"Veil of Secrecy" Hangs Over Christy Tick Release
Jerry Capeci recently confirmed our story about Christopher "Christy Tick" Furnari getting out of prison last month--and even the storied mob scribe himself is puzzled over this one...(Yes, it does kill me to have to still write this kind of story.)
As we noted in a recent post: Christopher "Christie Tick" Furnari, Sr. walked out of prison last month without a peep. He'd been serving a 100-year stretch he'd been sentenced to back in 1986 as a defendant in the storied Commission Case.
As Mr. Capeci wrote in his last column: "...The end result of the historic Commission case in 1987 was that seven old-school wiseguys were hammered with unprecedented 100 year prison terms, sentences intended to send a message to gangsters everywhere. Under their labor racketeering convictions, none of them were ever supposed to see the light of day outside of a federal prison.
"But last month, with no official notice or pronouncement — and despite a request from his sentencing judge that he die behind bars — 90-year-old former Luchese consigliere Christopher (Christie Tick) Furnari, was quietly released on parole.
"A spokesman for the Bureau Of Prisons confirmed that Furnari... was released from a prison hospital in Minnesota on September 19.
"But that was about all officials had to say. A mysterious veil of secrecy surrounds Furnari's unexpected freedom after nearly 28 years behind bars. Officially, he was ordered released by the U.S. Parole Commission, following a hearing, the BOP spokesman said. But despite numerous phone calls, emails, and even a fax, the Parole Commission — a largely moribund outfit that still holds sway over 3500 BOP inmates who were convicted before parole was abolished — stood mute. So did Furnari's attorney in the case for more than 15 years, Flora Edwards, who declined to comment.
"If nothing else, it's clear that Christie Tick, as one usually reliable Gang Land source stated, is "a tough old bird" and did not cooperate to win his release. Furnari, a Staten Island resident whose mob base was the legendary Bensonhurst, Brooklyn bar, The 19th Hole, waged a long legal battle to get out of prison since 1996, when, like his six codefendants, he became technically eligible for parole. It appears that perseverance, combined with little real evidence that he had engaged in murders or other violence, finally won out."
 |
| Christy Tick Furnari |
As we noted in a recent post: Christopher "Christie Tick" Furnari, Sr. walked out of prison last month without a peep. He'd been serving a 100-year stretch he'd been sentenced to back in 1986 as a defendant in the storied Commission Case.
As Mr. Capeci wrote in his last column: "...The end result of the historic Commission case in 1987 was that seven old-school wiseguys were hammered with unprecedented 100 year prison terms, sentences intended to send a message to gangsters everywhere. Under their labor racketeering convictions, none of them were ever supposed to see the light of day outside of a federal prison.
"But last month, with no official notice or pronouncement — and despite a request from his sentencing judge that he die behind bars — 90-year-old former Luchese consigliere Christopher (Christie Tick) Furnari, was quietly released on parole.
"A spokesman for the Bureau Of Prisons confirmed that Furnari... was released from a prison hospital in Minnesota on September 19.
"But that was about all officials had to say. A mysterious veil of secrecy surrounds Furnari's unexpected freedom after nearly 28 years behind bars. Officially, he was ordered released by the U.S. Parole Commission, following a hearing, the BOP spokesman said. But despite numerous phone calls, emails, and even a fax, the Parole Commission — a largely moribund outfit that still holds sway over 3500 BOP inmates who were convicted before parole was abolished — stood mute. So did Furnari's attorney in the case for more than 15 years, Flora Edwards, who declined to comment.
"If nothing else, it's clear that Christie Tick, as one usually reliable Gang Land source stated, is "a tough old bird" and did not cooperate to win his release. Furnari, a Staten Island resident whose mob base was the legendary Bensonhurst, Brooklyn bar, The 19th Hole, waged a long legal battle to get out of prison since 1996, when, like his six codefendants, he became technically eligible for parole. It appears that perseverance, combined with little real evidence that he had engaged in murders or other violence, finally won out."
So is he going to do a sonny franzese or will he retire? Time will tell.
ReplyDeleteSammy was lucky when he got pinched in Arizona because he was about to get blown up by one of his old crew members sent by the Ganbinos but he slithered away with the bust
ReplyDeleteI doubt he'd do a Sonny Franzese. No one can do a Sonny Franzese except Sonny Franzese.
ReplyDeleteThey went out there to kill him for the same reason Shaun wanted nothing to do with them; Sammy the Bull was making a spectacle of himself, autographing copies of his book Underboss and making a lot of noise. The Gambinos believed he'd challenged them by living so publicly. That's why they sent guys West.
ReplyDeleteAbsolutely
ReplyDeleteEnglish Shaun's book Hard Time was awesome, great read
ReplyDeleteeither a car bomb or they were going to take him out with a high powered sniper rifle. btw he is supposed to be getting out soon because of the legal work his kids are doing. mainly because the judge gave sammy an upward departure without his knowledge before he accepted the plea deal for the pill ring.
ReplyDeleteShauns story proves karen's theory false that sammy had nothing to do with the drug ring.
ReplyDeleteYes!! I read it twice. And not because I'm mentioned in the back either!!
ReplyDeleteThe guy is retired. He is as smart as a Fox. The life he once knew was over a long time ago. He wouldn't trust a Soul.
ReplyDelete