Chicago's "Junk" Crews 1975-1985

[Villain]

Some of the previous threads got me thinking of making this list regarding Chicago’s dope crews from the mid 1970’s until the mid 80’s. In January, 1974, New York mobster Carmine Galante was released from prison and according to some sources, he was the main player in bringing all those Sicilian Mafiosi into the U.S. and importing loads of Italian heroin which contributed to the infamous Pizza Connection. So according to one Chicago Tribune article, Galante arranged two meetings, one in Chicago and one in Florida, with the Outfit’s “junk” opposing faction headed by Tony Accardo. I’m not sure what was discussed during those particular meetings or to tell you the truth I’m not even sure that the whole thing ever occurred, but I’ll presume, mostly according to the next events, that the Outfit was somehow involved in the so-called "project" and on top of that, they were also connected to the rising Colombians.


North Side

Sam Canzoneri - with roots straight from the Corleone vilage in Sicily, he was the owner of a pizzeria business known as the Pizza Crisp International and Panhandle Pizza Inc. and lived in $800,000 house. Closely connected to Charĺes Nicoletti, through one Irv Weiner, and also Dom DiBella and Dom Santarelli, all from Chicago and also Tito Carinci from Florida, allegedly closely associated with the Bonanno clan from NY. In fact, Santarelli was allegedly a wealthy builder-developer, who also spent considerable time in Miami, Florida. There are numerous reports of airplane flights between Chicago’s O’Hare Airport and New York’s LaGuardia or Miami, Florida, of both Canzoneri and Weiner, and also alleged reports of meetings with individuals closely connected to the Bonanno clan.

Sam Sarcinelli - closely connected to Ken Eto and the duo had a shop which was named Taco-Si, located in Skokie, Illinois. The thing was that Sarcinelli used the food business as front for a large-scale narcotics trafficking organization, which at its peak moved approximately 200 kilos of cocaine per month, mainly brought from the Fort Lauderdale/Miami area by the Colombian cartels. Once in Chicago, the product was mostly sold along Rush Street, in bars or disco washrooms, which were mostly Mob-connected. Bigger part of the Colombian cocaine was distributed to points such as Atlanta, Denver, and also the Los Angeles area, where Sarcinelli maintained one of his personal residences. According to the feds, this guy was a real millionaire and heavily invested in real estate, mainly in the San Diego area, especially along the dusty strip of border land known as Otay Mesa. One of his close associates was Robert Bridges.

*In 1979 Sarcinelli was sentenced in Florida to 8 years in prison and 3 years special parole on count one, and additional 8 years in prison on count two of an indictment charging him with possession and conspiracy to distribute 14 pounds of cocaine. According to some reports, after the imprisonment of Sarcinelli, the Outfit-controlled cocaine business quickly transferred from Rush Street, down to the South Side and south suburbs. In addition, in 1989 Canzoneri was shot to death in his home on Chicago’s North Side.


Chicago Heights

Richard Ferraro - big time chop shop operator from the Calumet City area with close connections to Sam Annerino and also with Jimmy Catuara. The whole operation started from one pizza parlor in Paris, Illinois, from where the shipment was sent by Sicilian dope peddlers, or “Zips” as they were called, straight to Canzioneri’s pizza establishment, which in turn transported the shipment to Ferraros salvage yard. Ferraro had a whole network of auto-thieves and drug traffickers, who smuggled their product mainly with the help of the transportation of the stolen vehicles, which in turn contained sophisticated hiding areas for the narcotics. Many cars were sent to various salvage yards or chop shops in Palos Park, Illinois, or Munster, Indiana, from where the product was sold in nearby towns or cities. Ferraros main connection in those areas was Harry Holzer, who in turn had a dope smuggling route from Palos Park and all the way to Fennville, Michigan.

