Friends of Ours

Artie Nigro Case Goes To The Jury

The racketeering trial against reputed onetime Genovese acting boss Arthur Nigro and Greek brothers Freddy and Ty Geas involving, among other things, the 2003 slaying of capo Adolfo Bruno in Springfield, MA, now is in the hands of the jury after three weeks of testimony from a string of flipped mobsters as reported by Stephanie Barry for The Republican.

VH1 Debuts Mob Wives On April 17

Mob Wives, a 10-episode reality show created by Jennifer Graziano, the daughter of reputed Bonanno capo Anthony "T.G." Graziano, debuts April 17 on VH1 as reported by Anthony Venutolo for The Star-Ledger: "the show is a series that follows the lives of four women at a crossroads who attempt to pick up the pieces and carry on while their husbands or fathers do time for mafia-related activities."

Karen Gravano, the daughter of ex-Gambino underboss Sammy the Bull who brought down John Gotti, is among those who will share her story as previously reported by John Marzulli for the Daily News: "Gravano . . . describes what it was like when she learned her dad broke his mob oath and agreed to testify against mob boss John Gotti. 'When he told me he was going to cooperate, it was devastating.'"

Other cast members include Drita D'avanzo, Renee Graziano and Carla Facciolo, and Michael Blaustein reports on their alleged family ties for the New York Post.

Watching a bulimic model throw up would be more entertaining than Mob Wives.

Mob Wives |Renee Graziano |Full Episodes |Reality TV Shows

John Travolta: From Disco Queen To Mob Boss

John Travolta, the actor who leaped to stardom in 1977 as disco queen Tony Manero in Saturday Night Fever, is set to play John Gotti in an upcoming Nick Cassavetes-directed film about the late Gambino boss as reported by NME. Discos and mobsters: perfect together.

Closing Arguments In Artie Nigro Case

Federal prosecutors and defense lawyers made their closing arguments yesterday in the racketeering trial against reputed onetime Genovese acting boss Arthur "Artie" Nigro and Greek brothers Freddy and Ty Geas as reported by Stephanie Barry for The Republican: "They stand accused of the 2003 murder plot against Springfield, Mass.,Genovese boss Adolfo 'Big Al' Bruno, the attempted murder of a union boss the same year and a series of extortion attempts from Springfield to Hartford, Conn., and Manhattan."

The defense lawyers attacked the government's star witnesses -- a series of flipped Genovese gangsters -- as not believable because they "admitted to murder and other misdeeds on the stand in exchange for lighter prison sentences." For example, Frederick H. Cohn, a lawyer for Freddy Geas, argued that "those slime bags who testified, they have no loyalty."

The defense strategy to attack the so-called rats typically fails in mob trials. Indeed, the flipped witnesses are credible precisely because they are "slime bags"; after all, who else would be involved with the Mafia to know where the proverbial bodies are buried? Moreover, although defense lawyers may not like rats, ordinary folks view their betrayal of criminal underworld values as a good thing which should be encouraged and not condemned.

Confirmed: Gangsters Like Fights

In Nanaimo, BC Canada gang task force officers kept tabs on those attending a mixed martial arts event last Saturday night because they "claim the sport is known to attract gangsters" as reported by Danielle Bell for The Daily News: "Police said as many as 50 people associated to gangs or organized crime, specifically outlaw motorcycle groups, were identified at the fights. * * * Police have monitored other sporting events but say MMA, which draws a wide fan base but especially younger men, tends to attract people with ties to organized crime."

Feds: Carl Kruger Used Bribe Money To Pay Alleged Boyfriend's Mortgage; Home Originally Built For Lucchese Crime Family Boss

Carl Kruger, the New York State senator from Brooklyn who was indicted earlier this month on corruption charges, allegedly "used money from bribes for the mortgage of the waterfront mansion in Mill Basin" where the politician lives with his alleged boyfriend and co-defendant Michael Turano as reported by William K. Rashbaum for The New York Times.

