Illegal heroin labs were first discovered near Marseille, France, in 1937. These labs were run by the notorious Corsican gangsters. For years, the Corsican underworld had been involved in the manufacturing and trafficking of illegal heroin abroad, primarily to the United States. It was this heroin network that eventually became known as the "French Connection". So dubbed by the media.

The first major French Connection case occurred in 1960. An informant told a drug agent in Lebanon that Mauricio Rosal, the Guatemalan Ambassador to Belgium, the Netherlands and Luxembourg, was smuggling morphine from Beirut, Lebanon to Marseille. Narcotics agents had been seizing about 200 pounds of heroin in a typical year, but intelligence showed that the Corsican traffickers were smuggling in 200 pounds every other week. Rosal alone, in one year, had used his diplomatic status to bring in about 440 pounds.

Information on how exactly the US Mafia got involved in the first place is hard to come by. But US authorities believed that two New York Mafia captains (Carmine "Lilo" Galante and "Big" John Ormento) were the two main guys, directing and leading the operations from New York.

In February of 1959, federal and city narcotics agents held 27 persons in costudy after a series of raids that uncovered what the officers said was the second largest amount of heroin ever seized in the United States. One of the first men who got busted was William Bentvena, who I believe was the famous "Billy Batts". More arrests followed, increasing the numbers of arrestees to 35. Among them was Giuseppe Cotroni and Luigi Greco of Montreal, Carmine Galante, John Ormento, Salvatore Giglio, Angelo Tuminaro, Salvatore Sciremammano, Carlie DiPietro, Rocco Sancinella, Angelo Loiacano, Frank Mari (who was, to my knowledge, the only one acquitted in the upcoming trial), the Panico brothers (Salvatore and Carmine), David Petillo (one of the mobsters charged and convicted with Lucky Luciano back in 1936), William Struzzieri and Tony Mirra (a household name in these kind of circumstances). The trials that follwed turned into some kind of a farce (in lack of a better word). If there is any Mafia trials converterted into a full motion picture I really would like to watch, it´s this one.

The first trial, before Judge Levet, lasted for six month but was so disrupted by frequent delays, sham illnesses, accidents and other misfortunes that Judge Levet was compelled to remand all the defendants to insure their continued presence.. For example, Angelo Tuminaro became a fugitive, Dave Petillo claimed suffering from a heart attack, later proven to be a fake. After a motion for mistrial (grounded on prejudice to all the defendants by the prior delays) had been denied, it was found impossible to continue because one of the defendants (Rocco Sancinella) was not present. The defaulter appeared that evening and was remanded. On Tuesday, December 27 1960, the court was informed that counsel for Sancinella was suffering from an incapacitating illness. Sancinella was thereupon directed to retain new counsel, or accept court-appointed counsel, and to familiarize said counsel with the facts of the case. Because of this and the death of a juror's brother, the trial was then adjourned to January 3, 1961. On January 3, Sancinella indicated an inability to procure other counsel; the court therefore assigned him Albert Krieger, Esq., counsel for the defendant Gellman. Sancinella refused, however, to accept or confer with any counsel other than the still incapacitated attorney who had represented him at the outset. In consequence, the trial judge granted Sancinella (and others) a mistrial and severance.

The disorder and delay, during the main trial, ended in a mistrial when the foreman of the jury broke his back in an unexplained fall down a flight of stairs in an abandoned building in the middle of the night and no alternate jurors were left to replace him.
The second trial started in 1962.

Between trials, the defendants were enlarged on bail. Retrial of the case was adjourned on numerous occasions because a number of defendants claimed financial inability to retain counsel despite ability to post substantial bail. In July 1961, Judge Murphy found that the failure to retain counsel was part of a plan to postpone trial indefinitely, and he threatened contempt proceedings.

The case was assigned for trial in February 1962, but it was not ready because several defendants were still without counsel. It was not until March 9, 1962 that all remaining defendants had counsel either retained or appointed by the court. A pre-trial conference was held in March and the second trial was set peremptorily for April 2, 1962. Nevertheless, on the appointed day, counsel for the defendant Loiacano failed to appear claiming a recurrence of a chronic heart condition which had also plagued and delayed the first trial; another, counsel for the defendants Carmine and Salvatore Panico, although retained in September 1961, was engaged in another trial which was expected to last for one week; and still others withdrew at the last moment and there were numerous switches and substitutions of counsel. The court denied applications for adjournment and assigned a lawyer, who had been through the first trial, to represent the Panicos and Loiacano.

