Elmwood Park bookmaker busted

[Patrickgold]

"When officers approached, Paloian shoved bunches of paper in his mouth and 'fell to the ground and rolled around' until he was able to swallow them, prosecutors said." lol, that's one way to do it.

Paloian is what, Armenian?

Also, how was this guy not charged in the Hired Truck shenanigans?

Paloian is Turkish actually. I was friendly with Ralph Strocchia, an ex cop who worked for him. Paloian would be coaching his kids baseball and softball teams all weekend at tournaments and fielding calls as he's coaching third base and signalling Ralphie in the bleachers. These guys just live that gambling - there is just as much action as ever these guys want bookies, its like drugs not going away.

I thought he was ethnic Armenian from Turkey? I could be wrong

[Patrickgold]

Or was it Assyrian.

[SolarSolano]

Not really sure his full ethnicity - he looks white though. Also would love to know where he grew up whether it was GAlewood or another neighborhood.

[Snakes]

A "Joe Urgo" was mentioned by Nick Calabrese in his testimony as someone who collected on gambling or juice earnings. Not sure if it is the same "Joseph Urgo" who is representing Paloian in this case but I found it interesting nonetheless. I would assume that a bunch of these attorneys place (or placed) bets with the Outfit. They had the money and the connections to do so.

[Coloboy]

Question for those locals that understand this world a little more directly.

Let’s say that all of these busts are still somehow tied to the outfit. What is the reasoning that today in 2020, a guy like Paloian would have anything to do with the outfit? Is there a financial incentive? Back in the day it was obviously the threat of violence that caused these guys to fork over street tax. Is that still a consideration?

Or are these just gambling guys doing what they have always done? And it has nothing to do with organized crime?

I do not know the answer either way, just looking for feedback.

[Snakes]

Question for those locals that understand this world a little more directly.

Let’s say that all of these busts are still somehow tied to the outfit. What is the reasoning that today in 2020, a guy like Paloian would have anything to do with the outfit? Is there a financial incentive? Back in the day it was obviously the threat of violence that caused these guys to fork over street tax. Is that still a consideration?

Or are these just gambling guys doing what they have always done? And it has nothing to do with organized crime?

I do not know the answer either way, just looking for feedback.

They could be operating on their own. Or they could be kicking something up out of respect. Also, nobody is getting killed over street tax anymore but there are still guys out there with serious reputations so to the threat may be more implied than anything. Maybe that changes when some of these dinosaurs start dying off but it may be something worth considering.

[Villain]

I think the only "racket" left for the Outfit today is securing their legit income through political donations/connections which is still considered some type of corruption that helps in receiving lucrative deals or contracts.

Maybe some of these bookies are still kicking up because they also need that same local protection but we dont have any strong evidence until some1 starts singing or until the feds say something...

[SolarSolano]

Question for those locals that understand this world a little more directly.

Let’s say that all of these busts are still somehow tied to the outfit. What is the reasoning that today in 2020, a guy like Paloian would have anything to do with the outfit? Is there a financial incentive? Back in the day it was obviously the threat of violence that caused these guys to fork over street tax. Is that still a consideration?

Or are these just gambling guys doing what they have always done? And it has nothing to do with organized crime?

I do not know the answer either way, just looking for feedback.

They could be operating on their own. Or they could be kicking something up out of respect. Also, nobody is getting killed over street tax anymore but there are still guys out there with serious reputations so to the threat may be more implied than anything. Maybe that changes when some of these dinosaurs start dying off but it may be something worth considering.

You can make money booking independently and not be killed and probably never see an Outfit guy. However, I think most bookies look for the Outfit and use their network to make a lot more money. More bettors, more layoffs, better lines, etc. Also the Outfit has a lot of gamblers they know are reliable and won't bolt after losing.

Paloian also had his trucking company in the hired truck program - and ironically, even after all that media coverage, most of those companies are still in business and still working with the city. It just never stops in Chicago.

[PolackTony]

I think the only "racket" left for the Outfit today is securing their legit income through political donations/connections which is still considered some type of corruption that helps in receiving lucrative deals or contracts.

Maybe some of these bookies are still kicking up because they also need that same local protection but we dont have any strong evidence until some1 starts singing or until the feds say something...

My thinking is that if guys are still kicking up or being taxed it's likely largely from the threat of losing Outfit connected protection especially from suburban police departments and public officials. This, and what Solar said -- access to Outfit mediated networks of lucrative gambling connects.

