Mafia Games Latest Hot Genre on iPhones and iPods

The latest hot games genre on iPhone and iPod touch? Mafia titles.

Social games firm SGN has launched its Mafia: Respect & Retaliation game, which will now go head-to-head with Addmired's iMob Online, Aftershock Innovations's Mafia LIVE! and PlayMesh's iMafia.

All three are massively multiplayer strategy games where players build an empire by carrying out criminal jobs, rubbing out rivals, and signing friends up to join their mobs.

SGN is touting location-based features and "Sin City-alike graphics" as the key selling points of its title. Jobs can be carried out in real-world locations, including The Empire State Building and Central Park Zoo in New York.

Mafia: Respect & Retaliation also has the multi-tiered pricing model seen in its rivals. There's a free version, but then a series of premium versions letting their characters start with more 'respect' - right up to a $99.99 Ultimate version.

There's also an accelerometer-powered shooting gallery mini-game, to further tempt players away from the rival games.

Which of the three will be more popular among iPhone gamers? It's too early to tell - their respective viral spreads will define this. But it's looking likely to be a bloody battle.

Thanks to Stuart Dredge

Mafia Channeling Funds into Desperate Banks During Global Credit Crisis

Cash-rich Mafia groups have been channelling funds into banks desperate to survive the global credit crisis, the UN anti-crime chief said on Monday.

Antonio Maria Costa of the UN Office on Drugs and Crime said he had collected ample evidence to make such accusations.

"Consultations I've had with prosecutors and law-enforcement officials around the world show there is ample evidence that the banking system's illiquidity is providing a unique opportunity for organized crime to launder their money," Costa told Reuters.

"Just about every financial centre can be characterized as part of the problem," Costa said in the interview, but declined to name countries or banks involved, saying that was for prosecutors and other law-enforcement bodies to do.

Costa said a Vienna conference next month marking the 10th anniversary of a UN General Assembly special session on drugs would mull ways to boost steps against money laundering and ease the impact of drug gang profits on the integrity of states.

He said the multilateral Financial Action Task Force (FATF) formed in 1991 did much to help drive mafia money out of banks over the ensuing decade but that achievement was being challenged by the global hemorrhaging of legitimate credit.

"You have the supply — an organized crime industry with enormous amounts of cash, estimated at $322 billion in 2005, not any more stored in banks — and the demand, a banking sector strapped for liquidity," said Costa.

"This is a supply- and demand-driven situation. Our intuition, based on logic, is now supported by ample evidence."

Asked where cases were occurring, he said: "Traditionally, Europe and North America are the places where, as financial centres, most money would be laundered.

"What we are seeing," Costa said, "is the weakening of the strongest instrument embedded in the FATF campaign, and that is, 'Know your client'. That is, accept resources only from those you know, and if you don't do so, inform the authorities.

"It has been quite widely documented that because of the difficult financial situation of banking institutions, that principle has been weakened to the point of being indirect evidence of what we are (talking about)." Costa said many member states in his UNODC agency were saying the time was not yet right for additional measures against money launderers taking advantage of struggling banks.

"I insist that the (globalized) crime industry has become so gigantic, destabilizing so many countries, that it is emerging in areas where we have not seen it before. They're buying more than just industry, real estate, elections, power," he said.

"We will present some concepts and lines of action for member states to consider when ministers meet next month, related to the size and shape of organized crime and the threat it is now posing."

Costa raised the appearance of links between the liquidity crunch and organized crime cash flows at a closed gathering of financial industry professionals in Frankfurt in November.

Britain said in December that financial sector fraud had risen alarmingly, fifteen-fold, since its credit markets began seizing up but was typically committed by internal managers and suppliers rather than organized crime.

Thanks to Mark Heinrich

Lorenzo Giordano of the Montreal Mafia Sentenced to Prison in the Operation Colisee Case

A prominent member of the Montreal Mafia has been sentenced to 15 years in prison.

