Puzzled family members made plans Wednesday to return the body of a man killed in a Las Vegas Strip bombing to Mexico as investigators looked into his background for a motive. "They don't understand the killing or the way of the killing," said Johannes Jacome Cid, consul in charge at the Mexican Consulate in Las Vegas, who is advising the relatives of Willebaldo Dorantes Antonio.
Dorantes Antonio, 24, was killed early Monday when a homemade bomb left on this roof of his car at the Luxor hotel-casino's parking garage exploded as he picked it up.
Jacome Cid was helping the family handle donations to a bank account to transport Dorantes Antonio's body back to the town of San Jose Miahuatlan, in the Mexican state of Puebla.
Max Dorantes, a cousin helping make funeral plans, told The Associated Press in a telephone interview that he and other relatives had no idea who left the small bomb that killed Dorantes Antonio as he left work at a Nathan's Famous hot dog stand with a girlfriend. The woman escaped injury. "He was not part of any gang," Max Dorantes said. "He was a working guy, a very good guy. He worked two jobs. He was one of my good friends."
Max Dorantes, 22, of Newport, Ore., confirmed that his cousin was in the U.S. illegally and had two girlfriends - one a co-worker at Nathan's and the other who left their 6-month-old son with relatives at home in Mexico when she traveled to Las Vegas about two weeks ago. He was not sure if the two women knew about each other.
Investigators, who have said they believe Dorantes Antonio was the intended target of the blast, said the explosion was not a terrorist act or a mob hit.
Tom Mangan, a senior special agent with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, said investigators were fitting together the puzzle of Dorantes Antonio's dual dating relationships, his immigration status, his travels between Mexico and the U.S. and his work. "The questions are: Who would want to do this? Why this guy? And why this method?" Mangan said. "That information is going to come out once we delve into the details about this guy."
Authorities say the motion-activated device exploded with the force of a stick of dynamite, mortally wounding him in the head and blowing a 12-inch hole in the 1996 Dodge Stratus that Max Dorantes sold him in November. Dorantes Antonio died about two hours later at a hospital.
Police have been reviewing surveillance videotapes of the parking garage to try to identify who left the device and when.
Police have not identified the woman who was walking with Dorantes Antonio when he reached his car, but said she was cooperating with investigators. Max Dorantes said she was from Guatemala and had been dating Dorantes Antonio for about six months.
Willebaldo Dorantes Antonio had been in the United States illegally for about three years, his cousin said. He worked nights at Nathan's Famous hot dogs inside the pyramid-shaped Luxor hotel-casino, and days at Quiznos sandwich shop inside the neighboring Excalibur.
Federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents arrested three suspected illegal immigrants at Dorantes Antonio's house after the explosion, said Virginia Kice, regional spokeswoman for the federal agency in Laguna Niguel, Calif. Two men were from Mexico and one was from Guatemala, Kice said.
Frank Bonnano, chief executive of the Nathan's franchise owner, Fifth Avenue Restaurant Group in Las Vegas, said he believed Dorantes Antonio provided residency documentation when he was hired.
Quiznos manager Chris Spanna said Dorantes Antonio submitted a Social Security card and a required Las Vegas police health card when he was hired three weeks ago. Spanna said he did not know until Wednesday that Dorantes Antonio was not in the United States legally.
Funeral arrangements were being handled by Nevada Funeral Service in Las Vegas, which said plans and services were private.
Thanks to Ken Ritter
Thursday, May 10, 2007
90-Year-Old Sonny Franzese, Reputed Head of Colombo Crime Family, Jailed
A 90-year-old Colombo crime family leader who rubbed elbows with Frank Sinatra and other celebrities during his heyday was arrested for associating with known mobsters, his fifth parole violation in 25 years, the FBI said.
John "Sonny" Franzese was arrested Wednesday when he appeared for a regularly scheduled visit with a probation officer, said Jim Margolin, an FBI spokesman.
It was the fifth parole violation for Franzese. Among the others: He was jailed for three years after a November 2000 meeting at a coffee shop with three Colombo family associates. Another time, he spent two years behind bars after federal agents watched him enjoying a bowl of spinach soup with mob associates at a restaurant.
Margolin had no details this time on where Franzese had violated his parole or what he might have been eating or drinking at the time.
Franzese was being held in jail and was to appear in court next week. He didn't have a lawyer, Margolin said.
Despite his age, Franzese reportedly ascended to Colombo underboss two years ago after family boss "Big Joey" Massino was convicted of racketeering and became a federal witness. Massino, who spent 14 years running the family, became the first sitting boss of one of New York's five Mafia families to flip. But Franzese was involved in organized crime long before Massino's ascension. He was a fixture at the Copacabana nightclub, where he often spent time with Sinatra and Sammy Davis Jr., according to Jerry Capeci, author of several books on organized crime and operator of the Web site ganglandnews.com.