The McMansion "redefine[s] conspicuous consumption" as reported by The New York Times:

The front yard is a gaudy stab at Versailles, with four-foot obelisks at each corner of the driveway, intricately tiled fountains and a series of steel sculptures that depict dolphins mid-dive, children at play and birds in flight. The 7,000-square-foot home, whose aesthetic is cruise-ship-meets-mob-mansion, has five terraces, a curved-glass elevator and an arcade room outfitted with gumball machines. On the second floor, there is what the residents call their "ice cream room," furnished with an old-fashioned counter and soda fountain.

The Mill Basin neighborhood was characterized as "one of the best addresses for a wiseguy in Brooklyn" by Guy Lawson and William Oldham in their 2006 book The Brotherhoods about Mafia cops Louis Eppolito and Stephen Caracappa, and the property in which Kruger and the Turano clan live originally was constructed for Lucchese boss Anthony "Gaspipe" Casso who ordered the 1991 hit on his architect Anthony Fava "out of fear that he would one day become an FBI informant" as reported by Joey Arak for Curbed.

Kruger is well-known in the Russian belt that runs through his Brooklyn district. Last December Kruger pleaded for leniency on behalf of Nikolai Dozortsev -- a reputed "high-ranking member of Russian organized crime" -- following his money laundering conviction. Although Dozortsev faced twenty years in prison Brooklyn federal judge Frederic Block sentenced the Ukraine-born lad to only five.

Mob-linked Dallas Preppie Pleads Guilty

In Dallas, TX 28-year-old preppie Douglas Havard pleaded guilty in a federal courthouse to passport fraud as reported by The Associated Press: "Investigators say Havard spent the past seven years in an English jail after his 2004 arrest or involvement with a global identity theft ring with ties to Russian organized crime." The privileged brat -- a former Winston School and SMU student who is the son of a successful local businessman -- had bolted out of Dallas in 2002 on his bogus passport to avoid a slew of state charges as reported by Robert Wilonsky for the Dallas Observer.

Mob-linked Steroids Ring Roils Danbury, CT

Earlier this month the feds busted four individuals, including one with suspected ties to the Bonnano family, for allegedly running a multi-million dollar marijuana and steroids trafficking ring.

The accused ringleader is Mark Mansa, and among those to whom the muscle-pumping product allegedly was sold were high school boys which is rather ironic since Mansa "has been involved with local youth sports organizations, including Bethel Youth Football and the Bethel Youth Wrestling Club, with his son" as reported by Brian Koonz and Robert Miller for the Danbury News Times.

The other three charged are "Glenn Wagner, of Brookfield, who had a prior drug arrest in 2007; Richard Sciaccetano, who federal officials believe has ties to the Bonnano crime family in New York; and Kevin Lubic, who investigators said Tuesday is associated with the Hells Angels Motorcycle Club in New Rochelle, N.Y."

Federal prosecutors allege Mansa used his ties to Lubic and Sciaccetano to intimidate others, and further "used his ties to local law enforcement to protect his thriving organization" as reported by Dirk Perrefort for the Danbury News Times.

It's sad because it's true: organized crime cannot exist without public corruption.

Ambush Shooting In Chicagoland

In the Englewood community of Chicago, IL a pair of Uzi-toting gunmen jumped from a truck at 9:30 this morning to open fire upon a black Intrepid sedan in an apparent gangland-style attack as reported by Ryan Haggerty and Andrew L. Wang for the Chicago Tribune:

"These young guys stepped out with AK-47s or Uzis or something and shot up the whole block," said Al Perkins, head cook at Ryan Anthony's restaurant in the 7400 block of South Vincennes. "They got out of this red truck and starting walking and shooting," Perkins said. "I think they were aiming at a black car down the block... Once they got done, they ran back to the truck."

Miraculously, no one was hit by the flying bullets although in the melee the sedan crashed into a city bus which resulted in nearly a dozen injuries.

Not since the days of Al Capone when gangsters controlled the streets with Tommy guns has the Windy City seen such brazen underworld terror.

Cops Against Politicians In Miami

In Miami, FL Police Chief Miguel Exposito and Maj. Alfredo Alvarez "have mounted a campaign in the Spanish-language media in the past few weeks to link gaming interests and organized crime to Miami Mayor Tomas Regalado and Hialeah Mayor Julio Robaina, who is running for county mayor" as reported by the Miami Herald.

