Talk:Paul Rico

message: Stolen from whiteywatch.com   "Read Rico’s obituary below, including his famous dismissal of framing innocent men for murder: “What do you want, tears?” " —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 24.147.103.146 (talk • contribs) .
*Claim appears quite valid. Only minimially changed from apparent source site. -Lanoitarus 20:28, 10 December 2005 (UTC)
thread_title: Untitled

message: My colleague, Joe Wolfinger, and I are responsible for the recent attempts to correct the Wikipedia entry on Rico. We are both former FBI special agents and attorneys who never knew Paul Rico personally. However, beginning in 2006, we spent more than five years working with a veteran reporter researching Rico, his career and the charges against him and the surrounding controversies. We published a book on our findings, Wolfinger, Joe; Kerr, Chris; Seper, Jerry, Rico–How Politicians, Prosecutors and the Mob Destroyed One of the FBI's Finest Special Agents. 74–80, 209–26, Telemachus Press. (2012)  ISBN 978-1-939337-19-1. We reviewed court decisions, the extensive congressional hearings and testimony and interviewed numerous first-hand witnesses, including the Tulsa, Oklahoma detective and District Attorney who charged Rico with murder in 2003. We have independent sources for every fact in our write-up we posted on Wikipedia several days ago, which corrects numerous errors in what existed previously. Just one example: the "FBI mugshot" of Paul Rico cannot be authentic since Rico was never charged or arrested by the FBI. We are not interested in "editing wars" but would like to discuss any challenge you may have to the facts we have provided or any need you see for improved sourcing of our changes. We are only interested in an authentic, accurate version of the facts on this page.Chriskerresq (talk) 22:36, 20 September 2020 (UTC)
thread_title:  Edits to Paul Rico September 10, 2020 

message: Harold Paul Rico (April 29, 1925 – January 16, 2004) was an FBI Agent who had an
extraordinary career developing and operating high-level informants and witnesses used to
prosecute organized crime figures in the 1960s and 70s. Rico's success resulted in credible
threats on the lives of Rico and his family from the New England La Cosa Nostra (LCN) and his
transfer to Miami in 1970. He retired from the FBI in 1975 and became head of security for
World Jai Alai (WJA) in Miami, Florida, owned by Tulsa businessman Roger Wheeler, a selfmade
millionaire and owner of Tulsa-based Telex Corp. Paul Rico remained as head of security
until the business was sold in 1995.
Rico was born in 1925 in Boston. He served as a gunner on a B-24 in Italy during WWII and
fought in the battles of the Po Valley, North Apennines and Rhineland and was awarded the
European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal with three bronze stars and the Air Medal.1
After the war, Rico attended and graduated from Boston College with a bachelor's degree in
History.
Paul Rico joined the FBI in 1951 at the age of 26 and, after new agent training and an initial
assignment in the Chicago FBI Office, was transferred to the FBI’s Boston Office where he spent
the bulk of his career. In 1956, he recognized a disguised James "Whitey" Bulger in a Revere
bar and arrested him for a series of bank robberies. During his FBI career, Rico was commended
for developing and successfully handling top level informants. (Bulger never worked for Rico as
an informant but was recruited by FBI SA John Connolly as an FBI informant after Rico
transferred out of the Boston Office.) In 1967, Rico persuaded Joseph Barboza, Jr., aka Joe "The
Animal" Barboza, to become as a government witness. In 1969 he persuaded John “Red” Kelley
to also become a government witness. Barboza and Kelley successfully testified for the federal
government in the trials of several prominent New England members of LCN.2 Barboza became
the first witness to enter the Witness Security (WITSEC) Program and Kelley followed him into
the WITSEC.
Deegan murder____________________________________________
Paul Rico's role in securing the testimony of Joseph Barboza as a witness in 1967 led to
Rico's public association with the wider controversy over the use of Whitey Bulger as an
informant. In May 2001, Rico testified before a congressional committee in connection with the
(unrelated) state prosecution of New England Mafia members in the March 1965 murder of
small-time hood Edward "Teddy" Deegan. Some of the defendants later had their convictions
overturned because courts decided that the FBI withheld exculpatory evidence, publicized
through a special Department of Justice inquiry into the Boston FBI's historical use of
informants. Rico and the FBI were criticized for their roles in the Deegan case by the committee
and a federal court.
Pressed by a congressional inquisitor for an expression of personal remorse for the
wrongful conviction of Joe "The Horse" Salvati in the Deegan murder in 2001, Rico famously
asked the congressman if he wanted "tears or something." This was widely panned as a callous
response.
At the dramatic public hearing, Paul Rico, voluntarily testified without asking for
immunity.3 When asked by the chairman if he wanted to proceed, Rico responded:
I have had advice of counsel and I am not taking my counsel's advice. I am going
to explain to you whatever you want to know. . . My counsel advised me to take the
Fifth Amendment until you people agree to give me immunity. I have decided that
I have been in law enforcement for all those years and I'm interested in answering
any and all questions.
Rico told the members of Congress that he had reported all the available information to
the local police, who were responsible for the Deegan investigation, and that neither he nor his
partner, Dennis Condon, were “involved in the ... preparation of the [Deegan murder] trial or in
the investigation” and never even visited the scene of Deegan's killing. When pressed hard by a
congressman about how it felt to be "instrumental in sending an innocent man to jail," Rico
simply responded that he had "faith in the jury system and I feel that the jury should be able to
decide." He explained that an FBI agent's job was to investigate the facts, present those facts to
prosecutors who decided whether to prosecute, and if they did file charges, the decisions on
"guilt" or "innocence" were made by juries.