Franzese also had a financial stake in the legendary porn movie "Deep Throat."
Franzese's parole restrictions continue through 2020, when he would be older than 100. It was unclear how much prison time he might face on the parole violation.
Since going to jail in 1970 for a bank robbery, Franzese had spent more than two decades -- on and off -- behind bars. He was initially paroled on that charge in 1978, and the first of the parole violations was in 1982.
Franzese wasn't the only aging mobster in court Wednesday. Matthew "Matty the Horse" Ianniello, 86, was sentenced in New Haven, Connecticut, to two years in prison for racketeering conspiracy and tax evasion. The case was part of a federal probe of the trash hauling industry in Connecticut and New York.
Thanks to CNN.
John "Sonny" Franzese was arrested Wednesday when he appeared for a regularly scheduled visit with a probation officer, said Jim Margolin, an FBI spokesman.
It was the fifth parole violation for Franzese. Among the others: He was jailed for three years after a November 2000 meeting at a coffee shop with three Colombo family associates. Another time, he spent two years behind bars after federal agents watched him enjoying a bowl of spinach soup with mob associates at a restaurant.
Margolin had no details this time on where Franzese had violated his parole or what he might have been eating or drinking at the time.
Franzese was being held in jail and was to appear in court next week. He didn't have a lawyer, Margolin said.
Despite his age, Franzese reportedly ascended to Colombo underboss two years ago after family boss "Big Joey" Massino was convicted of racketeering and became a federal witness. Massino, who spent 14 years running the family, became the first sitting boss of one of New York's five Mafia families to flip. But Franzese was involved in organized crime long before Massino's ascension. He was a fixture at the Copacabana nightclub, where he often spent time with Sinatra and Sammy Davis Jr., according to Jerry Capeci, author of several books on organized crime and operator of the Web site ganglandnews.com.
Franzese also had a financial stake in the legendary porn movie "Deep Throat."
Franzese's parole restrictions continue through 2020, when he would be older than 100. It was unclear how much prison time he might face on the parole violation.
Since going to jail in 1970 for a bank robbery, Franzese had spent more than two decades -- on and off -- behind bars. He was initially paroled on that charge in 1978, and the first of the parole violations was in 1982.
Franzese wasn't the only aging mobster in court Wednesday. Matthew "Matty the Horse" Ianniello, 86, was sentenced in New Haven, Connecticut, to two years in prison for racketeering conspiracy and tax evasion. The case was part of a federal probe of the trash hauling industry in Connecticut and New York.
Thanks to CNN.
Vegas Killing Reminiscent of Mob Days
Friends of ours: Tony Spilotro
For some reason I had posted about the Explosive Device Used in Deadly Hit of Man at Las Vegas Casino and reported how the ATF Joins Vegas Police Investigating Homicide Bombing Outside the Luxor. However, I was asleep at the wheel and did not share this with my Mob Readers. Thanks to friends of mine at Brandolino's for bringing the oversight to my attention.
An apparent car bomb death at the Luxor Hotel Casino in Las Vegas sounds like a blast from the past for some residents in this Nevada gambling town, steeped in a history of mob "hits" and crime, greed and gambling.
The device was left on a car in the Luxor casino parking garage. It exploded early Monday killing a Luxor employee who police have not yet identified. Another person who was in the parking lot at the time received injuries in the blast.
The Las Vegas that draws millions of visitors each year was actually developed by active members of the Mafia, and for years the Mob ruled this desert city with an iron fist, with point men like the late murderer Tony Spilotro taking pride in devising new ways to inflict death and destruction upon those who challenged him.
In recent years this activity has waned, but today's car bomb explosion reminds all that Sin City is not out of the woods in terms of organized crime style "hits."
Police in Las Vegas are working with the FBI on the case. They say the 4:00 AM explosion was not a terrorist act, they say it is being investigated as a single murder.
Investigators say the man was moving the device from the top of the car when it exploded shortly after 4:00 AM. The car was parked on the second floor of a parking lot behind the Luxor hotel-casino. Apparently it was first reported that the device was in a backpack, police now say that it was not in a backpack.
Aerial video from Las Vegas TV stations shows no apparent damage to the Luxor's parking structure. The AP reports that the entrances were blocked while police, firefighters and federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives agents investigated.
Las Vegas Metro Police say they are investigating the case as an homicide with an unusual weapon.
