Three arrested in gangland-style murder of Suncruz founder 'Gus' Boulis

[Roland99]

http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/local/southflorida/sfl-927boulismurder,0,6594337.story?coll=sfla-home-headlines

MIAMI - Federal prosecutors are seeking bank fraud charges against lobbyist Jack Abramoff, a key figure in investigations involving House Majority Leader Tom DeLay, The Associated Press learned Thursday.

The charges stem from the 2000 purchase by Abramoff and his partners of SunCruz Casinos and the alleged use of a fake wire transfer of $23 million aimed at influencing lenders to provide millions of dollars for the deal. Exact details of the charges were not immediately available.

A grand jury, meeting in Miami, could hand up indictments against Abramoff as early as Thursday, federal law enforcement sources said. They spoke on condition of anonymity because the grand jury indictment had not been finalized.

<...>

The partners bought SunCruz, which runs a fleet of gambling boats, from entrepreneur Konstantinos "Gus" Boulis for $147 million in September 2000, but the deal soon fell apart. Amid bitter legal fighting over the sale, Boulis was shot to death in February 2001 in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., in what police called a hit. The killing has never been solved.

Whoa!

[CdnObserver]

1. More info about the actual arrests

FORT LAUDERDALE -- Three men were charged with the 2001 gangland-style slaying of Miami businessman Konstantinos ``Gus'' Boulis, whose sale of a casino boat fleet to Jack Abramoff and a partner has led to federal charges against the prominent Washington lobbyist.

Anthony Ferrari was arrested at his North Miami Beach home Monday evening, Fort Lauderdale police said in a statement Tuesday. Fort Lauderdale homicide detectives arrested Anthony Moscatiello, 67, at his Howard Beach home in New York late Monday, police said.

Moscatiello and Ferrari, 48, were once paid by Adam Kidan, Abramoff's partner in the SunCruz Casinos sale, according to court documents in lawsuits filed about the sale.

Kidan paid Ferrari $95,000 when he was running SunCruz, but it is unclear what it was for, according to the documents. Kidan paid Moscatiello's daughter Jennifer $145,000 for his work as a food and beverage consultant at SunCruz, according to court documents.

[Roland99]

2. RICO....suave.

;)



edit because I can't spell worth beans today.

[UpInArms]

7. more info on Moscatiello:

http://www.madcowprod.com/06202005.html

excerpt:

At the time Boulis was murdered, suspicion focused on company chairman Adam Kidan, also an active Republican and campaign contributor. He had been in Israel at the time of the murder. His alibi held.

But then news surfaced that just before Boulis’ death Kidan had written at least $30,000 in checks to a reputed Mob enforcer named Anthony Moscatiello, a one-time associate of crime boss John Gotti.

Moscatiello is apparently what is known in criminal parlance as a “torpedo.” (We're not quite sure what that means, but it doesn't sound good.)

...more...

[formercia]

16. A "Torpedo" is a mob term for a hit man

The term is rather dated. I first heard it used over 40 years ago.

[Judi Lynn]

3. Wouldn't it be helpful if they revealed who ordered this murder? n/t

[MGKrebs]

19. One can speculate.

"within weeks Boulis was embroiled in a bitter feud with new CEO Adam Kidan, a New York attorney who founded the Dial-A-Mattress company in Washington, D.C., and had served as general counsel to the St. Maarten Hotel Beach Club & Casino in the Caribbean. At one point Boulis and Kidan got into a fistfight."

"Kidan didn't look too squeaky-clean when it was later revealed that his "food and beverage consultant" was Anthony Moscatiello, a Brooklyn friend of John Gotti with ties to the Gambino family, or that $95,000 had been paid to a mysterious company called Moon Over Miami Beach "to protect the vessels."

http://www.joebobbriggs.com/vegasguy/vg20021015.html

[maddezmom]

4. Whoa is right

Was living in Weston at the time..I remember this story well.

[hang a left]

5. Me thinks Abramoff may be singing.........

this is gonna be good.

[Scurrilous]

17. Yep...

...someone's talking. My money is on him.

[UpInArms]

6. here's something interesting

http://www.madcowprod.com/06202005.html

excerpt:

A man in a BMW was driving down a quiet side street after an evening meeting at his Fort Lauderdale office when a car slowed to a stop in front of him. A second car boxed the BMW in from behind, then a dark Mustang appeared from the opposite direction. The Mustang's driver pulled alongside and pumped three hollow-point bullets into the BMW driver's chest.