Rico's view was that sometimes juries let the guilty go free; and some innocent
defendants were found guilty, but that is our system. "I have faith in the jury system and I feel
the jury should be able to decide." "[W]e have a justice system and . . . I don't think we convict
everybody that is guilty and I don't think we let everyone go that is innocent."
The congressman pressed for an expression of remorse and Rico declined to oblige. He
did his job and the decision was not up to him; he presented a humble, realistic role of the FBI
agent in our criminal justice system.
The lawmaker persisted, "I want a word. I want something . . . . So you don't really care
much and you don't really have any remorse. Is that true?
To that, the former agent finally responded, "Would you like tears or something . . . . What
do you want, tears?" That became the headline for the hearing.
Rico's partner, former Special Agent Dennis Condon, also gave sworn testimony denying
any role in framing the defendants in the Deegan murder case—or any case:
As we sit here today, I want to say that I have never, in my 48 career-years in law
enforcement and public safety, done anything, to my knowledge, purposely that
would result in any innocent person being found guilty of any crime. I have never
done that; I never would do that. . . . Not only because of the people involved but
for self-motivation too. How could I stand myself, or live my life, knowing that I
had done anything to bring about an unfair, an unjust conviction? It wouldn't be
worth it to me; never mind the more serious thing of innocent people going to jail.4
The 1965 New England Mafia, the Murder and Investigation
In 1965, the New England La Cosa Nostra (LCN) or "Mafia" was run by Raymond
Patriarca, headquartered in Providence, Rhode Island, with two underbosses, Ronald Cassesso
and Henry Tameleo. LCN activity in Boston was controlled by another Patriarca underboss,
Gennaro Angiulo where Peter Limone served as his "alter-ego."5 Three days prior to the murder,
the FBI overheard Barboza and Flemmi get permission to kill Deegan from New England Boss
Raymond Patriarca over a microphone installed in Patriarca's Providence, Rhode Island office.6
Patriarca told Barboza and Flemmi to get the OK of Gennaro Angiulo before going ahead with
the Deegan killing.7
On the night of March 12, 1965, Eddie Deegan was lured to what he thought was a
burglary and gunned down in Chelsea, Massachusetts. Police soon discovered Deegan had been
shot six times by three different guns and suspicion focused on a group of men including Joseph
Barboza, Jimmy Flemmi, Roy French, Joseph Martin and Ronald Cassesso, all tied to organized
crime. These men had been seen leaving the Ebb Tide Lounge, a local hangout, just before the
murder and returning just afterward. Immediately after the murder, police and FBI informants
(in reports shared with police) pointed to Barboza, Flemmi, French, Martin and Cassesso as
responsible for the Deegan killing. The trail ran cold for state authorities, who were unable to
assemble enough evidence to prosecute anyone for the murder.8
Two years later, FBI agents Paul Rico and Dennis Condon obtained the cooperation of a
known LCN hitman named Joe "The Animal" Barboza (true name Joseph Baron), with the idea
of using him as a witness against high-level LCN targets including long-time New England Boss
Raymond Patriarca. Barboza was motivated to cooperate by threatened state "habitual offender"
charges meaning as much as 89 years in prison. Barboza told agents that he would testify against
others but not his close friend, Jimmy Flemmi.
After successfully using him as a witness in federal trials against Patriarca, Tameleo and
Cassesso, Barboza was then handed off to Suffolk County, Massachusetts Assistant District
Attorney Jack Zalkind for the Deegan murder prosecution. This was conducted by Zalkind with
a team of 10 investigators led by a Boston police officer. Zalkind and detectives met with
Barboza four–five times a week for six months preparing for trial. Zalkind testified that: “I
prepared the case. Once this case went to the grand jury, the decisions were mine;” the FBI
agents “weren't part of my team;” he never “s[poke] to [Dennis] Condon about the substance of
the Deegan case;” and he did not “consider either Paul Rico or Dennis Condon as part of the
investigative effort in terms of the Deegan case.” Zalkind and James McDonough were satisfied
that Barboza's trial testimony was strongly corroborated by other witnesses and evidence.9
On October 25, 1967 a state grand jury indicted Peter Limone, Henry Tameleo, Ron
Cassesso, Roy French and Louis Greco in the Deegan murder. The trial began on May 27, 1968
and continued until July 27, 1968. Joseph Barboza pled guilty to two conspiracy indictments on
the first day of trial. His direct examination lasted two days and he was cross-examined by the
defense for six and one-half additional days.
Barboza testified at trial that (LCN Underboss) Peter Limone gave him a contract to kill
Deegan for $7,500 in January 1965 and told him that the murder had been approved by the
"office." Barboza said he confirmed the approval a few days later with (LCN Underboss) Henry
Tameleo. After later telling Limone that Anthony Stathopoulos would be involved, Limone
added $2,500 to kill Stathopolous also and Tameleo agreed to that also. The March 12, 1965
murder was carried out by Barboza, Cassesso, Salvati, Grieco and French. Limone, who,
according to Barboza, was not present, later paid as agreed. The Suffolk County jury found Roy
French and Louis Greco guilty of murder and Limone, Salvati, Cassesso and Tameleo guilty as
accessories to murder. The convictions of Limone and all the codefendants were affirmed by the
Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court and subsequent motions for new trials or other relief were
all denied.10
Federal Courts Criticized Rico and the FBI in the Deegan Murder Case
In 2009 a federal court harshly criticized former special agent Paul Rico and the FBI for
their handling of information concerning the 1965 Deegan murder.11 The United States Court of
Appeals for the First Circuit partially affirmed a $101.7 million-dollar damages award by
proudly left-wing activist Judge Nancy Gertner12 to La Cosa Nostra (LCN) consigliere (later
Boss) Peter J. Limone and several associates in a non-jury civil trial. The court reversed
Gertner's finding that the FBI was responsible for malicious prosecution:
[T]here is not a shred of evidence that the FBI induced the state to pursue the
[Deegan] murder case. . . . They did not demand that state actors bring charges . .
