The Chicago Syndicate
The Mission Impossible Backpack

Tuesday, June 16, 2015

Chicago Blackhawks 2015 Stanley Cup Champions Fan Gear and Collectibles


Shop for Chicago Blackhawks 2015 Stanley Cup Champions fan gear and collectibles at Shop.NHL.com


Monday, June 15, 2015

Mickey Davis and Peter DiFronzo, Fishing Buddies or Mob Associates?

The mob-connected plot to break the legs of a deadbeat suburban businessman started at a dingy used car dealership in Melrose Park, federal prosecutors say.

Michael "Mickey" Davis, a longtime associate of reputed Outfit bosses Peter and John DiFronzo, walked into R.J. Serpico's office, closed the door behind him and threw a piece of paper onto the desk.

On the sheet were scribbled notes from a mob bookie indicating Serpico's father owed thousands of dollars in gambling debts. Serpico, who had taken a $300,000 loan from Davis to start the fledgling Ideal Motors dealership with his father, knew instantly he was in trouble.

"This wasn't our (expletive) agreement," Davis growled, according to Serpico's recent testimony in federal court. "I want my (expletive) money."

He then pulled up a chair, leaned in close and issued what prosecutors allege was a thinly veiled threat.

"How are your wife and kids doing? Are you still living in Park Ridge?" the hefty suburban landfill owner allegedly asked Serpico. "Does your wife still own that salon in Schaumburg?"

Without another word, Davis got up and walked out.

Prosecutors allege that within months of that ominous January 2013 confrontation, Davis, infuriated that Serpico had still failed to pay back the loan, ordered his brutal beating, enlisting the help of a well-known Italian restaurant owner in Burr Ridge to find the right guys for the job. The restaurateur went to reputed mob associate Paulie Carparelli, who in turn hired a team of bone-cracking goons to carry out the beating for $10,000, according to prosecutors.

Unbeknownst to everyone involved, however, the beefy union bodyguard tasked with coordinating the assault had been nabbed months earlier in an unrelated extortion plot and was secretly cooperating with the FBI. In July 2013, agents swooped in to stop the beating before it was carried out, court records show.

For the past two weeks, Davis' trial on extortion charges at the Dirksen U.S. Courthouse has featured some of the biggest names in the depleted ranks of the Chicago Outfit, including the DiFronzo brothers and Salvatore "Solly D" DeLaurentis, all reputed leaders of the notorious Elmwood Park crew.

While none of the aging bosses has been charged with any wrongdoing, their names and photos have been shown to jurors as evidence of the 58-year-old Davis' purported connections to the highest levels of the mob.

Serpico testified he was well aware of Davis' friendship with the DiFronzo brothers and that he often saw Davis and Peter DiFronzo cruising past Ideal Motors in DiFronzo's black Cadillac Escalade. He said he also had heard Davis was partnered with DeLaurentis, a feared capo convicted in the 1990s of racketeering conspiracy in connection with a violent gambling crew run by Ernest Rocco Infelice.

Davis' attorneys, meanwhile, have denied he has anything to do with the mob. Davis has known the DiFronzos since childhood and has maintained a longtime business relationship with them through his landfill in suburban Plainfield, where two DiFronzo-owned construction companies have paid millions of dollars to dump asphalt and other construction debris, according to his lawyers.

To bolster their point that he had nothing to hide, Davis' attorneys showed the jury a photo that Davis kept in his office at the E.F. Heil landfill. The undated photo showed a tanned Davis deep-sea fishing off Costa Rica with Peter DiFronzo, the shirtless mob boss appearing to be reeling in a catch with a pole harness strapped around his waist.

Jurors deliberated about seven hours Friday without reaching a verdict. U.S. District Judge Samuel Der-Yeghiayan told the panel to return Monday morning to resume discussions.

In his closing argument Thursday, Thomas Anthony Durkin, Davis' attorney, urged jurors not to get swept up in the dramatic talk of gangsters and to focus instead on the evidence that Durkin said failed to connect Davis to the mob or any extortion plot.

"If you want to get swayed by looking at 'murderer's row' here, Pete DiFronzo, John DiFronzo, Solly DeLaurentis, all the boys, then we are in trouble," Durkin told the jury in his closing argument as the mobsters' photos were flashed on an overhead screen.

Durkin also painted Serpico as a liar and called the government's undercover informant, George Brown, "just pathetic."

Both Carparelli and Brown have pleaded guilty to charges unrelated to Davis' case and are awaiting sentencing.

According to court records and testimony at the trial, Davis, who often golfed with Serpico's father, Joe, loaned the father-son team $300,000 in 2012 to purchase used vehicles to sell at Ideal Motors. The agreement called for the loan to be paid back within three years, plus an extra $300 per car sold tacked on as interest. According to prosecutors, Davis expected to more than double his money. But the deal quickly soured as the business floundered and Serpico's father continued to gamble with the borrowed funds, court records show. By the end of that year, Ideal Motors was in trouble, with creditors breathing down the owners' necks and cars being repossessed.

