Sonny Franzese still a threat at 98 years old

The name Sonny Franzese was much better known on the street to those who were in the life, than the name John Gotti.  Sonny was very respected and feared by everyone, including the government. This distinction has caused him many years of grief.

Sonny has now earned the title of the oldest inmate in the federal prison system, and, if he lives to his release date, he will be released just after his 100th birthday in 2017.  Sonny has spent the last 40 years in and out of prison, much of the time a result of his bank robbery conviction in 1970 for which he was given 50 years.  The case was a obviously a set up by the prosecutors because they had Sonny working with a crew of junkie bank robbers who didn't even know him.

Sonny has been released many times by the parole board, only to be violated for associating with known felons. He would be out for enough time to be given his position of capo in the Colombo family back, and then he would be sent back.

When Colombo family underboss Jackie Deross went away for life, the family upped Sonny to underboss.  The position was short lived because the government already had its sources in place.  Sonny finally caught a new case after a guy wearing a wire caught him on tape.  The case was backed up by his son John Franzese.  Sonny was sentenced to 8 years in 2011 for the new case, and that should by all means be the end of his story.

The government is now going after the wheelchair-bound incarcerated man's prison commissary account.  It would be funny if it were not true.  

The same government who let the wife of con man Bernie Madoff keep $2.5 million of their stolen cash.  Unlike Ruth’s stolen loot, the money in Sonny’s account was given to him by relatives for his use to live.

They want to seize his $10,089 in the account that he uses to buy cup-o-noodles and hygiene items like soap, shampoo and shower shoes.  He buys ice cream every once in awhile and the rest he uses for phone calls.  The US wants to seize the cash to pay on his judgement that was part of his sentencing.  They claim that neither Sonny nor his co defendant Joseph DiGorga have paid a dime of what they owe. I would like to point out that Sonny is locked up in federal prison, so it would be pretty hard for him to earn money to pay anything and this is why inmates have accounts. They want to take his money and leave him with $250 to last the next two years.  Joseph DiGorga was release in 2014 and I am sure he is on parole.  He would have to pay back something every month even if it was 25 dollars a month.

How is it that the federal government has the resources and time to go after Sonny, when our southern border is open with millions of people crossing illegally every year.  It is a federal crime to come into the United States without going through immigration.  Everyone of these people costs us far more every year than a Sonny Franzese.

When I was still on the street, Teddy Persico Jr. had a guy in his crew that worked at the Hustler Club in Manhattan that Sonny was convicted of shaking down.  Teddy had to go to a couple of sitdowns over two brothers that others wanted to kill because of the club.  The brothers were sons of Gambino family guy who was in Las Vegas for many years. The brothers lived but the Feds never did much about that whole deal.  

If they just released Sonny now, what harm would it do? He can’t walk. he can't see well and he cannot hear.  The glory days are behind him.  They should let him go home for his final days to die.

A note on last week's story.  Mr New Orleans:

The traditional Second Line parade in celebration of Frenchy Brouillette's life will take place beginning at 4PM on SUNDAY, DECEMBER 13th in the French Quarter outside of Felix's Oyster Bar off Bourbon and Iberville. Attendees are invited to start collecting around 3:50.

Led by MR. NEW ORLEANS author Matthew Randazzo, the parade will be joined by the Storyville Stompers brass band and Pastor Ray Cannata, who will say a benediction as we begin. The parade will travel to some historic places in Frenchy's life before ending with a memorial toast at Lafitte's Blacksmith Shop. In addition to Frenchy's friends and fans, all Mardi Gras Indians, baby dolls, Saints fans in full costume, rolling Elvi, and other manifestations of New Orleans are invited to come out and honor Mr. New Orleans with the wildest, most flamboyant second line in French Quarter memory.

It sounds like a great send off!