. indeed, there is no evidence that they so much as suggested that such charges be
brought. . . . [T]here is no evidence that the FBI knew that Barboza would concoct
the bogus story that emerged.13
The appeals court, however, affirmed Gertner's decision that Rico and the FBI were liable
for Intentional Infliction of Emotional Distress (IIED) by aiding and encouraging protected
witness Joseph Barboza in providing false testimony in the Deegan murder prosecution. The
Department of Justice strenuously objected to Gertner's factual finding of misconduct by the FBI
and Rico, but the appeals court found that the government failed to show Gertner to be "clearly
erroneous."
The court wrote that Rico and the FBI were responsible for this IIED based on three
"building blocks;" namely, that the FBI (i) knew Barboza was lying when he implicated Limone
and the others in the Deegan murder, (ii) assisted Barboza in selling his lies to state authorities,
and (iii) covered up its wrongdoing afterward by hindering the efforts of Limone and the others
to correct the injustice. 14
Taking each "building block" in turn:
(i) Did Rico and the FBI know that Barboza was lying when he implicated Limone,
Tameleo, Salvati, and Louis Greco in the Deegan murder?
The appeals court decided that Judge Gertner had established a "reasonable inference . . .
[that the FBI knew Barboza was lying]" even though "the evidence does not compel [that]
conclusion." The court reasoned that intelligence the FBI had, including information from the
Patriarca office bug showed that Barboza and Jimmy Flemmi—not Limone or Tameleo—sought
Patriarca's approval to kill Deegan. A "highly reliable" informant told Rico that Jimmy Flemmi
"bragged about killing Deegan, with the help of French, Martin, Cassesso and Barboza." This
led the court to conclude that "one would have to believe in the tooth fairy to believe that the
agents did not know the identities of the real killers." Did Rico and Condon know?
The Limone case was civil and decided on a preponderance of the evidence standard by
the district court, and the appeals court reviewed the district court's factual findings under a
generous clear error standard. Although the First Circuit legally had the final word on these
findings, it is worth noting that there exists substantial evidence on the record contradicting the
claim that Barboza lied in the Deegan murder trial or, importantly, that Rico and Condon knew
that Barboza lied.
* Both Rico and Condon denied knowing that Barboza lied in detailed sworn testimony.
* The appeals court found nothing to support the contention that Rico or Condon inspired
Barboza to give false testimony. "For aught that appears, the fictional tale sprang directly from
[Barboza's] brow."15
* The FBI never conducted its own investigation of the Deegan murder and agents never visited
the scene of the killing.
* The state prosecutors in the Deegan case and the federal prosecutors responsible for Barboza
all gave sworn statements backing up Rico and Condon's statements that they were not part of
the "investigative team" in the Deegan murder.
* Rico never set foot in the courtroom during the two-month trial and, except for Condon's brief
testimony denying that he provided any investigative information to Barboza, neither did
Condon.
* Federal prosecutors were satisfied by their investigation and successful prosecution of
Patriarca, Tameleo and Cassesso using Barboza that he was truthful in their cases and did not
view the Deegan case as their responsibility.
* Barboza implicated French, Cassesso and Martin at the Deegan trial, as well as Patriarca,
Tameleo and Cassesso at the federal trial, and the federal courts cast no doubt on that testimony,
nor were those convictions overturned.
* According to Federal Judge Edward Harrington, at the relevant time a Strike Force prosecutor,
the chain of command within the Patriarca LCN organization meant that a "sanctioned" hit on
Deegan necessarily implicated underbosses Henry Tameleo and Peter Limone. It was likely for
this reason that the Patriarca bug information (known to the defense) was not used by counsel in
the Deegan murder trial.16
* Much was made of the "bald wig" as an invention by Barboza to help him frame Joe Salvati, to
fit a witness description of someone who was likely Jimmy Flemmi seen leaving the scene.
However, Barboza was cross-examined on this point by the defense and it may be unreasonable
to think that the jury accepted this testimony but that Rico and Condon should necessarily have
not.
* Peter Limone testitied at the trial and could not account for his whereabouts on the dates
relevant to the murder.
* Attorney John Fitzgerald, almost killed in by a bomb planted by the Mafia in his car, testified
at the trial that Tameleo and Louis Greco attempted to bribe him to stop Barboza's testimony,
showing consciousness of guilt.17
(ii) Did the FBI help sell Barboza's lies to state authorities?
The appeals court affirmed Judge Gertner's conclusion that the FBI made Barboza aware
of contradictory evidence the state had to enable Barboza to alter his testimony. According to
state prosecutor John Zalkind, Rico made a comment that Barboza's account "checked out," and
Condon testified at the trial that he was careful not to give Barboza any information.18 However,
Zalkind himself, in sworn testimony in the federal case, testified that “all the things that Barboza
told me I checked out piece by piece, and they were all right."19
(iii) Did the FBI cover up its wrongdoing afterward by hindering the efforts of
Limone and the others to correct the injustice?