D'Andrea brothers Nick and Mario - closely connected to Al Tocco and their connections in the Outfit were formed with the help of their late brother and Outfit member Armand D'Andrea. Two of their dope connections were Ora Curry and John Pronger with business relations all the way to the Middle East in Lebanon, from where they constantly brought or shipped cars or auto-parts, which sometimes were filled with heroin. The stash was later divided in two parts, one for the local market and the other part was destined for some of the nearest Midwest cities, such as Hammond, Indiana, and also St. Louis. One of Nick D'Andrea's main guys in the dope distributing business was William Franklin Jr.

* In 1975 Holzer was killed together with his wife, in 1977 Ferraro, Nicoletti and Annerino were killed, and in 1979, Carmine Galante was also killed. Chicago’s police intelligence analysts agreed that Galante’s death altered the plans of some of the Outfit’s “outlaws” to expand the Italian white heroin, instead of the Mexican. In 1980 and 1981, Franklin Jr. was involved in the murders of three drug dealers for which in 1982 he was sentenced to 300 years in jail. In 1981, Nick D’Andrea was accused by the Outfit for the murder attempt on Al Pilotto, the boss of the Chicago Heights faction, and so in September that same year, D’Andrea’s lifeless body appeared in the trunk of his car. The next month, his brother Mario managed to sell a pound of pure Colombian cocaine to an undercover agent and got killed during the arrest.


Deerfield Beach, Florida

James Tortorielo – former close associate of the late Sam Giancana and former member in the Outfit’s international operations. But by the mid 1970’s Tortoriello was allegedly “exiled” from the Chicago area by his former cohorts and fled down to Florida, from where, according to the feds, he continued to deal with narcotics. But other reports say that Tortoriello in reality became the main Florida overseer of the dope transportation for the Chicago “rebel” faction. In 1982, as he relaxed on his front porch at a quiet Deerfield Beach street, suddenly two carloads of gunmen sprayed Tortoriello’s house with bullets and again, few minutes later, the two slow-moving limousines appeared for the second time and fired another round of bullets. The 72 year old mobster remained untouched.

* In1983, Tortoriello’s son Mark was fatally shot during an alleged cocaine transaction, which obviously went wrong. Story goes that Mark Tortoriello has sold low quality drugs to someone, who in turn returned and shot him to death. In addition, one year later in 1984, James Tortoriello joined his deceased son, since he was found shot to death in a warehouse near the Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport.

[cavita]

The Paris, Illinois connection is interesting because that's where Giuseppe Vitale lived and he was arrested in the Pizza Connection case.

[Villain]

The Paris, Illinois connection is interesting because that's where Giuseppe Vitale lived and he was arrested in the Pizza Connection case.

Thanks for the additional info cavita but I dont know if you noticed another interesting fact and that is the long time loyalty from the Northsiders towards the NY Sicilian factions which explains the huge pressure over DiBella during the narcotics debates within the Chi mob. Even the northern Indiana faction which at one time was the main receiving faction for the Chicago mob, was mostly headed by former Northsiders. As for the Chicago Heights crew, they kept their loyalty until the Galante hit and later switched to the Colombian, Mexican and other sources, same as individuals from the Grand Avenue group

[rayray]

Very interesting....mostly hear about the outfit being anti-drug, and the ones dealing were not protected etc etc

This is also the first time I've heard "made" members involved in some sort of narcotics, always thought they were only allowed to finance deals...this sounds more like, protection and that these outlaws were actually operating under the outfits umbrella.

[Villain]

Very interesting....mostly hear about the outfit being anti-drug, and the ones dealing were not protected etc etc

This is also the first time I've heard "made" members involved in some sort of narcotics, always thought they were only allowed to finance deals...this sounds more like, protection and that these outlaws were actually operating under the outfits umbrella.