During the empanelling of the jury, Salvatore Panico made the first outburst. He climbed into the jury box, walked along the inside rail from one end of the box to the other, pushing jurors in the front row, and bellowing and screaming:
"Get out of here! The Judge has got me guilty. Big John, Joe B, they are the junk pushers! We're innocent! My brother and I, we haven't got anything to do with this thing. They have me in jail already. Do you understand me? They have us in jail for nothing. They got us in jail. Twenty years they want to give me! Twenty years, for nothing! Ruined for life. For what? Ruined for life. For what?"

The problems were just beginning. When Salvatore Panico was put on the stand, following occured:

"Q Do you know a person named Anthony Mirra?
SALVATORE PANICO Yes, I do.
Q Do you see him in the courtroom?
A There he is over there, the third from the right.
THE COURT: He happens to be the fifth from the right, but I will take it. Let the record reflect he identified Mirra after he stood up.
DEFENDANT MIRRA: Let the record reflect he can't see over here.
Q I direct your attention -
THE COURT: Take him out.
MR. LUNEY: What was your Honor's direction?
THE COURT: Remove Mirra from the courtroom.
(The marshals escorted defendant Mirra from the courtroom.)
MR. COSENTINO: This demonstration, your Honor, I ask for the withdrawal of a juror and for a mistrial.
MR. PELUSO: I join in that motion.
THE COURT: Denied. Proceed.
MR. KRIEGER: This puts me in a particularly difficult position.
THE COURT: Proceed.
MR. KRIEGER: I am proceeding in an empty fashion.
THE COURT: Proceed.
MR. LUNEY: May the record reflect that the witness from where he is sitting cannot see the two people who are sitting at the end of the table?
THE COURT: He can see if he he stands up. He may stand up.
DEFENDANT SALVATORE PANICO: Let the record reflect that he can see the good-looking Carlie and the other punk there -- the other good-looking pushers there.
THE COURT: Take him out.
DEFENDANT SALVATORE PANICO: Yes, take me out.
MR. PELUSO: I move for a mistrial.
MR. LUNEY: I join in that.
THE COURT: Denied.
(The marshals escorted defendant Salvatore Panico from the courtroom.)"

Next day, Panico was put on the stand again.

"DEFENDANT SALVATORE PANICO: Di Pietro is talking about me there. He is the convicted dope pusher. Separate me from him.
DEFENDANT DI PIETRO: Stop him. I told you, Al.
MR. KRIEGER: I move for a mistrial as far as Di Pietro is concerned.
Di Pietro responded:
DEFENDANT DI PIETRO: Every one of my witnesses, he made a holler.
MR. TENDY: May the jury be excused?
THE COURT: The jury is excused. I will say as you go out you must ignore these outbursts.
(Jury left the courtroom.)
DEFENDANT DI PIETRO: I never made a sound all this time. If he comes into this courtroom when I am here, I will strangle him. He interrupted my seven witnesses. Chain him down, if you got to.
MR. KRIEGER: My client wishes to address the Court himself. May he do it here and now?
THE COURT: No, he may not. You speak for him. You have been speaking very well.
DEFENDANT DI PIETRO: Yes. I will strangle him myself, I will get him out of the courtroom."

Salvatore Panico later claimed insanity.

Dr. Hyslop examined Salvatore on both May 28 and the morning of May 29. Dr. Arnett also examined him on the morning of May 29, as well as on May 25, shortly after his outburst. Dr. Weiss examined him on the morning of May 31. All three psychiatrists testified at the hearing. Drs. Hyslop and Arnett testified at the hearing that Salvatore understood the nature of the charge against him, that he was able to discuss the facts with his lawyer, that his speech was clear and coherent, and that he was able to understand what the witnesses were saying and discuss the facts with counsel. Dr. Weiss testified that Salvatore was paranoid and did not "comprehend fully" the proceedings against him. All agreed that there was no history of mental illness of any kind. On the basis of this testimony, the demeanor of the experts on the stand, and the court´s own observation of Salvatore and his co-defendants over a period of ten weeks, the court found that Salvatore was competent to stand trial. A motion by Salvatore's counsel to sever him was denied. At the conclusion of the hearing, the court warned Salvatore that any further outbursts would force the court to have him gagged.

