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Liborio Bellomo

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Liborio Bellomo
Born
Liborio Salvatore Bellomo

(1957-01-08) January 8, 1957 (age 67)
OccupationCrime boss
PredecessorVincent Gigante
Children4
AllegianceGenovese crime family

Liborio Salvatore Bellomo (born January 8, 1957) is an American mobster and boss of the Genovese crime family. He served in the 116th Street Crew of Saverio "Sammy Black" Santora and was initiated in 1977. His father was a soldier and close to Anthony "Fat Tony" Salerno. In 1990, Kenneth McCabe, then-organized crime investigator for the United States attorney's office in Manhattan, identified Bellomo as "acting boss" of the crime family following the indictment of Vincent Gigante in the "Windows Case".[1][2] In June 1996, Bellomo was indicted on charges of extortion, labor racketeering and for ordering the deaths of Ralph DeSimone in 1991 and Antonio DiLorenzo in 1988; DeSimone was found shot 5 times in the trunk of his car at LaGuardia Airport and DiLorenzo was shot and killed in the backyard of his home.[3] Since around 2016, Bellomo was recognised, most likely, to be official boss of the Genovese family.

Family

Bellomo is the son of Salvatore Bellomo. He is the double cousin of Genovese associate Liborio Thomas Bellomo; their fathers are brothers and their mothers are sisters. This has led law enforcement to confuse their identities on several occasions. In 1997, Liborio Thomas Bellomo swore in an affidavit that he was guilty of federal charges instead of Bellomo.[4]

Bellomo has three sons and one daughter.[5]

Acting boss and indictment

In 1990, after Vincent Gigante's indictment in the Windows Case, Bellomo was appointed acting boss of the Genovese family. On June 11, 1996, Bellomo was indicted on Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO) charges, including the murders of mobster Ralph DeSimone and Antonio DiLorenzo, extortion, and labor racketeering.[6] DiLorenzo was found shot to death in the backyard of his home in West New York, New Jersey. DeSimone was found in the trunk of his car at LaGuardia Airport in Queens, shot five times.[7] Both DeSimone and DiLorenzo were murdered because the Genovese leadership thought they were government informants.[8]

Bellomo's lawyers stated that their client passed two polygraph tests in which he denied killing anyone.[9] FBI agents shaved Bellomo's head, looking for evidence that Bellomo had used lithium to beat the polygraph machines.[10]

In February 1997, prosecutors dropped the DeSimone and DiLorenzo murder charges and offered Bellomo a chance to plead guilty to extorting payoffs from a construction union and a garbage hauling company. Bellomo accepted the deal and was sentenced to 10 years in prison.[4][11]

Prison and more indictments

On July 13, 2001, the imprisoned Bellomo was indicted on money laundering charges related to the Genovese family's involvement in the waterfront rackets and control of the ILA. Bellomo was accused of hiding money stolen from the ILA's members pension fund account between 1996 and 1997.[12] Bellomo again pleaded guilty to lesser charges, pushing back his scheduled release date in 2004.

On February 23, 2006, Bellomo and over 30 Genovese family members were indicted on more racketeering charges. Bellomo was specifically charged with ordering the 1998 murder of Ralph Coppola, the acting captain of Bellomo's crew and Bellomo's good friend. On September 16, 1998, Coppola disappeared a few weeks before his sentencing on fraud charges and was never found. Government witness Peter Peluso, a former lawyer for the Genovese family, stated that he had transported a message from Bellomo in prison ordering Coppola's murder.[13] Some accounts state that Coppola was disrespectful, others say that he was stealing family profits.