Some off the top of my head who were at least once arrested for dealing dope, the DeGrazia brothers Rocco, Nick and Andrew, with Rocco being the one time captain of the Melrose Park crew, also Charles Nicoletti and Ernest Sansone, James Torello under a different name, Joseph LaBarbara, Americo DePietto, the DiCarco brothers Charlie and Joe from the South Side, Angelo LaPietra and he also used to beat down drug dealers for not paying up, Frank Teutonico and James Cordovano, and even Samuel “Blackie” Cesario the guy who was killed for screwing around with Phil Alderisios ex-girlfriend

[FriendofFamily]

The Sicilian Ring around Chicago and the Pizza Connection

[FriendofFamily]

Also one of the biggest drug operations for a piece of the pie came through Amity Boatyard in Fort Lauderdale. The cocaine and marijuana in the late 70's and up to mid 80's. This was one supplier for Illinois. The place was hugh for Marijuana shipments for various parts of the country.

I remember in 1983 at the Amity Boatyard - the Boats would come in and get painted every other week and sometimes weekly to change the "Waterline" on the Boat so they couldn't figure out how low the boat was in the water loaded with drugs.

I remember the Feds sneaking in to the place to do surveillance.

Here is a link of an article in 1985.

http://articles.sun-sentinel.com/1985-0 ... indictment

Like A `Scarface` Script: Police Say Murder Suspect Lorded Over Flashy Drug Smuggling Empire
January 12, 1985|By M. Anthony Lednovich and Kathleen Pellegrino, Staff Writers
A flamboyant reveler, with a penchant for bright colored Corvettes, Raymond M. ``Little Ray`` Thompson was cast from the mold of Hollywood`s classic drug boss, police say.

Intertwined with tales that read like the movie script of Scarface, police said Thompson ruled a Fort Lauderdale-based $700 million drug smuggling empire using fast cars, chartered jets, luxury yachts and wild parties.

Agents said he maintained order and unflagging allegiance through fear.

Thompson, 54, of Hallandale, has been charged with the execution-style murders of three Broward County men, and a federal grand jury in Fort Lauderdale Friday indicted him and 11 others on charges of running a smuggling ring responsible for importing 2 million pounds of marijuana into South Florida.

``Thompson ran a very organized, large scale and very successful smuggling group,`` said Agent Dave Shomers of the Florida Department of Law Enforcement. ``He ran the group through fear, and he was ready to back up those threats with violence, including murder, if anybody ever disturbed his smuggling operation.``

Primarily on the basis of statements made by a confidential informant who said he participated in three murders, Thompson is accused of ordering the 1981 slayings of Robert Arnold Vogt, 36, of Pembroke Park and William Timothy Harris, 35, of Hollywood, said FDLE spokesman Fred Schneyer.

Thompson also is accused of personally ``executing`` his friend of 18 years, Francis Savoy Sr., 55, of Hallandale, on a speedboat off the South Florida coast in March 1982.

The bodies of the three men have never been found.

The federal indictment revealed that a fourth murder had been ordered.

Last March, after Thompson learned that a federal grand jury had begun a probe of his organization, he ordered the kidnapping and murder of Fort Lauderdale attorney Harvey K. Mattel because he was a ``suspected government witness,`` according to the indictment. A hit man stalked Mattel for three days and then the murder was called off, according to a source in the investigation.




The federal investigation began 18 months ago and focused on the operations of the drug ring from the Amity Yacht Center on Southwest 21st Avenue from 1978 to 1981. Mattel, according to the indictment, handled the purchase of the boatyard. He could not be reached for comment.

Thompson employed 100 people and owned 10 luxury yachts that were used to transport 26 ``mother ship`` loads of marijuna into Fort Lauderdale, according to investigators.

``Thompson handled the transportation end of other peoples` loads. For that service, he received a third of the profits,`` said one FDLE case agent, who asked not to be named. ``Thompson was a bon vivant, a ladies` man and a connoisseur of cocaine. He is also a very violent man.``

Thompson financed the importation and distribution of marijuana, paid travel expense for employees, paid for yacht repairs, hired attorneys and provided bond fees for any of those arrested for smuggling, according to the federal probe supervised by J. Brian McCormick, a special attorney for the Justice Department.