On May 31, 1962, the trial was resumed, and Salvatore again disrupted the proceedings with an outburst directed, this time, at defendant Galante. He was again removed from the courtroom. The court ordered that he be gagged and shackled to restrain him from any further outburst or other disruptive conduct in the courtroom. During the remainder of the trial, he remained gagged and shackled, and there were no further incidents in the presence of the jury.

Thwarted in the courtroom, Salvatore's disrupting misconduct continued offstage in the Federal House of Detention. He twice made attempts at suicide, each time in the midst of others, under circumstances which made success impossible. In the early morning hours of June 7, he was found in his cell, which he shared with his brother Carmine and two others, hanging with a belt around his neck. The second time he tried to slash his wrists with a razorblade while in the showers.

Hardly a minute passed without a chorus of objections, motions for mistrial, severance, etc. The court was swamped with applications for hearings and adjournments. A year later, Judge Moore observed on appeal that "[one] with a bent for statistics would find, no doubt, that if this trial were continued on every occasion that one or more of the defendants or their counsel so requested the trial would still be in progress."

Defendants resorted to every conceivable means to interrupt, delay and abort the trial, to inject or provoke reversible error, or to plant the seeds for postconviction relief. Some defense counsel were repeatedly and inexcusably tardy. Defendants and certain defense counsel claimed numerous incapacitating illnesses and injuries which physical examinations failed to substantiate. Several defendants claimed inability to understand the proceedings and to consult with counsel due to aspirin-like medication administered by prison medical personnel. Five defendants claimed insanity and applied for psychiatric examination.

Verbal outbursts and obscenities were commonplace. On one occasion, John Ormento, overpowered four marshals, forced his way from the courtroom and tried to break into the robing room screaming obscenities at the judge. Anthony Mirra, who claimed insanity, shouted "they are all dope pushers!" when asked on the stand if he knew certain co-defendants. The next morning, while under cross-examination, Mirra picked up the witness chair and hurled it at the Assistant United States Attorney. The chair missed the assistant but struck and shattered against the jury rail. Seized by the marshals Mirra said, "All right, I won't fight. All right, I won't fight." Mirra was led out and recess was taken. During the recess his counsel reported that he had tried to consult with him and couldn't get through to him, and made the request for his commitment for examination by a qualified psychiatrist. When Mirra was brought back into the courtroom, the Court ordered him put back in his chair, shackled and gagged. Mirra asked, "Why are you going to gag me for?" When brought up for sentencing June 26, 1962 on contempt charges for the chair incident and other incidents during the trial, on being asked by the Court whether he had anything to say in his own behalf, Mirra answered, "Nothing much, your Honor, except that I am a hothead, period," and later, "Well, I am sorry for the chair incident, your Honor. The other things I didn't realize were contemptible. I just was shooting off my mouth. I didn't realize that was contempt."

Another attempt of confusing witnesses and consequently the jurors, was made by William Bentvena and William Struzzieri. When a witness was asked if he recognize William Bentvena, Struzzieri suddenly stood up from his chair, turned to the jury and raised his hand. When the same witness was asked if he recognize William Struzzieri, Bentvena stood up from his chair, faced the jury and raised his hand.

In addition to the courtroom conduct of the defendants, they engaged in a series of off-stage activities designed to delay and prolong the trial. On April 16, the defendant Sciremammano fell or tripped down two stairs at the Federal Detention Headquarters. Because of this, no testimony was taken on April 16 or on the morning of the 17th in order to permit a physician to examine Sciremammano, first in the Courthouse and then in a hospital. No objective signs of injury were found. The physician stated that in his opinion Sciremammano was feigning his "agony". Nonetheless, he refused to come to court and, when brought in a wheelchair, insisted that he was too sick to continue. No testimony was taken on the afternoon of April 18 because of the illness of the defendant Struzzieri.

