From what i know his wife Rita is gona cremate him, I talked to a family member and they say he was 90 ponds when he died and that his wife is gona cremate him. He was in Texas when he died and Joey got a chance to visit him on his way to LA that was all over the news from TMZ

You dont know how much Little joey is a legend in this part of town. He can go anywhere and his tab will be picked up from resturantes to funeral parlors so we will see

Sympathy for the Devil..That Tylenol P.M. hss your trippin oldhead a bit confused you think they're going to have a parade for him.

When did you pump ligmabi's gas?

yo southphillyoldhead, I leave the board for a day and check back for your reply and see all these guys takin shots at me! I guess i made some people mad!!! U gotta love it cuz! Its a shame about chuckie, he was so close to comin home. My friend Nick told me about chuckie passin away. Speakin of ol'timers Chickie Chang comes home soon and I hear he's in good health. His grandson Mikey is a disgrace, the kid turned muslim in jail, i seen it with my own eyes on E-Block in graterford, the kid is on drugs. Wanna hear a funny story, my good friend Anthony Gongs (Johhny's half brother) was locked up with Harry the Hunch in Graterford in the early 90's and he told me Harry was so tight with his money that he would use State issued soap instead of buyin good soap from commissary! If ya know anything about State issued soap then ya know its this freakin block of hard green shit, its truely a horrible experience! Anthony would do this impression of Harry, freakin hilarious! harry the hunch a bonafide millionare using state soap!! He said Harry was a good guy. Stories like that you wont find in GA article. If ya got any harmless stories like that I would love to hear them, it brings a smile to my face.

i thought bob barker had the right to own every state soap in american jails. the hard one that makes you skin fall off and ends up in socks and clubbed over peoples skulls . anyways the last big mafia funeral i remember with the 3 tow trucks of flowers hells angels protection was the old guy jerry anguilo the underboss up in boston like 3 yrs ago but it was the same day as ted kennedy so it didnt make to much noise he had his 21 salute and everything. chuckie merlino was made in 1980 and was on the street to 85 im betting he didnt make that much money for a under boss. tommy delgerno said he was a drunk in a couple of books is he still alive, and i wonder if old scarfo and chuckie made peace and if he sends flowers or some shit. chuckie merlino brought uncle joe in.

any word on what has been going on in the current trial?

Suppose to go back tomorrow. Had a 3 day break. They are on break from some court/judge shit.

Lol at Joey being a "legend".

In some people's minds that's all they ever talk about!! Joey this and Joey that! But I don't think some people really meant him! Especially when he was drinking! Lol

Did you ever babysit him since your an "OLDHEAD" like when a war was going on. "Joey I shield you!"

Any of you philly guys ever go to that little dive bar in the Italian Market called "12 steps down". I've been there a couple times over the years and had a good time with a bunch of the locals.

Pretty sure it's owned or was owned by the Renzulli's. I guess i don't have to tell you guys about John Renzulli and his cousin. Big time drug guys back in the day.

Is the bar still open?

That place has changed hands a lot I do think its still open. It's on 9th and Christian under a sporting good store. The last owner that had it was Renzullis friends wife. The .......,, but that changed hands in 2000 and I got a little older and don't go to those places anymore! As far as for you Dickie you've been baiting me all day cause your some Irish guy with mental problems from the northeast that don't have a life and wish they were in South Philly. You probably came down here and got punk smacked a few times cause your a drunk!

That sounds about right. Who would wish they were in South Philly besides an Irish guy with mental problems and no life. I agree completely!

Thanks Old Head. I haven't been there in a few years and was just curious if it was still there.

LOL.

You know I'm just playing. I'm cute like that.

I'm just Gona think that that's your picture and dream! I could never be mean to a female that good looking!

Talk about mental problems oldhead? Don't you have a wife since you have your life so together and only your opinion matters and everyone else is a jerkoff? I'm not a drunk Irishmen from the NE, I get f'd up from time to time. You belittle everyone else's comments yet you say you respect everyone's opinion's.

Your a walking contradiction... My father was born in South Philly and ran a successful business for years in Center City in the mid 80's he decided with 3 children it might be a good time to move to a suburb outside the city. Do you have children or a family? Who are you to say I'm this and that did you remotely turn on my computer or tablet it wouldn't surprise me

So what part of your opinions am i supposed respect? THIS ONE?
Did you ever babysit him since your an "OLDHEAD" like when a war was going on. "Joey I shield you!"? THIS ONE?
When did you pump ligmabi's gas?? THIS ONE?Sympathy for the Devil..That Tylenol P.M. hss your trippin oldhead a bit confused you think they're going to have a parade for him THIS ONE?
Go down passyunk avenue and buy a cheap suit south philly style classy! One joke ok,but consistently saying drunkin stuff? Your father must of known that he had to get you out of south philly with that attitude!!! Now thats a good man!!

yo oldhead, remember the R.C. Variety Store at Hutchinson n Catharine near 9th st! Chickie used to run that joint, my uncle used to hang there. I was too young to really remember that place vividly but i remember bits and pieces. I heard from one of my friends that Joe aint takin a deal unless its 60 months or under. People forget that Joe fought a body and lost and got a wheel only to give the time back on appeal..so he aint no spring chicken, he knows what he's doing with this case. Whats your take on it?

