An ex-son-in-law of late New York mob boss John Gotti was arrested in Ohio on Wednesday in what police described as a scheme to scrap stolen cars.
Carmine "The Bull" Agnello was charged with theft, money laundering and conspiracy in connection with the alleged car-scrapping operation.
He was also charged with drugging race horses before competition, animal cruelty and "corrupting" sports following an investigation by Cleveland police and the Cuyahoga County prosecutors office, authorities said.
The charges were brought as part of an 18-month investigation called "Operation Goodfella."
"We are not going to let the Mafia sink their teeth back into Cleveland and make this into an outpost for their New York-based corrupt enterprises," Cuyahoga County Prosecutor Timothy McGinty said in a statement.
Police said they found multiple firearms and $45,000 cash in a search at Agnello's home in Bentleyville, Ohio, about 20 miles southeast of Cleveland, and also found evidence of illegal dumping at his scrap metal business in Cleveland.
Cleveland police said they had been investigating scrap metal yards after very few vehicles were recovered despite a spike in car thefts in the past three years. They focused on Agnello's yard because of the large amount of cars it processed.
Police accused Agnello of defrauding a regional scrap metal processor of more than $3 million since 2014 by weighing down stolen scrapped cars with dirt.
The Cleveland Plain Dealer quoted police as saying Agnello paid teenagers to steal cars, usually for $20 or $25 per vehicle, and bring them to his business.
Cleveland Deputy Police Chief Edward Tomba said Agnello, who is in his mid-50s, had been convicted in New York on federal charges in 2001 similar to those brought by Cleveland and served seven years in prison.
Agnello and Gotti's daughter, Victoria Gotti, star of the reality program "Growing Up Gotti," divorced in 2002.
Thursday, July 16, 2015
Wednesday, July 15, 2015
Mafia 3 Release Date Update
Fans have been eagerly awaiting the release of the Triple A third-person shooter video game "Mafia," but it looks like they have to rein in their emotions some more as game developer and publisher 2K Games failed to reveal the good news during the Electronics Entertainment Expo (E3) 2015.
Various speculations suggest that "Mafia 3" could be launched during the first game's 13th anniversary on August 28. Others think that it will be earlier, and that it is possible that the game will officially debut at the upcoming Gamescon in Cologne, Germany on August 5-8.
Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc., 2K Games' parent company, has recently registered four domains under the name of "Mafia 3." Some websites conclude that this move is in preparation for the game's upcoming release.
Meanwhile, Crossmap claims that the AAA game that 2K will be releasing in March 2016 is the upcoming "Mafia 3." Take-Two Interactive has earlier posted an announcement on its website regarding the highlights of the company's fiscal year, with the news on the new triple-A included.
According to the Crossmap, there are actually two signs proving that the news is pertaining to the video game. The first clue is the fact that 'Mafia 2' has been offered earlier this month for free on Xbox 360 for the Gold Subscription members. The second one is that Rick Pasqualone (voice actor for Mafia 2) has hinted of about it back in January.
Meawhile, Master Herald reports that new characters – Tony, Mickey, and Franklin – will be introduced in "Mafia 3." Tony is reportedly of Italian descent, thin, and calm and is in his early 30s, while Mickey is described as big talker, of average built, and younger. The third addition, Franklin, is a six feet African-American, also in his 20s, with a muscular built. All characters are from Louisiana.
2K Games has yet to make an announcement confirming the latest reports.
Various speculations suggest that "Mafia 3" could be launched during the first game's 13th anniversary on August 28. Others think that it will be earlier, and that it is possible that the game will officially debut at the upcoming Gamescon in Cologne, Germany on August 5-8.
Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc., 2K Games' parent company, has recently registered four domains under the name of "Mafia 3." Some websites conclude that this move is in preparation for the game's upcoming release.
Meanwhile, Crossmap claims that the AAA game that 2K will be releasing in March 2016 is the upcoming "Mafia 3." Take-Two Interactive has earlier posted an announcement on its website regarding the highlights of the company's fiscal year, with the news on the new triple-A included.
According to the Crossmap, there are actually two signs proving that the news is pertaining to the video game. The first clue is the fact that 'Mafia 2' has been offered earlier this month for free on Xbox 360 for the Gold Subscription members. The second one is that Rick Pasqualone (voice actor for Mafia 2) has hinted of about it back in January.