Lorenzo Giordano, 45, pleaded guilty in the past to charges of gangsterism, conspiracy and living off the profits of crime.

He was involved in helping to import hundreds of kilograms of cocaine into Canada.

Time spent behind bars before sentencing usually counts double, but the Crown agreed to allow it to count for triple in Giordano's case because he will be in isolation.

That means Giordano has about 10 years left in the 15-year sentence.

Giordano was arrested in Toronto in May 2007 as part of Operation Colisee, a widespread crackdown on the Mafia.

Video Conference Court Hearing Held for Reputed Mob Captain Called "The Saint"

Reputed mob captain Anthony "the saint" St. Laurent faces charges of trying to pull off a gangland slaying in downtown Providence.

On Monday, St. Laurent participated in a U.S. District Court in Providence by video conference from the federal prison in Massachusetts. St. Laurent is currently serving a sentence for extortion.

St. Laurent, identified by law enforcement as Capo Regime in the Patriarca crime family, tried to hire two men to kill rival Capo, Robert "Bobby" Deluca in 2006, and again from behind bars in 2007.

In a criminal complaint obtained by Target 12, FBI case agent Joseph Degnan wired up an informant ,who recorded a 2006 conversation in St. Laurent’s house. According to the recording, St. Laurent not only told two men he wanted Deluca dead, but he said he had the permission of "the boss."

The boss, according to court documents, is Luigi "Baby Shacks" Manocchio, who runs the New England crime family from Providence's Federal Hill. St. Laurent even drove one of the men to Deluca's workplace, Sidebar Bar and Grille in Providence.

Shortly after that, St. Laurent was scooped up in a separate extortion plot. But apparently, still raging from behind bars at Fort Devens Federal Prison in Massachusetts, investigators said St. Laurent tried to solicit a hit through fellow inmates.

In a criminal complaint, unsealed on Friday, St. Laurent was charged with solicitation of murder. The FBI released a statement Friday afternoon touting cooperation between Rhode Island State Police, Massachusetts State Police, Providence Police and Boston Police.

Target 12 Investigator Tim White spoke with Deluca's attorney Artin Coloian late Friday and said his client was informed of the attempted hit and that Deluca is not concerned for his safety.

Thanks to Melissa Sardelli

FBI Holds Whitey Bulger Briefing for International Media

One of the FBI’s most notorious fugitives was in the spotlight yesterday, as a briefing for international media at the State Department offered a global perspective on James “Whitey” Bulger, the Boston crime boss wanted for his role in 19 murders and a host of other offenses.

Because Bulger is believed to be living overseas, “the focus of the case has become international,” said Richard Teahan, a Supervisory Special Agent in the FBI's Boston office who is in charge of the case. Through international exposure, Teahan said, “We hope to make his world smaller for him.”

There is currently a reward of up to $2 million for Bulger, the largest reward they’ve ever offered for any of the FBI's U.S. Top Ten fugitives.

The job of catching Bulger—on the run for 14 years—has not been easy, in part because he is a meticulous planner who spent nearly two decades preparing for life as a fugitive. He stashed money all over the world, and he leaves no paper trail, paying only in cash.

Based on intelligence, they have a strong picture of Bulger’s personality:

* He is an avid reader who frequents libraries, an animal lover, and a fitness nut who takes long walks.
* He is a history buff with a compulsive urge for collecting videotapes and books about World War II and Adolf Hitler.
* He loves to travel, frequently visiting historic landmarks and museums, and has traveled widely in France, Ireland, the United Kingdom, Spain, and Canada.
* He is said to always carry a knife.

Bulger, now 79, is known to disguise himself by dying his hair, wearing a moustache, and donning different types of glasses. He is said to be proud of the three-year stretch he did at Alcatraz (for bank robbery), and, noted Teahan, “he has vowed that he will never, ever go back to prison.”

