Opinion ID: 537726
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Murder Conspiracies

Text: 11 The final group of racketeering activities charged in the indictment involved a series of conspiracies to obstruct justice and to commit murder. Most of these conspiracies, including the conspiracies to murder Walter LaFreniere, Walter Bennett, William Bennett and Joseph Barboza, are not at issue in this appeal. The murder of Angelo Patrizzi is, however, very much at issue and we state the facts pertaining to this murder in some detail, both here and later in the opinion. 12 In early 1981, Angelo Patrizzi was reputedly planning to kill Frederick Simone and Cono Frizzi--two Boston members of the Patriarca Family--because of his belief that they were involved in the 1978 murder of his half-brother. A decision was made to kill Patrizzi before he succeeded in killing either Simone or Frizzi. As evidence of these plans to kill Patrizzi, the government introduced intercepted conversations from a March 11, 1981 meeting among Granito, Simone and Gennaro Angiulo at which Simone and Granito related to Gennaro several unsuccessful attempts on their part to kill Patrizzi. At this March 11 meeting, Gennaro indicated that he would assist in the effort, and during a conversation the next day with Zannino, enlisted Zannino's assistance as well. 13 On March 13, 1981, Angelo Patrizzi disappeared. In a conversation intercepted on April 3, 1981, Zannino told John Cincotti and Ralph Lamattina that Patrizzi had been killed by nine men and put in a car trunk. On June 11, 1981, authorities found Patrizzi's decomposed body in the trunk of a stolen car in Lynn, Massachusetts. Gennaro Angiulo and Granito were charged with conspiring to murder Patrizzi and with being accessories before the fact to his murder.D. The Jury's Verdict 14 The above activities, among others, were set forth in the indictment against the relevant defendants as predicate acts constituting a pattern of racketeering activity in violation of the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO). 3 With the exception of the murder conspiracies, the activities also were charged in the indictment as separate substantive counts against the applicable defendants. 15 Following an eight-month jury trial, Gennaro Angiulo, Donato Angiulo, Francesco Angiulo and Samuel Granito were each convicted, under RICO, of conspiring to participate, and participating, in the affairs of an enterprise through a pattern of racketeering activity, in violation of 18 U.S.C. Sec. 1962(d) and (c). 16 Gennaro Angiulo was also convicted of the following offenses: four counts of conducting illegal gambling businesses, in violation of 18 U.S.C. Sec. 1955; two counts of conspiring to make an extortionate extension of credit, in violation of 18 U.S.C. Sec. 892(a); conspiring to collect, and collecting, an extortionate extension of credit, in violation of 18 U.S.C. Sec. 894(a); obstruction of, and conspiring to obstruct, justice, in violation of 18 U.S.C. Sec. 1503 and 18 U.S.C. Sec. 371. 17 Donato Angiulo was also convicted of conducting an illegal gambling business, in violation of 18 U.S.C. Sec. 1955 and conspiring to make an extortionate extension of credit, in violation of 18 U.S.C. Sec. 892(a). 18 Granito was also convicted of conducting an illegal gambling business, in violation of 18 U.S.C. Sec. 1955. 19 Francesco Angiulo was also convicted of the following offenses: four counts of conducting illegal gambling businesses, in violation of 18 U.S.C. Sec. 1955; two counts of conspiring to make an extortionate extension of credit, in violation of 18 U.S.C. Sec. 892(a); and conspiring to collect an extortionate extension of credit, in violation of 18 U.S.C. Sec. 894(a). 20 Michele Angiulo was convicted of conducting an illegal gambling business, in violation of 18 U.S.C. Sec. 1955. 21 The defendants raise numerous issues on appeal, some of which apply to only one or two of them, and some of which apply to them all. We discuss each of the issues.