U.S. Dist. Judge Mark Wolf sentenced reputed Patriarca New England mob boss Francis “Cadillac Frank” Salemme Feb. 23 in Boston to 136 months in federal prison for racketeering. He also sentenced Salemme to three years’ supervised release. Salemme pled guilty Dec. 9 to over a dozen counts of racketeering including bribing Teamsters officials involved in film projects in Mass., Cal. and Nev.
U.S. Atty. Donald K. Stern said, “We are pleased that a substantial sentence has been imposed upon the Boss of the Patriarca LCN family and that Mr. Salemme will be paying a high price for his decision to participate in organized crime activities. With this conviction and sentence, we have severely weakened the structure of organized crime in New England. We will continue to aggressively target leaders and members of organized crime for investigation, prosecution and conviction.” [USAO D. Mass., Media Release, 2/23/00; Bos. Her. 12/10/99, 1/11/95, 12/23/94]
Overnite Refuses to Forsake Employees’ Future to Historically Corrupt Pension Fund
As previously reported, Overnite Transportation Co. is the subject of Int’l Bhd. of Teamsters strike and has filed a federal racketeering suit against the corrupt union.
A key issue of the strike is that Overnite is standing up to IBT’s demands that future pension contributions be made to its Central States Pension Fund (CSPF). Reportedly, CSPF is under-funded by $5.3 billion. “To place our employees’ future in the hands of the administrators of that fund would place it in jeopardy, and that is something we will not compromise,” said Overnite spokesman Ira Rosenfeld. [Indianapolis Star 2/22/00].
In 1982, a federal jury in Chicago found IBT boss Roy Williams and four others guilty of conspiring to bribe a U.S. Senator and defrauding CSPF. [Chi. Trib. 12/15/98] In 1967, IBT boss James H. Hoffa was sent to prison on convictions of conspiracy and fraud in a scheme in which $1 million was diverted to him and his associates — in return for loans totaling $25 million from the CSPF. [Newsday 11/1/98]