Kingman Wong has been named Special Agent in Charge (SAC) of Special Operations for the FBI’s New York Division. Director Robert S. Mueller, III appointed him to this position to replace former SAC Todd P. Letcher, who recently retired from FBI service. In this position, Mr. Wong will direct the special agent, support, and task force personnel who provide strategic operational, investigative, and infrastructure support for the New York Division.
Mr. Wong joined the FBI as a special agent in March 1988. He was assigned to the Violent Crime and Major Offenders Program in the San Francisco Division, where he investigated kidnapping, extortion, and other violent criminal offenses. In 1989, he was assigned to the Organized Crime Program to investigate transnational and domestic criminal syndicates. He was promoted to Supervisory Special Agent of the San Francisco Division’s Asian Organized Crime and Drug Squad in 1995.
Mr. Wong was transferred to the Organized Crime Section at FBI Headquarters in 1998, where he served as a supervisor and program manager for Asian organized crime and drug investigations. He was promoted to Unit Chief of the Asian/African Criminal Enterprise Unit at FBI Headquarters in 1999. In 2000, he was promoted to serve as an Assistant Special Agent in Charge of the San Diego Division. He was responsible for the Organized Crime, Drug, Violent Crime and Major Offenders, Undercover, Special Operations, Crisis Management, U.S./Mexico Border Liaison, Special Weapons and Tactics Team, and Asset Forfeiture Programs. He served as the On-Scene Commander for all San Diego Division tactical operations, and supervised the San Diego Command Center and crisis management personnel following the 9/11 terrorist attacks.
Mr. Wong served as the Field Staff Inspector/On-Scene Commander during the Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, Utah, in 2002. In 2003, he became the Legal Attaché for the FBI in Hong Kong. While there, he managed and coordinated investigations, arrests, extraditions, and training related to all FBI investigative programs. In March 2007, he was promoted to FBI Headquarters as Section Chief of the International Operations Section, Office of International Operations.
Mr. Wong was the recipient of the FBI Director’s Award for Outstanding Criminal Investigation; the U.S. Attorney General’s Award for Excellence in Law Enforcement; and a California State Assembly Resolution recognizing him for a narcoterrorism investigation. He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in criminal justice and a Master of Public Administration degree.
Sunday, July 27, 2008
Saturday, July 26, 2008
Whitey Bulger is 2nd Most-Wanted Man on FBI Top 10 List
James "Whitey" Bulger has been on the FBI's Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list since 1999. According to the FBI, Bulger is their second most-wanted man, second only to Usama bin Laden. They say Bulger is wanted for 19 murders, as well as for money laundering, extortion, and drug dealing. The FBI is offering a $1 million reward for information that leads to his arrest.
Now a septuagenarian, cops say Bulger ruled Boston's Irish mafia with an iron fist from the early 1970s to the mid 1990s. In 1995, shortly after he was indicted on federal racketeering charges, cops say Bulger went into hiding with his long-time girlfriend, Teresa Stanley. After a month on the run, Teresa asked Bulger to bring her back home to Boston. Bulger did, then hit the road again -- this time with another girlfriend, Catherine Greig, and this time for good.
There have been several confirmed sightings of Bulger and Greig; the last was in 2002, near London's Piccadilly Circus. In April 2007, a tourist on vacation in Sicily shot 18 seconds of video of a couple who bore a striking resemblance to Bulger and Greig. The FBI, thinking the video could very well have been of Bulger and Greig, launched an immediate investigation to identify the couple.
According to Gail Marcinkiewicz, a spokeswoman for the FBI, the couple was questioned and fingerprinted, but they are not Bulger and Greig.
In June 1956, he was sentenced to 25 years in federal prison for robbing banks. He ended up serving nine years in Atlanta, Alcatraz, and Leavenworth.
Whitey's Life Of Crime Begins
One of his brothers, Billy Bulger, was the president of the Massachusetts State Senate for nearly 20 years, then served as the president of the University of Massachusetts.
James Bulger, however, took a different path. He joined the Air Force when he was about 20 years old; despite spending time in the brig for several assaults, he received an honorable discharge in 1952.
Soon after returning to Boston, police say he embarked on a life of crime. In June 1956, he was sentenced to 25 years in federal prison for robbing banks. He ended up serving nine years in Atlanta, Alcatraz, and Leavenworth.
The Rise Of A Mafia Star
After his time behind bars, Bulger returned to Boston and resumed his criminal activities. In 1979, when Howie Winter -- the head of the infamous Winter Hill Gang -- was sent to prison for fixing horse races, Bulger assumed the gang's leadership.
