Murder, Extortion, Gambling, Drug Dealing Detailed in Mob Indictments

Indictments related to a major mob bust two weeks ago reveal details of murder and corruption of labor unions among other things.  127 alleged organized criminal figures were taken down in what was called the biggest mob bust ever. 

"The Mafia is wounded, but not fatally," Selwyn Raab wrote in an op-ed article published in the New York Times on Jan. 23. Raab is the author of Five Families, which details the history of the Mafia in New York City.

Five of those area families were taken down during the bust with one family said to have been near 100 percent disrupted. 

US Attorney General Eric Holder held a press conference on the matter immediately following the arrests.

“An important step was taken in Disrupting La Cosa Nostra operations… Among the most dangerous criminals in our country,” Holder said during the press conference.

Holder also said that organized crime activities “negatively impact our economy”.

The indictments note that, among other things, reputed Philadelphia mob underboss Martin Angelina was apprehended for allegedly beating his girlfriend and how the Genovese organization has been involved in "the nearly three-decades-long extortion of port workers"

From PoliceOne.com:

Shakedowns and extortions were spread across the indictments. The charges included allegations that the Colombo crime family controlled a New York cement- and concrete-workers' union and that the mob used threats of violence to collect payoffs from strip clubs and go-go bars.

There were also five killings, one linked to an internecine power struggle in the Colombo crime family and two stemming from a dispute over a spilled drink in a bar in Queens, N.Y.

The popular Manhattan strip club Score, often mentioned during the Howard Stern Show, was also named in the indictments as having been infiltrated by the Mob during the 1980’s. The club's former owner indicated that different mob crews ran the club's valet parking and coat-check room and took kickbacks from dancers and bartenders.  Scores at one time generated millions of dollars in cash per week.

Gambling and drug dealing were also detailed in the indictments.

- Gilbert Horowitz, Gambling911.com