According to the Bellomo indictment:

LIBORIO S. BELLOMO, a/k/a "Barney Bellomo," the defendant, was, at various times relevant to this Indictment, a Soldier, Capo, and Acting Boss of the Genovese Organized Crime Family. Prior to becoming Acting Boss of the Genovese Organized Crime Family in or about 1992, BELLOMO was first a Soldier in the Genovese Family, and then a powerful Capo, who controlled a crew of Soldiers and associates based in the Bronx, New York. BELLOMO was responsible for, amongst other things, control over labor unions associated with the Jacob Javits Convention Center in Manhattan. BELLOMO became the Acting Boss of the Genovese Organized Crime Family in or about 1992, following the incarceration of Genovese Family Boss Vincent Gigante. In or about 1996, BELLOMO was himself incarcerated after being arrested on Federal criminal charges filed in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York. Following his incarceration, and even after being replaced as Acting Boss, BELLOMO retained significant power and authority within the Genovese Organized Crime Family, and he continued to be consulted on, and make decisions with respect to, the Genovese Family's criminal activities. In or about 1997, following his conviction on Federal extortion charges, BELLOMO was sentenced to a term of 10 years' imprisonment. BELLOMO's criminal activities included the 1998 murder of Ralph Coppola, a Genovese Family Soldier and Acting Capo, as well as his participation in two schemes to obstruct justice, one by conspiring to tamper with a potential witness, and the other by giving false and misleading testimony in a grand jury proceeding.[14]

Peluso pleaded guilty to his role in the murder. However, the government had no proof that Peluso had indeed met with Bellomo. With insufficient evidence to press the murder charge against Bellomo, the government offered him a plea bargain for mail fraud. Bellomo accepted and received one additional year in prison. His daughter Sabrina, is credited with helping get her father a light sentence with a tearful plea to judge Lewis A. Kaplan.[5] Due to his 12-year imprisonment, he missed her high school, college, and law school graduations.[5]

Release from prison

On December 1, 2008, Bellomo was released from prison[15] after serving 12 years.

References

  1. ^ "Barney's Bravado Gives the Feds Fits". NY SUN. Jerry Capeci. Retrieved 22 October 2019.
  2. ^ Martin, Douglas (27 February 2006). "Kenneth McCabe, 59, a Dogged Investigator of the Mob, Dies". The New York Times. Retrieved 22 October 2019.
  3. ^ "Reputed Mobsters Accused Of Turning Religious Feast Into Mafia Cash Cow". AP. Retrieved 22 October 2019.
  4. ^ a b Raab, Selwyn (19 October 1998). "Barney, Mob Suspect, Says He's the Wrong Barney". The New York Times.
  5. ^ a b c Zambito, Thomas (July 24, 2007). "Mob big kid's tears melt judge". New York Daily News. Retrieved 17 April 2012.
  6. ^ Van Natta Jr., Don (June 12, 1996). "19 Indicted in Blow to Genovese Mob". New York Times.
  7. ^ Hoffman, Jan (April 24, 1997). "Genovese Family Counselor Is Convicted of Racketeering". New York Times.
  8. ^ Smith, Greg B. (June 12, 1996). "CHIN'S 20M EMPIRE INDICTMENT DETAILS GENOVESE CHARGES". New York Daily News. Retrieved 17 April 2012.
  9. ^ Capeci, Jerry (September 10, 1996). "MOB SUSPECT HOPES FAMILY ILLS BAIL HIM OUT". New York Daily News. Retrieved 29 April 2012.
  10. ^ Capeci, Jerry (October 10, 1996). "RAZOR-SHARP FBI'S JAILHOUSE CALL IN VAIN". New York Daily News. Retrieved 17 April 2012.
  11. ^ Raab, Selwyn (February 11, 1997). "6 Admit Guilt In U.S. Case Against Mob". New York Times.
  12. ^ Rashbaum, William K. (July 14, 2001). "Two Are Charged in Money-Laundering Scheme". New York Times.
  13. ^ Preston, Julia (February 24, 2006). "32 Indicted on Racketeering Charges in Manhattan". New York Times.
  14. ^ United States of America vs. Liborio Bellomo Archived 2007-01-01 at the Wayback Machine, United States District Court Southern District of New York, 2006-2-23
  15. ^ Liborio Bellomo at the Federal Bureau of Prisons Inmate Locator

Further reading

American Mafia
Preceded byas boss Genovese crime family
Acting boss
1990 - 1996 		Succeeded by
Preceded byas front boss Genovese crime family
Street boss
1992 - 1996 		Frank Serpico
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