State agents said they were amazed that Thompson was able to direct his large organization in such a visible location. The boatyard is located near the New River overpass of Interstate 95.

``They had everything, including well-attired older people they hired to sit in the rear deck fishing chairs with cocktails to look like rich yacht owners. Other people ran speedboats as decoys, while others were hired for countersurveillance to monitor police radio channels and look out for Coast Guard boats or U.S. Customs planes,`` the FDLE case agent said.

``The yacht crews all wore uniforms, and the yachts went in and out of Port Everglades every day regardless if there was a drug run or not. They wanted to become familiar sights to the Coast Guard and Marine Patrol as they went and returned,`` the FDLE agent said.

Thompson was arrested a week ago in Illinois on federal and state warrants and is currently being held without bond awaiting extradition. In addition to murder charges, Thompson also faces federal racketeering charges and charges of tax evasion, drug smuggling and of operating a continuing criminal enterprise.

As the leader of the ring, agents said Thompson was both ruthless and generous.

``One time, he was kidnapped by Colombians for non-payment on a drug deal. Thompson somehow talked the Colombians into exchanging him as a hostage for one of his men under the pretense that once he was free, he would go get their money,`` the agent explained.

``Well, Thompson`s man arrived, the Colombians took him hostage and let Thompson go. So what did Ray do? He didn`t go get the money, he went home and went to sleep. He didn`t care what happened to the other guy,`` the agent said.

On another occasion, investigators said Thompson was outraged by the theft of marijuana that had been stored in a house on Hendricks Isle.

[FriendofFamily]

Here is the link of another article and Illinois connection:

http://articles.sun-sentinel.com/1985-0 ... grand-jury

Man Accused In Drug Ring Indicted Again
February 13, 1985|By M. Anthony Lednovich, Staff Writer
Raymond M. ``Little Ray`` Thompson, charged in Fort Lauderdale with heading a $700 million marijuana-smuggling ring and participating in the murders of three men, has been indicted by a federal grand jury in Illinois.

Thompson, 54, of Hallandale and St. Charles, Ill., was named Monday along with his brother, Don Thompson, 52, of Chicago, and Scott Werner, age unknown, of Boston, in the seven-count indictment.

Raymond Thompson also pleaded innocent Tuesday to murder and kidnapping charges in Broward Circuit Court.

The elder Thompson and Werner were charged with conspiracy to import and distribute $6 million worth of marijuana in 1983 from Colombia through Florida.

``The indictment charges they imported two loads. One deal was worth $2 1/2 million and the other $3 1/2 million,`` said federal prosecutor Roger Markley in Chicago. ``The indictment charges that the marijuana deals were set up in the Chicago suburb of Wasco.``

Don Thompson operated the Farm Inn in Wasco, a country-western restaurant and bar that the Internal Revenue Service claims was purchased by his brother, Raymond, with proceeds of the drug operation.

``The indictment charges that Ray`s brother was used as a front to hide Ray`s money and to conceal other assets purchased with the proceeds of the smuggling enterprise,`` Markley said.

The elder Thompson was arrested Jan. 4 at the Farm Inn on federal and state charges that include murder, kidnapping, racketeering and drug smuggling.

He is being held without bond in the Pompano Beach Jail Annex medical center.

``He was evaluated with having a heart condition. It was felt that Thompson should not be placed among the general inmate population. But his condition doesn`t warrant that he be hospitalized,`` said Broward Sheriff`s Office spokesman Jim Leljedal.

[FriendofFamily]

Another article you will find interesting:

http://articles.sun-sentinel.com/1987-1 ... ug-charges

Man Facing Electric Chair Pleads Guilty To 2 Murders
October 6, 1987|By MICHELLE RUESS, Staff Writer
Already facing the death penalty for a 1982 murder and serving a life sentence on federal racketeering and drug charges, Raymond ``Little Ray`` Thompson on Monday pleaded guilty to two 1980 murders.

