U.S. v. Gianelli
| Decision Date | 08 October 2008 |
| Docket Number | Criminal No. 05-10003-NMG. |
| Citation | 585 F.Supp.2d 150 |
| Parties | UNITED STATES of America, v. Arthur GIANELLI, Mary Ann Gianelli, Frank Iacoboni, Philip Puopolo, Dennis Albertelli, Randy Albertelli, Gisele Albertelli, Salvatore Ramasci, Stephen Russo, Rafia Feghi, and Joseph Yerardi, Defendants. |
| Court | U.S. District Court — District of Massachusetts |
Fred M. Wyshak, Jr., Michael L. Tabak, John A. Wortmann, Jr., United States Attorney's Office, Boston, MA, Joseph Wheatley, U.S. Department of Justice, Washington, DC, for Plaintiff.
Joseph J. Balliro, Jr., Balliro & Mondano, Juliane Balliro, Wolf, Block, Schorr & Solis-Cohen, Kevin L. Barron, Michael C. Boubeau, Bourbeau and Bonilla, Patricia A. DeJuneas, Law Offices of Richard Egbert, Boston, MA, Debra A. DelVecchio, DelVecchio & Houseman, Salem, MA, Richard M. Egbert, Law Office of Richard M. Egbert, Robert M. Goldstein, Boston, MA, Edward A. Gottlieb Law Offices of Edward A. Gottlieb, Brighton, MA, David R. Kerrigan, Kenney & Sams, P.C., Framingham, MA, Robert L. Sheketoff, Boston, MA, for Defendants.
Edward A. Gottlieb, Law Offices of Edward A. Gottlieb, Brighton, MA, Roger Witkin, Boston, MA, for Interested Party
In this criminal case, involving 11 defendants, ten (all except Stephen Russo) have filed a joint motion to suppress and two (Arthur Gianelli and Philip Puopolo) have filed individual motions to suppress.
On September 13, 2006, a Second Superseding Indictment was returned charging 13 defendants with 520 counts, all related to racketeering. Ten of those defendants have filed a joint motion to suppress the "fruits" of a wiretap. Two defendants have filed motions to suppress the "fruits" of searches conducted pursuant to warrants. Still pending but not addressed in this memorandum and order are three motions to sever and four motions to dismiss.
According to the government, the defendants were members of a criminal organization ("the Gianelli Group") which accrued revenue through illegal gambling activities, loansharking, extortion and money laundering and committed crimes of violence, including arson. Arthur Gianelli ("Gianelli") was the purported leader of the Gianelli Group. Joseph Yerardi, Jr. ("Yerardi"), who was in jail for racketeering for all but two months of the ten years between 1995 and 2005, maintained his contact with the Gianelli Group and, in fact, the government alleges that Gianelli ran Yerardi's gambling business and forwarded the proceeds to Yerardi and Yerardi's wife, who is also a defendant.
The government alleges that defendant Dennis Albertelli ("Albertelli") managed the sports betting business and helped with the electronic gaming machine business of Gianelli, acted as an agent for the sports betting and operated an illegal gambling business involving football cards. Defendant Philip Puopolo ("Puopolo") is alleged to have engaged in illegal bookmaking and loansharking with other members of the Gianelli Group. He also purportedly operated a sports betting office, acted as an agent for Gianelli, illegally operated electronic gaming machines at the Revere Businessmen's Association ("RBA") and attempted to persuade witnesses to provide false testimony. Stephen Russo ("Russo") allegedly managed the sports betting office operated by Puopolo and participated in illegal bookmaking. Salvatore Ramasci ("Ramasci") allegedly acted as bookkeeper for the Gianelli Group's illegal sports betting business, coordinated the collection and payout of money to and from the gambling business and participated in the distribution of proceeds of the illegal gambling business.
The government also alleges that the Gianelli Group associated itself with certain members of organized crime including members of the New England Family of La Cosa Nostra ("the Family"). The leaders of the Gianelli Group purportedly made payments to certain members of the Family for the right to operate their criminal businesses.
The original indictment in this case was filed on January 5, 2005. A superseding indictment was filed three months later and a second superseding indictment was filed September 13, 2006. Three of the original 17 defendants have pled guilty, one is a defunct corporation and two are fugitives. The motion to suppress the fruits of the wiretap was filed March 21, 2008 and on that same day, Puopolo filed a motion to suppress the fruits of the search of his residence and the RBA. Five days later, Gianelli filed a motion to suppress the fruits of a search warrant. All three motions are opposed.