Meawhile, Master Herald reports that new characters – Tony, Mickey, and Franklin – will be introduced in "Mafia 3." Tony is reportedly of Italian descent, thin, and calm and is in his early 30s, while Mickey is described as big talker, of average built, and younger. The third addition, Franklin, is a six feet African-American, also in his 20s, with a muscular built. All characters are from Louisiana.
2K Games has yet to make an announcement confirming the latest reports.
It's Not Unusual for Tom Jones to Have Mob Protection
Tom Jones received Mafia protection when he relocated from his native Wales to America
.
The singer, who has made his home in Los Angeles, confesses he was a little nervous of the gangster offer but now enjoys the fearsome security - even though it's totally unnecessary.
He says, "My manager was half expecting someone to come forward and want something. But that didn't happen, as far as I know."
"The only thing I used to get was, 'If anyone leans on you, you call.' But nobody leaned on me, so luckily I didn't have to call.
"They were protecting me, rather than wanting anything."
.The singer, who has made his home in Los Angeles, confesses he was a little nervous of the gangster offer but now enjoys the fearsome security - even though it's totally unnecessary.
He says, "My manager was half expecting someone to come forward and want something. But that didn't happen, as far as I know."
"The only thing I used to get was, 'If anyone leans on you, you call.' But nobody leaned on me, so luckily I didn't have to call.
"They were protecting me, rather than wanting anything."
President Kennedy Book Links Mob to Assassination
A book claims that three mob bosses were behind President John F. Kennedy's assassination
. Authors Lamar Waldron and Thom Hartmann also say that law enforcement agencies protected the three Mafiosi because they had infiltrated a plan to invade Cuba, the St. Petersburg Times reported. The book says the government could not fully investigate without exposing the invasion plot.
Tampa mob boss Santo Trafficante Jr., according to the book "Ultimate Sacrifice: John and Robert Kennedy, the Plan for a Coup in Cuba, and the Murder of JFK," planned to have Kennedy killed in Tampa. But the attempt misfired and Trafficante instead arranged with New Orleans boss Carlos Marcello for the assassination in Dallas on Nov. 22, 1963.
While conspiracy theorists have been pitching the mob connection for years, linking it to Cuba is new. Waldron and Hartmann say that the mobsters not only hated Kennedy because of his brother's investigations but wanted to get Castro out of Cuba to return to their profitable businesses there.
. Authors Lamar Waldron and Thom Hartmann also say that law enforcement agencies protected the three Mafiosi because they had infiltrated a plan to invade Cuba, the St. Petersburg Times reported. The book says the government could not fully investigate without exposing the invasion plot.Tampa mob boss Santo Trafficante Jr., according to the book "Ultimate Sacrifice: John and Robert Kennedy, the Plan for a Coup in Cuba, and the Murder of JFK," planned to have Kennedy killed in Tampa. But the attempt misfired and Trafficante instead arranged with New Orleans boss Carlos Marcello for the assassination in Dallas on Nov. 22, 1963.
While conspiracy theorists have been pitching the mob connection for years, linking it to Cuba is new. Waldron and Hartmann say that the mobsters not only hated Kennedy because of his brother's investigations but wanted to get Castro out of Cuba to return to their profitable businesses there.
Monday, July 13, 2015
Crime Story - The Complete Series Special Edition on DVD
Set in 1963
, Crime Story is the story of the Chicago Police Major Crime Unit headed by tough-as-nails Lieutenant Mike Torello (Dennis Farina, Get Shorty) and his obsessive pursuit of slick and ruthless gangster Ray Luca (Anthony Denison, The Closer), one of organized crime’s brightest young hoods. As Luca murders, steals, and extorts his way to the top from the mean streets of Chicago to the glitter of Las Vegas, Torello remains hot on his trail. From Michael Mann (Miami Vice, Heat) comes Crime Story, one of the most influential action dramas in television history.
Featuring a stellar supporting cast that includes Stephen Lang, Bill Campbell, Ted Levine, Darlanne Fluegel and Joseph Wiseman.
Guest stars include David Caruso, Julia Roberts, Gary Sinise, Kevin Spacey, Ving Rhames, Lorraine Bracco, Michael Madsen, Pam Grier, Steven Weber, Laura San Giacomo, Stanley Tucci, David Hyde Pierce, Andrew Dice Clay, Deborah Harry, and more. This special collection includes the two hour pilot and both seasons from the cult classic television series.
