United States v. Imbruglia

• Citation: 397 F. Supp. 1206
• Decision Date: 30 July 1975
• Docket Number: Crim. A. No. 73-233-J.
• Parties: UNITED STATES of America, Plaintiff, v. Frank IMBRUGLIA et al., Defendants.
• Court: U.S. District Court — District of Massachusetts

397 F. Supp. 1206

UNITED STATES of America, Plaintiff, v. Frank IMBRUGLIA et al., Defendants.

Crim. A. No. 73-233-J.

United States District Court, D. Massachusetts.

July 30, 1975.

Jeremiah O'Sullivan, Boston, Mass., for the U. S.

Harvey Brower, Boston, Mass., for defendant Frank Imbruglia.

Daniel F. Featherston, Jr., Boston, Mass., for defendant Schocker.

Jack I. Zalkind, Boston, Mass. for defendant Schreter.

Paul F. Markham, Boston, Mass., for defendant Gerardi.

MEMORANDUM OF DECISION ON MOTION TO SUPPRESS

JULIAN, Senior District Judge.

This case is before the Court on the motion of the defendants Gerald Gerardi and Marshall Schreter to suppress items seized in searches of a Lincoln automobile. An evidentiary hearing was held on the motion.

At the end of August, 1973, Secret Service Agent Francis Searle acting in an undercover capacity, met at the Sonesta Hotel in Cambridge with the defendant Frank Imbruglia. At this meeting Imbruglia sold Searle a "package" of United States Savings Bonds which had been previously stolen in New York. Imbruglia and Robert Donati sold additional stolen savings bonds to Searle at various times during September and October of 1973. At least some of the bonds had been stolen in New York. Donati also delivered samples of counterfeit money to Agent Searle during this same period. During Searle's first meeting with Donati, Donati told Searle, in the presence of Imbruglia, that they could sell him $500,000-$600,000 in stolen securities.

On October 15, 1973, Searle had a telephone conversation with Donati. In this conversation, Donati told Searle that he and Imbruglia were negotiating to obtain securities from some people from Ohio, but that these people had backed out of the deal because they were afraid Donati and Imbruglia were going to kill them. Prior to this conversation, Searle had a telephone conversation with Donati on October 12, 1973. In this conversation, Donati told Searle that if everything did not go according to plan with the deal they were setting up with a corrupt banker (who was actually an undercover agent) that someone would be murdered.

On the evening of October 16, 1973, Searle and the undercover agent who was acting as the corrupt banker met with Imbruglia and the defendant Richard Schocker in the cocktail lounge of the Sonesta Hotel in Cambridge. Imbruglia introduced Schocker as his partner. Schocker told the agents at this time that he was acting as a middle man for some important people who were "fronting" the "package" of stolen securities. Prior to this meeting, Searle had had several conversations with Donati and Imbruglia concerning whether Searle could sell stolen Treasury Notes and Bills. At this meeting, Imbruglia and Schocker delivered a bag containing approximately $35,000 in stolen savings bonds to Searle and showed him a $15,000 Treasury Bill and $100,000 Treasury Note which were to be part of a larger package of stolen securities that was to be given to him the next day so that the corrupt banker could negotiate them at his bank. Schocker told Searle at this meeting that the Treasury Note had been stolen in New York.

Secret Service Agents Donald Gautreau and Gerald Belliveau were in the Sonesta cocktail lounge on the evening of October 16, 1973, and observed Schocker arrive with a bag. While in the Sonesta lounge, Gautreau and Belliveau had a conversation with Donati, who told them that he had a .45 caliber pistol which he had used to shoot a moose in Maine. The agents also observed Paul Johnson present in the Sonesta cocktail lounge at this time.

On October 17, 1973, at approximately 8:00 A.M., Searle met with Schocker and Schreter in the coffee shop of the Sheraton-Boston Hotel in the Prudential Center. At this meeting Schocker introduced Schreter, who asked Searle questions about how the corrupt banker was going to turn the stolen securities into cash at his bank. Schreter told Searle that he and another individual had driven by automobile from New York with the stolen Treasury Bills and Notes which are the subject of the present indictment. Schreter warned Searle that the stolen securities had been sent by some "heavy" people from New York and that he and his companion were there to guard the securities. Schreter also told Searle that he would be in "serious trouble" if anything went awry. At this meeting Searle told Schreter that the stolen securities would be used as part of a phony loan at the bank and that they would get cash and cashier's checks from the bank in return for the stolen securities.

