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Defendant in Gus Boulis Murder Trial Doubled as FBI Snitch

In the Gus Boulis murder trial (in which Jack Abramoff has been subpoened to a depositon) it has just been disclosed that the star defendant, alleged Mob Boss Anthony Moscatiello, has been playing both sides of the fence for years, doubling as an FBI mob snitch. It sounds like an episode of the Sopranos, but its real.

Moscatiello's outing as an FBI informant might cause some embarrassment for federal authorities. But its impact won't be entirely clear until more evidence surfaces about what he told FBI agents about his involvement in the Boulis murder and previous criminal investigations.

Sensitivity over Moscatiello's 15-year career as an FBI informant prompted the Broward State Attorney's Office to hold a closed-door meeting with defense attorneys in Circuit Judge Michael Kaplan's chambers on Friday. Some of the lawyers asked the judge to keep Moscatiello's statements given to the FBI after Boulis' murder under wraps.

Moscatiello ended his snitching after the Boulis slaying. But what about the mobsters he put in jail over that time period whose lawyers weren't told he was a snitch?

The revelation of Moscatiello's secret identity is likely to send shock waves through the underworld: Other imprisoned mobsters who had regular contact with him might seek to have their cases reopened, [Ron]Fischetti and other lawyers said.

'A lot of these people are doing time and they are going to start saying, `Did he give information [to authorities] that influenced my trial at a time he was a paid informant?' '' said Jeffrey C. Hoffman, an attorney who represented one of the defendants in the racketeering case.

A TalkLeft reader writes in,

....[Moscatiello] was part of the Gambino family -- doesn't that mean Fitz had to know all about him? This is like an Altman movie where seemingly unrelated plot lines converge. Fitz & the Gambinos; Fitz & Rove; the Gambinos and Abramoff; Abramoff and Rove

I outlined some details of the Boulis murder here. Shorter version: Abramoff, (Ben) Waldman and Kidan do a deal to buy SunCruz from Gus Boulis. Boulis and Kidan have a falling out. Abramoff goes to Miami to smooth things out. But Abramoff continues to back Kidan. And Boulis ends up murdered. Abramoff and Kidan were in Europe at the time of the murder and debriefed afterwards with authorities.

And yes, I'll have another Sopranos open up just before the show.

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  • Re: Defendant in Gus Boulis Murder Trial Doubled a (none / 0) (#1)
    by Repack Rider on Sun Apr 02, 2006 at 01:09:34 PM EST
    Murderer working for the FBI takes out a guy who is getting in the way of the money man for the GOP. Isn't this uncomfortably close to looking like a government-ordered hit? Where's my tinfoil?

    Here's a good link for some background BUSHFELLAS Casino Jack & the Republican Thuggees Another development is Ex-F.B.I. Agent Accused of Role in Four Organized Crime Killings Wasn't Atta seen at the Suncruz casino just a few days before 9/11?