Mafia Princess Caught on Video Shoplifting from Target

Mafia princess Kim Persico was caught on video pushing a cart full of hot goods out of Target on Staten Island, authorities said.

Persico, daughter-in-law of Colombo crime family boss Carmine (The Snake) Persico, smiled as she was released without bail after appearing in Criminal Court yesterday.

Persico, 47, is charged with stealing $597 worth of cleaning supplies, clothing, health and beauty aids and home decor items.

"She put the items in a shopping cart and walked out of the store without paying," said William Smith, a spokesman for the Staten Island district attorney's office.

Her lawyer, Salvatore Strazzullo, said he expects the charges will be tossed. "Are you kidding me? Why is she going to steal from Target?" he said.

Persico, of Brooklyn, is married to Lawrence Persico, one of three sons of Carmine Persico. The don's son Lawrence has a "long history of severe mental health issues," according to papers filed in a 2003 racketeering case.

Thanks to Matthew Lysiak and John Marzulli.

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Attorney Sentenced for Laundering Mafia Money

A disbarred South Florida attorney will spend time behind bars for his role in laundering money and other schemes orchestrated by a local mafia crew affiliated with New York's Bonanno crime family.

Kenneth Dunn of Boca Raton was sentenced Friday in Fort Lauderdale federal court to 43 months in prison. He had faced up to 57 months in prison.

Dunn acted as the crew's legal advisor. He told a federal judge that his drug habit clouded his judgment. He admitted he became entangled with organized crime two years ago, conspiring to forge checks, launder money and sell off documents that contained people's personal information, including their Social Security numbers.

FBI agents arrested Dunn and 10 other people from Broward and Palm Beach counties last May.

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Rick Cowan, Undercover Detective Who Fought the Mob, Feels Betrayed by His Own Police Department

An NYPD detective who risked his life to infiltrate the Mafia has been stripped of the right to carry a firearm because of a line-of-duty injury, the Daily News has learned.

Rick Cowan, a retired first-grade detective, posed as a recycling company exec named Danny Benedetto in the early 1990s to expose mob influence in the carting industry.

His work secretly recording mobsters and corrupt businessmen earned him one of the NYPD's top medals - honorable mention. But now, with the NYPD refusing to let him carry a weapon for protection, he feels betrayed by the job he loved.

"The nature of the Mafia is these people are very vengeful," said Cowan, 52, who retired in December 2008 after 25 years on the force.

After suffering serious injuries in an on-duty car accident, Cowan had a shunt put in his head - a device that carries a small risk of complications if he suffers a blow to the head.

Department officials are concerned that if Cowan lost consciousness, he would be unable to safeguard his firearm and consigned him to its "no carry" list.

Cowan's lawyer said the NYPD medical division appears more concerned with liability issues than the safety of the detective and his family.

"He's being deprived of a firearm for no logical reason," said his lawyer, Jeffrey Goldberg of Lake Success. "He did a great job for New York City, and this is no way to treat a hero."

Cowan sued in Manhattan Supreme Court to get off the "no carry" list but a judge recently rejected his appeal.

He's hoping he can persuade the NYPD to at least remove the label so he can apply to carry a firearm in other jurisdictions.

Thanks to John Marzulli

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