for possession of stolen cars in interstate commerce. He has arrests for robbery, stolen autos and illegal use of firearms. His loan sharking ring operated from 1970 to 1990s. Calabrese headed the 26th Street Crew of the regional underworld Outfit. The crew oversaw gambling and loan sharking in the Chicago area.

Basciano will face capital charges

Vincent "Vinny Gorgeous" Basciano's efforts to have capital charges against him thrown out have failed. An request filed with the Second Circuit Court of Appeals was denied on March 22, according to a story by Janon Fisher of the New York Post. Basciano had hoped to convince the appeals court that his earlier conviction as boss of the Bonanno Crime Family included the three racketeering offenses with which he is now charged. The court ruled that only one of the offenses could be thrown out. The other two, including a capital murder conspiracy charge for the Nov. 30, 2004, killing of Ralph "Randy" Pizzolo in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, were left in place. A death penalty case against Basciano is scheduled to begin in 2011.

Two shot dead in Old Montreal

Two men were shot dead in Old Montreal on March 18, causing police to scramble to find links to Canada's most prominent Mafia family, according to a story by Andy Blatchford and Sidhartha Banerjee of the Toronto Star. Police did not immediately identify the two victims, who were shot at a high-end St. Jacques Street clothing store. Two bystanders were struck and injured by flying lead. The gunmen escaped the area on foot. They were seen discarding clothing and Rastafarian-style wigs as they walked briskly away.

Detectives had been expecting reprisals for the Dec. 28 slaying of Nicolo Rizzuto, son of jailed Montreal crime boss Vito Rizzuto. Vito Rizzuto is serving a 10-year sentence in Colorado for his involvement in three Brooklyn, NY, racketeering murders in 1981.

The March 18 killings were later linked to Ducarme Joseph, owner of the clothing store, according to a story by the AFP news service. Police speculated that Joseph, reportedly tied to Montreal street gangs, was the target of the attack. A Joseph bodyguard was one of the victims. Canadian organized crime expert Antonio Nicaso said the Rizzuto Mafia was seeing increased competition from Calabrian criminal organizations as well as street gangs. The competition, he suggested, may be receiving encouragement from New York Mafia groups.

Gangster museum opens in New York

The Museum of the American Gangster, 80 St. Marks Place in New York City, opens its doors this spring. A special pre-opening event is scheduled for noon to 5 p.m. on Sunday, March 7. Admission during the preview period is priced at $10.

The museum, constructed within an East Village structure that once housed a Prohibition Era speakeasy, includes 800 square feet of gallery space. It features artifacts and documents related to organized crime. Lorcan Otway and Eric Ferrara founded the museum with assistance from crime historians and descendants of crime figures.

Hours of operation will be noon to 5 p.m., Mondays through Saturdays.

More information: http://moagnyc.org/

RI mobster warned to avoid underworld pals

On Feb. 22, Rhode Island Magistrate Lincoln Almond warned Anthony St. Laurent Jr. to stay away from seven men identified by prosecutors as Mafia members and associates, according to a story by Tim White of WPRI. St. Laurent, son of Rhode Island racketeer Anthony "the Saint" St. Laurent, is on a monitored release as he awaits trial for helping to extort money from a Taunton, MA, bookmaker from 1988 to 2009. The younger St. Laurent was observed one week earlier as he had lunch with a reputed Providence mobster.

According to the magistrate's order, St. Laurent must avoid former New England crime boss Luigi "Baby Shacks" Manocchio, reputed underboss Robert P. "Bobby" DeLuca, former boss Raymond J. "Junior" Patriarca, reputed capodecina Edward C. Lato, reputed mobster Alfred "Chippy" Scivola Jr., paroled mobster Frank L. "Bobo" Manapese and accused racketeer Edward F. "Buckles" Melise.

St. Laurent was arrested in early February along with his father, a longtime New England Mafioso, and his mother Dorothy. Federal prosecutors charged the three with extortion conspiracy.