PB,

You just reminded me of something I haven't thought about in YEARS.....

Back around 1983 I owned a 66'Mustang (289V8 wish I still had it).
Anyway, me and a buddy decide we're gonna drive to NY, stay at my Grandmothers house for a couple of weeks and have a ball.

Now the word was that you had to be very careful driving through Georgia, the Carolinas etc. with "Broward County " plates. As a matter of fact the Georgia highway patrol would pull this shit where you either pay the speeding ticket in CASH right there, or post a 500.00 bond IN CASH to fight the ticket in Georgia court. So either way your fucked.

Anyway the last minute before we left I put a Confederate flag front plate on the car and another on the antenna.

The speed limit back then was only 55. I swear we did 70 all the way though the deep south and nobody bothered us.LOL

Sal

^^^^That's hysterical.

But Georgia is no joke. I had a VERY bad experience on Peachtree in Atlanta once. I was down there with some friends for a Mets-Braves game. All I'm gonna say is, don't ever get arrested on a Friday night in Fulton County. Especially if you're from up north.

Stupid cracker cops.

It really blows my mind by how many people root for guys they dont know to go back to prison?! If your family was directly affected from a crime i get it, but most of yous just praying on people (Philly crew) wit families for a downfall...they (FBI) bust this guys balls because he beat them, but at the end of the day he served 12yrs plus 3 yrs S.R thats 15 and now they wanna send him back???? Shame on them if they would have not tried to give him the death penalty wit the crazy trumped up charges they threw at him, he would of had a 45 yr sentence, so to me Philly DA are very responsible for there attempted railroad jobs and mistakes they've made in the past, for this guy n his crew to be in society, to me its BS and if he was black al sharpton and the rest of them racist fucks that only make noise when a cop or a white man shoot an innocent young black teen (SARCASM OBVIOUSLY) but they can basically do genocide to themselves n they dont make a peep LOL what a joke but thats the difference wit the blacks they stick together when there people get attacked, we (YOU) root for your own kind to go down but then cry when there's no one (people wit our balls) that u can go too and have us slap someone for insulting your daughter, or making sure it's safe where our grandparents who refuse to move out the house they've been in for 75 yrs no matter how bad the neighborhood has gone, its people like JM and his guys that can have that happen n not even the police can do that but instead the FBI wants to continue
To kick people when there down....for press n raises (SELF MOTIVATED)shame on you go get ISSIS n other crack dealing child molesting rapists out there then come get theses guys....losers

I pretty much agree with everything you've said. I have a brother in law who is doing 25 years for selling Vicodin....FUCKING VICODIN a schedule #3 drug. He caught some bad public defense, signed a guilty plea and Bam.....25 years. No gain time...hes got to serve 85%. He was no genius and he certainly was no saint. He deserved a few years to scare him a little, but they took his life away for some pills (BTW he was NOT selling to kids). I don't think he ever threw a punch in his life. He wouldn't know what to do with a gun if you handed him one.....yet there he rots. He went in in his late 30's.

I've had a few light conversations with Joey. I don't think he really cares about keeping Boca Raton safe from ****** (although there might be a couple here and there) He just wants to smoke his cigars and hang out.

CcWho gives a fuck if a kid "has it in his blood"

Joe merlino is a shithead saggy pants Newport puffing black wannabe that bought into the whole early 90s 2pac nonsense. How the Fuck is this fuckhead Cosa Nostra?

He would've been slaughtered mercilessly as a member of any family pre 1987

CcWho gives a fuck if a kid "has it in his blood"

Joe merlino is a shithead saggy pants Newport puffing black wannabe that bought into the whole early 90s 2pac nonsense. How the Fuck is this fuckhead Cosa Nostra?

He would've been slaughtered mercilessly as a member of any family pre 1987

Lol! Wtf? Have you considered therapy?

JEREMY ROEBUCK, INQUIRER STAFF WRITER
LAST UPDATED: Sunday, September 7, 2014, 1:10 AM
POSTED: Saturday, September 6, 2014, 8:04 PM

Former Philadelphia mob boss Joseph "Skinny Joey" Merlino could be headed back to prison mere days before his court-ordered supervision is scheduled to end this week if federal authorities have their way.