After this 8:00 A.M. meeting at the Sheraton-Boston coffee shop, Schreter left the hotel and entered a silver Lincoln automobile, Connecticut Registration MM8869, which was parked across the street from the hotel. He sat there from 9:00 A.M. until approximately 11:00 A.M. Gerardi sat with Schreter in the automobile during all of this period. Secret Service Agent Leo Sullivan had Gerardi and Schreter under constant observation as they sat in the Lincoln, except for a few minutes when Sullivan left his point of observation in a building in order to get into his own automobile. Sullivan reported his observations concerning Schreter and Gerardi to the other agents by radio transmission.

After the 8:00 A.M. meeting in the Sheraton coffee shop, Searle returned to the Secret Service office where he briefed Agents Monihan, Gautreau and other agents working the case on his conversation with Schocker and Schreter in the coffee shop.

At approximately 11:00 A.M., Searle met with Donati, Imbruglia and Schreter at the Sheraton-Boston Hotel. Searle had a conversation at this time with Imbruglia and Donati out of the presence of Schreter. Searle expressed concern that Schreter and his companion probably had guns. Donati stated that of course they had guns, but that he and Imbruglia had guns too and that he had a rifle in the trunk of his car. Searle then telephoned Agent Monihan and told him that he had been told by Imbruglia and Donati that everyone had guns. Monihan made a radio transmission to inform the other agents of that which Searle had told him regarding the guns and to warn them to be very cautious when they arrested the defendants. Gautreau was one of the agents who received this radio transmission from Monihan.

After making the telephone call to Monihan, Searle rejoined Imbruglia, Donati and Schreter, at which time Shreter gave him an envelope containing the Treasury Bills and Notes which are the subject of the present indictment. They all then exited the Sheraton-Boston onto the sidewalk outside. Searle asked Donati, Imbruglia and Schreter if they wanted to ride in his automobile to the bank. They declined and said they would take their own cars. Schreter then walked across the street towards the Lincoln in which he and Gerardi had sat for two hours that morning. About halfway across the street, Schreter discovered, after patting his pockets, that he did not have the keys to the Lincoln and signaled to the defendant Gerardi who was standing nearby. Gerardi ran over to Schreter and handed him keys, they entered the Lincoln, drove it behind Searle's automobile, and Schreter told Searle they were ready. Donati and Imbruglia got into another automobile and also pulled into line. The three automobiles left the Sheraton-Boston, with Agent Searle's car in the lead. All of the automobiles proceeded to the area of the First National Bank at Franklin and Congress Streets in Boston.

After the three vehicles arrived at the First National Bank, Searle got out of his vehicle and entered the bank, purportedly to give the stolen securities to the corrupt banker. He told another agent the transaction was complete, and the signal was given to arrest the defendants.

At this time Agent Donald Gautreau was stationed in an outside alcove of the New England Telephone Company Building directly across the street from the First National Bank. The silver Lincoln in which Gerardi and Schreter had arrived was parked at the curb in close proximity to Gautreau. Gerardi was standing in a telephone booth about 10-15 feet from the Lincoln; Schreter had disappeared from Gautreau's view. Upon receiving the radio transmission from Agent Monihan stating that the stolen Treasury Notes and Bills had been delivered and to effect the arrests, Gautreau placed the defendant Gerardi under arrest and Gerardi was handcuffed.

Prior to effecting the arrest of Gerardi, Gautreau knew that the defendant Schreter had met earlier in the morning with Searle at the Sheraton coffee shop to discuss the delivery of stolen Treasury Bills and Notes to Searle. He knew that Schreter was accompanied in the Lincoln by Gerardi. He also had been informed by Agent Monihan that the defendants had guns and that Donati had a rifle in the trunk of his car. Further, he knew that Schreter and Gerardi had been under surveillance by Agent Sullivan at the Sheraton Hotel and while they were in the Lincoln. He also knew that Sullivan had followed them to the area of the First National Bank.

After arresting Gerardi, Gautreau made a cursory search of the Lincoln for weapons after taking the keys to the automobile from Gerardi. Gerardi did not consent to the search. While making a cursory search of the trunk of the Lincoln, Gautreau saw the barrel of a gun protruding from a hole in a woolen ski mask. He found a loaded .38 caliber pistol and a loaded silver automatic .25 caliber handgun wrapped in ski masks.

The factors that caused Gautreau to search the trunk of the Lincoln include: threats had been made to Searle by some of the suspects that someone would be hurt or murdered if the deal did not go as planned; Donati had told Gautreau that he owned a .45 caliber pistol and Searle had been told that all participants had guns; Gautreau did not know where the other suspects, who might have access to guns secreted in the trunk, were at the time he arrested Gerardi; his experience in other cases led him to...