Weekly Gang Roundup

*** Thousands of gang members live in St. Louis, MO:

There are Vietnamese gangs, Haitian gangs and Hispanic gangs in addition to the traditional African-American gangs. * * * The statistics show them spread among 85 identifiable gangs. Of them, 43 are affiliated with the Crips, a Los Angeles street gang. Another 27 identify themselves as Bloods, a rival L.A.-based gang. Fourteen of the gangs are independent, mostly immigrant gangs, while one gang affiliates itself with Chicago's Gangster Disciples.

*** Judge sentences MS-13 leader William Cordova to life in prison plus 150 years following racketeering and murder convictions in Washington, D.C.: "The judge told Cordova he was lucky the government had not sought the death penalty."

*** Five suspected 18th Street gang members indicted on state racketeering charges in Greeley, CO.

*** Twenty-four reputed Ogden Trece members arrested for allegedly violating civil injunction prohibiting their association in Salt Lake, UT.

Child Rape Case Damns A Texas Town

In Cleveland, TX nineteen boys and men from the ages of 14 to 27 have been charged for their alleged roles in the gang rape of an 11-year-old Mexican girl on at least six different occassions last fall as reported by James C. McKinley and Erica Goode for The New York Times: "The arrests have raised fundamental questions about how a girl might have been repeatedly abused by many men and boys in a tightly knit community without any adult intervening, or even seeming to register that something was amiss, until sexually explicit videos of the victim began circulating in local schools."

Meanwhile, in Moreno Valley, CA, police have arrested seven teens for their alleged roles in the gang rape of an 11-year-old girl inside a park bathroom as reported by Fox News: "Detectives [said] that the girl was at a shopping center near the park when she was approached by an older girl, who lured her to the bathroom where the six boys and the 19-year-old were waiting."

Ex-Capo Fingers Artie Nigro In Genovese Case

Flipped Genovese capo Felix Tranghese testified yesterday at the racketeering trial against reputed former acting boss Arthur Nigro involving the 2003 slaying of capo Adolfo Bruno in Springfield, MA, and the bookmaker said he "acted as a conduit between the 'Springfield Crew' and New York higher-ups" as reported by Stephanie Barry for The Republican:

Tranghese and Nigro met in front of a laundromat there [in the Bronx], where Nigro often called powwows with underlings, testimony has shown. "Artie told me that I should go back to Springfield to take care of Bruno and to make sure ... it would be better if the body wasn't found. And I shouldn't be involved," Tranghese said.

Federal Judge Denies Bail For Baby Shacks

Luigi "Baby Shacks" Manocchio, the reputed former boss of the Patriarca crime family who was indicted on extortion charges last January for allegedly shaking down Providence, RI jiggle joints and smut shops, must stay in jail pending trial as reported by Ted Nesi for WPRI: "U.S. District Judge William Smith said Manocchio, 83, is a flight risk," and he was not convinced that "Manocchio was not a threat to others." The decision overturns an order by a magistrate judge earlier this month to release Manocchio on $500,000 bail.

U.S. Embraces Alleged International Mafia Boss

Last December Hashim Thaci, the Prime Minister of Kosovo, was alleged to be "the head of a 'mafia-like' Albanian group responsible for smuggling weapons, drugs and human organs through eastern Europe, according to a Council of Europe inquiry report on organized crime" as then reported by Paul Lewis for the Guardian.

Notwithstanding the seriousness of the allegations which have been seconded by many others, the United States continues to embrace Thaci with a callous indifference for the purported victims as reported by Matt McAllester for the GlobalPost:

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton visited him in Kosovo as recently as the fall. "I want you to know, prime minister," Clinton said to Thaci, during her visit to Pristina on Oct. 13 last year, "that just as we have been with you on the hard road to independence, we will stay with you. We are your partners and we are your friends and we are very committed to your future."

The United States is fully aware of the allegations in all their sordid glory -- indeed, many of the claims are repeated in NATO intelligence reports -- and yet a nation which supposedly respects human rights and vaunts the rule of law inexplicably chooses to look the other way.

Related:

"Kosovo's Mafia: Assassinations and intimidation" by Matt McAllester for the GlobalPost

"Kosovo's Mafia: A hotbed of human trafficking" by Matt McAllester for the GlobalPost

Earlier Coverage: