Friends of Ours

Emilio Fusco Moves To Upset Convictions

Last May reputed Genovese soldier Emilio Fusco was acquitted for two gangland murders that took place in Springfield, MA but convicted on other charges, and his defense lawyer has filed a motion to vacate all but one of those convictions on various grounds as reported by Stephanie Barry for The Republican.

As it now stands Fusco faces up to 45 years in prison when sentenced in September by Manhattan federal judge Kevin Castel on a slew of convictions including racketeering, extortion and drug trafficking conspiracies.

If Fusco were convicted for his alleged role in the 2003 murders of Genovese capo Adolfo Bruno and mob associate Gary Westerman he undoubtedly would have been given life in prison.  Fusco's three co-defendants, including onetime Genovese acting boss Arthur Nigro, were convicted last year for their roles in the Bruno slaying, and now are serving life sentences.

Mobster's Son Blames FBI For Father's Murder

Victor Bruno, the son of slain Genovese capo Big Al, held a press conference on Thursday to grouse about the feds for not doing more to protect his father from the 2003 hit on his life in Springfield, MA as reported by Stephanie Barry for The Republican:

"The FBI knew my father's life was in danger. Yet, they took no steps to adequately notify him other than a brief, informal and impromptu meeting by Special Agent Cliff Hedges when my dad was eating pizza," Bruno said, referring to a meeting between his father and the Springfield agent in 2002 who was later memorialized in a presentencing report for Emilio Fusco, the latest defendant tried in connection with Adolfo Bruno's death.

The information in the presentencing report that Big Al had met with the FBI to discuss the mob allegedly was a catalyst for his subsequent hit, and the mobster's son contends it never should have been included in the court-filed document for the world to see.

Earlier this month Fusco was acquitted in the Bruno murder.  Fusco's three co-defendant, including onetime Genovese acting boss Arthur Nigro, were convicted last year for their roles in the Bruno slaying, and are now serving life sentences.

The government's case rested largely on the testimony of flipped gangsters including Genovese capo Anthony "Bingy" Arillotta pursuant to a plea deal with federal prosecutors.

Emilio Fusco Acquitted On Murder Charges

After two days of deliberations a federal jury in New York, NY has acquitted Emilio Fusco in the 2003 murders of Genovese capo Adolfo Bruno and mob associate Gary Westerman in Springfield, MA as reported by Stephanie Barry for The Republican.  However, the jury did convict the 43-year-old alleged Genovese soldier on a host of other charges including racketeering, extortion and drug trafficking conspiracies.  Fusco's three co-defendants, including onetime Genovese acting boss Arthur Nigro, were convicted last year for their roles in the Bruno slaying, and are now serving life sentences.

Emilio Fusco: Lies, Lies, It's All Lies!

Closing arguments concluded yesterday in the racketeering trial against reputed Genovese soldier Emilio Fusco who is charged for his alleged role in the 2003 slayings of crew boss Adolfo Bruno and mob associate Gary Westerman in Springfield, MA, and the defense apparently claims the case is based on lies pursuant to some conspiracy between federal prosecutors and turncoat Anthony Arillotta as reported by Stephanie Barry for The Republican. 

Of course, the defense claim necessarily begs the following question:  why then is everybody picking on Fusco?  The jury may find it hard to believe that Fusco's name arbitraily was pulled out of a hat, and given that several defendants already have been convicted for their roles in the slay plots it's not as if the government was looking for a scapegoat or Arillotta needed to earn his keep.

Arillotta testified at the trial last year against Fusco's three co-defendants -- onetime Genovese acting boss Artie Nigro and Greek brothers Freddy and Ty Geas -- and the jury returned a guilty verdict after deliberating just five hours.

It's easy to understand why Arillotta makes such an impression on the jury.  At Fusco's trial an FBI crime scene technician testified "that Arillotta was so precise when he led investigators to the site where he said he, the Geases and Fusco killed and buried Westerman in a large wooded lot in Agawam, that agents only had to dig one hole to find his remains seven years after the fact" as reported by Stephanie Barry for The Republican.

The Government Rests In Emilio Fusco Trial

Federal prosecutors have rested their case in the racketeering trial against reputed Genovese soldier Emilio Fusco who is charged for his alleged role in the 2003 slayings of crew boss Adolfo Bruno and mob associate Gary Westerman in Springfield, MA as reported by Stephanie Barry for The Republican:

The government closed with witnesses that included the Italian police official who arrested Fusco at a bus stop in Santaniello, Italy on July 29, 2010. * * * The government has argued Fusco fled to avoid prosecution amid intense publicity about a law enforcement dig for Westerman's body in a wooded lot in Agawam, Mass., in April of 2010 and speculation that mob captain Anthony J. Arillotta was cooperating with the FBI and state police.

As Fusco fought the extradition proceedings in Italy he missed the racketeering trial at which his three co-defendants -- onetime Genovese acting boss Arthur Nigro and Greek brothers Freddy and Ty Geas -- were convicted last April based on the testimony of Arillotta and others.