Giovanni
"Johnny Cal" Calabrese, of Longmeadow, shown here during his August
2016 arrest, is the latest reputed organized crime member accused in a
federal extortion case to agree to plead guilty in U.S. District Court.
He follows plea agreements by co-defendants Ralph Santaniello, also
of Longmeadow, and Frank Depergola, of Springfield. None of the terms
have yet been made public.
Along with co-defendants Gerald Daniele, of Longmeadow, and Richard
Valentini, of East Longmeadow, all were accused by federal prosecutors
and state police of extortion and loansharking schemes as members of
the "Springfield Crew," a faction of the New York-based Genovese Crime
family.
All but Daniele were charged with extorting tow company operator
Craig Morel, founder of C.J.'s Towing, for $20,000 in 2013. Morel filmed
and recorded a series of meetings with the defendants at the behest of
state police after Santaniello and Calabrese first threatened him over
"kicking up" to the mob, according to the charges.
Morel's recordings yielded a relatively rare, at times startling and
colorful sampling of the way Mafia associates allegedly do business.
Daniele was accused of loansharking to a gambling debtor. Those
interactions were not caught on audio or video, according to
investigators. The unnamed debtor threatened to go to police once
Daniele showed up at the man's workplace, the charges state.
Santaniello, Calabrese and Depergola have signaled their intent to
plead guilty. Two of three pleas will take place before U.S. District
Judge Timothy Hillman in Worcester on Nov. 6.
Giovanni "Johnny Cal" Calabrese
Calabrese,
shown here being escorted from the Springfield Massachusetts State
Police barracks on Aug. 4, 2016, allegedly told Morel that if he did not
cooperate with the local mob's demand for tens of thousands of dollars
in tribute, they would bury him in his own yard in Hampden.
An employee of Braman Pest control, Calabrese was wearing his
exterminator's uniform during the Morel shakedown, according to
investigators. Because of his day job, he had earned the nickname "the
bug guy" in street circles.
He is scheduled to plead guilty on Nov. 6 along with co-defendant
Ralph Santaniello. The terms of Calabrese's plea have not yet been made
public and his attorney and federal prosecutors are expected to wrangle
over his prospective sentencing guidelines. His attorney, Jeremy B.
Powers, declined to comment and said the terms are still under
negotiation.
Francesco "Frank" Depergola
Francesco
"Frank" Depergola, also known as "Sammy Shark," of Springfield, is
shown here being led to a state police cruiser after his arrest on Aug.
4, 2016. Depergola has been a longtime fixture in the Springfield Crew,
according to previous court records.
Depergola was slain mob boss Al Bruno's right hand and the only
eyewitness to Bruno's 2003 murder outside an Italian social club in the
city's South End neighborhood.
In 2006, Depergola was sentenced to two years in federal prison for a
loansharking scheme involving Bruno and a pizza shop owner who turned
federal witness.
In the current case, Depergola appeared to play the role of a
mollifying, cautionary elder gangster, warning Morel not to cross
Santaniello and his cohorts.
"They are going to come after you. These guys are vindictive
mother-------, be careful what you say, what you do," he said during a
recording Morel made while working with investigators.
Depergola and Santaniello also were charged in an indictment out of
New York City in connection with a "profit-sharing" loanshark deal
involving New York underboss Eugene "Rooster" O'Nofrio and an undercover
FBI agent in 2014. Both men have pleaded guilty in that state as well.
Depergola's date to plead guilty to all charges has not yet been set. His plea agreements have not been made public.
Ralph Santaniello
Ralph
Santaniello, shown here during his arrest in August 2016, was portrayed
in court records along with Calabrese as a primary aggressor against
Morel in 2013. Morel told investigators the two acted like mobbed-up
bookends to demand $50,000 in "back tribute" because Morel hadn't
"kicked up" since Bruno was murdered in 2003.
While Calabrese told Morel they would bury him in his own yard if he
didn't comply, Santaniello added "but first we'll cut off your head" to
the dialogue, according to court records.
Morel ultimately paid the men $20,000 in money provided by state police to settle the dispute, investigators have said.
Santaniello was last sentenced to two years in jail in 2005 primarily
in connection with an off-shore betting ring. State police bugged his
mother's home in Longmeadow, where Santaniello and other bookies held
meetings. To that end, Santaniello managed to draw his mother into the
prosecution but charges against her were later dismissed. Valentini also
was a co-defendant in that case.
Santaniello is set to plead guilty in the extortion case on Nov. 6.
The terms of his plea agreement have not yet been made public.
Santaniello has been the only defendant to be held without right to
bail since his arrest last year. A U.S. Magistrate judge found he
displayed a "casual brutality" toward Morel.
Gerald Daniele
Gerald
Daniele, shown here being led from the Springfield Massachusetts State
Police barracks after his arrest on Aug. 4, 2016, was charged with
loansharking and accused of stalking a gambling debtor who had fallen
behind on payments.
While arguing for pretrial detention, prosecutors noted Daniele had a
stack of prior restraining orders women had filed against him over the
years.
Daniele's attorney did not return calls for comment regarding his client's intentions in the case.
Richard Valentini
Richard
Valentini is shown here during his August 2016 arrest. While Valentini
has previous gambling-related convictions, defense attorney Jared
Olanoff says Valentini's participation in the Morel extortion was
minimal to non-existent.
Valentini, a former U.S. postal worker, is shown in one video at Morel's property folding his arms and nodding.
Olanoff withdrew a motion to suppress video and audio evidence in the case and said he plans to take the case to trial.
http://www.masslive.com/news/index.ssf/2017/11/reputed_gangsters_line_up_for.html
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