Gangland:5/5/16

[Dellacroce]

May 5, 2016 This Week in Gang Land
By Jerry Capeci

Ailing Mob Boss Presses His Bid For Freedom

He's a Mafia boss — a pretty important guy in his field of endeavor. But he can't see too well, and his arms don't work very well either. His legs are in decent shape, but he needs a wheelchair to get around because his emphysema kicks in when he uses his lower limbs to walk. And at 83, he suffers a grab-bag of other ailments, the kind that afflict many folks his age.

But his health isn't Carmine (Junior) Persico's main concern these days. That would be the 34 years he still owes on his 100-year prison term for his conviction in the historic Commission trial. The only living defendant in that case who is still behind bars, Persico, with 31 years in prison behind him, is seeking his freedom. His argument, made in a request to the court filed last summer, is that long-concealed FBI documents prove that he was convicted of crimes he did not commit, and that his sentence was illegally enhanced based on allegations that weren't true.

That motion is still pending, but since time is of the essence for the Mafia boss these days, Persico pressed the issue with Manhattan Federal Court Judge Kevin Duffy a month ago. He filed more newly discovered info about alleged government wrongdoing against him by the FBI and the Rudolph Giuliani-led Manhattan U.S. Attorney's office — and he asked the judge to schedule a status conference on his pending motion for an early release from prison.

So far, those papers have also fallen on deaf ears. But hope apparently springs eternal for Persico and attorney Anthony DiPietro. In an April 1 filing, DiPietro noted that a status conference "may be moot" if the judge "agrees that Persico has already demonstrated a basis for sentencing relief based upon the arguments and documentary evidence" that were filed last year.

If not, the attorney wrote, he is ready to add more documents to the file. Along with his letter to the judge, DiPietro submitted 49 pages of "previously suppressed" FBI documents he had recently obtained through the Freedom Of Information Act that have "exposed other troubling issues" with the government's investigation and prosecution of Junior. All the submitted evidence, he wrote, "demonstrates [Persico's] actual innocence."

Among other things, the new allegations center on the government's use of what DiPietro describes as a highly-paid stable of cooperating witnesses who were crucial to the conviction.

The latest filing contains FBI reports indicating that the Manhattan U.S. Attorney's office, which nailed Persico, his son Alphonse and seven others on racketeering charges in a separate case months before the Commission trial began, had previously undisclosed "personal service contracts" with witnesses who were kept on retainer during both trials.

The documents state, DiPietro wrote, that the FBI had "illegal and unethical service contracts" that enabled the Bureau to usurp the usual responsibilities that the U.S. Marshal Service (USMS) had with cooperating witnesses (CWs) and to give them "monetary benefits in exchange for their testimony" against Persico.

One heavily redacted snippet of a May 13, 1986 memo, from the New York FBI to officials in Washington that sought continued approval of funds, states that FBI headquarters was "aware that the utilization of CWs on the scale of the Colombo family trial is unprecedented in Bureau history."

One of the Manhattan prosecutors, the memo states, "advised that if it was not for the FBI's handling of the CWs, this case would not have made it to trial and the anticipated successful prosecution could not have been realized if the USMS continued to be involved."

The same memo noted that the chief of Giuliani's Criminal Division had stressed that the "continued cooperation of" four unidentified CWs "was absolutely essential," and stated that the FBI had "expended a vast amount of resources in making the CWs viable witnesses." The memo states that to sever the contracts "at this point would be untimely and adversely affect future prosecutions."

"We are therefore requesting authority to continue and/or renew PSCs with the four CWs," said the redacted memo. DiPietro doesn't identify any of the witnesses, whose names are whited out.

But law enforcement sources say that one was a former Perisco cousin through marriage, Fred DeChristopher, a crucial witness who testified at Persico's earlier trial that year. Another was Joseph Cantalupo, who had met former crime family boss Joe Colombo in the mid-1960s when Colombo "worked" at Cantalupo's father's real estate office. In 1973, Cantalupo became an FBI informer.

Both DeChrisopher and Cantalupo were key witnesses against Perisco at the Commission trial. DeChristopher testified that Junior admitted taking part in the vote of mob bosses to kill Carmine Galante in 1979. Cantalupo testified that not long after Joe Colombo was mortally wounded in 1971, Carmine Persico took over as boss of the crime family.

