New York (CNN) -- In one of the largest single-day operations against the Mafia in FBI history, federal agents working with local law enforcement fanned out across Italy, New York, New Jersey and Rhode Island to arrest 127 people allegedly involved in organized crime, officials said.
Alleged members from the five prominent New York families -- the Gambino, Colombo, Bonanno, Genovese and Lucchese families -- were arrested Thursday, based on 16 indictments in four different jurisdictions, Attorney General Eric Holder said during a news conference in New York.
"Today's arrests and charges mark an important step forward in disrupting La Cosa Nostra's illegal activities," he said, referring to the criminal organization by its Italian name.
Ninety-one members and their associates, including one in Italy, were charged with federal crimes that include conspiracy, arson, extortion, narcotics trafficking, illegal gambling, labor racketeering and murders that date back as far as 1981, according to a U.S. Justice Department statement.
An additional 36 suspects were charged for their roles in the alleged criminal activity, the statement said.
About 125 people, including several high-ranking members and much of the Colombo family leadership, are currently in custody following a raid that Holder described as the largest single-day operation against the notorious crime network.
Four of those charged were previously in custody, officials said.
Members of the New England Patriarca family and New Jersey-based Decavalcante family are also accused of related federal crimes.
"Some allegations involve classic mob hits to eliminate perceived rivals," Holder told reporters. "Others involve senseless murders."
He described two murder victims who were allegedly killed in a public bar over a dispute concerning a spilled drink.
Holder's appearance in New York with leadership from local and federal law enforcement perhaps underscores the significance the Justice Department attributes to Thursday's sweep.
Television images showed several men handcuffed and hand-checked by federal agents -- an apparent part of the "unprecedented" 800-person task force involved in the raid.
The move comes amid concerns about a possible resurgence of organized crime despite a scattered recent history of defections, beginning with acting crime boss of the Lucchese family, Alphonse D'Arco, who admitted to "cooperating with the federal government" starting in 1991.
Source: http://edition.cnn.com/2011/CRIME/01/20/new.york.mob.raids/index.html?hpt=T2
Alleged members from the five prominent New York families -- the Gambino, Colombo, Bonanno, Genovese and Lucchese families -- were arrested Thursday, based on 16 indictments in four different jurisdictions, Attorney General Eric Holder said during a news conference in New York.
"Today's arrests and charges mark an important step forward in disrupting La Cosa Nostra's illegal activities," he said, referring to the criminal organization by its Italian name.
Ninety-one members and their associates, including one in Italy, were charged with federal crimes that include conspiracy, arson, extortion, narcotics trafficking, illegal gambling, labor racketeering and murders that date back as far as 1981, according to a U.S. Justice Department statement.
An additional 36 suspects were charged for their roles in the alleged criminal activity, the statement said.
About 125 people, including several high-ranking members and much of the Colombo family leadership, are currently in custody following a raid that Holder described as the largest single-day operation against the notorious crime network.
Four of those charged were previously in custody, officials said.
Members of the New England Patriarca family and New Jersey-based Decavalcante family are also accused of related federal crimes.
"Some allegations involve classic mob hits to eliminate perceived rivals," Holder told reporters. "Others involve senseless murders."
He described two murder victims who were allegedly killed in a public bar over a dispute concerning a spilled drink.
Holder's appearance in New York with leadership from local and federal law enforcement perhaps underscores the significance the Justice Department attributes to Thursday's sweep.
Television images showed several men handcuffed and hand-checked by federal agents -- an apparent part of the "unprecedented" 800-person task force involved in the raid.
The move comes amid concerns about a possible resurgence of organized crime despite a scattered recent history of defections, beginning with acting crime boss of the Lucchese family, Alphonse D'Arco, who admitted to "cooperating with the federal government" starting in 1991.
Source: http://edition.cnn.com/2011/CRIME/01/20/new.york.mob.raids/index.html?hpt=T2