Serpico, 44, who is married with two children, testified he was terrified and sick to his stomach after Davis threatened him and his family at the meeting at Ideal Motors. He kicked his father off the lot to appease Davis, who became co-owner. Serpico also paid Davis nearly $60,000 in cash and a used Chevelle to try to buy some time, according to prosecutors.

Wracked with fear and not knowing what to do, Serpico "literally walked off the lot" that May 2013 and left control of the business to Davis, Assistant U.S. Attorney Heather McShain said in her closing argument. But with Ideal Motors a financial bust, Davis had had enough, McShain said.

"Mickey Davis made a decision to not only continue to collect but to follow up on his threat," McShain said.

Over the next several weeks, FBI agents secretly recorded a series of phone calls and meetings between Carparelli and Brown in which they discussed the logistics of the beating, including concerns over whether they had the proper clearance from the Outfit to carry out such an attack in the DiFronzos' territory.

In a recorded call on July 11, 2013, Carparelli told Brown their plan was safe because Davis had a direct line to the bosses, court records show.

"OK, listen, I met this guy (Davis) yesterday. You know who this guy is?" a transcript of the call quoted Carparelli as saying. "This is Solly D's partner. Ok? ...So, listen, we definitely can't (expletive) around with these guys or we're going to have a big (expletive) headache, a big headache."

But Carparelli also saw the job as a chance to prove themselves to the bosses, saying if the beating was successful it would "put us right on the map, believe me when I tell ya," according to the transcript.

A few days later, Carparelli told Brown his guys should approach Serpico as he left his new job as a salesman at Al Piemonte Ford, stage a fender-bender and attack him when he got out of his car.

"Say we give him a little tap, like an accident. 'Oh man, I'm sorry,'" Carparelli said on the call. "Guy gets out of his car. Boom, boom, boom. That's it."

Thanks to Jason Meisner.

The Ganja Godfather: The Untold Story of NYC's Weed Kingpin

Genovese mob-scion Silvio Eboli lived within the shadows of history, and now for the first time, the untold story of a mafia legend is revealed. The Ganja Godfather: The Untold Story of NYC's Weed Kingpin is the story about an ongoing organized criminal operation, in real time with firsthand accounts and experiences by award-winning author and investigative journalist, Toby Rogers.

Shadowing the Ganja GodfatherThe Ganja Godfather, Rogers witnesses it all standing next to the Boss himself: violence, drugs, celebrities, girls, construction hustles, crime-family business meetings and social gatherings. From strip clubs in Atlantic City to Sunday night dinner with the wife and kids, Rogers experiences whatever the Ganja Godfather does on any given day. As exhilarating as Silvio’s life had become, it certainly was much more stressful behind the scenes. Being the Empire State’s spliff king was undoubtedly the hardest job in New York. And it was only after Silvio finally got to the top of the mountain that he realized just how easy it was to fall over the edge. With a wife and kids, dysfunctional family business obligations, and an out-of-control social life all pulling him in conflicting paths, Silvio struggled keep the empire moving forward without detection from law enforcement. But when he was introduced to a Colombian cocaine princess with aspirations to become a model, he saw an opportunity to expand the family’s profit margins to unimaginable heights and risked it all despite the collision course with disaster he saw right before him.

Thursday, June 11, 2015

Former House Speaker Sentenced to Federal Prison

Former Rhode Island House Speaker and former Vice-Chairman of the City of Providence Board of Licenses Gordon D. Fox, 53, of East Providence, was sentenced to three years in federal prison for stealing $108,000 donated by campaign supporters to pay for personal expenses; his acceptance of a $52,000 bribe to advocate and move for issuance of a liquor license for an East Side restaurant while serving as Vice-Chairman of the City of Providence Board of Licenses in 2008; and his failure to account for these illegal sources of income on his tax returns.

At sentencing, U.S. District Court Judge Mary M. Lisi also ordered Fox to serve two years’ supervised release upon completion of his prison term, and to pay $109,000 in restitution. Fox pleaded guilty on March 3, 2015, to wire fraud, bribery and filing a false tax return.

Fox has been ordered to self-surrender to begin serving his prison sentence by July 7, 2015.

An 18-month federal grand jury investigation led by prosecutors from the United States Attorney’s Office and the Rhode Island Attorney General’s Office, and investigators from the FBI, IRS and Rhode Island State Police, included the execution of court authorized search warrants at the former speaker’s home and State House office in March of 2014; the issuance of more than 200 subpoenas; the examination of more than 36,000 bank, government, personal, and campaign records belonging to former Speaker Fox; and forensic examinations of numerous computers and other electronic devices.

