Massino Wins Freedom -- Could be Out in Two Months

Life sentence turns to time served for
Joe Massino, former Bonanno boss.
The convicted former boss of the mob family that inspired the film "Donnie Brasco" -- and the TV reality show "Mob Wives" -- will no longer have to spend the rest of his life behind bars.

A federal judge on Wednesday reduced Joe Massino's life sentence to time served — which has been about 10 years.

Massino is expected to be in jail for another two months then remain under FBI supervision for the rest of his life, according to the AP.

The reduction was requested by prosecutors to reward Massino for testifying. He did less damage than others, more damage than some, but this move to back Massino seems to reveal that the Feds, ultimately, are pleased with the deal they made with the wily former Bonanno boss who flipped quickly after losing one trial (before he could lose the next and be sentenced to death, which was a possibility at the time).





Only this week, we noted that Alphonse "Little Al" D'Arco, former Luchese acting boss turned informant, was quoted by the New York Daily News as saying that Massino should be let out of prison.

“I hate to play judge, but I think he should get time served,” said Alphonse (Little Al) D’Arco, who is described in the article as the second-highest-ranking defecting gangster after Massino.

“The government took his cooperation, he did what they asked,” D’Arco, 80, said in a statement provided to the Daily News. “They owe him. You can’t let him rot in prison for the rest of his life.”
Massino, when arrested for the last time.

Massino, who is now 70, was convicted of racketeering and eight murders and sentenced to life in prison in 2005.

As we reported in early June, the feds were asking a judge to reduce the life sentence of  Massino as a reward for his unprecedented cooperation.

“As the first official boss of the American Mafia to testify publicly, Massino’s cooperation was an important milestone in the decades-long effort by the Department of Justice to dismantle and uproot La Cosa Nostra,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Taryn Merkl stated in papers filed Monday in Brooklyn Federal Court.

Massino, 70, sought a cooperation deal from the government immediately after he was convicted in 2004 of racketeering and eight gangland rubouts.

Prosecutors were skeptical at first, but Massino won them over when he claimed to have knowledge of a plot by his successor, Vincent (Vinny Gorgeous) Basciano, to whack mob-busting Assistant U.S. Attorney Greg Andres. He testified in two mob trials and provided assistance that led to dozens of convictions.

Federal Judge Nicholas Garaufis scheduled the resentencing; Massino has served more than 10 years in prison since his last arrest.

Ironically, just as news of Massino's pending release rolls out, a small crew of Bonannos have been indicted by the Manhattan District attorney, who noted the effort was the result of a two-year investigation into a $10 million scheme involving organized crime's infiltration of a labor union.

Nicholas "Nicky Mouth" Santora is the lead defendant it seems, as he has the most status in the mob.

Santora, a contemporary of Joe Massino, and the others were charged with enterprise corruption, the state version of the federal crime of racketeering. The charge carries a maximum prison sentence of 25 years.



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Comments

  1. wake up underlings of the "families" your boss is one arrest away from being in witness protection and giving you up

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    Replies
    1. ok cop or fed or wanna be spread your bs somewhere else there still are real men out that would die before ratting and there are guys doing forever in prison because they would not flip

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    2. I think what anonymous wrote above is already understood by the capi and street soldiers. Massino was the first boss to turn - that had to throw a chill into the collective mob. There was concern about Big Paul flipping so this isn't a new concept. I think letting Fat Joe join Team America was done partly to demoralize guys.

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  2. He paid a heavy price for in his own words, 'someday seeing the light at the end of the tunnel'. Houses, gold bars. cash, etc...plus all the damming testimony. Stand up guy or rat? These guys love their wives and mothers to all ends and will do just about anything to make sure they're ok. The three capos, Sonny Black...all that stuff...wow. the government is sending a clear message to other families as part of their ongoing efforts to dismantle the mob: cooperate with us and we'll take care of you.

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  3. I definitely agree, the FBI is sending a message. They are letting guys know they have a "get out of jail free" card. Maybe serve 6-10 years, but for murders and RICO offenses, that's nothing!

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  4. Like Sonny Girard said the "MOB" cannot compete with the feds
    these days.... Maybe back in the "HEY DAY" when they controlled everything.
    Now what do they have to offer?
    You got 2-3 guys in a crew wearing a wire at any given time.
    They ain't killing anyone anymore not in America anyway.
    With "RICO" you get 3 times the amount of jail time and it is 2x's easier for the feds to convict using "RICO" statue.

    Its "OVER"
    You have very few out there with and sort of real money.
    You switch sides you work with the feds you get the "VALACHI SWEET", the feds pay you, you get a get out jail free card, and then a book deal.

    You keep your mouth shut and you get a couple of washed up wanna bee's with 2 cents to rub together giving you a pat on the back in 20 years.

    While your family suffered all that time.

    1920-1960's was the time to be a mobster.
    1970's and on it has been a steady decline.

    Now they are mostly like street gangs
    EXACTLY what RFK wanted was to reduce their power and influence to nothing more than a gang on a corner.


    ReplyDelete

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