Mirra and Salvatore Panico, on one occasion, claimed that they had been drugged and were unable to remember what had transpired in the courtroom.

Finally in June 1962, 13 New York based members of the ring were found guilty. John Ormento (was sentenced to 40 years), Carmine Galente (to 20 years), Carlie Di Pietro (to 12 years). Angelo Loiacano (sentence unkown), Salvatore Panico (to 20 years), and his brother Carmine Panico (to 12 years), William Struzzieri (to 12 years), Joseph Fernandez (sentence unknown), Salvatore Sciremammano (to 12 years), Samuel Monastersky (sentence unknown), Frank Mancino (to 12 years), William Bentvena (to 15 years) and Anthony Mirra (to 20 years).

During their appeals, all appellants, even the perpetrators of contempt of court, complained of the prejudicial effect of the outbursts of the defendants. They claimed that this prejudice was accentuated by the nature of the trial itself, that is, a mass conspiracy trial in which fourteen defendants (the New York based, Frank Mari was acquitted) were tried together. They contended that the rulings of the trial judge, in failing to declare a mistrial or sever the unruly defendants, and in ordering some of the defendants gagged and shackled and ordering an increased number of marshals to be present in the courtroom, constituted reversible error. The court found no abuse of discretion in the trial judge's actions taken to preserve the security of the courtroom. And the sentences were affirmed.

Most of this info is a compilation from various court opinions found at http://findacase.com/

You compiled this yourself? Impressive, thanks.

Yeah I did. You´re welcome

you think the guy salvatore panico would be killed instinly, he's snitching right on the stand he could have made it out of prison or his brother, and tony mirra got on the stand and said there the pushers. maybe it was a act, but im bet some of those guys were innocent, probaly a friend of the guilty. big john was a luchese, did he come home from prison? and wasnt joseph armone caught in one trial, he came home to open arms in the gambino's even with the deal drugs you die thing, he was a capo the day he got home.

OUTSTANDING!!! Amazing thread with a lot of info, + you compiled it by yourself.

Is there any chance that any of these guys are still active today?

You do raise a valid point, Pmac. Through history, we know that probably a lot of mobsters were framed. Salvatore Panico sure acted crazy. But in my opinion, it was a ploy. But who can say for sure?

Thank you for this. I've been researching certain aspects of the French Connection cases but hadn't put it together like that. Funny to see Tony Mirra popping up.

"The French Connection" book by Robin Moore is mostly very good, I think, as far as what's there but it's definitely obviously towards NYPD as opposed to FBN and leaves a lot of questions unanswered.

It's not super important but one thing I was looking for on the later side of TFC is the exact date Carmine Galante was released from the Atlanta Fed Pen...

Also, as an interesting sidenote to the heavy business, French tv presenter and drug courier Jacques Angelvin wrote a book about his time in the can, though I've not read it--

Mes Americaines Prisons

Thanks Strax. Many of these guys were born in the 1920s. I know that Rocco Sancinella passed away last year. But most of the others are gone. If any of them are alive, I doubt very much they are active.

You are welcome, and let me be the first who welcomes you aboard!

Galante was released from AFP in Jan 23, 1974 on parole. But was back in prison sometime in 1978 for violating his parole. He was released March 23, 1979.
Sometime between 1974 and 1978 he was called a couple of times to answer questions in front of a grand jury. I think it had to do with him not reporting to his parole officer regulary. It´s possible (but I don´t know for sure) that he was sentenced to a shorter prison term for contempt of court during that period. (1974-1978)

HK, any idea why Lilo was mad at Costello when he was released or is that a myth?

According to Vincent Teresa who served time with him, Lilo had no love lost for Costello. Teresa never explained why (not that I can remember anyway...) Lilo also expressed his hatred against Joe Colombo and Carlo Gambino. However, the story of Lilo blowing up the doors of Costello´s last resting place could be a myth. But I guess nobody knows for sure.