Episodes: Pilot, Final Transmission, Shadow Dancer, The Saint Louis Book of Blues, The War, Abrams for the Defense, Pursuit of a Wanted Felon, Old Friends Dead Ends, Justice Hits the Skids, For Love or Money, Crime Pays, Hide and Go Thief, Strange Bedfellows, Fatal Crossroads, Torello on Trial, Kingdom of Money, The Battle of Las Vegas, The Survivor, The Pinnacle, Top of the World, Ground Zero, The Senator the Movie Star and the Mob, Blast from the Past, Always a Blonde, Atomic Fallout, Shockwaves, Robbery Armed, Little Girl Lost, Love Hurts, MIG-21, Moulin Rouge, Seize the Time, Femme Fatale, Protected Witness, Last Rites, Pauli Taglia's Dream, Roadrunner, The Brothel Wars, Byline, The Hearings, Pursuit, Escape, Going Home
, Crime Story is the story of the Chicago Police Major Crime Unit headed by tough-as-nails Lieutenant Mike Torello (Dennis Farina, Get Shorty) and his obsessive pursuit of slick and ruthless gangster Ray Luca (Anthony Denison, The Closer), one of organized crime’s brightest young hoods. As Luca murders, steals, and extorts his way to the top from the mean streets of Chicago to the glitter of Las Vegas, Torello remains hot on his trail. From Michael Mann (Miami Vice, Heat) comes Crime Story, one of the most influential action dramas in television history.
Featuring a stellar supporting cast that includes Stephen Lang, Bill Campbell, Ted Levine, Darlanne Fluegel and Joseph Wiseman.
Guest stars include David Caruso, Julia Roberts, Gary Sinise, Kevin Spacey, Ving Rhames, Lorraine Bracco, Michael Madsen, Pam Grier, Steven Weber, Laura San Giacomo, Stanley Tucci, David Hyde Pierce, Andrew Dice Clay, Deborah Harry, and more. This special collection includes the two hour pilot and both seasons from the cult classic television series.
Episodes: Pilot, Final Transmission, Shadow Dancer, The Saint Louis Book of Blues, The War, Abrams for the Defense, Pursuit of a Wanted Felon, Old Friends Dead Ends, Justice Hits the Skids, For Love or Money, Crime Pays, Hide and Go Thief, Strange Bedfellows, Fatal Crossroads, Torello on Trial, Kingdom of Money, The Battle of Las Vegas, The Survivor, The Pinnacle, Top of the World, Ground Zero, The Senator the Movie Star and the Mob, Blast from the Past, Always a Blonde, Atomic Fallout, Shockwaves, Robbery Armed, Little Girl Lost, Love Hurts, MIG-21, Moulin Rouge, Seize the Time, Femme Fatale, Protected Witness, Last Rites, Pauli Taglia's Dream, Roadrunner, The Brothel Wars, Byline, The Hearings, Pursuit, Escape, Going Home
Sunday, July 12, 2015
ZeroZeroZero - Look at cocaine and all you see is powder, look through cocaine and all you see is the world.
From the author of the #1 international bestseller Gomorrah: A Personal Journey into the Violent International Empire of Naples' Organized Crime System, comes an electrifying investigation of the international cocaine trade, as vicious as it is powerful, and its hidden role in the global economy
In many countries
, “000” flour is the finest on the market. It is hard to find, but it is soft, light, almost impalpable—like the purest, highest quality grade of cocaine. ZeroZeroZero is also the title of Roberto Saviano’s unforgettable, internationally bestselling exploration of the inner workings of the global cocaine trade—its rules and armies, and the true depth of its reach into the world economy and, by extension, its grasp on us all.
Gomorrah: A Personal Journey into the Violent International Empire of Naples' Organized Crime System, Saviano’s explosive account of the Neapolitan mob, the Camorra, was a worldwide publishing sensation. It struck such a nerve with the Camorra that Saviano has had to live under twenty-four-hour police protection for more than eight years. During this time he has come to know law enforcement agencies and officials around the world. With their cooperation, Saviano has broadened his perspective to take in the entire global “corporate” entity that is the drug trade and the complex money-laundering operations that allow it to function, often with the complicity of the world’s biggest banks.
The result is a truly harrowing and groundbreaking synthesis of intimate literary narrative and geopolitical analysis of one of the most powerful dark forces in our economy. Saviano tracks the shift in the cocaine trade’s axis of power, from Colombia to Mexico, and relates how the Latin American cartels and gangs have forged alliances, first with the Italian crime syndicates, then with the Russians, Africans, and others. On the one hand, he charts a remarkable increase in sophistication as these criminal entities diversify into many other products and markets. On the other, he reveals the astonishing increase in the severity of violence as they have fought to protect and extend their power.
