Former FBI agent John Connolly, who was found guilty today protecting and aiding reputed Boston mobsters James "Whitey" Bulger and Steven "The Rifleman" Flemmi. (Globe Staff Photo / David L. Ryan)

Former FBI agent Connolly found guilty of racketeering, obstruction of justice

By Denise Lavoie, Associated Press, 05/28/02

| Complete coverage |  IN TODAY'S GLOBE Bulger says he did not aid brother Amid pressure, a familiar style Victim's kin frustrated by responses Hearing was like courtroom drama Bulger appears to have board's OK Opening remarks by Bulger Belief, sympathy in Southie Excerpts from yesterday's testimony Bulger's day had formality, emotion Daughter says FBI came to door Many answers carry qualifiers Editorial: Evasive Bulger Brian McGrory: Sizing things up Lehigh: Memory loss not believable  CAST OF CHARACTERS Read short biographies of the key figures in the Whitey Bulger case: Gangster James "Whitey" Bulger Gangster Stephen Flemmi Gangster "Cadillac" Frank Salemme Gangster Kevin Weeks Hitman John Martorano FBI agent John Connolly FBI agent John Morris  EXTRAS Photo gallery Whitey Bulger sightings Globe special reports  GLOBE ARCHIVES Find past articles on: James 'Whitey' Bulger Stephen Flemmi John Connolly New England Mob Winter Hill Gang Federal Bureau of Investigation Or run your own custom search: Search for: Time period: Today Yesterday Past 30 days Past 12 months Since 1979 More search options

BOSTON -- A former FBI agent who built his career on cultivating Mafia informants was convicted Tuesday of protecting New England gangsters and warning three of them they were about to be indicted.

John J. Connolly Jr., 61, was acquitted on one other charge of obstruction of justice. He declined comment as he left the courthouse.

Connolly was once considered a star in the FBI's successful efforts to dismantle the New England Mafia. But prosecutors said he got too close to his informants, including notorious gangsters James "Whitey" Bulger and Stephen "The Rifleman" Flemmi.

The jury found him guilty of tipping off Bulger, Flemmi and former New England mob boss Francis "Cadillac Frank" Salemme in late 1994 that they were about to be indicted.

But the jury found him innocent of what prosecutors had called the "most distressing" acts listed in the racketeering charge against him: leaking the identities of three men who were talking to authorities about the gang's crimes. All three men were later killed in retaliation by Bulger's gang, prosecutors told the jury.

Bulger and Flemmi were leaders of the Winter Hill Gang, an Irish crime syndicate that ran loansharking, gambling and drug operations in the Boston area. They were also top-echelon informants who ratted out the Mafia -- their criminal rivals -- to the FBI.

Bulger fled in January 1995 and remains a fugitive on the FBI's "Most Wanted" list.

Salemme also fled, but was arrested seven months later in Florida. Flemmi is serving a 10-year prison term and still awaiting trial in 10 murders.