The court also found that efforts made by Barboza to recant certain portions of his
testimony were thwarted by visits to Barboza by federal prosecutors and not followed up by
investigation by the FBI or relaying this information to state authorities. It is not clear why
agents would take any steps without requests by federal prosecutors, once Barboza "retracted his
recantation." 20 United States District Judge Edward F. Harrington testified that, as a then
federal prosecutor, he and another prosecutor visited Barboza at Walpole Prison on August 28,
1970, and there Barboza told them "his recantation was false, that it was induced by the payment
of money by the [LCN] and that his trial testimony in the Deegan murder case was truthful."21
FBI agents also (not Rico or Condon) visited the Parole Board to voice opposition to
Limone's release. However, this was likely based on the FBI's well-founded belief that Limone
continued to serve as a ranking member of the LCN and unrelated to the merits of the Deegan
murder case. The court also cited the withholding of exculpatory information, including the
informant reports and Patriarca bug intercepts, as contributing to the "coverup."
The prevailing view of critics was that since Rico and the FBI were in possession of
informant reports that Jimmy Flemmi was involved in the murder and no information about Joe
Salvati, the Bureau had an obligation to disclose this as exculpatory. First, at the time there was
no Department of Justice or legal rule obligating—or even allowing Rico to disclose these
reports. As John Zalkind explained, "What is considered exculpatory under Brady today was not
the law in 1968. It had just come into effect; and what's exculpatory and what isn't has changed.
. . ."22 Moreover, Zalkind's assistant, James McDonough greatly discounted the importance of
the informant reports both from the police and the FBI as inadmissible hearsay of little value at
trial. But regardless of the reports' actual usefulness to the defense, McDonough testified that
"Barboza, in this trial, was cross-examined extensively about [James] Flemmi and the
information in [one of the police reports]."23 It was apparent to McDonough that, during
Barboza's six and one-half days of cross-examination by defense counsel, the defense counsel
were aware of Flemmi's involvement in the murder of Deegan.
Patriarca family murder trial_______________________________
Persuading criminal mastermind John "Red" Kelley to testify against Raymond Patriarca
and others in a 1970 murder trial was a signature achievement for FBI agent Paul Rico. Kelley's
greatest help to the New England Mafia family, however, came 13 years later when a fugitive in
the 1970 murder case was finally captured. In 1983, unhappy with his new life in the U.S.
Marshal's Witness Security Program, "Red" Kelley recanted some of his original testimony and
set the stage for two Rhode Island Supreme Court decisions freeing two of the most important
Patriarca Family members Kelley had originally implicated. In 1986, the five-member court led
by Chief Justice Joseph A. Bevilacqua, Sr., a long-time Patriarca crony, overturned the
conviction of Patriarca rising star Luigi "Baby Shanks" Manocchio. 24 Two years later the court
accepted Kelley's claim that he lied during the 1970 trial at the behest of Paul Rico, and freed the
notorious killer Maurice "Pro" Lerner. 25
For Paul Rico, the 1988 decision from the Rhode Island had serious consequences. The
opinion was cited many times by courts, reporters and congressional investigators in their
criticism of Rico and the FBI. Testifying voluntarily before Congress in 2001, Paul Rico flatly
denied Kelley's claims.26 Remarkably, there is nothing on the record beyond Kelley's claims 13
years after his trial testimony to support Kelley.
Below are the facts:
After years planning robberies and murders for the New England Mob, John "Red"
Kelley found himself under arrest by Boston Police. Kelley was facing prison for a December
1968 Brinks armored car robbery that netted $524,000. Kelley was motivated in part by the
treatment of Joseph Barboza, who cooperated earlier, and it caused him to reach out to Paul
Rico.27
Kelley's most valuable information included testimony against LCN Boss Raymond
Patriarca, Maurice "Pro" Lerner, Luigi "Baby Shanks" Manocchio, and several others in the
April 20, 1968 murders of Rudolph Marfeo and Anthony Melei, who made the mistake of
running a Providence, Rhode Island gambling operation not authorized by Patriarca, who ordered
their murder. At the 1970 trial in Rhode Island, Kelley was the state attorney general's primary
prosecution witness.28
On the witness stand, Kelley testified that he had been approached by "Pro" Lerner to
help plan the Marfeo murder and an escape route for the killers. Kelley said he bought face
masks and cut down a shotgun used in the murders. The jury found Lerner guilty of murder and
Lerner, Patriarca and three other defendants guilty of conspiracy.
Luigi "Baby Shanks" Manocchio, charged in 1969 with the others, fled and was not tried
until 13 years later, in 1983. At Manocchio's trial, Kelley claimed that he had lied about three
issues during the original 1970 trial on the instructions of Paul Rico. Kelley claimed someone
else cut down the shotgun used, but that Rico told him not to identify that man, because he was
"a valuable informant that Special Agent Rico wanted to keep on the streets." Kelley also said
that he lied about the name of the restaurant where he met Patriarca to plan the murders and
about the promises that had been made to Kelley by the FBI in exchange for his testimony.
Kelley also told the 1983 Providence jury that his memory was failing because of early
onset Alzheimer's. The jury did not believe Kelley because they convicted Manocchio despite
Kelley's testimony about his "failing memory" and his prior perjury.29 His conviction was
overturned by the state supreme court, led by Chief Justice Joseph A. Bevilacqua, Sr., because
Manocchio's counsel had not been given enough of an opportunity to cross-examine Kelley
about his mental problems. Interestingly, Bevilacqua would later be forced to resign because of
his own longtime close ties to LCN Boss Raymond Patriarca. and other mobsters.
"Pro" Lerner, serving Life in prison, used Kelley's 1983 claims to challenge his
conviction. The Superior Court turned down the challenge, finding that, while some details had
changed in his re-telling, Kelley had never recanted his 1970 testimony that the all of the
defendants actually committed the murders.25 Lerner then appealed to the state supreme court,
who overturned Lerner's conviction, accepting as fact Kelley's claims that he had committed
perjury at the behest of Paul Rico.
According to the prosecutors and the public defender who handled the Lerner case, there
was never any investigation of Kelley's claims about Rico or other corroboration. Kelley was
viewed as a "reluctant witness," dissatisfied with life in Witness Protection and reluctant to
testify against Manocchio, then a rising star in the LCN.30 Aside from Rico's sworn denial in
2001 and lack of corroboration for Kelley's 1983 claims, it is highly unlikely that Paul Rico
would ever have confided the identity of one of his "valuable informant[s]" to the likes of John
"Red" Kelley.31
Murder charge and death____________________________________
In October 2003, H. Paul Rico was charged in the May 1981 murder of Tulsa
businessman Roger Wheeler in Tulsa, Oklahoma. The criminal complaint was based primarily
on claims by two convicted mob killers summarized in an affidavit filed by a Tulsa, Oklahoma
police officer before a special judge serving as a magistrate.32 Rico, then age 78, was arrested at
his home in Miami Shores, Florida, held in jail and transferred to Oklahoma where he died
shackled to a bed on January 16, 2004. Rico died in custody from internal bleeding caused by an
overdose of medical blood thinners.33
Paul Rico was charged by Tulsa District Attorney Tim Harris, charging Paul Rico in an
Information with the May 1981 murder of Roger Wheeler.34 The case against former FBI agent
Paul Rico, is set forth in an affidavit filed by a Tulsa police officer. The bulk of the evidence in
the case against Rico is laid out in the officer's affidavit filed October 8, 2003, requesting a
warrant charging H. Paul Rico with First Degree Murder and Conspiracy.
The officer's affidavit was presented to a "special judge" or magistrate who had
previously served as an intern at the Tulsa District Attorney's Office.35 The document has
twenty numbered paragraphs describing statements made by two admitted mob killers, John
Vincent Martorano and Stephen Joseph Flemmi. Both killers provided this information in
exchange for substantial benefits received from both federal and state authorities who had
previously charged both with capital murder in the Wheeler killing and other crimes.36
The key points in the affidavit:
Martorano's Claims
Martorano admitted that he shot Roger Wheeler, Sr. on May 27, 1981 in the parking lot
of the Southern Hills Country Club in Tulsa, Oklahoma, with Joe Maurice McDonald (died in
1997) serving as a getaway driver. Although he had never met Paul Rico prior to the Wheeler
murder, Martorano claimed that he had conspired with Stephen Flemmi, John Callahan, James
Joseph "Whitey" Bulger and Paul Rico in this murder and that John Callahan had paid
Martorano $50,000 in "expenses" to travel to Tulsa to kill Wheeler.
Martorano's most important (and questionable) contribution to the case against Rico is his
claim that he received the information needed to locate and murder Wheeler in Tulsa "on an
envelope size piece of paper" from John Callahan in Florida. Callahan allegedly told Martorano
that this piece of paper was provided by Paul Rico. The officer's affidavit merely refers to
Callahan as "now deceased." Martorano also murdered John Callahan in 1982 and so was
unavailable to corroborate the allegation that Rico supplied this information. Martorano also
stated that he discarded the piece of paper immediately after the Wheeler murder. From memory
of the "envelope size piece of paper" discarded in 1981, the Tulsa officer claims that Martorano
was able to identify comparison known handwriting of Paul Rico in 2003.37
When Martorano and his accomplice could not find an ideal spot for Wheeler's murder,
Martorano called Callahan to get Wheeler's itinerary including golf at the Southern Hills
Country Club. In one brief separate paragraph, "Overt Act Two," the D.A. simply alleged that
general information about Wheeler's home and vehicle came from "Callahan and Rico." This
claim depends exclusively on Martorano's hearsay claim concerning the dead Callahan's
statement just prior to the Wheeler murder.38
Flemmi's Claims
In April 1981 Flemmi in Boston received a telephone call from Martorano in Florida to
discuss the attempted purchase of Miami WJA by John Callahan, which would allegedly benefit
Bulger and Flemmi. Martorano said Callahan would ensure that "skimmed" proceeds from WJA
parking concessions of $10,000 per week would be paid to Bulger and Flemmi "to protect
[WJA] from possible action by other organized crime groups.39
In May 1981 Flemmi met with Callahan and Bulger at the Black Rose Restaurant and Bar
in Boston, where the murder was planned. Richard Donovan, the president of WJA (and a close
friend of Callahan) had "a social relationship with Mr. Wheeler and that relationship would
yield details of Wheeler's description, residence, automobile, office location and personal habits"
needed for the crime. Flemmi claimed that this information would be passed to Paul Rico, "who