“Boulis was murdered in the exact same way as Don Aronow, Bush’s other partner,” he stated.

Bush’s other partner? The question hung in the air.

“Something is really going down bad here,” Tiller stated. “Don Aronow. Gus. Jim Shore…All tied in to Bush.”

...more...

http://www.njppc.com/OldOffshoreStories/AronowMurderMystery.htm

excerpt:

Yet despite a $100,000 reward offered by Aronow's widow Lillian, a composite drawing of the murderer and a description of his car circulated across the United States, police say they have no idea who killed Aronow -- or why.

Investigative paperwork abounds: For example, to try to track down the suspect's car, cops got a computer printout of 2,000 Town Cars sold in Florida. It has taken a year to check out half.

Ambition was Aronow's middle name: "He could be your best friend, but in business, he was all business," detective DeCora says. With a vengeance, Aronow bought and sold racehorses. He sold high-tech boats to the world: the Israeli government. Baby Doc Duvalier. King Hussein of Jordan. He designed and built a line of sassy speedboats nicknamed Blue Thunder for the U.S. Customs Service.

He sold George Bush a boat and Aronow took a lot of calls in his kitchen from the vice president. And he sold the sleek, super-fast Cigarette boats to characters, as DeCora put it, "with doper written all over their face."

When Aronow was murdered, Bush's office called DeCora to check on things.

...more...

[UpInArms]

13. What did Jim Shore (son of Seminole Medicine Man) have to do with

Abramoff:

http://www.sptimes.com/2002/04/25/State/Tribe_s_attorney_has_.shtml

Some Seminole Indians say Jim Shore, the blind son of a medicine man, must have had strong medicine on his side to survive an assassination attempt three months ago.

He was shot three times.

One slug ripped through his right arm between his wrist and elbow. Another crashed into his upper arm, shattering the bone near his shoulder. A third entered his chest near his right armpit and exited near his left armpit.

Doctors told Shore the bullet's path across his torso missed his heart by no more than an inch. They now believe he should recover completely.

"He is the son of a medicine man, and he's a religious man, too," tribal member Jo Motlow North said. "It was sort of expected he would be okay."

Shore, the tribe's attorney, knows he is lucky to be alive. He is convalescing at a safehouse in Broward County, where armed security guards watch over him 24 hours a day. Tribal officials have offered a $50,000 reward for information leading to the arrest of his assailant.

Hollywood police and the FBI have few leads, but many suspects. Prior to the shooting, Shore played a critical role as intermediary between the Seminoles and a federal task force investigating corruption within the 2,800-member tribe.

...more...

http://64.62.196.98/news/show.asp?ID=law02/01142002-4

Seminole lawyer in critical condition

Jim Shore, general counsel to the Seminole Tribe of Florida, remains in critical condition after being shot last week in his home.

Shore, who is blind, was targeted by his assailant, police believe. The crime occurred in an upscale neighborhood in Hollywood and not on the tribal land but the FBI are investigating.

The tribe has been under scrutiny recently for political and legal scandals. Shore was responsible for ousting longtime chairman Jim Billie.

...more...

[Roland99]

14. Good grief!!

[sofa king]

36. I might be able to help with that.

This is going entirely from memory, so you'll have to verify it yourself. Remember also that I'm pretty sure I'm not exactly sane, so if you don't see links (which you won't here), don't take my word for it.

Back in the late '70s and early '80s, crime boss Myer Lansky "took an interest" in the Seminole tribe. Lansky fronted the money for the now-famous Seminole bingo parlors in Hollywood, FL. The tribe, through Chairman-for-life (and that's only a half-joke) Jim Billie is considered totally penetrated by the mafia by many Indian gaming observers.

It was Lansky's penetration of Seminole, in addition to the Cabazon decision in the Supreme Court which came down at roughly the same time, which forced Congress to pass IGRA, the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act. That act has been a smashing success in keeping the mob out of Indian gaming--if the mob wasn't already in in the first place.

