Five Families: The Rise, Decline, and Resurgence of America's Most Powerful Mafia Empires (132 page)

The FBI’s strategy to concentrate on Vitale and the gathering of evidence against him were obtained from indictment and court records and interviews with the case agents, Sallet and McCaffrey, the Bonanno Squad chief, Jack Stubing; and with Vitale’s defense lawyer John Mitchell. Massino’s rift with Vitale is based mainly on Vitale’s testimony at Massino’s 2004 trial, with additional materials obtained from Vitale’s
FBI debriefings and testimony by Frank Coppa and Richard Cantarella at the 2004 trial. Anthony Graziano’s convictions are based on indictments and court records. The Massino/Bonanno family’s involvement in financial market crimes was obtained from indictments and court documents; testimony by Coppa and Lino; and interviews with Stubing, other FBI agents, and federal and state prosecutors in the Manhattan DA’s office. Lino’s history was based on his testimony at the 2004 trial; NYPD and FBI intelligence files; and newspaper accounts of his arrests and convictions. Details of Cantarella’s criminal career came from his 2004 trial testimony; court statements by federal prosecutors; FBI and NYPD intelligence files; and testimony by Coppa and Joseph D’Amico. Details about the Manhattan D.A.’s investigation at the New York Post were obtained from indictments; other court documents; and pleas and contemporaneous and follow-up interviews with Manhattan D.A. Robert Morgenthau and prosecutors in the case, Daniel Castleman and Michael Cherkasky. Information about the murder of Robert Perrino came from the indictment of Cantarella; an application in 2002 by prosecutors for Cantarella’s pretrial detention; and testimony in 2004 by Cantarella and Leisenheimer. Cantarella’s involvement with Barry Weinberg and parking-lot deals is based on the pretrial detention memo; Cantarella’s trial testimony; and interviews with FBI Agents Sallet and McCaffrey. Details about parking-lot profits were derived from personal reporting; interviews with parking-lot company executives and New York Department of Taxation and Finance officials; and testimony by Cantarella and Coppa. Weinberg’s background was provided primarily from interviews with Sallet, McCaffrey and Ruth Nordenbrook, a federal prosecutor in several Bonanno cases. Augustino Scozzari’s background and role in the investigation was obtained from Cantarella’s pretrial detention memo and testimony; secretly recorded tapes used as evidence against Massino; interviews with Sallet, McCaffrey, and Nordenbrook, and merchants in Little Italy. Vitale and Cantarella testified about Massino and Vitale’s financial interests in parking lots, and additional information came from tax documents concerning their partnerships and earnings which were used as evidence in the 2004 trial. Cantarella’s relationship with Massino and his criminal wealth were based on Cantarella’s testimony and a pretrial detention application by prosecutors.

FBI Agents McCaffrey and Sallet, in interviews, were the main sources for the information about Massino and Vitale’s tax documents, their earnings, and lottery winnings. McCaffrey testified about the financial matters at Massino’s 2004 trial. Details of the investigations, arrests, and turning of Barry Weinberg and Augustino Scozzari into undercover witnesses were obtained in interviews with McCaffrey and Sallet. Cantarella testified in 2004 about his suspicions of Weinberg and his discussion about Weinberg with Massino. Cantarella’s comments about Massino were recorded by Scozzari and cited in a pretrial application by federal prosecutors to detain Massino without bail. Descriptions of the search of Cantarella’s house and his later arrest were
provided by McCaffrey and Sallet in interviews. Additional details were obtained from Cantarella’s testimony. Coppa and Cantarella’s reasons for defecting were included in their testimonies at Massino’s 2004 trial. Further information about their decisions was obtained in interviews with FBI agents. The video cameras outside Massino’s home were personally observed, and confirmed in interviews with FBI agents. Descriptions of the arrests and processing of Massino and Vitale were obtained in interviews with McCaffrey, Sallet, and Agents Sean McElearney and Nora Conley. McCaffrey also testified at the 2004 trial about Massino’s behavior and conversations.

The description of Massino’s appearance and composure during his pretrial hearings was based on personal observations and from interviews with defense lawyers who asked for anonymity. Vitale’s comments to his lawyer, John Mitchell, refuting the prosecution’s claims that Massino wanted to harm him, were obtained in interviews with Mitchell. At Massino’s 2004 trial, Lino testified about Massino’s jailhouse threats against Vitale. References by Bonanno family defendants to Vitale as “Fredo” was mentioned in an interview with a defense lawyer who asked for anonymity. Vitale’s reasons for defecting and seeking a plea agreement were given in his testimony at the 2004 trial. Massino and Lino’s reactions to Vitale’s decision to help the prosecution were based on Lino’s trial testimony and his debriefings by FBI agents. Lino and D’Amico gave their reasons for becoming cooperative witnesses in trial testimony. Tartaglione testified at the trial about his meeting with Massino in Florida; his decision to become a cooperative witness; and his undercover work. Additional information about his defection was obtained in interviews with Nordenbrook and Agents Bonavolonta and Massa. Details of Leisenheimer’s becoming a cooperative witness were based on his trial testimony and interviews with Agents Sallet and McCaffrey. Attempts by lawyers to represent Massino was cited by attorneys who were interviewed. The account of David Breitbart’s background and courtroom style was obtained in interviews with him, his wife, other lawyers, and prosecutors who tried cases against him, Federal District Court Judge Barbara Jones, and New York newspaper accounts of his cases. Greg Andres’s background was based on his curriculum vitae and interviews with other prosecutors and lawyers. Details of the strategy, tactics and atmosphere at Massino’s 2004 trial were obtained through personal reporting; transcripts of testimony; and interviews with Breitbart, his co-counsel Flora Edwards, Andres and other prosecutors, and lawyers who observed the trial. The apparent reasons for Massino’s defection are based on interviews with FBI agents and lawyers familiar with the case who spoke on the condition of anonymity.

This chapter is based on personal reporting and analysis, court documents, and interviews with law-enforcement officials and experts whose opinions are cited.

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