His probation officers say the 52-year-old ex-don violated the terms of his release in June with a night on the town with one of his former mob captains and two convicted felons in Boca Raton, Fla.

The terms of his probation prohibit Merlino from associating with convicted felons or members of La Cosa Nostra.

For Merlino, who publicly swore off the mob and moved to South Florida after his release from federal custody three years ago, the new allegation could bring an abrupt halt to postprison plans that range from opening a restaurant or bar to launching a late-in-life acting career.

Merlino's lawyer, Edwin Jacobs, did not return calls for comment Saturday.

According to an affidavit filed in a Philadelphia federal court last week, authorities in Broward County, Fla., conducted surveillance on a June 18 dinner between Merlino and the ex-cons at an Old World Italian restaurant in a Boca Raton strip mall.

The foursome later departed for after-dinner drinks in the VIP area of the swank Havana Nights Cigar Bar & Lounge, the document states.

In attendance were John Ciancaglini, a mob captain convicted alongside Merlino in 2001; Brad Sirkin, a convicted fraudster and money launderer; and Frank Fiore, the cigar bar's owner, who has a record of his own.

Though it remains unclear why Florida authorities were surveilling Merlino at the time, he may have simply picked the wrong bar and the wrong drinking companions. A month after the former mob don quaffed drinks at Havana Nights, federal authorities raided the bar and charged Fiore in a conspiracy to sell counterfeit Xanax, Viagra, and steroids.

In a separate violation, probation officers say, Merlino refused in May to answer questions about one of his business transactions, a breach of a requirement that he provide any financial information sought by his monitors.

The new allegations come more than a decade after Merlino was sentenced to 14 years in prison for his conviction in a racketeering conspiracy case.

His sentence included a standard three-year term of postprison probation that is scheduled to end Thursday.

In the same case that sent him to prison, Merlino stood charged with more than half a dozen shootings, including those of a video-poker operator who refused to pay street tax, a rival mob leader, and the brother of a witness in an earlier mob trial.

The mobster denied the allegations, and jurors acquitted him of those counts.

Ever since, federal investigators have kept a close eye on his activities.

In late 2011, they sent a wired mob turncoat to secretly record a conversation with him at a Florida Dunkin' Donuts. They alleged in court filings that he still ran the Philadelphia mob.

In an interview last year with the website BigTrial.net, Merlino said he left all that behind the day he left prison and laid out big dreams for his next career move - a list that at the time included opening a Philly cheesesteak restaurant in Florida or cashing in on his colorful past with an acting career.

The Miami Herald's gossip columnist reported last week that Merlino had recently finalized plans to invest in a "high-end, South Philadelphia-style Italian place."

But the probation violation charge could throw all that into doubt.

It will require him to return to Philadelphia at least temporarily. U.S. District Judge R. Barclay Surrick had not yet scheduled a date for a hearing.


Read more at http://www.philly.com/philly/news/201409...JBgXFhRVzrt7.99

PizzaBoy,

I am a diehard Mets fan from jersey and I have never in my entire lifetime came across a Mets fan from the BRONX!?!?!?! Can you please explain to me how this happened?

It would probably take the same people riding Merlino's nuts having a close family member get gruesomely killed to get a cold, hard dose of reality.

Reminds me of all the women slamming Sammy Gravano (and looking for money) on that Diane Sawyer show. These bitches knew/know full well that their loved ones were no choirboys.

They had no problem reaping the fruits of Cosa Nostra until the heartbreak came down on their door.

Merlino wouldn't piss on you if you were on fire. Find someone else to idolise.

There's a few of us. But it wasn't easy growing up around Fordham. I'll tell you that much .

But seriously, my Dad's an old Harlem guy. He grew up a HUGE New York Giants fan. They bolted for California in '58, which was a year before I was born. He couldn't forgive the Giants, so he didn't root for anyone until the Mets came along. In turn, he became a big Mets fan. And he
made me one, too .

Thanks Dante, it will be interesting to see is they have video and audio of the meeting since they are reporting the place was under surveillance related to Fiore's bust that also involved Gagliano from New Orleans. I'm wondering if Fiore didn't throw Joey under the bus when he got pinched, never a dull moment with these guys.