In his filing last year, DiPietro argued that the FBI and federal prosecutors knew at the time of the Commission trial that both of those propositions were false. Along with those court papers, he filed numerous FBI reports that had identified others as acting Colombo bosses in the 1970s, and one stating that Persico had been named family boss on November 5, 1980.

Since "recently unearthed FBI reports" establish that Persico was not a Mafia boss in the 1970s, DiPietro wrote, he "could not have been a member of the Commission during the timeframe charged in the indictment," and he could not have "conspired with other Commission members to carry out … the murder of Galante in 1979."

Persico acted as his own attorney during that trial, a move that angered some defendants and did not help his defense. But mob defense lawyer Stanley Meyer was assigned by the court to advise the go-it-alone Persico.

And DiPietro claims that the feds failed to disclose that Meyer at the time "was being investigated by the FBI during his representation in this case." That failure also "deprived" his client of a "legitimate chance to defend" himself, DiPietro wrote, and is another reason why Duffy should rule for his client.

The FBI documents indicate that Meyer, who was charged with tax fraud in 1990, was under investigation for narcotics trafficking and mail fraud from May of 1986 until at least November of 1986, more than a month after the Commission trial had begun. Meyer, who pleaded guilty, and was sentenced to probation, was disbarred. He died in 2004.

"The importance of affording Mr. Persico a just and timely review of his motion cannot be overstated," wrote DiPietro, noting that his client "has been treated for a multitude of medical conditions over the past several years" at a federal prison hospital in Butner, North Carolina.

"Persico is legally blind in his right eye, and has diminished vision in his left eye," wrote DiPietro. "He also has limited use of his left and right arms and a deformity of his left wrist that has severely impacted his upper mobility. Mr. Persico is also predominantly wheelchairbound as a result of his emphysema."

"In addition," DiPietro wrote, "Persico suffers from anemia and a multitude of cardiac issues that require periodic medical attention," was recently treated for "shingles and related ear and nerve damage," and "also undergoes occasional cancer screening and other preventative testing as a result of his medical history."

"Notably, Persico is the only defendant still serving a term of incarceration as a result of his conviction in this case," added DiPietro, noting that former Luchese consigliere, Christopher (Christy Tick) Furnari was released in 2014, after spending nearly 28 years of his 100-year sentence in prison.

Since April of last year, according to the official court docket sheet, Furnari has made eleven $100 payments to the government, the first six for "special assessments" that all defendants are dunned at $100 per each count of conviction, and five towards his restitution.

Gang Land is pretty sure that Junior Persico would be able to find his way clear to do the same, if he should get so lucky as Christy Tick.

Ask Andy Is Back

This week, Gang Land is semi-pleased to announce the return of Ask Andy to our website. More than a decade ago, Andy burst onto the mob scene answering queries from our huge fan base. At first this feature generated great excitement, but quickly deteriorated to the point that readers were falling asleep half way thru his rantings. Worse yet, Andy began having delusions of grandeur and began thinking he was infallible. Finally, Gang Land, at great expense, hired top mental health experts to deal with Andy's problems. The decision was made to remove Andy from public view and assign him to one of our many back offices here at Gang Land.

Andy's ego was out of joint, but he gradually acclimatized himself to a life of anonymity. Gang Land continued to use Andy's great historical knowledge of Cosa Nostra on a regular basis, but without credit. Now, after years of therapy, Andy's doctors feel that he is capable of going public again. He will appear, once a month, to answer questions about mob life. Gang Land will keep Andy on a short leash. At the first signs of a return of the gigantic ego problem, Andy will be immediately put on waivers. Let's hope for the best.

By Andy Petepiece

Who's The (Under) Boss?

Who's the Boss was a popular TV show from 1984 to 1992. The topic this week though, is not the Mafia Boss, but the underboss, the second-in-command of the traditional crime family. There are many ways that a mobster can end up as an underboss, but no matter how he gets there, he always serves at the pleasure of the boss. Sometimes, he'll undermine and help bring down the boss, like Salvatore (Sammy Bull) Gravano did to John Gotti, and the way Salvatore Vitale did it to Joe Massino. But more often than not, in New York, and elsewhere, he'll serve his boss fairly well, until he doesn't.