Saviano is a writer and journalist of rare courage and a thinker of impressive intellectual depth, able to see the connections between far flung phenomena and bind them into a single epic story. Most drug-war narratives feel safely removed from our own lives; Saviano's offers no such comfort. As heart racing as it is heady, ZeroZeroZero is a fusion of disparate genres into a brilliant new form that can rightly be called Savianoesque.
In many countries
, “000” flour is the finest on the market. It is hard to find, but it is soft, light, almost impalpable—like the purest, highest quality grade of cocaine. ZeroZeroZero is also the title of Roberto Saviano’s unforgettable, internationally bestselling exploration of the inner workings of the global cocaine trade—its rules and armies, and the true depth of its reach into the world economy and, by extension, its grasp on us all.Gomorrah: A Personal Journey into the Violent International Empire of Naples' Organized Crime System, Saviano’s explosive account of the Neapolitan mob, the Camorra, was a worldwide publishing sensation. It struck such a nerve with the Camorra that Saviano has had to live under twenty-four-hour police protection for more than eight years. During this time he has come to know law enforcement agencies and officials around the world. With their cooperation, Saviano has broadened his perspective to take in the entire global “corporate” entity that is the drug trade and the complex money-laundering operations that allow it to function, often with the complicity of the world’s biggest banks.
The result is a truly harrowing and groundbreaking synthesis of intimate literary narrative and geopolitical analysis of one of the most powerful dark forces in our economy. Saviano tracks the shift in the cocaine trade’s axis of power, from Colombia to Mexico, and relates how the Latin American cartels and gangs have forged alliances, first with the Italian crime syndicates, then with the Russians, Africans, and others. On the one hand, he charts a remarkable increase in sophistication as these criminal entities diversify into many other products and markets. On the other, he reveals the astonishing increase in the severity of violence as they have fought to protect and extend their power.
Saviano is a writer and journalist of rare courage and a thinker of impressive intellectual depth, able to see the connections between far flung phenomena and bind them into a single epic story. Most drug-war narratives feel safely removed from our own lives; Saviano's offers no such comfort. As heart racing as it is heady, ZeroZeroZero is a fusion of disparate genres into a brilliant new form that can rightly be called Savianoesque.
Friday, July 10, 2015
Sam Giancana Ordered JFK Whacked!!
"Mafia Princess" Antoinette Giancana, daughter of the late Chicago mob boss Sam Giancana, claims in her book that her father ordered the assassination of President John F. Kennedy
. If true, this would make Sam Giancana guilty of one of history's worst crimes. But that doesn't trouble Antoinette Giancana. "The Kennedys were not kind to my father," she said. "They were just as evil and corrupt as any mafioso."
Giancana teamed up with two University of Illinois at Chicago doctors to write JFK and Sam: The Connection Between the Giancana and Kennedy Assassinations. The 217-page book was published by Cumberland House Publishing. Giancana's co-authors are Dr. John Hughes, a neurologist, and Dr. Thomas Jobe, a psychiatrist.
Jobe earlier wrote Lyndon Baines Johnson: The Tragic Self, a Psychohistorical Portrayal. He and Hughes then teamed up on a book about the JFK assassination, and enlisted Giancana's help. Hughes said he did the bulk of the research and writing. But he said Giancana is getting top billing in the list of authors because she's better known.
Giancana's best-selling 1984 memoir, Mafia Princess, was made into a TV movie starring Tony Curtis as Sam and soap opera star Susan Lucci as Antoinette. Now 70, Giancana lives in Elmwood Park. She's a sales associate for a retail chain and markets Giancana Marinara Sauce ("Just Like Dad's, Maybe Better").
Hughes said he read more than 40 books on the JFK assassination and spent almost every weekend for 13 years writing and rewriting the book. He wrote that he used his expertise in neurology to analyze how Kennedy's body moved after he was shot. This led Hughes to conclude that there must have been a shooter on the infamous grassy knoll to Kennedy's right.
The mafia, Hughes wrote, helped Kennedy carry Illinois in the close 1960 election, assuring his victory. In return, JFK was supposed to go easy on the mob. Reneging on the deal, Kennedy unleashed his brother Bobby, the attorney general, on organized crime, the authors claim.