would, in turn, pass the information to Callahan."39
While Donovan knew Roger Wheeler very well, visited Wheeler in Tulsa and golfed with
Wheeler at the club later the scene of Wheeler's murder, Rico had no such relationship with the
WJA owner. In contrast, Paul Rico had little contact with Wheeler, and prior to Rico's removal
to Tulsa on the murder charge, had never set foot in Oklahoma. Additionally, Donovan
maintained a close friendship with Callahan, while Rico had little or no contact with Callahan
after 1976, when Callahan was fired as WJA president because of Callahan's reported contacts
with organized crime figures in Boston, on the recommendation of Rico to the WJA Board of
Directors.40
Flemmi further claimed that two days after this meeting, he called Paul Rico in Florida
and Rico, by telephone, "confirmed that he and others wanted Mr. Wheeler killed." Flemmi
knew Paul Rico because Flemmi had worked as an FBI informant from 1965–1969.39 Aside
from Flemmi's claim, there is no other evidence of any communication between Flemmi and
Rico from 1969 until the murder in 1981. In a 2004 civil deposition, Flemmi testified as follows:
Q. What relationship did you or [Whitey] Bulger have to Paul Rico while he was employed
by World Jai Alai? A. I didn't have any relationship with him at the time he was
employed.41
Flemmi's Credibility
Stephen Flemmi agreed to provide information to the Tulsa District Attorney after a
federal appeals court rejected his bid to have his federal racketeering indictment dismissed in
October 2003.36 Flemmi testified at length under oath during his effort to get his federal charge
dismissed, and on appeal, federal prosecutors characterized Flemmi as "a lifelong organized
criminal" who gave "belated, inconsistent and inherently implausible testimony . . . concerning
events of the distant past." The same prosecutors, who negotiated Flemmi's subsequent plea
agreement with the federal government and provided Flemmi as a witness to the District
Attorney in Oklahoma, made other explicit representations concerning Flemmi's credibility in
their Brief the United States filed with the United States Court of Appeals:
[T]he district court [found] that Flemmi repeatedly lied during the evidentiary
hearing. . . . (followed by numerous citations to the record of specific perjury by
Flemmi) . . . Although these falsehoods had the potential to cause serious damage
to others, Flemmi did not hesitate to utter them in court to advance his cause. . . .
Uncorroborated testimony from such a witness cannot support an order excluding
evidence.42
There is no evidence that the Oklahoma court which issued the murder warrant for Paul
Rico, resulting in his arrest, jailing and death, was ever advised of Flemmi's perjury in federal
court. If Rico had stood trial, Flemmi's credibility undoubtedly would have been a significant
issue.40
Pressure on the Tulsa DA to Charge Rico
In July 2003 Tim Harris, then the elected DA in Tulsa, Oklahoma was the subject of
Page A-1 criticism in the prominent local "Tulsa World" for his refusal to charge Paul Rico in
the murder of Roger Wheeler, who had been a very well-known citizen. Less than three months
before having a "special judge" issue a murder warrant for Rico, the “Tulsa World” published an
expose' of Harris' allegedly lenient charging policies, entitled "DA, Law Officers in Feud." The
long Sunday feature article began with:
A simmering feud between Tulsa County District Attorney Tim Harris and law
enforcement agencies has boiled over with allegations that Harris' policies are
endangering the public. . . .
Police aren't the only ones complaining.
The son of slain Tulsa businessman Roger Wheeler said Harris' office suggested
that the family should help pay for the cost of prosecuting the 1981 murder case. .
. .
Later the article discusses the Wheeler murder case at length:
Those [cases Harris has refused to prosecute] include a key suspect in one of Tulsa's
most notorious murders. In late 2001, Detective Mike Huff presented an affidavit
seeking charges against H. Paul Rico and others in the 1981 slaying of Wheeler,
who owned the Tulsa-based Telex Corp. Rico, a retired Boston FBI agent, was
head of security for World Jai Alai, which Wheeler had bought. Since then, Huff
has presented two additional affidavits with new information related to Wheeler's
death, but Harris has not filed charges against Rico. The most recent affidavit is a
28-page document written May 28 (2003). It alleges that Rico provided confessed
hit man John V. Martorano with details on Wheeler's appearance, whereabouts and
a vehicle description.
Harris filed murder charges in 2001 against Martorano and two other figures in the
case: James Joseph "Whitey" Bulger and Stephen "The Rifleman" Flemmi. . . .
Martorano struck a plea agreement that allows him to serve no time in Oklahoma
prison in exchange for testifying against his co-defendants. . . .
David Wheeler [son of murder victim] said he asked Harris to turn the Rico case
over to the state Attorney General's Office.
"After fighting impossible odds to help bring my father's killers to justice,
ultimately winning the battle against both organized crime and a corrupted Boston
FBI, it is ironic to find ourselves stopped cold by our own district attorney."
In early October 2003, a few months after the article was published, top prosecutor Tim
Harris personally accompanied Huff to Boston to meet with Stephen Flemmi, then in federal
custody, and make a deal for his testimony. Harris and Huff immediately returned to Tulsa and
charged Paul Rico with murder.43
John Martorano, who admitted he shot Roger Wheeler in the face in May 1981, never
served prison time for the murder. The "Boston Globe" reported his release from prison in
2008, "When hit man-turned-government witness John Martorano strolled out of prison last year
after serving only a dozen years for 20 murders, the federal government gave him $20,000 cash
to help him.