Born and raised in the predominantly Irish-Catholic projects of South Boston, Bulger was involved in serious crimes at an early age, including assault, robbery, and rape.

After a stint in the Air Force and at several federal penitentiaries, he joined the Winter Hill Gang, which took over the South Boston crime scene. In addition to the murders he is charged with, he participated in drug trafficking, extortion, and loan-sharking, Teahan said.

Bulger’s criminal enterprises over the last several decades may have earned him anywhere from $10 million to $30 million. He also infiltrated government agencies, including the FBI, sowing seeds of public distrust in law enforcement that remain in South Boston to this day. “He left a scar on the community,” Teahan said, that will only be fully healed when he has been captured.

Despite the difficulty of the search, the FBI has made some progress in the case. For example, they have discovered two of Bulger’s bank accounts. At Barclay’s Bank in London, they found $75,000 in cash. At another of his accounts in Ireland, they found different types of currencies and rare coins.

A multi-agency task force dedicated solely to finding Bulger (and his companion, Catherine Greig, who is under indictment for harboring a fugitive) continues to gather and analyze intelligence and respond to tips of sightings. The task force is made up of personnel from the FBI, the Massachusetts Department of Correction, and the Massachusetts State Police.

“We’re committed to finding him,” Teahan said. “No matter how long it takes.”

They need your help. If you have any information on Bulger’s whereabouts, contact your local FBI office or the nearest U.S. Embassy or Consulate.

Feds Record Mob Hit Man Discussing a Whacking

The feds secretly recorded Gambino hit man Charles Carneglia acknowledging he fatally stabbed a mob associate outside a Queens diner, it was learned Monday.

Carneglia fessed up to the murder in a 1999 jailhouse visit with Gambino capo Gene Gotti, a transcript shows.

Documents filed in Brooklyn Federal Court say a listening bug was planted in the visiting room at the federal prison in Pennsylvania where Gotti was serving a 50-year sentence for heroin trafficking.

The victim, Michael Cotillo, was the nephew of a Gambino gangster whose crew was often at odds in the 1970s with John Gotti's faction, of which Carneglia was a member.

"Well, you stabbed somebody, Charles. You stabbed one of their guys," Gene Gotti said on the transcript.

Carneglia replied: "I know that. I know."

"And that's why they wanted to get you," Gene Gotti reminded him.

Gene Gotti was referring to revenge sought by Cotillo's friends and relatives after the Nov. 6, 1977, killing during a melee outside the Blue Fountain Diner on Cross Bay Blvd. in Howard Beach.

There were multiple sitdowns within the crime family to settle the beef, turncoat witness Anthony Ruggiano testified Monday at Carneglia's racketeering trial.

"They [Cotillo's faction] were looking to kill Charlie," Ruggiano said. "I said whatever you do, do it right because Charlie's no joke."

Despite the passage of 22 years, Carneglia still expressed concern on the tape that permission to whack him for Cotillo's murder had been granted. Gotti pointed out the threat was "squashed."

Carneglia is charged with killing five people, including Cotillo. Prosecutors plan to play the tape for the jury today.

Thanks to John Marzulli

History Repeats Itself, After One CPA Gets Capone, Another CPA Puts the Mafia Cops Away

Accountant Stephen Corso was in deep trouble. His clients, including longtime friends, told federal authorities in 2002 t hat he had stolen more than $5 million. Then the Ridgefield man who loved to gamble took the biggest risk of his life: He decided to become an FBI informant in Las Vegas.

Corso's fateful decision came as federal agents were struggling to build a case against two former New York City police detectives long suspected of collaborating with the mob — and even of killing for the mob — in one of the worst cases of police corruption in the city's history.

After a secret meeting with an FBI agent, Corso was fitted with a wire and went to work recording conversations with suspected mobsters visiting Las Vegas from around the country.

He had no backup as he secretly recorded the conversations, and once was threatened with execution if he turned out to be an informant, authorities said.