I think, but I am not sure, that the Lansky crew gets a pass on its Seminole interests because it is by and large a legitimate operation, or at least the criminal aspects of the operation are somehow out of reach of federal prosecutors. I know for sure that the feds have been keeping a close eye on Seminole for a long, long time--a fact which I may come back to in a moment.

The informal deal, as I understood it when working with Indian tribes, was that if Seminole ever wanted a shot at opening a for-real casino, they were gonna have to ditch the Lansky boys, something which they were having a lot of trouble doing.

IGRA requires that states negotiate in good faith with tribes for casino rights. Florida wasn't dealing with Seminole. So the Seminoles tried to take them to the mat by suing Florida before the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court ruled that whatever Congress was intended to do when they said tribes could sue states over gaming compacts, it wasn't constitutional, so as a result of the Seminole case, states can now pretty much tell Indian tribes to screw off. States are required by IGRA to negotiate in good faith, but there's no penalty for not negotiating in good faith, so they don't.

And that's just the angle the mob needed to get back in the game. Because one thing the mob has that Indians don't is money. And money buys power, and lobbyists, and votes in the state legislature. How the mob expects a return on their investment once IGRA kicks in, I don't know, but I do know that shady money is popping up around tribes which want casinos but can't get them.

What does all this have to do with Jack Abramoff? I don't know. The simplest explanation for Seminole's involvement--or potential involvement--in the SunCruz story is that Seminole (and the Lanskys) wanted that unregulated casino operation for themselves, since the state has no leverage over it.

But the location of Seminole is another curious thing. Hollywood, Florida, as I said, is a pretty busy spot, what with the feds chasing the Lanskys, and Abramoff and his boys puttering about, and Mohammed Atta and other future 9/11 terrorists living there, taking flying lessons there, and yelling at the staff of Shuckum's Oyster Bar.

Of course, everybody needs to suspend disbelief when it comes to Hollywood.

[UpInArms]

38. thanks for your input, sofa king

that was refreshing and enlightening.

:hi:

[sofa king]

45. One more possibility.

One I should have said right off the bat: the possibility that Seminole, the Lanskys, and Abramoff were all in it together, rather than competing.

If that's the case, you can damn well bet the Indians are gonna get sent up the flagpole first and highest. Just remember that it's still Karl Rove pulling the line.

Edit: You're welcome! It's been a long time since I've felt refreshing.

[Bernardo de La Paz]

8. A lot of money at stake. People get murdered.

[seafan]

9. Info on the third arrest:

--snip

A third man, 28-year-old James Fiorillo, was arrested Tuesday in Palm Coast. Police did not release details of how the killing occurred or the defendant's roles in it.

Moscatiello and Ferrari were charged with first-degree murder, conspiracy to commit murder and solicitation to commit murder, police said. Fiorillo was charged with first-degree murder and conspiracy to commit murder. All three were scheduled to appear in court either Tuesday or Wednesday.

http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/local/southflorida/sfl-927boulismurder,0,6594337.story?coll=sfla-home-headlines

[understandinglife]

10. Two TPM links:

http://www.talkingpointsmemo.com/archives/week_2005_09_25.php#006636

http://www.talkingpointsmemo.com/archives/week_2005_09_25.php#006635


Peace.

[starroute]

11. I can't say how happy this makes me

I was having a fit of nostalgia over this last night. It's coming up on a year since I first ran into Abramoff's name while posting here in a thread on "Stolen Honor."

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=132&topic_id=1024263#1041647

At the time, I mostly thought it was funny. Here was this Bush Pioneer with a strangely lurid and checkered career. But in the months that followed, Abramoff's name kept surfacing in connection with one Republican scandal after another, from direct-mail scare letters to astroturf seniors organizations. Then all the Delay stuff began coming out. And the circle only gets wider.

Truly, Jack Abramoff is the gift that keeps on giving.

[seemslikeadream]

54. Yes he certainly is a gift

:hi:

[Old and In the Way]

12. This ain't no Party.....

This is a Syndicate.

[suegeo]

20. As Mrs. Soprano confessed to the priest...

"These crimes father, they're organized."

[Jose Diablo]

42. I would suggest Mark Lombardi's

Meyer Lansky's Financial Network, ca. 1960-78 as a start to link Cuba/Florida organized crime and how it spread to the CIA black ops and Bu$h1.