1 Army Service Record, Adjutant General’s Office, Demobilized Personnel Records Branch, World War II Unit,
Department of the Army, St. Louis, Mo, reviewed on December 14 1950, reported on December 16 1950 by St.
Louis Division of the FBI and recorded in FBIHQ personnel records for Harold Paul Rico.
2 FBI (1951) Harold Paul Rico Official Personnel File, Special Agent (E) Applicant BRIEF OF INVESTIGATION,
67-458484, Jan. 16, Released under Freedom of Information Act to Joseph R. Wolfinger on July 14 2008.
3 See The FBI's Controversial Handling of Organized Crime Investigations in Boston: The Case of Joseph Salvati:
Hearing before the H. Committee on Govt. Reform, 107th Cong., Serial No. 107-25, 157–328 (May 3, 2001)
(Testimony of H. Paul Rico, retired FBI Special Agent).
4 Investigations into Allegations of Justice Department Misconduct in New England—Vol. 2: Hearings before the H.
Committee on Govt. Reform, 107th Cong., Serial No. 107-56, at 609–10 (Feb. 21, 2002) (Deposition of Dennis
Condon).
5 Investigation of Allegations of Law Enforcement Misconduct in New England—Vol. 2: Hearings before the H.
Committee on Govt. Reform, 107th Cong., Serial No. 107-56, at 133 (2002) (Statement of Edward F. Harrington, Sr.
United States District Judge and former Organized Crime Strike Force Prosecutor). Investigations into Allegations
of Justice Department Misconduct in New England—Vol. 2: Hearings before the H. Committee on Govt. Reform,
107th Cong., Serial No. 107-56, at 508–09 (Feb. 21, 2002) (Deposition of Dennis Condon).
6 Limone v. United States, 579 F.3d 79, 95 (1st Cir. 2009).
7 Everything Secret Degenerates: The FBI's Use of Murderers as Informants: Third Report by the H. Committee on
Govt. Reform, 108th Cong., No. 108-414, at 464 (Feb. 3, 2004) (Chronology of Investigation).
8 Limone v. United States, 579 F.3d 79, 84 (1st Cir. 2009).
9 Investigation of Allegations of Law Enforcement Misconduct in New England—Vol. 3: Hearings before the H.
Committee on Govt. Reform, 107th Cong., Serial No. 107-56, at 8–84 (Statement of Jack Zalkind, Esq. (former
Suffolk County, Mass. Assistant District Attorney), 84–101 (Statement of James M. McDonough, Esq. (former
Suffolk County, Mass. research attorney) (May 11, 2002).
10 Commonwealth v. Limone, No's. 32367, 32369, 32370, at *2 (Suffolk Super. Ct. Jan. 8, 2001).
11 Limone v. United States, 579 F.3d 79 (1st Cir. 2009).
12 Judge Gertner was characterized as a "liberal and outspoken product[] of the '60s and '70s counterculture
movement," an "outspoken liberal and feminist" and "longtime activist" in a "Boston Magazine" profile. Benoit
Denizet-Lewis, Courting Controversy, BOSTON MAGAZINE, May 15, 2006.
13 Limone v. United States, 579 F.3d 79, 84, 89–90, 95, 99–100 (1st Cir. 2009).
14 Limone v. United States, 579 F.3d 79, 84, 89–90, 95, 96–100 (1st Cir. 2009).
15 Limone v. United States, 579 F.3d 79, 96 (1st Cir. 2009).
16 Investigation of Allegations of Law Enforcement Misconduct in New England—Vol. 2: Hearings before the H.
Committee on Govt. Reform, 107th Cong., Serial No. 107-56, at 113, 133 (2002) (Statement of Edward F.
Harrington, Sr. United States District Judge and former Organized Crime Strike Force Prosecutor).
17 Brief for United States at 67, Limone v. United States, 579 F.3d 79 (1st Cir. 2009).
18 Limone v. United States, 579 F.3d 79, 96–97 (1st Cir. 2009).
19 Brief for United States at 44 (quoting Zalkind testimony), Limone v. United States, 579 F.3d 79 (1st Cir. 2009).
20 See Limone v. United States, 579 F.3d 79, 98 (1st Cir. 2009).
21 Investigation of Allegations of Law Enforcement Misconduct in New England—Vol. 2: Hearings before the H.
Committee on Govt. Reform, 107th Cong., Serial No. 107-56, at 108 (2002) (Statement of Edward F. Harrington, Sr.
United States District Judge and former Organized Crime Strike Force Prosecutor).
22 Investigation of Allegations of Law Enforcement Misconduct in New England—Vol. 3: Hearings before the H.
Committee on Govt. Reform, 107th Cong., Serial No. 107-56, at 10–32 (2002) (Statement of Jack Zalkind, Esq.).
23 Investigation of Allegations of Law Enforcement Misconduct in New England—Vol. 3: Hearings before the H.
Committee on Govt. Reform, 107th Cong., Serial No. 107-56, at 89 (2002) (Statement of James M. McDonough,
Esq.).
24 See State v. Manocchio, 496 A.2d 931, 932–33 (R.I. 1985).
25 Lerner v. Moran, 542 A.2d 1089 (R.I. 1988).
26 The FBI's Controversial Handling of Organized Crime Investigations in Boston: The Case of Joseph Salvati:
Hearing before the H. Committee on Govt. Reform, 107th Cong., Serial No. 107-25, at 215 (May 3, 2001)
(Testimony of H. Paul Rico, retired FBI Special Agent).