Nobody forgot that Joe is playing with house money. But others think that he's dumb as shit for getting back in the life after beating the flowers murder on appeal. He was lucky as shit! He did time, why go back? He beat the system once, he may not be so lucky the next time. But then again, maybe he realized that he should be in jail anyway and just made money for his family while he has the time so that they can be set when he goes back in since that is what he knows how to do best.But if I were his kids/wife, I'd rather have him. Like you said, he is no spring chicken. This could effectively be a life sentence for him if convicted. And most likely there will be a conviction.

I am more surprised that Staino didn't take a plea with this being his first potential bid. But they have him on most of the tapes so thats why he and Joe didn't take the deals they were probably offered cause they were tough sentences for effectively a gambling case minus the No show job and benefit insurance fraud from the trash company for Joe. I dont know what they were all offered so I can't form a real opinion. Just really thought Staino was gonna take a deal.

It's to late now Dom Cheech for Joe to take that offer cause once the trial starts the offers are off the table! But IMO with the time Joe has already in like 17 months that joe can't get back! Joe and Staino should have cut their losses! I did hear that they used to run ziganette games around there! I'm from 10th and bigler we hung In a variety store on Hutchinson and shunk.

We dont even know if Liagmbi was offered a plea deal, IMO he probably wasnt. They are planning to hit him for all they can especially after investigating him for over a decade. Would be dumb to cut their losses and offer a plea.

Posted: Thu, Oct. 25, 2012, 9:43 PM


Informant testifies at Ligambi trial

By John P. Martin

INQUIRER STAFF WRITER





Growing up in South Philadelphia, Michael Francis Orlando Jr. dreamed of following in his father's footsteps.

He wanted to join the mob.

Orlando's dad was a bookmaker and loan shark. But the son set his sights higher. He sold pot and cocaine, robbed a drug dealer, staged fake accidents, and ran a credit-card fraud scheme.

Orlando hoped to impress the local mob leaders, but instead ended up in their debt, unable to make his $150 weekly interest payment.

One day he woke to find his car windshield smashed. On another, an enforcer paid his 85-year-old grandmother a friendly visit that Orlando interpreted as a threat. If he didn't pay, Orlando knew, he would get beaten - or worse.

"That's how things get done, through violence and intimidation," he told a federal court jury Thursday.

Orlando, 45, was the second in a string of FBI informants and insiders expected to testify at the racketeering trial of reputed Philadelphia mob boss Joseph Ligambi and six codefendants.

Armed with more than 15,000 recordings and 9,000 surveillance reports gathered over a decade, prosecutors are trying to persuade jurors that the men ran extensive gambling, extortion, and loan-sharking operations across the city and beyond.

Defense lawyers have portrayed the accusations as overblown fabrications, built on the word of untrustworthy turncoats trying to cut deals to save themselves. Orlando can expect such treatment when he faces cross-examination as soon as Friday.

Under questioning from Assistant U.S. Attorney John S. Han, he admitted his cooperation helped win him leniency in a 2003 federal fraud prosecution. That crime carried a maximum prison term of 15 years, Orlando said.

Instead, he got probation. (The sentencing order is sealed from the public.)

That fraud was one of his better "scores," Orlando testified, one that got him notice within the mob.

He had co-opted a source within TransUnion, the credit reporting agency. For a fee, Orlando would arrange for her to rewrite scores, making poor credit risks or people with a history of unpaid debts look like a safe bet.

"Did people approach you in South Philadelphia to get their credit fixed?" Han asked.

"Yeah," Orlando said, a wide smile crossing his face. "Just about everybody."

One, Albert Lancelotti, asked Orlando to fix the credit score for his uncle Michael, Orlando said. Michael Lancelotti was prominent, a "made man" within the Mafia, according to the witness.

"I said, 'Absolutely, no problem. Of course I'll take care of him,' " Orlando recalled. He didn't charge Lancelotti, and got a gracious thank-you note in return, he said.

His debts, however, eventually caught up with him.

Orlando said he owed $5,000 to Damion Canalichio, one of the defendants Orlando said he knew well.

(He said the same about another defendant, Gary Battaglini, but then twice picked the wrong man when he was asked to identify Battaglini in the courtroom.)

A decade or so ago he and Canalichio were friends, Orlando said. When Canalichio got out of prison, Orlando arranged to get him a black Cadillac, so Canalichio could be seen driving a nice car.

He also knew Canalichio wasn't shy when it came to collecting debts, and said he had heard the man talk often about giving debtors a beating.

When Orlando began falling behind in his payments, he said, he began to hear warnings from others at a deli that Battaglini ran at 19th Street and Snyder Avenue.

Orlando said he fled to New York City, where he was in hiding for about a month. One day, Orlando's brother called and told him not to worry, that he had been paying down the debts.

Soon after, Orlando returned to the area. Then his brother asked him to come to his Delaware County apartment.

There, Orlando said, his brother confessed that he had been working as an FBI informant and gathering evidence against the loan sharks. His apartment was wired, he said, and he recorded conversations and payoffs.

Orlando said the news made him so sick he vomited on the way home. In his mind, a mob turncoat or informant was "lower than a pedophile," he testified.

Then he realized he had no option but to become one.

Not long after that, Orlando walked into Battaglini's deli to make his weekly interest payment - and a recording for the FBI. Jurors are expected to hear those tapes when trial resumes Friday

Sorry for the way i posted that i couldnt get it to take up less space!!

$5,000 is their case?

Yea I heard about this yesterday. Michael Orlanda, A KNOWN DRUG DEALER, testified yesterday.