United States Attorney Peter F. Neronha commented, “It is a great irony that the man in Rhode Island once most responsible for securing the passage of laws somewhere along the way decided he no longer needed to follow them. And the laws former Speaker Fox chose not to follow were not just any laws, but rather laws designed to ensure the integrity of the legal and political process. In short, he violated his oath to the people of Rhode Island. He promised to do their business, not his own. His failure to keep that promise has brought him down today, and deservedly so.

“I want to thank the FBI and IRS Special Agents, Rhode Island State Police Detectives, and the federal and state prosecutors, whose outstanding work has secured justice and ensured that Rhode Island can chart a new path forward. Hopefully, Rhode Island can take advantage of it.”

Attorney General Peter F. Kilmartin said, “From day one, I pledged the resources of my office, and when the allegations surrounding the acceptance of a bribe by Gordon Fox arose, and it was recognized that the federal statute of limitations for that offense had expired, this office made a commitment to the United States Attorney to proceed with the prosecution of that charge in state court if necessary. The State, working jointly with the United States Attorney, was ready to prosecute the bribery charge had this case not been resolved in Federal Court, and this case now stands as a testament to the commitment of both offices to aggressively prosecute corrupt public officials.”

Attorney General Kilmartin further stated, “Gordon Fox is not the first public official that our two offices have jointly prosecuted. While we can all hope it’s the last time we prosecute a public official, unfortunately history has taught us that it will happen again. But, let this serve as a warning to all public officials in this state, whether they are the Speaker of the House or a local board member—if you break the law, violate the trust the voters put in you, and abuse your office, you will be held accountable. You can be assured, as can the public, that we stand together, as federal and state prosecutors, with a single purpose, and will continue to work with our prosecutorial and law enforcement partners to ensure justice prevails.”

At the time of his guilty plea, Fox admitted to the Court that from February 2008 until March of 2014, just prior to the execution of federal search warrants at his State House office and home, he repeatedly used money received from campaign donors to pay for personal expenses. After transferring the money from his campaign accounts to his personal accounts, former Speaker Fox used the money—$108,000 in all—to pay the mortgage on his home, the loan payments on his car, and the balance on his personal American Express card, which he used to make purchases at various retail outlets. Fox admitted that in order to conceal his fraudulent conduct, he falsified his mandatory Rhode Island Board of Elections filings.

Additionally, Fox admitted to the Court that in 2008, while serving as an appointed member and Vice-Chairman of the City of Providence Board of Licenses, he accepted a $52,000 bribe from the owners of Shark Sushi Bar and Grill to help secure a liquor license for the establishment. At the time, there was considerable neighborhood opposition to the application. At a hearing in August 2008, Vice-Chairman Fox, pursuant to his agreement with the Shark Bar partners, spoke in detail regarding why the license should be awarded, and moved the Board to approve the Shark Bar’s application. The Board voted to approve the Shark Bar’s application.

Additionally, Fox admitted to the Court that for the tax years 2008 through 2012, he filed false tax returns, in that he knowingly omitted personal income he received as a result of his receipt of the bribe in 2008 and his fraudulent transfers from his campaign accounts to his personal accounts.

Vincent B. Lisi, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Boston Division said, “Gordon Fox accepted a bribe, used campaign donations for his own personal use and lied on his tax return. The FBI will continue to go after corrupt individuals like him who abuse their elected office and betray the public’s trust.”

“Public servants are entrusted by all of us to act in the best interests of the citizens they serve,” said Special Agent William Offord, IRS Criminal Investigation. “Gordon Fox betrayed the public’s trust and his sentencing today sends a clear message—corruption at all levels of government will not be tolerated. IRS-CI will continue to lend our financial expertise to these important prosecutions.”

Colonel Steven G. O’Donnell, Superintendent of the Rhode Island State Police added, “I commend all the Troopers, Detectives, FBI and IRS agents as well as the prosecutors from the U.S. Attorney’s office and Attorney General’s office for their dedication and commitment to justice”.

Dirty Block Street Gang Drug Dealer in Atlantic City Sentenced to Prison in Heroin Trafficking Conspiracy

An Atlantic City, N.J., man was sentenced to 54 months in prison for engaging in a conspiracy to distribute heroin with several members of the “Dirty Block” criminal street gang—several of whom were convicted after a six-week jury trial in January—which used threats, intimidation and violence to maintain control of the illegal drug trade in Atlantic City, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.

Ronald Davis, a/k/a “Black,” 29, previously pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Joseph E. Irenas to a superseding information charging him with one count of conspiracy to distribute and to possess with intent to distribute, and to distribute and to possess with intent to distribute within 1,000 feet of public housing, 100 grams or more of heroin. Judge Irenas imposed the sentence today in Camden federal court.

According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:

Davis acted as a dealer, helping Dirty Block to distribute heroin in and around the public housing apartment complexes of Stanley Holmes, Carver Hall, Schoolhouse, Adams Court and Cedar Court, in Atlantic City. Davis was arrested on March 26, 2013.

In addition to the prison term, Judge Irenas sentenced Davis to six years of supervised release.

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