This explains the 'free ride' the Bu$h's have enjoyed since the Kennedy assassination to right-up until today.

When people say Bu$h is a crook, take that literally, not as a figure of speech. You see, among the crooks, the murderers are the kings, thief's are very low on the totem pole among crooks. And the biggest crooks are always at the top and they always oversee and control with murder.

I don't think our representatives just fear political backlash. Anthrax is very serious backlash. Notice the FBI has stopped trying to find out about the anthrax that was sent to the Dem senate leader's office in 2001? Why has the FBI stopped trying to find out? Maybe they know but cannot prosecute because they know the DoJ will not allow any trial to start.

But this stuff going down today is much better, because it is current and will destroy the GOP if it gets out. DeLay, oh boy!!

[SOS]

49. The leaders are a criminal syndicate...

...the followers are a cult.

[Roland99]

15. 2001 - Investigators Focus In Mysterious Payments Made By SunCruz

http://www.gamblingmagazine.com/ManageArticle.asp?C=280&A=2179

In the months surrounding the Feb. 6 murder of millionaire businessman Gus Boulis, SunCruz Casinos made $250,000 in payments to a mysterious Miami Beach company and an associate of former Gambino family crime boss John Gotti, sources close to the Boulis investigation said Thursday.

Under the ownership of Boulis' rival, Adam Kidan, SunCruz issued a total of $145,000 in checks to the daughter of Anthony Moscatiello and to one of his companies. Moscatiello, who is a friend of Kidan's, is also a friend of the Gotti family. Moscatiello was once indicted -- but not convicted -- in a racketeering case with John Gotti's brother, Gene.

SunCruz also paid $95,000 to Moon Over Miami Beach, a company whose business remains unclear. Another $10,000 was paid in casino chips to four men including Thomas Pepper, a principal of that company, according to the sources. One of the check stubs from a check written to Moon Over Miami Beach said the payment was for "surveillance."

Company records and court papers previously reviewed by the Sun-Sentinel had revealed a total of $60,000 in payments -- $30,000 to Jennifer Moscatiello and $30,000 to Moon Over Miami Beach. Boulis' attorneys have said the Moscatiello payments had "no legitimate purpose," and no one, including Kidan, has offered an explanation for the Moon Over Miami Beach checks.

(more at the article)

[peace_on_earth]

18. There may be MUCH more here than meets the eye...

New 9/11 revelations -- UPDATE
10 Aug 2005 by Joseph - References
In 2000, Boulis sold SunCruz to a partnership of Washington-based ... Boulis, the unfortunate previous owner of SunCruz, was under ... SunCruz Casinos has turned over photographs and other documents to FBI ...

CANNONFIRE - http://cannonfire.blogspot.com/2005/08/new-911-revelations-update.html

Atta's big gamble. <em>Plus</em>: Jack Abramoff's link to a ...
18 Aug 2005 by Joseph - References
Yes, a casino ship -- just like the SunCruz ships owned by Jack Abramoff, ... SunCruz ships were under investigation for involvement in money laundering and ... Was the ship purchased by SunCruz? After 9/11, Makram Chams disappeared, ...

CANNONFIRE - http://cannonfire.blogspot.com/2005/08/attas-big-gamble-plus-jack-abramoffs.html

Was Abramoff linked to terrorists?
13 Aug 2005 by Joseph - References
... that Atta and company had hopped aboard a SunCruz casino ship on September 5, 2001. Abramoff owned SunCruz. He acquired the company under circumstances many ... The feds had long suspected that SunCruz ships have been used for money ...

CANNONFIRE - http://cannonfire.blogspot.com/2005/08/was-abramoff-linked-to-terrorists.html

Tom Delay, Jack Abramoff...and <em>Mohammed Atta</em>?
20 Jun 2005 by Joseph - References
Two SunCruz executives, Jack Abramoff and Ben Waldman, are walking examples of the strange alliance between the family-values party and the gambling industry. Both men have strong ties to Pat Robertson's Christian Coalition, ...

CANNONFIRE - http://cannonfire.blogspot.com/2005/06/tom-delay-jack-abramoffand-mohammed.html

More on Able Danger: They're <em>still</em> protecting Atta and ...
17 Aug 2005 by Joseph - References
The AP report of his mysterious September 5, 2001 visit to Jack Abramoff's SunCruz ship is, as noted earlier, suggestive. However, another right-wing blog offered a running summary of an interview Shaffer gave to Tony Snow. ...