Over the next 16 years, using both his formidable mind and his considerable muscle, cops say Bulger consolidated his power, and came to control a significant portion of Boston's drug dealing, bookmaking, and loan sharking operations.
He was also, unbeknownst to even his closest associates, an FBI informant. In fact, federal sources say it was his FBI handler, Special Agent John Connelly, who tipped Bulger off to the 1995 indictment, allowing Bulger to get away before he was arrested.
The FBI says Bulger should be considered armed and extremely dangerous. He uses cash for everything, and enjoys visiting libraries and historic sites. He also loves dogs, and often goes to animal shelters.
Bulger got his nickname, Whitey, from the platinum blonde hair he had as a child, but he's now almost completely bald, and it's believed he's taking a heart medication called Atenolol.
If you think you've spotted James J. "Whitey" Bulger or his girlfriend, Catherine Greig, call the America's Most Wanted hotline right now at 1-800-CRIME-TV.
Now a septuagenarian, cops say Bulger ruled Boston's Irish mafia with an iron fist from the early 1970s to the mid 1990s. In 1995, shortly after he was indicted on federal racketeering charges, cops say Bulger went into hiding with his long-time girlfriend, Teresa Stanley. After a month on the run, Teresa asked Bulger to bring her back home to Boston. Bulger did, then hit the road again -- this time with another girlfriend, Catherine Greig, and this time for good.
There have been several confirmed sightings of Bulger and Greig; the last was in 2002, near London's Piccadilly Circus. In April 2007, a tourist on vacation in Sicily shot 18 seconds of video of a couple who bore a striking resemblance to Bulger and Greig. The FBI, thinking the video could very well have been of Bulger and Greig, launched an immediate investigation to identify the couple.
According to Gail Marcinkiewicz, a spokeswoman for the FBI, the couple was questioned and fingerprinted, but they are not Bulger and Greig.
In June 1956, he was sentenced to 25 years in federal prison for robbing banks. He ended up serving nine years in Atlanta, Alcatraz, and Leavenworth.
Whitey's Life Of Crime Begins
One of his brothers, Billy Bulger, was the president of the Massachusetts State Senate for nearly 20 years, then served as the president of the University of Massachusetts.
James Bulger, however, took a different path. He joined the Air Force when he was about 20 years old; despite spending time in the brig for several assaults, he received an honorable discharge in 1952.
Soon after returning to Boston, police say he embarked on a life of crime. In June 1956, he was sentenced to 25 years in federal prison for robbing banks. He ended up serving nine years in Atlanta, Alcatraz, and Leavenworth.
The Rise Of A Mafia Star
After his time behind bars, Bulger returned to Boston and resumed his criminal activities. In 1979, when Howie Winter -- the head of the infamous Winter Hill Gang -- was sent to prison for fixing horse races, Bulger assumed the gang's leadership.
Over the next 16 years, using both his formidable mind and his considerable muscle, cops say Bulger consolidated his power, and came to control a significant portion of Boston's drug dealing, bookmaking, and loan sharking operations.
He was also, unbeknownst to even his closest associates, an FBI informant. In fact, federal sources say it was his FBI handler, Special Agent John Connelly, who tipped Bulger off to the 1995 indictment, allowing Bulger to get away before he was arrested.
The FBI says Bulger should be considered armed and extremely dangerous. He uses cash for everything, and enjoys visiting libraries and historic sites. He also loves dogs, and often goes to animal shelters.
Bulger got his nickname, Whitey, from the platinum blonde hair he had as a child, but he's now almost completely bald, and it's believed he's taking a heart medication called Atenolol.
If you think you've spotted James J. "Whitey" Bulger or his girlfriend, Catherine Greig, call the America's Most Wanted hotline right now at 1-800-CRIME-TV.
Reward for bin Laden Raised to $50 MILLION!
America's Most Wanted: Usama bin Laden
The reward for information that will lead to Usama bin Laden has risen to $50 million. After more than a decade of directing terror around the globe, the search for bin Laden continues. He's the world's most-wanted man, and authorities say there's nothing that they won't do to find him. Let's catch this son-of-bitch and bring him to justice!
The reward for information that will lead to Usama bin Laden has risen to $50 million. After more than a decade of directing terror around the globe, the search for bin Laden continues. He's the world's most-wanted man, and authorities say there's nothing that they won't do to find him. Let's catch this son-of-bitch and bring him to justice!
FBI's Chicago Field Office to Celebrate 100th Anniversary of the Federal Bureau of Investigation
Saturday, July 26th, will mark the 100th anniversary of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). 