27 Everything Secret Degenerates: The FBI's Use of Murderers as Informants: Third Report by the H. Committee on
Govt. Reform, 108th Cong., No. 108-414, at 74, 98–103, 506–15, 551, 562–64, 595–98, 604–05, and Exhibit 805
(Lerner v. Moran Decision of Sup. Ct.) (Feb. 3, 2004).
28 State v. Pariarca, 308 A.2d 300 (R.I. 1973).
29 State v. Manocchio, 496 A.2d 931 (R.I. 1985); see also Lerner v. Moran, 542 A.2d 1089 (R.I. 1988).
30 Dep. Public Defender Barbara Hurst intv. (represented Lerner on appeal) (Feb. 6, 2008); attorney David H. Leach
intv. (R.I. State prosecutor in Manocchio prosecution) (Feb. 4, 2008); attorney Tom Dickinson intv. (R.I. Asst. A.G.
who argued Lerner appeal at R.I. Supreme Court) (Feb. 2, 2008); Interviews by Christophir Kerr for RICO How
Politicians, Prosecutors and the Mob Destroyed One of the FBI's Finest Special Agents, by Joe Wolfinger and Chris
Kerr with Jerry Seper (http://ricobook.com/)(2012).
31 The FBI, certainly at that time, did not disclose the identities of informants to anyone, even senior prosecutors.
See Investigation of Allegations of Law Enforcement Misconduct in New England—Vol. 2: Hearings before the H.
Committee on Govt. Reform, 107th Cong., Serial No. 107-56, at 154, 176 (2002) (Statement of Edward F.
Harrington, Sr. United States District Judge and former Organized Crime Strike Force Prosecutor)
32 State v. H. Paul Rico, Dkt. No. CF-2001-1511, Aff. of Sgt. Mike Huff (Tulsa, Okla. County Ct. Oct. 14, 2003).
33 Dr. Jane Kurz review of Paul Rico Tulsa County, Okla. autopsy (Aug. 17, 2008) for RICO How Politicians,
Prosecutors and the Mob Destroyed One of the FBI's Finest Special Agents, by Joe Wolfinger and Chris Kerr with
Jerry Seper (http://ricobook.com/) (2012).
34 State v. H. Paul Rico, Dkt. No. CF-2001-1511, Inf. filed by D.A. Tim Harris (Tulsa, Okla. County Ct. Oct. 10,
2003).
35 Sgt. Mike Huff intv. (Jun. 19, 2007) for for RICO How Politicians, Prosecutors and the Mob Destroyed One of
the FBI's Finest Special Agents, by Joe Wolfinger and Chris Kerr with Jerry Seper (http://ricobook.com/) (2012).
36 See D.A. Tim Harris intv. (Dec. 8, 2009) for RICO How Politicians, Prosecutors and the Mob Destroyed One of
the FBI's Finest Special Agents, by Joe Wolfinger and Chris Kerr with Jerry Seper (http://ricobook.com/) (2012).
37 Sgt. Mike Huff intv. (May 23, 2007) for RICO How Politicians, Prosecutors and the Mob Destroyed One of the
FBI's Finest Special Agents, by Joe Wolfinger and Chris Kerr with Jerry Seper (http://ricobook.com/) (2012).
38 See Sgt. Mike Huff intv. (Jun. 19, 2007) for RICO How Politicians, Prosecutors and the Mob Destroyed One of
the FBI's Finest Special Agents, by Joe Wolfinger and Chris Kerr with Jerry Seper (http://ricobook.com/) (2012).
39 State v. H. Paul Rico, Dkt. No. CF-2001-1511, Aff. of Sgt. Mike Huff (Tulsa, Okla. County Ct. Oct. 14, 2003).
40 William P. Cagney, III intv. (Jan. 10, 2007) for RICO How Politicians, Prosecutors and the Mob Destroyed One
of the FBI's Finest Special Agents, by Joe Wolfinger and Chris Kerr with Jerry Seper (http://ricobook.com/) (2012).
41 Rakes v. U.S., C.A. 02-10480-WGY (D. Mass.) (Oct. 12, 2004) (Stephen Flemmi Depo. at 135).
42 United States v. Flemmi, 2000 WL 35571151 (C.A.1)(Appellate Brief) at *14, *19 (Mar. 13, 2000).
43 See D.A. Tim Harris intv. (Dec. 8, 2009) for RICO How Politicians, Prosecutors and the Mob Destroyed One of
the FBI's Finest Special Agents, by Joe Wolfinger and Chris Kerr with Jerry Seper (http://ricobook.com/) at 254
(2012).
Chriskerresq (talk) 23:52, 9 November 2020 (UTC)
replies: text: (Collapsed article for talk page readability; can be viewed by expanding.) The suggested article contains puffery, not WP:NPOV, there are no inline citations so no way to determine which information is properly sourced, and it contains excessive details not relevant to an encyclopedia biography. Schazjmd (talk) 23:59, 9 November 2020 (UTC)
replies: text: Also, I suggest you read Wikipedia's policy on original research and the policy on the use of primary sources. Schazjmd (talk) 00:06, 10 November 2020 (UTC)
replies: text: Puffery is not a helpful word. We need to see what your objection actually is. The initial paragraphs were written to give an overview but they are explained and amply footnoted in the following text.Jwolfi (talk) 16:06, 11 November 2020 (UTC)
thread_title:  Proposed Edits to Paul Rico For Comment By Those Interested