His clandestine recordings eventually filled more than 900 tapes.

"We came across anything and everything," said FBI agent Kevin Sheehan.

Among the people Corso met in his undercover work was Louis Eppolito, one of the detectives suspected of carrying out mob hits.

"It was divine intervention," Robert Henoch, a former New York prosecutor who handled the case, said at Corso's sentencing Tuesday when he received a year in prison. Or maybe it was dumb luck, he added.

Either way, Corso's recordings began to fill in the holes in the case against Eppolito and fellow former detective Stephen Caracappa. Eppolito, the son of a mobster, was living in Las Vegas while trying to peddle screenplays.

Eppolito and Caracappa were accused of participating in eight mob-related killings between 1986 and 1990 while working for the Luchese crime family. At one point in Corso's recordings, Eppolito bragged about dunking someone's head in acid and threatened to decapitate another person, Henoch said.

A New York jury found the detectives guilty in 2006, but a judge dismissed their racketeering case after determining the statute of limitations had passed on the slayings. A federal appeals court reinstated the verdict last year after prosecutors argued that the murders were part of a conspiracy that lasted through a drug deal in 2005 with Corso.

"There never would have been justice without Mr. Corso's cooperation," Henoch said.

Corso's intelligence also led to other prosecutions and saved investigators millions of dollars, authorities said.

Corso, who faced the possibility of more than seven years in prison but won the reduced sentence for his extraordinary cooperation, is scheduled to surrender May 6. He also has been ordered to pay restitution to the clients from whom he stole money.

Susan Patrick, whose family lost more than $800,000 to Corso, said he was a family friend before the thefts.

"This started a six-year nightmare," she said Tuesday. "We will never be whole for our losses. I don't believe Mr. Corso is at all sorry."

Corso, who apologized to the victims and his family, said at the time that he ripped off millions from his clients to finance a life of "girlfriends, jewelry and going out." Prosecutors say he also had significant gambling losses while living a second life in Las Vegas.

Corso told the judge his parents were first generation Italian immigrants who struggled so that he could have a better life and helped pay for his education at New York University. They hated the mob, he said. "And I threw it all away," Corso said. "I simply lost the way I was raised, how I was raised, but I know for the last six years I functioned and there was never a moment, never a second, that I ever considered doing anything wrong."

Authorities said they offered to put Corso in a witness protection program, but he refused because he would not be able to see his wife and three children.

They say Corso remains in danger because of his cooperation with them. "Mr. Corso will live the rest of his life with a target on his back," said his attorney, J. Bruce Maffeo.

Thanks to John Christoffersen

Chicago Bulls Assistant Coach, Bob Ociepka, Authors "Minestrone for the Mobster's Soul: Life Lessons from the Movie Mafia"

When Chicago Bulls assistant coach Bob Ociepka says "nice shot" in his free time, you can bet he's not talking about basketball.

Ociepka, who lives in Arlington Heights, loves mob movies. Loves them. He's studied them all, from the James Cagney flicks of the 1930s all the way up to contemporary films like "American Gangster."

The crime and violence inherent in such films is part of the fascination, of course, but Ociepka said he's also attracted to the actually quite-traditional values that the characters espouse when they're not breaking the law: respect, loyalty, responsibility, friendship.

"It occurred to me that there really are some important lessons in those movies," Ociepka said during a phone interview shortly before a Bulls-Rockets game in Houston. "And that's when I thought of putting those lessons together in a book."

The result is "Minestrone for the Mobster's Soul: Life Lessons from the Movie Mafia," a book Ociepka co-wrote and self-published with his cousin, Bruno Ociepka, also a mob-movie devotee.

The pair's fascination with Hollywood's treatment of organized crime began in their youth, when they lived on Chicago's West Side, an area that used to be home to a connected guy or two.

"We didn't have to look far to see some of that stuff," Bob Ociepka said with a laugh. "It was all around."

