"Now it's treated as some undeniable fact by a lot of people," he said. The former secretary-treasurer of the Independent Union of Amalgamated Workers Local 711, Matassa, of Arlington Heights, pleaded guilty in February to an embezzlement charge alleging he put his wife on the unions payroll in a do-nothing job for four years while lowering his own salary to qualify for early retirement benefits from the Social Security Administrations Old-Age Insurance program. Although mob affiliation with casinos has never really gone away, in the 1970s legitimate owners started buying up casinos in Vegas, and by the end of the 1980s the Outfit was largely out of Vegas. During its lengthy run time of three hours, mistakes in "The Irishman" comprise a long list, from visual blunders to factual mistakes about the East Coast mob and the Chicago Outfit. "Just because it's not the Outfit guys standing on the West Side or South Side selling it doesn't mean they aren't actively involved in making a lot of money off of narcotics themselves. Now, the lingering question is: how long did Inendino cooperate? While assigned to court downtown, James experienced an interesting case before him. Romie was a political fixer and labor union racketeer for the Chicago Outfit for many years (please read the previous addendums for more details, including several FBI 302 reports and other exhibits, that support my information via links located at the bottom of this page). Has he done everything he's supposed to do? asks FBI special agent in charge Jeffrey Sallet. Faced with secret recordings, courtesy of corrupt ex-attorney Robert Cooley who was cooperating with the FBI, D'Amico pleaded guilty, admitting his role in the scheme and his position in the Outfit. Prior to the sentence being handed down, Marcello apologized to the court, acknowledging he made terrible choices and asking for mercy as he nears the final phase of his life. RELATED | Chicago Outfit enforcer Mario Rainone freed from prison due to COVID-19 concerns. It is organized under a variety of crews that engage in various . But the mob still operates, and its members still represent a potentially serious criminal threat.. A truck for D & P Construction, a waste-hauling company that the FBI has said was controlled by brothers John DiFronzo and Peter DiFronzo. Instead, they take a piece of his business, and then, over time, exercise more and more control over the company. Some members of the unions board testified to a federal grand jury that they were unaware they were even trustees, Kennelly said. The work we do on the LCN squad requires a lot of patience., Resources:- Indicted chaplain press release- Family Secrets article. The US attorney tells the I-Team they'll have no comment on Rainone until a hearing next month. We will no longer respond to comments left on the ANP site. To be clear, almost every Italian and Greek judge appointed to the bench and/or who sought endorsement by the Chicago political machine, or who wanted specific assignments, between the 1950s and the early to mid-1990s accomplished their goals largely because of Romie and his intimate network of highly capable colleagues. "He's old too" said Lopez, who proudly carries his own nickname "The Shark." Marcello, of west suburban Wood Dale, has been free on bond since he was quietly indicted in December 2019. The bosses had all gathered that March day to discuss business and pleasures, unaware that they were being surveilled by an ABC7 news crew. Many of the widely reported mistakes are time-period related: cars and technology appearing in scenes that weren't even made at that time, wrong highways and aircraft; and New York's Twin Towers in a 1972 scene even though the buildings weren't completed until the next year. The second in command of the Chicago Outfit, according to some mobwatchers, is convicted enforcer Albert "Albie the Falcon" Vena, 69. Okay, so the Judge wasnt a poet. Barb Markoff, Christine Tressel and Ross Weidner, Chicago Outfit enforcer Mario Rainone freed from prison due to COVID-19 concerns. Dorfman was killed four years after "The Irishman" claims, an odd mistake for a film with a $150 million dollar budget and scores of researchers, aides and assistants listed in the credits who could have fact-checked the date in a simple Google search. Binder says Inendino was eventually a made, blood-oath member of the mob and would have been lately reporting only to Salvatore "Solly D" DeLaurentis, considered by law enforcement to be the Outfit's current leader. Thursday, February 23, 2023 R. Kelly Sentenced to 20 Years in Prison Salvatore "Solly D" DeLaurentis is the best known, un-incarcerated Chicago mob figure today-and considered "consigliere" to the Outfit. I have decided to keep the nature of the crime and the defendants name discreet out of respect for the family of the late Adam Stillo, as I had a lot of respect for Stillo, and maintain a great deal of respect for his legacy. After the verdict came down, some asked James if he knew Mayor Daley. Members of the mob will go to almost any lengths to carry out their criminal activity, said Special Agent Ted McNamara, a veteran investigator who supervises the La Cosa Nostra (LCN) organized crime squad in our Chicago Field Office. The home popcorn will be available in select Walmart stores on March 11, the day before the 95th Academy Awards. Romie Nappi used the political machinery of Chicago to protect himself even while he was bending it to his will. Despite photo. Lopez says Shady Acres is a nursing home that Rainone may be a model candidate for. Copyright 2023 WLS-TV. CHICAGO (WLS) -- For decades, Chicago mob boss Marco D'Amico was dogged by a bad mugshot depicting him with Coke-bottle glasses that magnified a pair of bulging eyeballs. 