How bad is the Massachusetts economy under Gov. Maura Healey?
It is so terrible that even local gangsters must move away to the red states to continue their lives of crime.
That’s the good news, I guess – that there’s still work out there for wise guys. The bad news is, if the hoods shift their rackets to a red state – America, in other words – there’s a good chance they’ll get lugged, which never, ever happens anymore in Democrat-run states, either for illegal aliens or even Americans.
No arrests, never – Democrats call it professional courtesy.
Sadly, Giuseppe Manzi, age 51, didn’t get the memo. He’s a jailbird, a second-generation hoodlum from Springfield. He’ll be in court tomorrow with 21 other defendants in a large gambling ring.
According to the feds, the conspiracy operated out of northwest Indiana.
And this ring was run by Greeks. Not Italians, but Greeks.
See what I mean about the lack of opportunities here in the Bay State, even in the underworld? Nothing wrong with Greeks – there’ve been plenty of them in organized crime over the years – but generally speaking, they’re supposed to be working for the Mafia, not vice versa.
The feds call their sting “Operation Porterhouse Parlay,” because the Greek-run gang operated out of steakhouses owned by the Gerodemos family. Five of whom have been charged, including a good-looking young woman named Athena Gerodemos.
The indictment runs 87 pages, but it’s a little light on the details of what parts of the enterprise that “Little Joe,” for that was indeed Monzi’s moniker in Hampden County, was mixed up in. The feds do refer to him also by his Hoosier handle – “Joe Polozzo.”
The crew boss was James “Jimmy the Greek” Gerodemos, and of course he’s seen about a million gangster movies. Which is why the feds picked him up on tape last year, threatening one of his deadbeat bettors “using an Italian accent” as the G-men put it.
Cue the Godfather theme before you read this, from page 21:
“I’m tired of you man… You call us! Figure this out ‘cuz it’s gonna get stupid. You know, my friend — no good. You’re no good. No good. You call me, we talk. Call me.”
Personally, at the end I would have muttered a guttural “Capische?” But maybe I’ve just seen more Mob movies than Jimmy the Greek.
I guess we’ll find out more tomorrow about Little Joe’s duties in the gang. Porterhouse Parlay was into football betting, and they liked to threaten people. It goes with the territory. All gamblers end up broke, they can’t pay. You have to call them in and threaten to stick their hand in the toaster, or rape their college-age daughters. (That’s also on page 21.)
As for Little Joe, or Joe Polozzo, he was convicted in federal court in 2003 for the usual panoply of crime – racketeering, marijuana distribution and money-laundering conspiracies. According to newspaper accounts, he and his father, Carmine, ran their crew out of a barbershop in the South End.
Joe’s Bureau of Prisons ID number is 02684-748. Carmine, who is 76, likewise went to Club Fed. His number is 02686-748. When cops raided Carmine’s house and a safe-deposit box in 2000, they reportedly found close to $800,000 in cash.
Those were the days. Even a humble barber could Make It in Massachusetts.
As for Little Joe, when he was out on bail on that case, he was lugged again and charged with bludgeoning a Connecticut man with a golf club outside a very nice place known as the Hot Club.
Seems like he would have come back home after doing his time and gone back to his, uh, trade. But instead he ends up with a bunch of Greeks.
Again, there’ve always been plenty of Greeks in the underworld. Back in the day, Little Joe brawled with Freddy Geas, a Mafia hitman (and former Hampden County jail guard) in a different LCN faction. Geas is now best known as the thug who murdered Whitey Bulger in West Virginia in 2018.
In the North End of Boston, one of Jerry Angiulo’s favorite wise guys was one William “Skinny” Kazonis.
Skinny was a collector, and he once found himself in jeopardy because of the son-in-law of another Greek on the fringes of the gang who owed the Angiulos money. It was a major headache for the gang, and everything was recorded by the FBI and later played back at trial.
The night before he was to go before the grand jury, Skinny Kazonis stopped by the Dog House to commiserate with Jerry Angiulo. As was his wont, Jerry was very sympathetic.
“Look at Skinny,” he told his brothers and the other assembled wise guys. “He’s very nervous. Skinny, why are you sweating like a faggot?”
Angiulo refilled Skinny’s glass.
“Drink up Skinny,” the underboss told his younger associate. “You might be going away tomorrow. Obstruction of justice.”
For Jerry, that was some real tenderness. He liked Skinny, despite his racial handicaps.
But something tells me that neither Jerry nor the Mafia guys who ran the Springfield rackets, people with names like Skyball and Big Nose, would have approved of Little Joe throwing in with a bunch of guys whose main job was running steakhouses.
Yes, the state’s economy has never been this bad. There’s no money for nobody unless you’re an illegal alien. Making a buck – fuhgeddaboutit. But Joe, not for nothing, but who are these people?
They may be friends of yours, but they’re not friends of ours.
Capische?