Established in 1908 as the Bureau of Investigation (BOI) with just 34 Special Agents, it was officially renamed the Federal Bureau of Investigation in 1935. Since then, the FBI has grown to over 30,000 employees, including more than 12,000 Special Agents and nearly 18,000 professional support employees in 56 field offices and 70 legal attache' offices worldwide.
The Chicago Office, along with New York City, is one of the two oldest in the FBI, having opened shortly after the establishment of the BOI. Today, the Chicago office is the fourth largest with over 800 employees occupying a new stand-alone building in the Illinois Medical District and satellite offices in Lisle, Orland Park, Rockford, Rolling Meadows, and at both O’Hare and Midway airports.
Given the notable record of accomplishments and the storied past associated with the Chicago office, this milestone will be recognized on Friday, July 25th, with an anniversary celebration at Navy Pier. The event will be held on the Lakeview Rooftop Terrace and will feature remarks by FBI Executive Director Stephen Tidwell; U.S. Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald; David Grange, President of the McCormick Foundation; Chicago Mayor Richard Daley and Documentary Host and Producer Bill Kurtis. WLS Radio talk show host Roe Conn will serve as Master of Ceremonies, with live entertainment provided by the Ides of March, often referred to as “ Chicago’s Band”.
The event will be open to local media outlets. Doors open at 5:00 PM and the official ceremony and remarks are scheduled to begin at 6:45 PM. The Lakeview Rooftop Terrace is located on the third level of Navy Pier adjacent to the Grand Ballroom. Entrance to the venue can be gained through the “Lobby 3 – Festival Hall” entrance. Proper media accreditation will be required.
Established in 1908 as the Bureau of Investigation (BOI) with just 34 Special Agents, it was officially renamed the Federal Bureau of Investigation in 1935. Since then, the FBI has grown to over 30,000 employees, including more than 12,000 Special Agents and nearly 18,000 professional support employees in 56 field offices and 70 legal attache' offices worldwide.The Chicago Office, along with New York City, is one of the two oldest in the FBI, having opened shortly after the establishment of the BOI. Today, the Chicago office is the fourth largest with over 800 employees occupying a new stand-alone building in the Illinois Medical District and satellite offices in Lisle, Orland Park, Rockford, Rolling Meadows, and at both O’Hare and Midway airports.
Given the notable record of accomplishments and the storied past associated with the Chicago office, this milestone will be recognized on Friday, July 25th, with an anniversary celebration at Navy Pier. The event will be held on the Lakeview Rooftop Terrace and will feature remarks by FBI Executive Director Stephen Tidwell; U.S. Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald; David Grange, President of the McCormick Foundation; Chicago Mayor Richard Daley and Documentary Host and Producer Bill Kurtis. WLS Radio talk show host Roe Conn will serve as Master of Ceremonies, with live entertainment provided by the Ides of March, often referred to as “ Chicago’s Band”.
The event will be open to local media outlets. Doors open at 5:00 PM and the official ceremony and remarks are scheduled to begin at 6:45 PM. The Lakeview Rooftop Terrace is located on the third level of Navy Pier adjacent to the Grand Ballroom. Entrance to the venue can be gained through the “Lobby 3 – Festival Hall” entrance. Proper media accreditation will be required.
Friday, July 25, 2008
Did Mobster Gregory Scarpa Beat and Threaten a Witness for the FBI to win a KKK Murder Conviction?
Edgar Ray Killen, 84, was convicted in 2005 of ordering the Klan killings of the trio 41 years earlier, a crime that was dramatised in the film Mississippi Burning.
His lawyers have appealed against his life sentence for triple manslaughter
, citing new evidence that the FBI used Gregory Scarpa - known as The Grim Reaper - to put pressure on Klan members to reveal where the bodies had been hidden.
The lawyers also say that his conviction was tainted by the fact that a defence lawyer in a previous trial over the killings in 1967 was an FBI informant who had been providing prosecutors with information about the defence case. The court transcript from 1967 - in which Killen was acquitted on civil rights charges - was allowed to be used in the later trial because many of the witnesses had since died.
Rob Ratliff, Killen's lawyer, said the evidence included crucial information from a Klan member who revealed where the bodies had been buried. It was now clear that the informant had been kidnapped by Scarpa and an FBI helper, and subjected to "typical Mafia-type behaviour", he said. The "behaviour" may have included a severe beating but certainly included death threats to his family and having a gun barrel inserted into his mouth, he added.