Broward Circuit Judge Russell Seay sentenced Thompson to two concurrent terms of 17 1/2 years in prison for murdering Robert Arnold Vogt, 36, of Pembroke Park, and William Timothy Harris, 35, of Hollywood.

In effect, Thompson will not serve any additional prison time for these deaths because the penalty will run concurrent with his sentence on the racketeering and drug charges.

Howard Finkelstein, Thompson`s attorney, and Assistant State Attorney Kelly Hancock said they agreed to allow Thompson, charged with first-degree murder, to plead guilty to second-degree murder, which carries a lesser penalty.

No matter what kind of sentence he received, Thompson will probably be in prison for the rest of his life, they said.

``If the death sentence is upheld, this doesn`t matter at all,`` Hancock said. ``It was in our best interest rather than going through a six-week trial.``

According to a Florida Department of Law Enforcement informant, Vogt and Harris were put aboard a yacht and taken seven miles out to sea off Fort Lauderdale by three men who were following Thompson`s orders.

Law enforcement authorities say Vogt and Harris were members of Thompson`s $700 million drug-smuggling empire, which he ran from 1978 to 1981 at the former Amity Yacht Center on Southwest 21st Avenue in Fort Lauderdale.

[FriendofFamily]

How the Lawyers were laundering the money around the world:

http://articles.sun-sentinel.com/1986-1 ... -mr-levine

Agents: Lawyer Gave Drug Cash To Fugitive
October 18, 1986|By DEBORAH PETIT, Staff Writer
A Miami attorney facing federal money-laundering charges provided cash to a Fort Lauderdale fugitive wanted in the execution-style murders of three men, authorities testified Friday.

Attorney Michael Irwin Levine flew to England in 1985 and met with fugitive Scott Errico before he was recaptured by authorities, according to Anthony Cammarato, a U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration special agent.

Levine, 32, set up foreign bank accounts with the profits of drug-smuggling ventures so that Errico would have money while in hiding, Cammarato testified at a federal court hearing in Fort Lauderdale.

The government contends that Levine was well aware of Errico`s fugitive status.

``Mr. Levine mentioned to the confidential informant that Scott Errico`s name was all over the papers in Miami and he was wanted in connection with three murders in the United States,`` IRS Special Agent Klaus Hurme testified.

Errico now is in England fighting extradition to the United States. He faces charges of murder, drug smuggling and racketeering as a suspected accomplice of convicted Fort Lauderdale smuggling kingpin Raymond ``Little Ray`` Thompson.

Authorities have described Errico as the enforcer in Thompson`s drug ring, which imported $700 million worth of marijuana into Fort Lauderdale on luxury yachts between 1978 and June 1981.

Thompson and Errico were charged with murdering two men in 1980 aboard a yacht offshore and killing a third man in 1982 on a speedboat near Port Everglades.

Thompson has been convicted and sentenced to die in the electric chair for one of the murders. He also was given a life sentence for a federal drug- related conviction.




Errico faces three possible death sentences and additional prison time if his extradition appeal to the House of Lords in London fails and he is returned to South Florida for trial.

The testimony from DEA agent Cammarato about the alleged financial assistance Levine gave Errico came during a court hearing at which the government elaborated on the charges lodged against the Miami lawyer and 12 others this week.

Levine on Thursday turned himself in to face charges that he provided the know-how for a money-laundering operation that reportedly ``washed`` $30 million in marijuana-smuggling profits between 1983 and 1985.

Cammarato said the Fort Lauderdale-based smuggling group brought suitcase loads of cash to Levine.

The suitcases were given to couriers Levine recruited, Cammarato said. They deposited the cash in banks and trust companies in such places as England, Hong Kong, the Isle of Man, the British Virgin Islands and Panama, Cammarato said.

From the overseas banks, the money was funneled into corporations, he said. Levine had the corporations created specifically to help conceal the smuggling profits, Cammarato said.