CANNONFIRE - http://cannonfire.blogspot.com/2005/08/more-on-able-danger-theyre-still.html

I hope these links work...if not, go to Joseph Cannon's blog http://cannonfire.blogspot.com
Use "search blog", then search term "SunCruz" and all the articles will come up.

[caligirl]

21. has anyone said welcome to you here at DU yet? Welcome.

Interesting reading. Bookmarked.

[Roland99]

22. Thanks and welcome to DU!

:hi:


I wish that Aug. 2001 AP article was still available online somewhere.

[UpInArms]

23. here you go!

http://66.102.7.104/search?q=cache:1UeufYqqE6IJ:www.bonitanews.com/01/09/florida/d678875a.htm+%E2%80%9CSunCruz+Casinos+turns+over+documents+in+terrorist+probe.%E2%80%9D++&hl=en

Attack: SunCruz Casinos turns over documents in terrorist probe

By Vickie Chachere, Associated Press


TAMPA — SunCruz Casinos has turned over photographs and other documents to FBI investigators after employees said they recognized some of the men suspected in the terrorist attacks as customers.


Michael Hlavsa, chairman of the gambling cruise company, said Wednesday two or three men linked to the Sept. 11 hijackings may have been customers on a ship that sailed from Madeira Beach on Florida's gulf coast.


The cruise line also is turning over to the FBI video from a Port Canaveral cruise ship of a man that an employee says also resembled one of the suspected terrorists.


The FBI has not confirmed the men's identities and the cruise line is declining to specifically identify the men being investigated. An FBI spokeswoman declined comment.

<snip>

One name on the passenger list from a Sept. 5 cruise is the same as one of the suspected terrorists', Hlavsa said. A cash advance was taken out on that passenger's credit card, he said.


The ship's extensive security systems, in place to protect its gaming operations and customers, will help confirm identifies, Hlavsa said.

...more...

(edited for better link)

[Roland99]

34. Thanks, UIA!

[Ouabache]

57. IS Abramoff the Jack Ruby of 911 ?

I don't think it would be going out on a limb to say that.

[Synnical]

24. WaPo: Arrests Made in Case Connected to Abramoff

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/09/27/AR2005092700980.html

Arrests Made in Case Connected to Abramoff
Three Men Allegedly Killed 'Gus' Boulis, Who Sold A Casino Cruise Line to the Embattled Washington Lobbyist

By James V. Grimaldi and Susan Schmidt
Washington Post Staff Writers
Tuesday, September 27, 2005; 4:45 PM

Fort Lauderdale police have arrested three men on murder and conspiracy charges in the 2001 gangland-style killing of a South Florida businessman who sold a casino cruise line to Washington lobbyist Jack Abramoff, authorities said today.

Police picked up Anthony Moscatiello, 67, Anthony Ferrari, 48, and James Fiorillo, 28, last night and this morning in connection with the ambush slaying of Konstantinos "Gus" Boulis, who was killed in Fort Lauderdale on Feb. 6, 2001.



Anthony Moscatiello (top), Anthony Ferrari (lower left), 48, and James Fiorillo (lower right), 28, were arrested in connection with the ambush slaying of Konstantinos

Boulis had sold SunCruz Casinos to Abramoff and a partner, Adam Kidan, in 2000 at a time when Abramoff was one of Washington's most powerful lobbyists. Abramoff and Kidan were indicted last month on charges of wire fraud in connection with the purchase of the company. Moscatiello, known to police as a bookkeeper to New York's Gambino crime family, was brought in as consultant by Kidan when he and Abramoff took control of SunCruz. Ferrari is a business associate of Moscatiello.

[babylonsister]

25. I hope they all sing like birds, and implicate

Abramoff and DeLay in the process. SWEET!

[formercia]

26. Organized Crime makes strange bedfellows

let's see what kind of cockaroaches are under the bed.

[DoYouEverWonder]

27. Oh this is getting good

I hope they nail this whole thing to Abramoff, that would be justice.

[truebrit71]

29. Indeed, indeed...there was a VERY interesting article about this...

..right-wing cockroach in the latest Mother Jones (A publication I highly recommend btw...) I think this turd is going to get flushed, and he could very well take alot of rethugs with him....