The book includes hundreds of mob-movie quotes and lists of the mob films that the authors would like to have "made" and others they believe should get whacked. ("The Godfather" is a favorite, but "Black Caesar" gets low marks.)

The heart of the book, though, is a fictionalized account of life on Chicago's West Side in the '50s and '60s. These accounts, narrated by the Ociepkas' alter-egos Bobby Madura and Joey DiBruno, hum with Chicago references and street slang. You'll read about 16-inch Clinchers, stern Catholic school nuns and the danger involved in running afoul of the neighborhood precinct captain.

"It was a professional writer in California who suggested that we include the Chicago stories along with the movie stuff," Bob Ociepka said. "We changed some details in the stories so they could fit with the lessons we were talking about, but there's still a lot of truth in them."

Ociepka, a graduate of Providence-St. Mel High School in Chicago, made his name as a local high school basketball coach before moving to the NBA in the late 1980s. He joined the Bulls' staff last year.

Ociepka said he's been handing out copies of the book to his players, many of whom share his interest in mob flicks. He recently autographed a copy for Ben Gordon, the Bulls' hot-shooting guard.

"I'm glad that a lot of the players like the movies, but they tend to focus on the recent ones," Ociepka said. "'Scarface' (the 1983 Brian DePalma version) is a big favorite. But it kills me that some of them have never seen 'The Godfather.'"

Writing "Minestrone" took about seven years, from conception to completion. Ociepka said he loved the experience, but he's not sure if he has another book inside him. "I might have told all my good stories in this one," he said.

Thanks to Matt Arado

Customer Complains about Calzone, Allegedly Pistol-Whipped by Reputed Mobster Restaurateur

Authorities believe a Florida restaurateur accused of pistol-whipping and beating a customer might have connections to organized crime in New York City.

When a Florida judge signed warrants Friday for Joseph Milano, they also listed the name "Joseph Calco." The Daytona Beach News-Journal obtained the documents.

Calco was an aspiring mobsters who became a federal informant and testified at the trial of Anthony Spero. Authorities called Spero one of New York's top organized crime figures.

Milano was arrested Friday on two charges of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. The State Attorney's Office told the newspaper the charges were "based on his identity as Joey Calco."

Milano was arrested in January after being accused of attacking a customer who complained about a calzone.

Crime Does Pay. How? Italian Mafia Earned $167 Billions

How many times have we heard these words? "Crime doesn't pay"....or a Judge will say, "it doesn't pay to commit crimes".

It is true crime didn't pay for some lawbreakers who were caught and lost their freedom and every dime they earned. Swindler Ken Madoff earned billions running a ponzi scheme that bilked investors and now he's been caught. With the exception of having already spent 'hundreds of millons' and facing life in prison Madoff will probably lose all the money he may have left. Did crime pay for this billionaire crook?

You be the judge.

But there's a group of outlaws who keep winning in the crime game and seemingly they .never lose. They don't own banks, casinos, nor authorized by government to print 'money on demand' but they've mastered the money game of making crime pay 24-7. They're not strangers. Their history etched in the annals of the crime world. They are no other than Italian Organized Crime aka Mafia. And they make billions!

Financial experts said the global recession has undoubtedly struck European countries hard but Italy's organized crime thrives in the midst of it all. Italy's world known organized crime groups are: (1) Sicilian Mafia. (2) Camorra (3) 'Ndrangheta (4) Sacra Corona Unita. Bloomberg.com reported the Italian Mafia's revenue in 2008 had increased 40 percent.

Example: Italy's organized crime syndicates grossed at least $167 billion dollars in 2008, up from $90 billion euros in 2007, according to figures supplied by Eurispes and SOS Impresa. Eurispes is a worldwide research organization and SOS Impresa consist of businessmen who investigate Mafia extortion. Extensive research based on long-term investigations and apprehension of organized crime gangsters, drug trafficking ranked the number#1 top revenue, bringing in approximately $59 billion euros.