The Luxor is a pyramid-shaped hotel at the south end of the Las Vegas Strip which was completed in the late 1990's. The casino's design is a big draw for Vegas and the upper balcony has seen several full view suicides as people hurl themselves over the edge, straight to the casino floor. The Luxor has 6,000 employees and more than 4,000 rooms.
Thanks to Tim King
For some reason I had posted about the Explosive Device Used in Deadly Hit of Man at Las Vegas Casino and reported how the ATF Joins Vegas Police Investigating Homicide Bombing Outside the Luxor. However, I was asleep at the wheel and did not share this with my Mob Readers. Thanks to friends of mine at Brandolino's for bringing the oversight to my attention.
An apparent car bomb death at the Luxor Hotel Casino in Las Vegas sounds like a blast from the past for some residents in this Nevada gambling town, steeped in a history of mob "hits" and crime, greed and gambling.The device was left on a car in the Luxor casino parking garage. It exploded early Monday killing a Luxor employee who police have not yet identified. Another person who was in the parking lot at the time received injuries in the blast.
The Las Vegas that draws millions of visitors each year was actually developed by active members of the Mafia, and for years the Mob ruled this desert city with an iron fist, with point men like the late murderer Tony Spilotro taking pride in devising new ways to inflict death and destruction upon those who challenged him.
In recent years this activity has waned, but today's car bomb explosion reminds all that Sin City is not out of the woods in terms of organized crime style "hits."
Police in Las Vegas are working with the FBI on the case. They say the 4:00 AM explosion was not a terrorist act, they say it is being investigated as a single murder.
Investigators say the man was moving the device from the top of the car when it exploded shortly after 4:00 AM. The car was parked on the second floor of a parking lot behind the Luxor hotel-casino. Apparently it was first reported that the device was in a backpack, police now say that it was not in a backpack.
Aerial video from Las Vegas TV stations shows no apparent damage to the Luxor's parking structure. The AP reports that the entrances were blocked while police, firefighters and federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives agents investigated.
Las Vegas Metro Police say they are investigating the case as an homicide with an unusual weapon.
The Luxor is a pyramid-shaped hotel at the south end of the Las Vegas Strip which was completed in the late 1990's. The casino's design is a big draw for Vegas and the upper balcony has seen several full view suicides as people hurl themselves over the edge, straight to the casino floor. The Luxor has 6,000 employees and more than 4,000 rooms.
Thanks to Tim King
Wednesday, May 09, 2007
Donnie Brasco Extended Cut
Friends of ours: Bonanno Crime Family, Benjamin "Lefty" Ruggiero
Friends of mine: Donnie Brasco
In the 1970s, FBI undecover agent Joe Pistone infiltrates the mob, leaving his family behind and assuming the false persona of the "jewel man" Donnie Brasco. His assignment: to become a trusted insider with the infamous Bonanno family by gaining the confidence of a low-level gangster.
Lefty Ruggiero is an aging, two-bit hit-man who sees a new future for himself with the smart, young thief Donnie Brasco and enlists him as his protege. Together the two men enter into a camaraderie that will not allow either one to distance himself emotionally. Meanwhile, Donnie begins to get lost in the distance between his real and undercover selves.
As Donnie moves deeper and deeper into the Mafia chain of command, he realizes he is not only losing the line between federal agent and criminal, between who he pretends to be and who he actually is, he is also leading Lefty, his closest friend, to an almost certain death sentence.
Friends of mine: Donnie Brasco
In the 1970s, FBI undecover agent Joe Pistone infiltrates the mob, leaving his family behind and assuming the false persona of the "jewel man" Donnie Brasco. His assignment: to become a trusted insider with the infamous Bonanno family by gaining the confidence of a low-level gangster.
Lefty Ruggiero is an aging, two-bit hit-man who sees a new future for himself with the smart, young thief Donnie Brasco and enlists him as his protege. Together the two men enter into a camaraderie that will not allow either one to distance himself emotionally. Meanwhile, Donnie begins to get lost in the distance between his real and undercover selves.
As Donnie moves deeper and deeper into the Mafia chain of command, he realizes he is not only losing the line between federal agent and criminal, between who he pretends to be and who he actually is, he is also leading Lefty, his closest friend, to an almost certain death sentence.
Tuesday, May 08, 2007
Sopranos Item of the Week - 10% off The Purchase of Two or More T-Shirts
Celebrate the farewell season of one of the nation's most popular television shows with the Soprano's Deal of The Week. This week you can show their love for the Sopranos on your chest with 10% off the purchase of two or more t-shirts
. Customers can mix and match shirts including the popular "Bada Bing" and the Sopranos Crest t-shirt. This special offer ends May 13th.
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