Wiseguy whacked for finding religion
He found God -- and it got him whacked.
A Bonanno family capo-turned-canary testified yesterday that a family associate who was the superintendent of deliveries at The New York Post was rubbed out because mobsters feared his born-again devotion would turn him into a rat.
James "Big Louie" Tartaglione, testifying during the federal murder and racketeering trial of Vincent "Vinny Gorgeous" Basciano, said Post employee Robert Perrino was "whacked" in 1992 because Bonanno bigs feared that Perrino might cooperate with the authorities.
"He would go to church every day. He was praying every day. They thought he may flip -- that he found religion," Tartaglione explained in testimony. "Sal [Vitale, the then-underboss] had him whacked out."
"He was saying certain things that he felt a little more religious," Tartaglione added.
Perrino was missing and presumed dead for years. His skeletal remains were unearthed in Staten Island in 2003.
The government said Perrino was told to go to Brooklyn social club Basile's, where a hit man shot him in the head and another thrust an ice pick in his ear.
Prosecutors yesterday also played recordings of a meeting at the Seacrest Diner on Long Islandbetween Basciano and Tartaglione, who was wearing a wire.
In the recordings, Basciano sounds almost prophetic about his possible future.
"The end of the day, we're all gonna be in jail. That's going to f - - king happen," the now-jailed Basciano fatefully predicted.
Basciano, 51, also had a man crush on late mob boss John Gotti, according to recordings played for the jury yesterday during his murder and racketeering trial in Brooklyn federal court.
"You know what? He did it the way he wanted, and he died the way he wanted," Basciano said on the recording, referring to the "Dapper Don," his role model in crime and style.
His salt-and-pepper hair perfectly in place, Basciano sneered and wore a mocking expression as the tanned, black-clad Tartaglione testified -- as his own boasts were replayed.
"I don't need anybody that anybody's gonna give me. I got my own guys. I do it myself," Basciano said.
The mob big also shared his philosophy about the organized-crime business during the fateful diner chat.
"If you're a hoodlum, Louie, I can show you the right direction; we can make money," he said. "But if you're a businessman, I can't show you how to be a hoodlum."
Basciano is on trial for allegedly ordering a hit on Bonanno associate Randy Pizzolo. He faces the death penalty if convicted.
A Bonanno family capo-turned-canary testified yesterday that a family associate who was the superintendent of deliveries at The New York Post was rubbed out because mobsters feared his born-again devotion would turn him into a rat.
James "Big Louie" Tartaglione, testifying during the federal murder and racketeering trial of Vincent "Vinny Gorgeous" Basciano, said Post employee Robert Perrino was "whacked" in 1992 because Bonanno bigs feared that Perrino might cooperate with the authorities.
"He would go to church every day. He was praying every day. They thought he may flip -- that he found religion," Tartaglione explained in testimony. "Sal [Vitale, the then-underboss] had him whacked out."
VISIONARY: Vinny Basciano says in a recording played yesterday, "We're all gonna be in jail."
Perrino was missing and presumed dead for years. His skeletal remains were unearthed in Staten Island in 2003.
The government said Perrino was told to go to Brooklyn social club Basile's, where a hit man shot him in the head and another thrust an ice pick in his ear.
Prosecutors yesterday also played recordings of a meeting at the Seacrest Diner on Long Islandbetween Basciano and Tartaglione, who was wearing a wire.
In the recordings, Basciano sounds almost prophetic about his possible future.
"The end of the day, we're all gonna be in jail. That's going to f - - king happen," the now-jailed Basciano fatefully predicted.
Basciano, 51, also had a man crush on late mob boss John Gotti, according to recordings played for the jury yesterday during his murder and racketeering trial in Brooklyn federal court.
"You know what? He did it the way he wanted, and he died the way he wanted," Basciano said on the recording, referring to the "Dapper Don," his role model in crime and style.
His salt-and-pepper hair perfectly in place, Basciano sneered and wore a mocking expression as the tanned, black-clad Tartaglione testified -- as his own boasts were replayed.
"I don't need anybody that anybody's gonna give me. I got my own guys. I do it myself," Basciano said.
The mob big also shared his philosophy about the organized-crime business during the fateful diner chat.
"If you're a hoodlum, Louie, I can show you the right direction; we can make money," he said. "But if you're a businessman, I can't show you how to be a hoodlum."
Basciano is on trial for allegedly ordering a hit on Bonanno associate Randy Pizzolo. He faces the death penalty if convicted.
0 comments:
Post a Comment