Other Mafia players earned $5.8 billion euros from selling arms, the Rome-based research group reported Friday, January 30, 2009. "During a crisis, people lower their guard", says Robert Saviano. Saviano became an overnight success in 2007 after publishing a bestselling book called "Gomorrah". Gomorrah, superbly document the history of the notorious Camorra crime bosses. "Studies show the criminal market never suffer during a crisis", Saviano explained. "I'm convinced this crisis brings huge advantage to criminal syndicates". As the global recession tighten its grip banks are recluctant to risk loans.

This area of finance brings the Mafia on shore. They loan money at high interest rates. Consequences are detrimental even sometimes fatal if the borrower fail to pay up on time. "With people more desperate for money, loan sharking thrives", said Amedeo Vitagliano, an Italian crime expert at Eurispes research organization. "While the country is on its kneess, the Mob rejoice".

So how can the experts know the amount of illegal money earned by organized crime? What guidelines are utilized to caculate the Mafia's big payoffs? Simple math.

Mafia wealth is reflected in police asset seizures of $5.2 billions in 2008. $2.9 billions seized from the Camorra; $1.4 billion from the Sicilian Mob based in Sicily, and $231 millions from the 'Ndrangheta syndicate. The Eurispe report confimed a recent estimation by the Interior Ministry that 'Ndrangheta alone generate $45 billion euros, or 3% of GDP(Gross Domesticated Products) from dominating the European cocaine trade.

Here's another breakdown of revenues earned in 2008 by Italian organized crime based on their network of operations:

(1) loan shark: $12.6 billion euros
(2) protection rackets: $9 billion
(3) Arms trafficking and smuggling crimes: $5.8 billion In 2006, previous research showed that organized crime made $128 billions, a sum equivalent at that time to 7 percent of Italy's GDP.

For 2005, the crime syndicates took in approximately $106 billions. But the economy in Italy can swing back and forth with a double edged sword. Many businesses not particularly connected with the mob engage in shady pratices of doing business off the books.

Gian Maria Fara, an Eurispes chairman said the deeper underground economy don't reflect gross domestic product figures. "During good times, having a big underground sector can be a burden since the underground products isn't taxable and the state must account for it by increasing taxes on those who actually pay taxes".

"In this country," Fara added, "much more money goes around than whats actually represented by official statistics". "Italy's black economy has grown to a staggering 35% of GDP, approximately $540 billion euros".

Despite mass arrests of Italian crime gangsters over the years and the capture of several family bosses and high-ranking soldiers the Italian Mafia is a phenonomal money machine. They are a force the law must deal with in years to come.

Each day from extortion the combined groups earn at least $90 to 100$ billon euros per year, $250 million euros a day and $10 million euros an hour. If that's not making crime pay....then nobody commit crimes.... but we know this isn't true. People commit crimes every day.

Just ask the Mafia. They make billions and nobody can stop them.

Thanks to Clarence Walker

Genovese Crime Family Bust Centers Around Gambling Operations

In the state of New York it has become common place to have police bust up mafia operations. It occurred again on Wednesday when thirteen alleged members of the Genovese crime family were charged with various crimes.

Gambling, as it is in most mafia cases, was at the forefront of the charges. The indictment that was unsealed refers to the "operation of illegal gambling businesses." The men were also charged with extortion, narcotics trafficking, and loansharking.

Of the thirteen people that were charged, six of them were arrested early Wednesday morning. The other seven were either in the process of turning themselves in or were already in custody from other charges.

Among the arrests was a former acting boss for the Genovese crime family. Several of his soldiers were also picked up in the raid. Thomas Tassiello, another Genovese family member was charged in a separate indictment on charges of extortion and racketeering.

The sting stems from the crime family shaking down local businesses, mainly bartending school owners in both Jersey City and Manhattan. Genovese soldiers reportedly took over the businesses after the owners could make their payments on loansharking debts.

Thanks to Tom Jones