[TroglodyteScholar]

28. Dupe, but thanks for the image...nice looking fellows.

www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=102&topic_id=1809114

[grytpype]

30. So now Abramoff is connected to the Mafia...

... all we need to do now is connect him to the KKK, the Bavarian Illuminati, and the Trilateral Commission.

[Ian David]

31. Wow! They actually used THAT headline! Good job, Wash. post! n/t

[MidwestTransplant]

32. If Abramoff is facing murder for hire charges, he will

surely sing to save himself from the Death Penalty. He is Federally F*cked.

[seafan]

40. More on Fiorillo:

From August 24, 2005, and is probably the same person:

Who: James Francis Fiorillo, 28, Palm Coast. Charge: Grand theft of third degree-- motor vehicle, possession of cocaine.


http://64.233.161.104/search?q=cache:_O0KVUs9Ao8J:www.staugustine.com/stories/082405/new_3279269.shtml+james+francis+fiorillo+palm+coast&hl=en

[UpInArms]

47. another WP article today: Boulis Slain After 2000 Abramoff Deal

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/09/27/AR2005092700980_pf.html

excerpt:

Abramoff is at the center of a federal investigation into lobbying for Indian tribes and influence-peddling in Washington. Abramoff used contacts with GOP Reps. Tom DeLay (Tex.) and Robert W. Ney (Ohio) and their staffs as he worked to land the SunCruz deal, interviews and court records show.

<snip>

Abramoff and Kidan have been friends since their days as College Republicans in Washington. Kidan, of New York, owned the Dial-a-Mattress franchise in the District until it filed for bankruptcy in the 1990s. Their third partner in the SunCruz deal was Reagan administration official Ben Waldman.

Dealings between Boulis and the Abramoff group were often tense. At key points in the negotiations, Ney placed comments in the Congressional Record -- first sharply criticizing Boulis and later praising the new ownership under Kidan. Ney later said he had been unaware of Kidan's background.

Also during the negotiations, Abramoff brought a lender he was trying to impress to hobnob with DeLay in Abramoff's FedEx Field skybox at a Redskins-Cowboys game. DeLay has said he does not remember meeting the lender.

...more...

[htuttle]

33. Let's hope the hitmen do a Joe Valachi

At 67 and 48, they're old enough to make it likely.

[TheCentepedeShoes]

35. Ver-r-r-y interesting

Bookmarking for late night perusal. Thanks all !

[Cocoa]

37. sounds like an explosive story

so, people that get cable, this dynamite story -- major GOP figure linked to an acutal murder -- is dominating the cable news shows.

Those shows that follow high profile court cases have this one at the top of their list, right?

[annabanana]

39. just plain astonishing

Someday this will see the light of day also...

(And make many, many, made for TV movies)

[Straight Shooter]

41. People often make off-hand remarks about the bushes threatening others.

Think back on all the people who turned on bush and then mysteriously recanted. The picture is becoming clearer and clearer. We are beginning to see the dots connecting organized crime leading straight to the White House, if not in fact, at least in a manner which could lead to rampant speculation on the part of the public.

Thugs pulling the levers of our government machine. If this Abramoff snowball gathers momentum, nothing will save the GOP.

[MADem]

43. Yeah, remember how he treated Al Hunt, way back when???

http://www.nndb.com/people/525/000052369/

Al Hunt is married to CNN newscaster Judy Woodruff. In April 1986, while the couple was eating at a Dallas restaurant with their 4-year-old son, a very pissed-off George W. Bush stormed over to their table and unloaded on Hunt: "You fucking son of a bitch. I saw what you wrote. We're not going to forget this." (Hunt's transgression was having predicted in the Wall Street Journal that Jack Kemp would win the 1988 Republican nomination instead of Vice President George H.W. Bush.)

[Roland99]

46. heh...forgot all about that!

[NYC]

44. Recommended.

Very important.

[caligirl]

48. Other links on corrupt Bushies

http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington/2005-09-28-DeLa...
http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/commentary/la-oe-scheer27sep27,0,5132888.column?coll=la-news-comment-opinions

http://www.nynewsday.com/news/nationworld/nation/chi-05...
http://www.talkingpointsmemo.com/archives/week_2005_09_25.php#006645

http://www.americanprogressaction.org/site/apps/nl/cont...

