Jul 13 2007
Ex-mob boss to be freed Sept. 18
After a June 11 hearing, the Parole Commission approved his parole on June 22, according to Stephen Husk, a commission spokesman.
Husk said the commission doesn’t disclose reasons for granting a parole. However, he said generally the commission considers an inmate’s age, health, and any changes in his or her case.
Retired Massachusetts State Police Colonel Thomas J. Foley, a longtime organized crime investigator, said the landscape in organized crime circles has changed dramatically since Angiulo went to prison.
“In those days, organized crime was built around omerta,” said Foley, referring to the Mafia’s code of silence, which has been shattered as mobsters facing heavy sentences have cooperated with law enforcement.
“The old mystique about the LCN [La Cosa Nostra] is gone now,” Foley said. “Even if Jerry Angiulo wanted to get back into it, he’d have no control over those people. You don’t have soldiers willing to make that type of commitment.”
Angiulo is expected to return to his Nahant home, where his wife, Barbara, lives. Chief US Probation Officer John M. Bocon said his office will supervise Angiulo, who will have to comply with standard conditions of release, as well as any special conditions that the Parole Commission might impose. Those on parole must get permission to travel outside Massachusetts, can’t own firearms, and can’t associate with anyone engaged in criminal activity.
Bocon said parolees are generally prohibited from associating with anyone convicted of a felony, but as in Angiulo’s case, where close relatives are convicted felons, exceptions can be granted.
As news of Angiulo’s imminent release spread through the North End, many longtime residents said yesterday they would be happy to see the old don back.
“We’d welcome him with open arms,” said one man, identifying himself only as Mickey, who was standing with a group of men near a park bench on Endicott Street.
“He was good to this neighborhood, and I am glad to see him out, that he didn’t die in jail like the feds wanted him to,” said a man sitting on the bench who identified himself as Maggie. “He’s done a lot of good in this neighborhood. He kicked the junkies off the sidewalks.”
But for some his name carries no cachet. “I don’t really know who he is,” said Maria Polverilli, a waitress at Mike’s Pastry on Hanover Street. “. . . He was before my time.”
Ex-mob boss to be freed Sept. 18 – By Shelley Murphy and Megan Tench, Globe Staff | July 7, 2007 – http://www.boston.com/news/local/articles/2007/07/07/ex_mob_boss_to_be_freed_sept_18?mode=PF
Pages: 1 2