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Allen Hynek wrote about UFO phenomenon for the FBI, FBI files: Milwaukee mob boss Frank Balistrieri had close ties to Chicago Outfit, Lightfoot is out, Vallas and Johnson are in the April runoff, No major damage reported as tornadoes briefly touch down in Joliet, Naperville, Progressive leaders can blame themselves if Garcia or Johnson fail to make mayoral runoff, Blackhawks trade Patrick Kane to Rangers in era-ending move, Oscar predictions: Signs point to Everything turning to gold, Operation Fortune: Ruse de Guerre cant be taken seriously, or humorously, Chicago area scores No. Unlike New York's infamous Five Families, the Chicago mob consists of only one family, often referred to as the "Outfit.". The only way Romie could get into trouble for being a fixer would be if any of the power brokers within the old First Ward, my father or the top Chicago Outfit bosses, snitched on him. His arrestalong with 13 otherswas part of one of the most successful organized crime cases in FBI history, an eight-year investigation called Operation Family Secrets. As far as Ferrara goes, Ill just say that he was not a fan of American News Post. "It's the painting outfit. God bless! When Romie began working for his Uncle Tony Iorii (one of Al Capones most valued men) as an older teenager, James, who was 2-years Romies senior, went to school in pursuit of a law career. Romie Nappi and James Zafiratos grew up as boyhood friends. Chuck Goudie, Barb Markoff, Christine Tressel and Ross Weidner. In one infamous gangland meeting, the I-Team followed D'Amico to "Lunch with No Nose" in a suburban eatery in 2009. ", During that television interview conducted at the federal lock-up in Chicago, DeLaurentis said he was "a bricklayer by trade" and a part-time gambler. As the ABC7 I-Team first reported this. Its not uncommon for judges to recuse themselves when high-profile defendants with political clout come before them. American News Post now controls a range of different religious, social and political publications. The movie states: "it was easy for the mob to help Joe Kennedy get his son elected president. This defendants case went in front of Zafiratos. Their unique education was eventually passed down to the now-retired Illinois State Senator Jimmy DeLeo by Romie personally, primarily during the early 1990s. By the early 1970s, Romie was the Outfits point man in these matters, a state of affairs that would persist until the mid-1990s. They go to the grand jury and they got amnesia, he said. Before I start sharing some interesting information about James Zafiratos, I will tell you a bit about my late step-uncle, Romie J. Nappi, and his role with the Cook County judiciary. You dont know why theyre here. CHICAGO (WLS) -- James "Jimmy I" Inendino has always been known as a devoted Outfit member and lately known as one of the top leaders of the Chicago Mob. Some suspect "The I" stood for ice pick. The restaurant sits across. But it includes little mention of Anthony Spilotro, the Chicago mobs point person in Las Vegas, and his brother Michael Spilotro, who in 1986 were lured to a Bensenville-area home where they were pummeled, then driven to and buried in an Indiana cornfield brutal killings fictionalized in the 1995 Martin Scorsese film Casino.. Burnstein Op-Ed: Reports Of Chicago Mob Legend Jimmy I's Role As Informant Missing Context, Rewarding FBI For Hypocrisy, Bad Faith Chicago Mafia Don Solly D DeLaurentis Not Present At Underboss Jimmy I's Wake, As Windy City Underworld Mourns Loss Pagan's MC Parties In The Ozarks As Part Of Expansion Agenda, Recruiting Rally In Branson, Missouri Runs Smoothly GR SOURCES: Hells Angels Want . SEE ALSO | Newly released JFK documents link Chicago mob bosses to Cuban militiamen. Matassa, 68, is a reputed made member of the Chicago Outfit who has been associated with some of the mobs most notorious figures, including former reputed boss James Jimmy Light Marcello. The judge is going to ask is there a threat that would be posed to the community? Zafiratos replied, Its my job to hear cases, Mr. Mayor. Mayor Daley commended Zafiratos for doing his job in a fair manner. As a side note, a family member of Judge Stillo seems to me to have joined his relative, Nick Spina, and (independently) another relative, who is the now late Sal Ferrara of Ferrara Candy Company, in sabotaging some of my respectable goals in more recent years. Wacks prepared what was described as an independent report effectively clearing Stephens of any meaningful organized crime connections to DiFronzo or anyone else. During one of His Honors first days in obscenity-court, just as court was about to begin, Zafiratos overheard the courtroom bailiff address all of the defendants who were in custody as lowlifes. When the officer answered that he didn't know, or care, D'Amico