If you're the brother of a duly elected boss you have a good shot of being picked as the underboss. That's what happened in the 1920s in Dallas — that's right, there was a Cosa Nostra family in Dallas — Carlo Piranio thought his younger brother Joseph (Joe T) Piranio would be a good choice. He was right. Joe T served loyally and took over as family boss when Carlo died in 1930. Joe T ruled for 26 years until his health failed him in 1956. In a surprise move, Joe T killed himself in October of that year. The crime family faded away in the 1970s.

In 1980, Angelo Bruno, boss of the Philadelphia family, was killed in a plot led by his consigliere, Anthony Caponigro. Unfortunately for Caponigro, he ended up shot to death in the trunk of a car. Underboss Philip (Chicken Man) Testa quickly was selected as the new leader. But Testa made a fatal mistake, one that made him the opening lyrics of Atlantic City, a song by a different boss, Bruce Springsteen. Well they blew up the Chicken Man in Philly last night, now they blew up his house too.

In an attempt to unify the family, Testa selected veteran wiseguy Peter Casella as underboss. But Casella, who had spent a long time behind bars, felt he should have been selected as boss. He had emerged from prison broke, and wanted the financial tributes from the family capos. In a risky move, Casella orchestrated the spectacular bombing death of Testa right on the front steps of his home. A number of Casella's underlings ended up in the graveyard. But he lucked out. He was only banished from the family.

In Los Angeles, Girolomo (Momo) Adamo was underboss to Jack Dragna from 1951 to 1956, when Dragna died of natural causes. After serving loyally for five years, Adamo had hopes of becoming the new leader, but low key capo Frank DeSimone, a lawyer, was elected instead. Even worse, DeSimone didn't ask Momo to continue as underboss. Demoted to capo, and out of the circle of power, Adamo grew despondent, and decided on a murder suicide plot for him and his wife. He succeeded in whacking himself, but his wife survived.

Things didn't work out too well for New England underboss William (Wild Bill) Grasso either. Based in Connecticut, Grasso was picked as underboss in 1985 by Raymond Patriarca Jr. who took over the crime family a year after his father died. Most observers believe Patriarca chose Grasso as his number two man to toughen up his administration, for most Cosa Nostra members didn't have much respect for Junior's ability to instill fear.

For about three years, Grasso created unease as he strong armed his way to more power. Unfortunately, the strategy backfired when Patriarca and Grasso enemies decided that they had to move first. In one day, they managed to kill Grasso and seriously wound Frank Salemme, an important ally in Boston. Grasso ended up dead in the weeds. Patriarca had to humbly make peace with the rival faction.

Queens Granny, A Danger To The Community, Unfit To Stand Trial On Drug Charges

A Queens grandma who has been held behind bars for 14 months has been found mentally unfit to stand trial as part of a mob-linked, family-run drug ring that was allegedly based in their Italian restaurant in Corona.

Eleonora Gigliotti was remanded last year as a danger to the community as well as to keep her from fleeing to her homeland in Italy. Gigliotti, who has suffered mental illness for decades, will be re-evaluated in four months to determine whether her condition, which deteriorated after she was detained according to her attorneys Richard Levitt and Nicholas Kaizer, improves enough to enable her to understand the charges against her and help her lawyers defend her at trial.

Brooklyn Federal Judge Raymond Dearie ordered that the trial of her husband Gregorio, 59, and son Angelo, 35, will proceed as scheduled in July. Both parents and their son were arrested in March of last year on charges of smuggling 55 kilograms of cocaine into the U.S. from Costa Rica. Mrs. Gigliotti, 55, will remain at the Metropolitan Detention Center in the meantime. After her mental evaluations are done, prosecutors and her attorneys will determine how to proceed in her case.

Dearie ordered prison doctors to examine Mrs. Gigliotti last year when her attorneys alleged that she began "acting wildly erratic" after the MDC weaned her off some prescribed psychotropic medications. She ultimately stopped receiving any of the medications she had taken for years.

Meanwhile, the father and son Gigliottis, are getting along better these days. According to court filings, the two had been feuding last year while both were behind bars. Angelo was released on a $5 million bond in September. Since then, however, both had undisclosed issues with their attorneys, and decided to switch lawyers midstream.