Levine was described as one of a small ``cadre of lawyers`` who are experts at creating a network of corporations worldwide to make drug profits nearly impossible to trace, government prosecutor Lothar Genge said.

``Mr. Levine actually directed people to organize corporations and told people which money went where,`` Genge said. ``He is the man to go to with drug proceeds. And he has a way of hiding it that law enforcement will never find it.``

DEA and New Scotland Yard agents were able to crack the case only with the help of confidential informants, Genge said.

Levine is not the only South Florida lawyer involved in the smuggling conspiracy, authorities said.

When the federal grand jury returns an indictment in the case -- which is expected next week -- several other lawyers are to be named as defendants, authorities said.

Levine is a University of Miami law school graduate who has concentrated his practice in business law since being admitted to the Florida Bar in December 1978.



While the charges against Levine and the 12 others allege that the conspiracy existed between 1983 and 1985, federal agents testified that the group was active as early as 1981.

It was in 1981 that ``Little Ray`` Thompson gave up his smuggling group after his base of operations at the Amity Yacht Center was raided by Fort Lauderdale police.

[FriendofFamily]

How far this thing would reach into other countries:

From Illinois to Florida to Latin and South America

http://articles.sun-sentinel.com/1985-0 ... -practices

Noted Attorney Faces Corruption Charges
February 2, 1985|By Kathleen Pellegrino and M. Anthony Lednovich, Staff Writers
A would-be Latin America dictator and an eminent South Florida attorney conspired to hide the assets for the ruthless boss of a $700 million marijuana smuggling operation, according to a federal indictment handed up Friday.

Former Dominican Republic Gen. Rafael Ramon Rodriguez Echavarria, 60, who in 1962 headed a military coup that ruled the country just 48 hours, and Steadman Stahl Jr., 60, one of Broward County`s most well-known defense attorneys, were among five people charged in the scheme.

Also indicted were Hallandale lawyer Alfred F. Ciffo, 35; Clara Iodice, 35, of Fort Lauderdale, and Ofelia Schrager, age unknown, of Tamarac.

According to the indictment, Stahl, Echavarria and the others conspired to defraud the government by concealing $4 million in assets for Raymond M. ``Little Ray`` Thompson, the accused leader of the marijuana ring.

``They helped bury all of the drug money,`` said Paul Teresi, supervisor of the Drug Enforcement Administration`s Fort Lauderdale office. ``We have identified Thompson, his major lieutenants. We`ve identified and seized assets and the people who helped conceal those assets, so you have an overall picture of a complete criminal enterprise.``

Federal and state investigators said Thompson, 54, of Hallandale and St. Charles, Ill., used the profits of his smuggling empire to accumulate a fleet of yachts, automobiles, houses and apartment complexes, and several businesses in South Florida and Illinois.

Federal authorities are attempting to have those assets turned over to the government for auction.

The indictment claims the group hid Thompson`s assets by listing the owners as a series of fictitious corporations or persons who did not exist.

Stahl, of Deerfield Beach, built a reputation as one of Broward`s best- known lawyers by winning stays of execution in 1967 for all the prisoners on Florida`s Death Row, and for his 1971 defense of Linda Pierce, called the ``Black Widow`` and charged with running a high-priced call girl ring that reportedly catered to well-known public and police officials.




His most notable cases came while he was practicing law with another well- known Broward lawyer, Joseph Varon of Hollywood. The two men merged their law practices in 1967.

Stahl left that practice in March 1983 to become general counsel for the southeastern division of Toyota.

Ciffo`s 1980 marriage at the Eden Roc Hotel in Miami Beach was dubbed the ``wedding of the decade`` by Bride Magazine. The lavish reception was paid for by Ciffo`s best man, Saudi Arabian Sheik Wagdi Tahlawi.