[seafan]

50. Update 9-28: Fourth conspirator named in indictment

Boulis killing indictment names fourth conspirator
By CURT ANDERSON
Associated Press Writer

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — A grand jury indictment released Wednesday revealed the name of a man three alleged conspirators tried to hire to kill businessman Konstantinos "Gus" Boulis, but the man was not charged along with the others in the 2001 gangland-style hit.

The indictment said that the three who were charged sought in late November 2000 to hire Dwayne Nicholson, whose age and hometown were not disclosed, to kill Boulis. But the document did not elaborate on whether Nicholson actually carried out the crime or might be a witness for the prosecution, and efforts to locate him were unsuccessful.

--snip

According to the murder indictment, "Big Tony" Moscatiello and "Little Tony" Ferrari tried to hire Nicholson between Nov. 24 and Nov. 29, 2000, to kill Boulis. Fiorillo, whose nickname is "Pudgy," was not part of that deadly request, although he is charged with taking part in the murder conspiracy.

Prosecutors and Fort Lauderdale detectives did not immediately return telephone calls seeking further details about Nicholson. Efforts to contact Nicholson at two Miami-area telephone numbers listed in that name were unsuccessful.

http://www.palmbeachpost.com/state/content/gen/ap/FL_Boulis_Killing.html

[Roland99]

52. I still would love to see a direct link to Abramoff in this.

[seafan]

59. More from Miami Herald, 9-29.

Records show start of alleged Boulis plot

--snip

The alleged plot to kill Gus Boulis was planned at least three months before the tycoon was executed on the streets of downtown Fort Lauderdale in 2001.

Authorities aren't saying where the hit on Boulis was hatched or what motive the suspects might have had.

But court papers released Wednesday allege that a series of phone calls and meetings began on Nov. 24, 2000, and that one of the suspects, Anthony ''Little Tony'' Ferrari, solicited a man named Dwayne Nicholson to kill the gambling boat owner and Miami Subs founder.

--snip

Moscatiello, 67, described as a gregarious old-style mob associate, was at his daughter's Howard Beach home in New York, celebrating his 41st wedding anniversary, when he got a call that led to his arrest Monday. The caller pretended to be a prospective buyer for a Suzuki SUV that Moscatiello was selling.....


http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/news/local/states/florida/counties/broward_county/12768621.htm

[Mr_Jefferson_24]

51. Think these people don't play for keeps? nt.

[tom_paine]

53. The Bush Crime Family IS a Mafia/RICO organization

Paul Wellstone could have told you...but he, you know, met with an accident.

And his Imperial successor, in an unprecedented appointment, is coincidentally in charge of the Senate Committee on Investigations IN HIS ROOKIE TERM.

It makes me hope there is a hell, becvause the Busheviks will have a bigger wing than the Pinochet Crime Family, and almost as many as the Hitler Crime Family.

[NYC]

55. Link to update re Dwayne Nicholson:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=102x1813408

The indictment said that the three who were charged sought in late November 2000 to hire Dwayne Nicholson, whose age and hometown were not disclosed, to kill Boulis. But the document did not elaborate on whether Nicholson actually carried out the crime or might be a witness for the prosecution, and efforts to locate him were unsuccessful.

[Roland99]

56. Probably hiding to save his ass if it's not already 6' under.

[NYC]

58. Maybe he's going to testify for the prosecution.

They were very vague about him.

Anyway, it's good that the Abramoff case is getting publicity at the same time DeLay is being indicted.

[Spoonerian]

60. New Hopsicker:

http://www.madcowprod.com/09302005.html

"...

The breathtaking scope of “Cruisegate” could make it the biggest American political scandal since Iran Contra. Should its tawdry details fully come to light, it might eclipse even the Watergate Scandal.

Already, the dramatis personae includes such familiar names from previous scandals as Barry Seal, called “the ghost haunting the Whitewater investigation” by the Wall Street Journal, a man who was himself murdered, on orders of then-Vice President Bush, according to his own lawyer's testimony. Seal’s involvement, which we’ll explain shortly, provides clues to the ongoing nature of what is known by sociologists as “state-sponsored crime.

...”