[JerryB]

U. S. Attorney's Press Release:

TITLE: "Chicago-Area Man Charged With Conducting Illegal Sports Gambling Business"

"CHICAGO — A Chicago-area man has been charged in federal court with conducting an illegal sports gambling business in the city and suburbs.

GREGORY EMMETT PALOIAN conducted an illegal sports bookmaking business from 2015 to 2019, according to a criminal information filed Friday in U.S. District Court in Chicago. Paloian operated his business in Chicago, Elmwood Park, and Melrose Park, the information states.

The information charges Paloian, 66, of Elmwood Park, with one count of conducting an illegal gambling business. It seeks forfeiture from Paloian of $274,070 and a 2017 Audi automobile.

Arraignment is set for Oct. 7, 2020, at 10:15 a.m., before U.S. District Judge Joan Humphrey Lefkow in Chicago.

The information was announced by John R. Lausch, Jr., United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois; Emmerson Buie, Jr., Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago Field Office of the FBI; and Kathy A. Enstrom, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago office of the IRS Criminal Investigation Division. The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Terry M. Kinney and Ankur Srivastava.

The public is reminded that a charge is not evidence of guilt. The defendant is presumed innocent and entitled to a fair trial at which the government has the burden of proving guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.

The gambling charge carries a maximum sentence of five years in federal prison. If convicted, the Court must impose a reasonable sentence under federal statutes and the advisory U.S. Sentencing Guidelines."
https://www.justice.gov/usao-ndil/pr/ch ... g-business

[funkster]

I just want to point out that on one of his videos with Fosco, Mags emphatically insisted there was no more illegal street gambling because it was all done online now. Anyone with half a brain knew it was bullshit. Just goes to show, I'm not entirely convinced Mags should be considered a reputable source.

[Coloboy]

I think the only "racket" left for the Outfit today is securing their legit income through political donations/connections which is still considered some type of corruption that helps in receiving lucrative deals or contracts.

Maybe some of these bookies are still kicking up because they also need that same local protection but we dont have any strong evidence until some1 starts singing or until the feds say something...

My thinking is that if guys are still kicking up or being taxed it's likely largely from the threat of losing Outfit connected protection especially from suburban police departments and public officials. This, and what Solar said -- access to Outfit mediated networks of lucrative gambling connects.

Both of these make sense to me. I figured it was likely that there was some financial incentive to work with the outfit.

these gambling busts as of late are very interesting because I think they could potentially offer up a lot of clues about the current state of the outfit. If these are indeed all outfit connected, it shows they still have quite a few traditional gambling rackets going all over the city. Since we know gambling is only a portion of the traditional income, it would point to a viable and profitable organization, no matter how small it may be.

On the other hand it could also mean that all of these gambling rings were operating independently and have nothing to do with the outfit. This is why I think it’s really interesting to dig into them.

[Patrickgold]

Paloian was more than just a guy paying protection. He was part of Jimmy I’s crew. He lives in Elmwood Park where Jimmy I has a cafe so I can bet Jimmy I was the real mastermind behind this

[Coloboy]

Here is what we know...

DelGiudice- current or former outfit connected bookie

Poeta- current or former outfit connected bookie

Paloian- current or former outfit connected bookie

Apologies for continuing to harp on this, but I feel these cases are a big deal for us outfit watchers in terms of clues about the current organization.

If these are all outfit operations run by associates, it says a lot is still going on. If these are independent operations, it says the outfit is mostly defunct.If these guys ain’t paying in, nobody is.

If you look at the last decade of outfit associated arrests from Panozzo crew, Fratto, Mattasa, Michael Marcello, mandell, carparelli, these gambling busts, and whatever ones I am forgetting, it seems likely we still have a functioning criminal organization here.

[Patrickgold]

Here is what we know...

DelGiudice- current or former outfit connected bookie

Poeta- current or former outfit connected bookie

Paloian- current or former outfit connected bookie

Apologies for continuing to harp on this, but I feel these cases are a big deal for us outfit watchers in terms of clues about the current organization.

If these are all outfit operations run by associates, it says a lot is still going on. If these are independent operations, it says the outfit is mostly defunct.If these guys ain’t paying in, nobody is.

If you look at the last decade of outfit associated arrests from Panozzo crew, Fratto, Mattasa, Michael Marcello, mandell, carparelli, these gambling busts, and whatever ones I am forgetting, it seems likely we still have a functioning criminal organization here.

Of course we do. There is no way the Outfit is defunct. I think the only question is how much street operations do they still have going on and who is running the organization.