Bad Day: Massive Lucchese Family Arrests
Nearly thirty people have been busted in connection with -- among other things -- an alleged Lucchese crime family public corruption scheme involving some NYC building inspectors as reported by Laura Italiano and Murray Weiss for the New York Post:
A trio of Lucchese crime family associates infiltrated the city Department of Buildings, climbing to mid-level inspection jobs and pocketing tens of thousands of dollars a pop in bribes for years — even as they plied elsewhere their more underworld trades of guns, drugs and gambling, officials said today. "They had developed a small beachfront into this agency," Manhattan DA Robert Morgenthau said in announcing 29 arrests — most of them of accused Lucchese gangsters, including two of the organization's top three men. Lucchese "ruling panel" honchos Matthew Madonna and Joseph DiNapoli were the biggest trophies for the prosecutors, organized crime cops and city investigators who spent two years and conducted 64 phone taps and 54 search warrants in netting their prey. But most startling among the arrests are the three accused mobster infiltrators, who somehow rose to supervisory positions in the scandal-plagued buildings department: brothers Frank Francomano and Carmine Francomano Jr. and Thomas Masucci.
Among those who paid bribes is an unidentified nightclub owner who shelled out "more than $29,000 to expedite and inspection and ward off violations, the DA said" as reported by WCBS.
In a press release which identifies all of the defendants and the specific crimes with which they are charged, District Attorney Robert Morgenthau stated:
This two-year joint investigation reminds us that the threat of traditional organized crime is not a thing of the past. Not content with activities like narcotics sales and gambling, the LUCCHESE/DOB GROUP has actually sought to place associates in a government agency and influence the routine functions of that agency. Obviously, we must be vigilant against such efforts at infiltration.
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