Thanks Salvi thats really terrible for your friend, i wish him luck and hope when he gets out hes sues the govt for wrongful sentence and give him a million dollars lol

whats with the Tupac comments, did he like tupac and Huron how do you know that?

lol why do you say that, cause i ranted ?! lol

Lol Exactly!

I´m just messing with you. Welcome to the baords. Just don´t forget to take a breather once in a while when typing.

what the fuck do black people and al sharpton have to do about joey merlino?

merlino got a fucking slap on the wrist

Do you really think Joey hit Veasey's brother? What say you PB....

And BTW- The guy in jail for selling vikes is my brother in law, not just a friend.

Sal

I'm a Bronx and Manhattan guy, Sal. I don't speculate about Philly. And I only throw in my two cents about Florida because I live there part-time.

Ralph Natale claims that he himself ordered Billy Veasey's murder in retaliation for Veasey killing mike chianglini. so joey being underboss/defacto boss yeah he was probably in on ordering the killing but being that he was that high up he certainly wouldn't have pulled the trigger himself if thats what your asking.

I think Joe Merlino cermented his role as.defacto boss when he stood up.to scarfos crazyness and shot his son a dozen times. Fuck stanfa should have never made Joe for.that alone. He must have had some type of respect for him and for stanfa to make Joe must have made scarf sr. Nuts. Stanfa threw the boss rule book right out the window then his kid got.shot.

I agree 100%, that seriously took a lot of balls, he easily could have waited outside n been much safer but to go in a crowded restaurant with so many civilians not knowing if any were cops is beyond nuts and like u said that what makes him who he is out there...

The freeway shooting in broad daylight with civilian traffic all around was crazy too. The shooters were even run off the road. Can you imagine if they hadn't been able to get their car away? They would of been stuck on the side of the highway just waiting for the cops to come.

His takeover was truly some lucky Luciano shit! How can you not respect that

You guys are nuts. He didn't square up to Scarfo SR. He waited til he was in jail to attack; the son. And, no one can say for certain he pulled the trigger. As for the highway shooting, was he there??

It's very easy to order someone to kill, as opposed to killing yourself. Chuckie was brought up in LCN by Scarfo. That's how the Merlino family got started in OC. Ask anyone around, Joey is/was a bully. Very easy to be tough with a group of guys around you. He is an opportunist. Loyal to himself. LCN to the core...

Merlino under investigation agaiain

WILLIAM BENDER, DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER BENDERW@PHILLYNEWS.COM, 215-854-5255
POSTED: Monday, September 8, 2014, 3:01 AM


JOEY MERLINO insists that he's gone legit, but the number of people who actually believe him is dwindling.

Sort of like the mob.

The former South Philly mob boss - or current boss-in-exile, some law-enforcement officials would say - is facing a new round of legal troubles.

Merlino, 52, will have to travel from his home in South Florida to Philadelphia in the coming weeks to face allegations that he violated the terms of his probation by associating with two felons and a member of La Cosa Nostra in mid-June.

Perhaps more interesting, though, is why the feds waited until last week - days before Merlino would have completed his three-year period of supervised release - to reveal what they've known all summer.

Sour grapes? No.

A source familiar with the case said that the process was delayed due to the possibility that Merlino could have been indicted on new charges. When that didn't happen, they showed their cards.

Probation officers say that Merlino, who served 12 years in prison on a 2001 racketeering conviction, was spotted on June 18 hanging out with reputed Philadelphia mobster John Ciancaglini at the Havana Nights Cigar Bar & Lounge, in Boca Raton, Fla. Ciancaglini was convicted alongside Merlino in 2001.

Detectives from the Broward County Sheriff's Office saw Merlino in the bar's VIP area with Ciancaglini, as well as Brad Sirkin and Frank Fiore, who both have fraud convictions, according to the court affidavit. Fiore also was charged this summer in a counterfeit-drug case.

"If Ciancaglini shows up, that's a red flag up," a law-enforcement source said. "That's what they do. They associate and they network and they create a criminal organization."

Merlino, who was released from a federal prison in Indiana in 2011, is prohibited from associating with felons and members of La Cosa Nostra or other organized-crime groups.