Echavarria, an ardent baseball fan, expert jet-fighter pilot and member of a family of distinguished military leaders, ascended to power when he thwarted a coup by the brothers of assassinated dictator Rafael Trujillo.

In January 1962, Echavarria headed the county after leading his own military coup to depose then-president Joaquin Balaguer. Just 48 hours after the takeover, Echavarria`s dreams of dictatorship ended when his own Air Force generals conducted a counter-coup and had him deported to Puerto Rico.

Echavarria was later allowed to return to the country and went into private business.

Details of the smuggling empire began to unfold two weeks ago when the same grand jury indicted Thompson and 11 others on various charges of racketeering and drug smuggling.

The indictment, handed up in Fort Lauderdale, said the smuggling group was based at the Amity Yacht Center, on Southwest 21st Avenue, and imported 2 million pounds of marijuana into South Florida during 1978-81.

Thompson was arrested Jan. 4 in Illinois on federal and state warrants. The state warrants charged Thompson with the gruesome execution-style murders of two members of the smuggling ring and the revenge slaying of his friend of 18 years.

Stahl, Ciffo and Iodice, who investigators identified as Thompson`s common- law wife, surrendered to federal officials in Fort Lauderdale hours after the indictment was issued.

Flanked by their attorneys, the three remained silent and would answer no questions about the allegations in the indictment.

They were each released on $100,000 bond.

Ofelia Schrager is the wife of Irving Schrager, who investigators said was the financial expert for the smuggling group. Both are believed to be hiding in Peru.

Echavarria was in the Dominican Republic and federal officials said it would be doubtful if he could be forced to return to the United States to stand trial.

[FriendofFamily]

Picture of Little Ray Thompson

THOMPSON-110761.jpg

[FriendofFamily]

Scott Errico

http://www.sun-sentinel.com/local/palm- ... story.html

Authorities later called him the "enforcer" in a $700 million marijuana ring that used luxury yachts breezing in and out of Fort Lauderdale. But one summer day turned deadly when Errico and five associates took a ride on a 58-foot Hatteras miles off the coast.

Two smugglers who wanted to leave the band reportedly were bound with rope and chains, hooked to 40-pound anchors, shot and dumped overboard — their bodies were never found.

The executions of the two men became the focus of Broward trials in 1990 and 1991, and more recently, August and October hearings in Palm Beach County courtrooms when now-57-year-old Errico asked for his double-murder convictions to be tossed.

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"I've never killed anybody," he insisted to Circuit Judge Krista Marx, during the hearing two months ago.

A state appellate court last year had ordered the proceedings to explore Errico's claim a key witness lied during Errico's second trial nearly 24 years ago.

Tales of 1980s Broward drug smugglers, murders back in court
But Marx, after considering the fresh testimony from Errico, the witness, and others, concluded "there is no substantive, credible evidence" to support the argument the witness perjured himself and later recanted.

The judge denied Errico's bid to reopen the case, meaning the mostly gray-haired felon will continue serving two life sentences. He must serve at least 50 years in state prison before he is eligible for parole at age 82.

Errico, who this month was transferred to Hardee Correctional Institution in Bowling Green, is representing himself in a challenge of Marx's order filed with the 4th District Court of Appeal.

Retired Broward Chief Assistant State Attorney Chuck Morton, who led the prosecution of Errico and testified against him in August, said Wednesday he was not surprised that the old case had resurfaced after so much time.

"These capital cases never really end," said Morton, an adjunct law professor at Nova Southeastern University. "It's an endless appellate process … where collateral attacks are made."

Prominent defense attorney Joel Hirschhorn, who represented Errico in the early 1990s, also was called to testify during the August hearing. On Wednesday, he said he read the judge's Oct. 22 order but declined to comment.

Hirschhorn told jurors at Errico's first trial, which ended in a mistrial, that the state's witnesses against his client were not to be trusted because they "received sweetheart deals in order to escape the electric chair."

After the second jury was unanimous in its finding of guilt for Errico, Morton told reporters he didn't have the luxury of calling "decent citizens" as witnesses.