In 1975, Sam Giancana was gunned down while cooking sausage in the basement kitchen of his Oak Park home. The book says the CIA killed Sam Giancana to prevent him from telling a congressional committee about his role in CIA plots to assassinate Cuban leader Fidel Castro.
These theories, scoffs Sam Giancana biographer Bill Brashler, "are as old as the Easter bunny. It's just silliness." Brashler said Kennedy owed his election to the first Mayor Daley, not to the mob. And even if Sam Giancana felt betrayed, it wasn't the mob's style to murder politicians, much less the president. Finally, it was a trusted bodyguard who killed Sam Giancana, not the CIA. "It was a classic mob hit," Brashler said. Brashler said he interviewed Antoinette Giancana for his book, The Don: The Life and Death of Sam Giancana. He concluded she knew next to nothing about her dad's business.
Antoinette Giancana said that for her book she was able to recall long-buried memories during extensive interviews conducted by Jobe.
Conspiracy buffs have proposed 250 theories to explain what "really" happened Nov. 22, 1963, said Ruth Ann Rugg of the Sixth Floor Museum at Dealey Plaza, a JFK assassination museum in Dallas. But Rugg said the only credible explanation is that Lee Harvey Oswald alone shot Kennedy. Conspiracy theorists simply can't accept that such an insignificant drifter changed history by himself. "We want to believe that there was more to it, that there were huge forces involved," Rugg said.
. If true, this would make Sam Giancana guilty of one of history's worst crimes. But that doesn't trouble Antoinette Giancana. "The Kennedys were not kind to my father," she said. "They were just as evil and corrupt as any mafioso."Giancana teamed up with two University of Illinois at Chicago doctors to write JFK and Sam: The Connection Between the Giancana and Kennedy Assassinations. The 217-page book was published by Cumberland House Publishing. Giancana's co-authors are Dr. John Hughes, a neurologist, and Dr. Thomas Jobe, a psychiatrist.
Jobe earlier wrote Lyndon Baines Johnson: The Tragic Self, a Psychohistorical Portrayal. He and Hughes then teamed up on a book about the JFK assassination, and enlisted Giancana's help. Hughes said he did the bulk of the research and writing. But he said Giancana is getting top billing in the list of authors because she's better known.
Giancana's best-selling 1984 memoir, Mafia Princess, was made into a TV movie starring Tony Curtis as Sam and soap opera star Susan Lucci as Antoinette. Now 70, Giancana lives in Elmwood Park. She's a sales associate for a retail chain and markets Giancana Marinara Sauce ("Just Like Dad's, Maybe Better").
Hughes said he read more than 40 books on the JFK assassination and spent almost every weekend for 13 years writing and rewriting the book. He wrote that he used his expertise in neurology to analyze how Kennedy's body moved after he was shot. This led Hughes to conclude that there must have been a shooter on the infamous grassy knoll to Kennedy's right.
The mafia, Hughes wrote, helped Kennedy carry Illinois in the close 1960 election, assuring his victory. In return, JFK was supposed to go easy on the mob. Reneging on the deal, Kennedy unleashed his brother Bobby, the attorney general, on organized crime, the authors claim.
In 1975, Sam Giancana was gunned down while cooking sausage in the basement kitchen of his Oak Park home. The book says the CIA killed Sam Giancana to prevent him from telling a congressional committee about his role in CIA plots to assassinate Cuban leader Fidel Castro.
These theories, scoffs Sam Giancana biographer Bill Brashler, "are as old as the Easter bunny. It's just silliness." Brashler said Kennedy owed his election to the first Mayor Daley, not to the mob. And even if Sam Giancana felt betrayed, it wasn't the mob's style to murder politicians, much less the president. Finally, it was a trusted bodyguard who killed Sam Giancana, not the CIA. "It was a classic mob hit," Brashler said. Brashler said he interviewed Antoinette Giancana for his book, The Don: The Life and Death of Sam Giancana. He concluded she knew next to nothing about her dad's business.
Antoinette Giancana said that for her book she was able to recall long-buried memories during extensive interviews conducted by Jobe.
Conspiracy buffs have proposed 250 theories to explain what "really" happened Nov. 22, 1963, said Ruth Ann Rugg of the Sixth Floor Museum at Dealey Plaza, a JFK assassination museum in Dallas. But Rugg said the only credible explanation is that Lee Harvey Oswald alone shot Kennedy. Conspiracy theorists simply can't accept that such an insignificant drifter changed history by himself. "We want to believe that there was more to it, that there were huge forces involved," Rugg said.
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