In 1969, heroin was stolen right under the noses of the police.
This is how The Geneva Times (Dec 15, 1972) reported it:

"NYC Police Chief Hints Heroin Heist Inside Job"

"Police Commissioner Patrick V. Murphy ruefully announced Thursday that 57 pounds of heroin worth up to $12 million — originally seized in the case popularized by the film "The French Connection" — had been stolen from the New York City Police Dept. The Commissioner, obviously embarrassed and angry, said its his knowledge it was the largest amount of heroin ever lost by a law enforcement agency, and it could well have been an inside job. Murphy said property clerk's receipts show the notation on Sept. 29, 1969 "a detective removed the narcotics for a district attorney." But the commissioner added the detective's signature now appears to be false, and the badge number he gave on a receipt never was issued to any member of the department.
The property clerk's records show no further movements of the narcotics after Sept. 29, 1969. In November, the police audited it's supply of narcotics seized in arrests. The drugs often are held for years as evidence in lengthly court proceedings. And when the "French Connection" heroin appeared to be missing on Nov. 17, detectives carefully combed the property clerk's vault. Four days later, plastic bags labeled heroin from the case were discovered. But analysis by the police crime laboratory showed 57 pounds was just white powder and not a narcotic.
"This is a scandal in the department," Murphy declared, his top commanders seated alongside him at a crowded news conference. The stolen drug was part of 73 pounds of heroin confiscated in the police raid on Feb. 25, 1962. It was smuggled into the United States from France in secret panels in an automobile. The loss was almost half the total amount of heroin, 119 pounds 10 ounces, captured by the police in New York in 1962. The missing heroin was stored in a vault in the property clerk's office just north of Manhattan's central police headquarters.
After the initial seizure, the "French Connection" heroin was delivered to various courts and laboratories for evidence and for analysis.
The Commissioner, who joined the department on Oct. 9,1970, said because the heroin traveled to different courts and government agencies it provided an opportunity for sbustitutions — which would make the investigation more difficult."

/// According to Special State Prosecutor Maurice Nadjari, Vincent Papa was the mastermind of the heist. But Nadjari could not prove it. Already in prison for a major drug violation, Papa, who was a reputed soldier in the Lucchese Family, was in 1973 indicted for criminal contempt charges for refusing to answer grand jury questions about the stolen narcotics.
Nadjari also hinted that police officers were the actual culprits of the crime working in cahoots with the Mafia. To my knowledge, and correct me if I´m wrong, the crime was never solved. Vincent Papa was stabbed to death in prison in 1978.

Speaking of the film "The French Connection", here´s a trailer from the hit movie (1971).

The movie has been in Cinemax this month. I watched it the other day for the first time in 20+ years. Really holds up well. Just an amazing slice of the late 60s/early 70s NYC. Some great scenery and location shots.

Agreed. And the movie received several Oscars, didn´t it? Gene Hackman got one for best acting.

Hairy et al: have you seen "Prince Of The City" (or read the book)? Picks up theme of the missing heroin from "TFC"... It's long, sometimes slow and often bleak but fans of "The Wire" (for one) shouldn't have any problems...



What's really needed re: "The French Connection" literature is a chronology or chart tracing the suspects, indictees and verdicts.

Note too that Carmine Galante name doesn't appear in the book at all, which seems a curious omission-- though one reflecting its NYPD over FBN bias.

I´m not familiar with the Prince of the City book. I suppose it covers most of the trials related to the "French Connection"?

unfortunately not, "POTC" is about mid-late 1960s/early 1970s NYPD narcotics corruption generally, with the disappearance of the "The French Connection"-case heroin load (120 lbs?) from NYPD property room a recurrent question...

Like "TFC" the movie there's a time lag-- about a decade-- between the real life events and the film yet it ends up feeling very contemporary.

pretty decent film. His partners didnt seem that pissed that he had ratted them out at the end.

"At the trial, there was a bit of mayhem in the courtroom, when one of Galante's co-defendants, a nasty creature named Tony Mirra (who was said to have killed 30-40 people) became so unhinged, that he picked up a chair and flung it at the prosecutor. Luckily for the prosecutor, the chair missed him and landed in the jury box, forcing the frightened jurors to scatter in all directions. Order was restored to the court, and the trial proceeded, which was bad news for both Galante, and for Mirra. Both men were found guilty, and on July 10th, 1962, Galante was sentenced to thirty years in prison. Mirra also was sent to prison for a very long time. It is not clear if any additional time was tacked onto Mirra's sentence for the chair-throwing incident."

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