Merlino's lawyer, Edwin Jacobs Jr., declined to comment on the affidavit, but said he planned to schedule a court hearing soon.

"I'm going to do what I can to bring this matter to a conclusion," Jacobs said.

Merlino could be thrown back in jail, but a law-enforcement source said that the judge could also decide to simply extend his supervised release so that he can continue to pay down the $337,943.89 in restitution owed from the 2001 case.

Merlino has reportedly been considering opening an Italian restaurant in Boca Raton, although Jacobs said last week that it's only a rumor.

Some law-enforcement officials believe that Merlino continues to call the shots in South Philly, and that reputed mob boss Joseph "Uncle Joe" Ligambi is mostly a figurehead, similar to Ralph Natale in the 1990s.



On Twitter: @wbender99




Read more at http://www.philly.com/philly/news/201409...z966QPc4p6BH.99

Well said.

MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 8, 2014

Joey Merlino Heading Back To Philadelphia
By George Anastasia
For Bigtrial.net


Joey Merlino’s coming back to Philadelphia.

But the erstwhile mob boss is not happy about it.

Instead of completing plans to open a restaurant in Boca Raton, the 52-year-old former South Philadelphia wiseguy will have to appear in federal court at 6th and Market Streets and explain to a judge why he should not be sent back to prison for violating the terms of his supervised release.

According to a violation notice filed last month, Merlino was spotted meeting with mobster John “Johnny Chang” Ciancaglini and two other convicted felons on June 18 at a restaurant and a cigar bar in Boca.

Merlino, Ciancaglini and five other co-defendants were convicted in a highly publicized 2001 racketeering case in Philadelphia. Merlino, the boss of the crime family at the time, was sentenced to 14 years in prison and three years of supervised release.

Ciancaglini, a mob capo, was sentenced to eight years and three years of supervised release. He has completed his entire sentence. Merlino was about to finish his supervised release term this week after which he would have been free to meet and associate with whomever he liked.

The timing of the violation was seen in underworld circles as an attempt by federal authorities to, in the words of one mob associate, “bust his balls.”

The alleged meeting with Ciancaglini and the two other felons occurred on June 18, according to court records, at La Villetta, an Italian restaurant and later at Havana Nights, a cigar bar in Boca Raton. Yet the violation notice was not filed in federal court in Philadelphia until Aug. 25 and Merlino was not notified until Sept. 2.

Contacted by phone, Merlino declined to comment but said his lawyer, Edwin Jacobs Jr., was moving to set up a hearing as soon as possible. Merlino said he would offer an explanation in court.

“It doesn’t make sense,” said one source familiar with Merlino. “Why would he meet in a public place with Johnny Chang? What was so urgent or so important that he would risk his freedom?”

Merlino could be ordered back to prison. Other co-defendants in the racketeering case have been sentenced to from four to six months in the past for violating the terms of supervised release. What’s more, the judge could order that Merlino be placed on supervised release again for an extended period of time, thus limiting his ability to meet with individuals and to travel.

Merlino moved to Florida following his release from prison and has said repeatedly that he has no intention of returning to South Philadelphia or to the criminal underworld. His activities in Florida, however, have attracted both law enforcement and media attention.

The latest publicity has centered on reports that he intends to be involved in the operation of an Italian restaurant in Boca. As a convicted felon, Merlino could not be part of a business that held a liquor license. But he could be involved as a consultant or in some other capacity.

The restaurant, Merlino said in a phone interview, would offer “South Philadelphia-style Italian food.”

“There’s nothing like that down here,” he said, adding that his mother Rita might bring some of her homemade recipes to the kitchen.

Merlino offered few other details, but he has been gathering mementoes, including newspaper headlines and clippings from his days as a Philadelphia mob celebrity. That kind of material, blown up and framed, could be part of the restaurant décor.

Another Merlino co-defendant, Angelo Lutz, has done exactly that in his highly successful Kitchen Consigliere Café in Collingswood. Lutz, convicted with Merlino and Cicanglini, has been a restaurateur for four years in the South Jersey food mecca that is Collingswood.

He startede in a small, 38-seat establishment on Powell Lane and last year moved to a larger facility that seats close to 100 at the corner of Collings and Haddon Avenues, literally in the center of town. Reservations on weekends are a must at Lutz’s joint and Merlino, with his high profile name recognition, was apparently hoping to duplicate that success in the Sunshine State.