The Defendants argue that the wiretap warrants were not valid and therefore any inculpatory evidence resulting from those warrants must be suppressed.
The issuing of wiretap warrants is regulated under both state and federal law. Title III of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act, 18 U.S.C. § 2510 et seq. ("Title III"), outlines the circumstances under which electronic surveillance may occur provided there is judicial approval. The corresponding Massachusetts state laws with respect to wiretaps are codified at M.G.L. c. 272, § 99 ("Section 99"). Although certain of the Title III provisions incorporate state law, see 18 U.S.C. § 2516(2), federal law controls the admissibility of the fruits of state electronic surveillance in federal court. United States v. Sutherland, 929 F.2d 765, 769-70 (1st Cir.1991).
Intercepted communications or evidence derived therefrom may be admitted into evidence if the interception occurred in accordance with the provisions of Title III. 18 U.S.C. § 2517(3). Certain kinds of errors in procuring a wiretap warrant do not result in suppression. United States v. Chavez, 416 U.S. 562, 575, 94 S.Ct. 1849, 40 L.Ed.2d 380 (1974). Suppression is only required when there is a failure to satisfy a statutory requirement that "directly and substantially implement the congressional intention" to limit wiretaps. Id.
The Special Service Section of the Massachusetts State Police Department led the investigation that resulted in the pending indictment. Troopers Nunzio Orlando ("Orlando") and Pasquale Russolillo ("Russolillo") were the lead investigators.
On October 31, 2003, Essex County Assistant District Attorneys John Dawley, Brian O'Keefe and Alexander Cain ("the Essex ADAs") applied for and obtained a warrant ("the October 31 warrant") authorizing them to intercept wire communications over three cellular telephones, two belonging to Albertelli and one belonging to Ramasci. Essex County District Attorney Jonathan W. Blodgett ("DA Blodgett") wrote a letter to the Essex ADAs and the judge specifically designating and empowering the ADAs to apply for the warrants. In support of the application, Orlando submitted an affidavit in which he stated that there was probable cause to believe that Gianelli, Albertelli, Ramasci and others unknown are part of an organized group engaged in a conspiracy to commit violations of the Massachusetts gaming statute. The Middlesex County District Attorney at the time, Martha Coakley ("DA Coakley"), also reviewed and authorized several Middlesex ADAs to apply for the wiretap warrant.
Relying upon communications intercepted during the execution of the first wiretap between November 13, 2003 and February 25, 2004, the Essex ADAs sought and obtained 10 renewal wiretap warrants for the Albertelli phones as well as additional cellular telephones. One of the renewal warrant applications stated that the warrant was being obtained to investigate a violation of M.G.L. c. 271, § 17A, which prohibits the registering and placing of bets over the telephone. Between November 18, 2004 and February 28, 2005, several ADAs in Middlesex County applied for and obtained 15 wiretap warrants seeking to intercept communications involving, among others, Puopolo and Russo.
Based upon information from two informants, "CI-1" and "CI-2", and police surveillance, in the October 31, 2003 application for a wiretap in Essex County, Orlando alleged that:
a) in 1991, Gianelli was intercepted in a wiretap investigation which proved that he was a bookmaker and involved in an elaborate illegal video poker machine business;
b) in 2003, Gianelli had poker machines used for illegal gaming purposes in a restaurant in Revere and inside the East Side Athletic Club in Malden c) in July, 2001, CI-1 reported that Gianelli ran a high-stakes card game once a month at the RBA;
d) Gianelli then ran a large gaming organization, still associated with Yerardi and utilized his former agents and bettors;
e) Gianelli, Albertelli and Ramasci used their cellular telephones to conduct gaming activities;
f) Puopolo and Russo were agents of Gianelli;
g) Gianelli gave out to bettors a "1-800" telephone number to an off-shore gaming office where customers had to retrieve betting lines and submit their wagers;
h) although Gianelli moved the location of his central gaming office offshore, bettors still met with Gianelli to resolve gaming-related issues and with Ramasci to pay gaming debts and to collect winnings; and
i) payments, collections, resolution of debts and other gambling related transactions were all handled by Gianelli and his staff including Ramasci and Albertelli.
In their motion to suppress the fruits of the wiretap warrant, the Defendants argue that 1) the October 31 Warrant was issued in violation of the necessity requirement under federal law, 2) many of the wiretap applications were deficient on their face, 3) the October 31 Warrant was issued without probable cause, 4) the December 31, 2003 Warrant was issued for an offense not designated in Section 99 and 5) Section 99 does not give courts the authority to issue a wiretap...
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