proceeded to bite off one of the patrolman's fingers. He deserves far more than the brief mention that he received in Addendum Eight. After the Judge sentenced the elderly lady to supervision, he asked, When your husbands birthday comes around next year, if you dont have money to buy him a gift, are you going to steal another shirt? When his turn came to speak, Matassa, known as Pudgy for his considerable girth, rose from his seat, walked slowly to the lectern and said, The only reason that Im standing here is because my name is John Matassa.. I am having three trees planted in memory of you.". If it werent for the bad cops in Elmwood Park, Illinois (who were eventually forced out of the Elmwood Park, Illinois, Police Department), that brought a bogus case against me in 1992, I probably would not have had the pleasure of knowing Judge Zafiratos. Salvatore "Solly D" DeLaurentis - The Chicago Outfit has been around as long or longer than any of New York's five families. But now, at age 68, the Outfit enforcer is said to have a debilitating back injury from a high-speed, rear-end collision that occurred after he was released from federal prison. The files also touch on DiFronzos penchant for cars working for auto dealers and tooling around in showroom vehicles including a red convertible Cadillac and a black vinyl over bronze Chevrolet.. Chuck Goudie, Barb Markoff, Christine Tressel and Ross Weidner. "When you go to look at the evidence, it's just not there," Binder told the AB7 I-Team. One major movie untruth, that was an important undercurrent in the storyline, involves the Chicago mob and President John F. Kennedy. Secret FBI recordings made in the waiting room of a Michigan prison in 2003 had captured the Marcello brothers anxiously discussing whether Calabrese had flipped. "Obviously 'The Irishman' is a movie, but it's based upon what is supposed to be a true crime book and it's pushing itself as being a true crime narrative, so people don't see this as another entertainment piece.". Despite being an octogenarian, when D'Amico died on Wednesday night, multiple sources have told the ABC 7 I-Team that he was still assigned to one of the highest-ranking posts in the Outfit: consigliere. He is thought to oversee day-to-day operations of the Outfit. Now, an FBI record obtained tonight by the I-Team may come as a surprise to those who knew Jimmy "The I" Inendino. Copyright 2023 WLS-TV. CHICAGO (WLS) -- Mario Rainone has spent about half of his life behind bars for various Chicago Outfit rackets from violence to extortion. Colin immediately got up and left the courtroom. Ten Most Wanted fugitive 'Whitey' Bulger was captured by FBI agents in California. As soon as word broke that Zafiratos was going to be assigned the battery case, Richard J. Daley discreetly reached out to Romie to see whether Zafiratos was going to keep the case in front of him or not. In court Monday, ODaniel said the scheme was unsophisticated and pitifully easy for the government to unravel, particularly because Ruth used the same contact information for each of the companies he fraudulently cited as previous employers. Despite his size and reputation as a hard man, Mondo was a discrete presence. To make a long story short, Zafiratos found the defendant guilty as charged and threw the book at him. Jim Colosimo1910 - 1920. A photocopy of an old surveillance photo contained within the FBI files of late Chicago mob boss John DiFronzo. An Elmwood Park delicatessen where reputed mob figures, including John DiFronzo, would meet, according to the FBI. The lions share of the dues that were collected $40 per paycheck for each worker went to pay Matassas salary, Kennelly noted. That accident -- apparently now in litigation -- is one of the things prompting him to ask a federal judge in Chicago for mercy again. With JFK conspiracy theories in generous supply, Binder says they have a "certain recipe to them." Marcello wasnt just involved (in organized crime), he was an operations manager, Alonso said. The entire State of Illinois (and in some cases beyond) were well within Romies circle of influence. A Chicago mob figure convicted years ago in the landmark Operation Family Secrets investigation was sentenced Monday to four months in federal prison for participating in a Social Security scam. Once, a judge labeled Rainone an "urban terrorist." Now . . At right is his brother Michael Spilotro. Muhammad Ali with major "the maj" coxson who was a drug kingpin from philly. Regardless of what some see as an evolving line-up atop the Chicago mob, defense attorney Joe Lopez, who has represented numerous top hoodlums, says the Outfit is a thing of the past. In 2007, Calabrese said in court that DiFronzo was among those in the home. The Family Secrets case, which began in 1999 and resulted in the indictment of 14 subjects in 2005 for racketeering and murder, dealt a crushing blow to the Chicago mob. Dorfman was dead in the parking lot of the Hyatt, the infamous purple-colored hotel which has since been demolished. All Rights Reserved. I will not try to link together this mosaic of stories, aside to note that they will help you understand the unwavering goodness and steadfast demeanor that best illustrate James Zafiratos deep and abiding character. 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