In January, Angelo hired veteran attorney Alan Futerfas. Gregorio followed suit last month, retaining Elizabeth Macedonio, who orchestrated the stunning acquittal in November of Bonanno wiseguy Vincent Asaro of the storied $6 million Lufthansa Airlines robbery.

Gregorio's move, which Dearie approved after Macedonio assured the judge she would be ready for trial on July 11, just might mean a rematch of sorts between Macedonio and the lead prosecutor in the Asaro trial, Nicole Argentieri, who is still listed a prosecutor in the Gigliotti case, even though she now heads the U.S. Attorney's Public Integrity Unit.

Argentieri was not in court last week. But last month she joined co-prosecutors Margaret Gandy and Keith Edelman in court papers opposing a defense motion to suppress conversations of the three defendants allegedly discussing their various roles in the drug operation. The conversations were picked up by U.S. and Italian authorities during the lengthy probe that led to their indictment.

The trio allegedly were in cahoots with 13 members and associates of 'Ndrangheta, a Calabrian organized crime group who were arrested in Italy following a joint investigation by law enforcement officials in the U.S. and Italy.

[AustraliaSteve]

I actually really liked this. One of the better ones I've read in a while. Thanks Dellacroce.

The "Andy" part was a bit weird, but I'm always interested in US Ndrangheta links. I actually had no idea Furnari had been released though. I'm assuming he's shelved?

[Pogo The Clown]

Perisco still kicking an scheming in 2016. The guy has been a member and a major power since the 50s. Imagine the stories and all the info he can divulge.


Pogo

[willychichi]

Perisco still kicking an scheming in 2016. The guy has been a member and a major power since the 50s. Imagine the stories and all the info he can divulge.
Pogo

Pogo any chance he gets out?

[TommyGambino]

Perisco still kicking an scheming in 2016. The guy has been a member and a major power since the 50s. Imagine the stories and all the info he can divulge.
Pogo

Pogo any chance he gets out?

In a box? Yes.

[SonnyBlackstein]

Capeci outsourcing more of his diminishing column.

Surprise.

[Snakes]

You guys complaining about Capeci's columns should just cancel your subscriptions. Oh, wait...

[phatmatress777]

Perisco still kicking an scheming in 2016. The guy has been a member and a major power since the 50s. Imagine the stories and all the info he can divulge.
Pogo

Pogo any chance he gets out?

he would have a much better chance of getting out if he had relinquished his title .... Christy tick got out but he was also inactive for many years...

[B.]

That's a good point about him not being boss until 1980. They knew from Scarpa (and possibly others) that he wasn't named official boss until then. He was no doubt a major player, possibly even the most powerful member, but it still stands that he wasn't yet "boss".

I'd forgotten about the Ask Andy column. Strange to see it back.

[SonnyBlackstein]

I'd forgotten about the Ask Andy column. Strange to see it back.

And an even more wierd introduction to shit on the guy. Unless its an in house joke, in which case youre doing yourself little favours considering its been 20yrs. Working to a small crowd.

Whats people's opinions of 'Andy'.
Venerable mob historian or Volkmann?

[Pogo The Clown]

Pogo any chance he gets out?

Like others have said his chances are pretty non existent. He would have to get both his commission case and Colombo hierarchy convictions overturned. If by some miracle he is able to do that no doubt the Feds will hit him with something (his involvement in the Colombo war for example) to keep him in. Doesn't sound like he has much time left anyway.


Pogo

[HairyKnuckles]

Whats people's opinions of 'Andy'.
Venerable mob historian or Volkmann?

He´s very knowledgable. At least he was 15-20 years ago. He has an impressive collection of mob books but is also into researching. He´s not a stranger to FOIA files.

Thanks for posting this week´s colunm Dell!

[SonnyBlackstein]

To clarify my earlier comments I was perplexed at how Capeci shat on 'Andy' in his introduction.
I was not referring to 'B'.

[brianwellbrock]

Very true on the differences between Furnari and Persico. Furnari probably lost 95 percent of his power the minute he waa convicted and the remaining 5 was gone by the time Casso flipped.

Persico on the other hand is still the boss and has ordered at least half a dozen murders since '87. Not to mention one on a prosecutor. It seems with him tgat up until 2000 a real active role. I believe somewhere I read that Tommy Shots even visited him regularly. Even if today hes only getting an envelope to his wife or sons every month if he were to get out hed very much still have power.