All of that is now on hold while the parole violation issue is sorted out.

Federal authorities are offering no explanation about the meeting but court documents indicate that two detectives in Broward County, FL, had Merlino under surveillance on the night he and Ciancaglini met.

In May, Merlino, 52, had to appear before federal authorities and answer questions about his finances. Jacobs also represented him at that hearing.

How Merlino has managed to live a relatively comfortable life in Southern Florida with little visible means of income is a question that has been asked in both law enforcement and underworld circles since he opted to move to Florida when he was released from federal prison.

Despite his denials and claims to have left the mob, there are those who believe Merlino is still a player in the South Philadelphia underworld and is routinely receiving cash from illegal activities there. Those who believe that scenario see the meeting with Ciancaglini as part of an ongoing operation.

Merlino has been living in a posh condo and is frequently seen at popular bars and restaurants in the Boca Raton area. The alleged violations occurred at two such places, according to a report filed in U.S. District Court which reads in part:


On June 18, 2014, the defendant was observed by detectives from the Broward County Sheriff's Office (Florida) to be in the company of John Ciancaglini, Brad Sirkin, and Frank Fiori, all of whom are convicted felons. According to the police report, on June 18,
2014, detectives were conducting surveillance of the defendant and observed him leaving his residence located at 67 Hawthrone Place, Boca Raton, Florida and enter a vehicle driven by Don Petullo. They followed the two to La Villetta Restaurant, located in Boca
Raton, Florida. Shortly after the defendant arrived at the restaurant, several individuals exited the restaurant and met with the defendant in the parking lot.
Joseph Merlino's vehicle and three other vehicles left the parking lot of the restaurant and headed to the Havana's Nights Cigar Bar located in Boca Raton, Florida. The defendant and the other individuals entered the establishment. Two detectives then entered the Havana's Nights Cigar Bar and observed the defendant in a VIP area within the bar interacting with John Ciancaglini, Brad Sirkin and Frank Fiori. John Ciancaglini is a co-defendant of Merlino in this case and is also known to be a member of the La Cosa Nostra of Philadelphia.
In 2000 [ed. Note, correct date is 2001] along with the defendant, Mr. Ciancaglini was convicted of racketeering conspiracy, racketeering, aiding and abetting; conspiracy to extort a bookmaking business, aiding and abetting; and illegal sports bookmaking business, aiding and abetting. Mr. Ciancaglini was also convicted in 1989 of Hobbs Act conspiracy, Hobbs Act extortion, and attempted Hobbs Act extortion, aiding and abetting, in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. Brad Sirkin was convicted credit card fraud, in 1989 in Anaheim, California; and of wire fraud, conspiracy to commit wire fraud, interstate transportation of stolen property, conspiracy and money laundering in September 1992 in the Southern District of Florida. Frank Fiori was convicted of a felony fraud charge in 1997, in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida.
The defendant did not have permission from the probation office to associate with these convicted felons.

“It was a stupid thing to do,” said another underworld source while discussing the meeting.

The source, who has repeatedly scoffed at Merlino’s claim to have left the mob, added, “These guys can’t help themselves. They are who they are and that’s all they know.”

George Anastasia can be contacted at George@bigtrial.net


POSTED BY GEORGE ANASTASIA AT 12:03 PM
TRIAL: SKINNY JOEY MERLINO

Read more at http://www.bigtrial.net/#tcmFq4wcf1sOrgtM.99

Not sure about the exact timing of this event but it seems to be pretty close to the day of the anniversary of the murder of michael cianglini and maybe john and joey it was the first time they have been out together that they could discuss a brother of theirs that was murdered in s philly..... in teh big picture the feds are really wasting money following this guy as well as the broward detectives

there is so much street level crime in ft lauderdale I am sure they could have been trying to stop that rather than some gangster from philly eating an italian meal and smoking stogies

Merlino, one of the articles above mentions that the meeting which started all this took place in June. I checked to see when Mike was killed and it was in August '93. it was a stupid mistake for Joey to meet with them in public. He knows he's being looked at. To meet publicy was just plain stupid!