"You can`t expect angels," said Morton, "to be witnesses to plots hatched in hell."

Here's how the murders went down, according to authorities and criminal confessions:

Raymond "Little Ray" Thompson, leader of the pot-smuggling ring, pleaded guilty in 1987 to ordering the killings of Robert Arnold Vogt, 36, of Pembroke Park, and William Timothy Harris, 35, of Hollywood, after an apparent disagreement at a boatyard over the victims' decision to leave the gang.

Vogt and Harris were taken out to sea and never seen again.

"According to witnesses, Errico fired the fatal shot into Robert Vogt's head from point blank range," Marx wrote.

Five years after the killings, New Scotland Yard caught up with Errico at London's Heathrow Airport carrying about $20,000 in cash, and two false passports, for a planned trip to Spain.

British detectives investigated Errico's attempts to hook up with a suspect then accused of having a role in a $38.7 million gold bullion heist at Heathrow in 1983 as well as ties to an international money laundering network.

"When confronted with the murder charges, Errico … sought "a deal" for himself, and stated "I don't want to be fried,' " Marx wrote. "Ultimately, Errico agreed he had 'committed murders', been involved in 'a large drug syndicate', and was willing to plead guilty if he could avoid imposition of the death penalty."

New Scotland Yard agents would later tell a Broward jury about Errico's murder confession.

Errico, who used to live in Plantation, pleaded guilty in 1988 to federal drug smuggling charges and received a 15-year federal sentence as part of a plea deal and his extradition terms.

Without any physical evidence of the murders, Morton relied mostly on the testimony of three witnesses to implicate Errico: Patrick Menillo, Robert Davis, and Robert Tippie. The three admitted their involvement in the murders; a fourth suspect committed suicide, and another man remained at large.

Menillo agreed to testify against Errico, as part of a plea deal for a 15-year prison sentence. Davis got seven years for his cooperation with police, and Tippie was granted immunity from prosecution.

Errico, with a new attorney, alleged in October he was wrongfully convicted because Menillo lied on the stand and Morton knew it.

At the trial, Menillo described the murders and testified about subsequent jail conversations with Errico regarding Errico's strategies for combating the state's evidence. One of the alleged strategies was a plan to murder Tippie and Davis before they could testify.

Clayton Kaeiser, Errico's attorney, claims the prosecutor agreed not to prosecute Menillo for the 1984 death of Menillo's ex-wife, as part of the deal to get Menillo to turn on Errico.

Kaeiser says there is evidence Patrick Menillo once admitted to a fellow jail inmate that he smothered Sandra Menillo, 32, with a pillow at their Davie home.

But at the hearing in August, Patrick Menillo, 60, repeatedly denied lying during Errico's trials, and he denied killing his ex-wife.

He said his attorney from 1990, F. Lee Bailey, worked out his plea terms.

"There's no amount of money I would perjure myself for," Menillo said, later insisting, "I didn't murder my wife."

Morton, who retired last year, also denied the allegations. He said he didn't recall ever suspecting Patrick Menillo in his wife's death, so there wasn't any secret deal.

And Morton told Judge Marx he thought Menillo and the other felons testified truthfully about Errico's role in the murders.

Judge Marx found Menillo had no motive to lie based on the circumstances of his wife's death: The Broward County Medical Examiner's Office ruled her death was caused by chronic alcoholism and wasn't a homicide.

"Having concluded Errico has failed to establish Menillo's trial testimony was false," Marx wrote, "this Court hereby denies relief."

mjfreeman@tribpub.com, 561-243-6642 or Twitter @MarcJFreeman

[FriendofFamily]

Picture of Scott Errico

He was a young kid back then when this happened.

fl-1980-drug-smuggler-murders-order-20141219-001.jpg

[FriendofFamily]

The Heroin came in from Sicily through New York to the Sicilian Ring around Chicago.