Killen's lawyers argue that his rights to a full and fair trial, and the right to confront witnesses against him, have been violated.
If the 1967 trial had known that the location of the bodies had been discovered unlawfully, it would not have been allowed as evidence, said Mr Ratliff.
The FBI has always declined to comment on whether Scarpa was involved in the case. Scarpa was a senior member of the Colombo crime family and an FBI informant for three decades.
Killen's lawyers officially requested on Thursday that the FBI hand over its files relating to Scarpa and to the defence lawyer, who was named as Clayton Lewis. Lewis, the former mayor of Philadelphia, is also now dead. "If it's OK to torture witnesses to get a conviction against Killen, then it's OK to torture witnesses to get a conviction against anybody," said Mr Ratliff.
Scarpa's involvement in the investigation had long been rumoured but was confirmed last year by a New York judge who had seen his FBI file while trying an unrelated murder case involving the mobster's former FBI handler.
The judge said: "That a thug like Scarpa would be employed by the federal government to beat witnesses and threaten them at gunpoint to obtain information regarding the deaths of civil rights workers in the south in the early 1960s is a shocking demonstration of the government's unacceptable willingness to employ criminality to fight crime."
Linda Schiro, Scarpa's former girlfriend, said a few months ago that she had accompanied him to Mississippi in 1964. She said she believed he had been brought in because J Edgar Hoover, the FBI chief, was under heavy pressure to get results in the case.
She told ABC's Eyewitness News: "When we we walked into the hotel, I saw a bunch of guys and I saw Greg wink, and he says, 'Those are FBI agents'."
"We went up to the room, knock on the door, an agent came in and handed him a gun."
Mississippi Burning alluded to the FBI's use of nefarious tactics, introducing a black FBI agent who is brought in to rough up witnesses when conventional methods fail.
Thanks to Tom Leonard
His lawyers have appealed against his life sentence for triple manslaughter
, citing new evidence that the FBI used Gregory Scarpa - known as The Grim Reaper - to put pressure on Klan members to reveal where the bodies had been hidden.The lawyers also say that his conviction was tainted by the fact that a defence lawyer in a previous trial over the killings in 1967 was an FBI informant who had been providing prosecutors with information about the defence case. The court transcript from 1967 - in which Killen was acquitted on civil rights charges - was allowed to be used in the later trial because many of the witnesses had since died.
Rob Ratliff, Killen's lawyer, said the evidence included crucial information from a Klan member who revealed where the bodies had been buried. It was now clear that the informant had been kidnapped by Scarpa and an FBI helper, and subjected to "typical Mafia-type behaviour", he said. The "behaviour" may have included a severe beating but certainly included death threats to his family and having a gun barrel inserted into his mouth, he added.
Killen's lawyers argue that his rights to a full and fair trial, and the right to confront witnesses against him, have been violated.
If the 1967 trial had known that the location of the bodies had been discovered unlawfully, it would not have been allowed as evidence, said Mr Ratliff.
The FBI has always declined to comment on whether Scarpa was involved in the case. Scarpa was a senior member of the Colombo crime family and an FBI informant for three decades.
Killen's lawyers officially requested on Thursday that the FBI hand over its files relating to Scarpa and to the defence lawyer, who was named as Clayton Lewis. Lewis, the former mayor of Philadelphia, is also now dead. "If it's OK to torture witnesses to get a conviction against Killen, then it's OK to torture witnesses to get a conviction against anybody," said Mr Ratliff.
Scarpa's involvement in the investigation had long been rumoured but was confirmed last year by a New York judge who had seen his FBI file while trying an unrelated murder case involving the mobster's former FBI handler.
The judge said: "That a thug like Scarpa would be employed by the federal government to beat witnesses and threaten them at gunpoint to obtain information regarding the deaths of civil rights workers in the south in the early 1960s is a shocking demonstration of the government's unacceptable willingness to employ criminality to fight crime."
Linda Schiro, Scarpa's former girlfriend, said a few months ago that she had accompanied him to Mississippi in 1964. She said she believed he had been brought in because J Edgar Hoover, the FBI chief, was under heavy pressure to get results in the case.
She told ABC's Eyewitness News: "When we we walked into the hotel, I saw a bunch of guys and I saw Greg wink, and he says, 'Those are FBI agents'."
"We went up to the room, knock on the door, an agent came in and handed him a gun."
Mississippi Burning alluded to the FBI's use of nefarious tactics, introducing a black FBI agent who is brought in to rough up witnesses when conventional methods fail.
Thanks to Tom Leonard
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