Colombo War: A Father-Son Story (Part III)

Less than three days after Bill Sr disappeared, the FBI reached out to Bill Jr.  One of the first things the agent said to Bill was that he was reaching out to give his condolences about the death of his father.  Bill Jr was caught off guard, and said “My father’s been gone less than three days, how do you know he’s dead?”  The agent responded saying anytime a man of his father’s rank in the family disappears, its the last time they are seen alive.  The agent continued on to ask Bill Jr if he would like to help the FBI investigate his father’s disappearance.  Bill Jr agreed on the condition that he didn’t have to wear a wire.  Within two weeks he had changed his mind and was ready to wear a recording device.  

A number of devices were used, ranging from hidden devices sewn into Bill Jr’s clothing to a cell phone that was wired.  One of the first people Bill Jr recorded was Jackie DeRoss.  Jackie was soon caught up in an FBI sting.  The FBI had set up a fake Manhattan businessman who was supposedly making a lot of money in shady businesses.  Jackie sent Downtown Ronnie to go with Bill Jr to shake down this “shady businessman” who was in reality an FBI agent.  That pretty much sealed Jackie’s fate as far as extortion, but left Bill Jr no closer to the whereabouts of his father.  Billy continued to go to his father’s club and hang with the rest of his father’s crew members.  He recorded a number of them speaking candidly about the family.  

When you wear a wire for the FBI you always have to be recording, its always on, friend or foe.  Anytime you talk on the phone, its recorded.  Sometimes you end up catching friends, or those you wish no harm to, on these recordings, which has repercussions for them down the road.  

A few days after Bill Sr had disappeared, Jackie DeRoss upgraded his ride to a leather topped Cadillac, which he drove to Bill Sr’s club, where he spoke to Billy, calling him “Buff” and pretending that nothing was wrong.  He did not even acknowledge the ongoing search for Billy’s father.  This proved to be very hard for Billy Jr but he had to play along because another one of the FBI’s unbreakable rules is “absolutely no violence at all.”  

Meanwhile, the Persicos, along with DeRoss, were busy trying to locate and steal any money that Bill Sr had anywhere, his businesses, his stashes, etc.  Billy Jr was now having a hard time making ends meet, so the FBI began paying him for his expenses and time.  After months of not knowing who killed his father, the FBI would charge Ally Boy Persico and Jackie DeRoss with the murder of Bill Sr. They used Billy Jr’s tapes and testimony from others to convict them.  Still no body.  There were a lot of rumors that he was dumped at sea, that he was incinerated, that he was compacted in a junk yard, that would go on until a young man named Joey Compantello was arrested with the Colombo underboss and others for some murders.  Joey Compatello aka Joey Caves, saw the writing on the wall and decided to flip.  He gave up the location of Bill Sr’s body.  The FBI began digging and soon found Bill Sr’s body in a Long Island grave.  This ended 8 years of anguish for the Cutolo family.

The Colombo family decided to get rid of Joe Campy partly because of what he said to Billy Jr on the tapes.  One day, Joe Campy was in Coney Island at the beach.  He noticed a blue van following him throughout the day.  He didn’t think much of it, because the FBI had raided him recently, and they had driven a similar blue van.  He just figured this van was the FBI agents.  After his day at the beach, Joe was stowing his beach chair in the trunk of his Mercedes when the van pulled up, the door slid open, and someone yelled, “Hey Joe Campy!” and they began firing shots at him.  He was hit but he continued to zigzag and run.  The van took off and he laid down on the ground.  An off-duty cop happened to be on the scene, and rushed over.  He told Joe to stay down because he’d been shot in the foot and the arm.  Joe was rushed to the hospital where he soon recovered.  He kept his mouth shut even though he knew who had shot him.  The Persicos soon started taking everything of Joe’s on the street.  They even tried to take his Harley Davidsons.  That was the final straw for Joe and he too began cooperating.   

This story of the lust for greed and power will show you what the mafia is like today.  There is no honor, there is no loyalty.  If you work your way up as an earner you will get killed by the greedy ones on top.