BACKGROUND Former FBI Agent John J. Connolly Jr. was charged with one count of racketeering, three counts of obstruction of justice and one count of making a false statement. Here is a breakdown of the charges and the jury's findings. RACKETEERING: Connolly was charged with 14 separate acts. To convict, the jury had to find him guilty of at least two of the 14 acts, committed within 10 years of one another. 1. Bribery, accepting a diamond ring from James "Whitey" Bulger and Stephen "The Rifleman" Flemmi, June 1976. INNOCENT. 2. Bribery, giving a case of wine to his supervisor, John Morris, from Bulger and Flemmi, 1981 or 1982. INNOCENT. 3. Bribery, giving $1,000 to Morris, from Bulger and Flemmi, June 1982. INNOCENT. 4. Bribery, giving $1,000 and a case of wine to Morris, from Bulger and Flemmi, 1982 or 1983. GUILTY. 5. Bribery, giving $5,000 to Morris, from Bulger and Flemmi, 1986 or 1987. INNOCENT. 6. a) Aiding and abetting the extortion of the owners of a South Boston liquor store; and b) aiding and abetting a conspiracy to extort the store owners, January through May 1984. INNOCENT on both. 7. Obstruction of justice, alerting Bulger that Richard Castucci was an informant, 1976. INNOCENT. 8. a) Obstruction of justice, alerting Bulger and Flemmi that Brian Halloran was an informant; and b) obstruction of investigation, alerting Bulger and Flemmi about Halloran, April 1982. INNOCENT on both. 9. a) Obstruction of justice, alerting Bulger and Flemmi that John Callahan was being sought to testify before a grand jury; and b) Obstruction of investigation, alerting Bulger and Flemmi about Callahan, June 1982. INNOCENT on both. 10. Obstruction of justice, alerting Bulger and Flemmi to a wiretap in conjunction with a grand jury investigation, June 1988. INNOCENT. 11. Obstruction of justice, alerting Bulger that he was about to be arrested in connection with a grand jury investigation, December 1994. GUILTY. 12. a) Obstruction of justice, alerting Flemmi about grand jury and arrest plans; and b) obstruction of justice, aiding and abetting Flemmi in alerting Francis "Cadillac Frank" Salemme, December 1994 or January 1995. GUILTY on both. 13. Obstruction of justice, sending a false or fraudulent letter to U.S. District Court Judge Mark Wolf, March 1997. GUILTY. 14. a) Obstruction of justice, persuading Flemmi to testify falsely about how he learned of the 1995 indictment, early 1998; and b) Obstruction of investigation, persuading Flemmi to testify falsely about how he learned of the indictment, early 1998. GUILTY on both. OBSTRUCTION OF JUSTICE: Causing confidential law enforcement information to be provided to Flemmi, which alerted Flemmi that a federal grand jury would issue indictments against Bulger, Salemme and Flemmi. INNOCENT. OBSTRUCTION OF JUSTICE: Sending a false and fraudulent letter to Judge Wolf. GUILTY. OBSTRUCTION OF JUSTICE: Persuading Flemmi to testify falsely about how Morris learned of the 1995 indictment. GUILTY. MAKING A FALSE STATEMENT: Connolly told an FBI agent that he had not had contact with the defense team for Flemmi and Salemme. GUILTY.

"It is always a somber moment when it becomes necessary to prosecute a member of law enforcement who has abused his authority and crossed the line from crime fighter to criminal," U.S. Attorney Michael Sullivan said after the verdicts were announced.

"Today's verdict reveals John Connolly for what he became: a Winter Hill gang operative masquerading as a law enforcement agent," he said.

Prosecutors alleged Connolly committed 14 separate acts as part of the racketeering count, and jurors found him guilty of five, including accepting a case of fine wine and $1,000 from Bulger to give to his FBI supervisor, John Morris. Morris was granted immunity and testified against Connolly.

Connolly, who retired in 1990, denied any wrongdoing and claimed all of his dealings with Bulger and Flemmi were sanctioned by his supervisors at the FBI in their zeal to bring down the Mafia. He also claimed he was unaware of the extent of his informants' crimes, including at least 20 slayings.

Connolly's lawyer, Tracy Miner, said she was pleased that the jury found Connolly innocent of leaking the identities of the three men who were killed: Richard Castucci, Brian Halloran and John Callahan.

"None of the acts John Connolly was found guilty of resulted in any physical harm to anyone," Miner said.

The allegations that Connolly and other agents had become too chummy with gangsters were an embarrassment for the FBI and led to changes in how the agency handles confidential informants.

Charles Prouty, special agent in charge of the Boston office, said the allegations against Connolly caused "great damage" to the FBI's reputation.

"His conduct was repugnant to all FBI employees," he said.

In total, Connolly was convicted of one count of racketeering, two counts of obstruction of justice and one count of making a false statement to the FBI. He faces a maximum of 45 years in prison, but federal sentencing guidelines call for much less.

Connolly sat with his family in the audience in the front row of the courtroom -- as he had throughout the trial -- as the verdict was read. He showed no emotion.

Sentencing was set for Aug. 7, and he remained free on his original $200,000 bail. U.S. District Judge Joseph Tauro rejected a request by prosecutors to revoke Connolly's bail before sentencing.

Connolly did not take the stand in his own defense; his attorneys wrapped up their case in a day. They used an FBI training video featuring Connolly to try to convince jurors that the mobsters who testified against him were lying.

In the 1983 video, Connolly gives FBI rookies advice on how to handle criminal informants, warning them against trying to "out-gangster a gangster" by getting too close.

"You can get friendly with them and you can like them, but you can never forget who you work for and that you're an FBI agent," he says.

Prosecutors said Connolly did exactly that, ignoring crimes committed by Bulger and Flemmi and protecting the two gangsters.

During the two-week trial, prosecutors called a hitman, a gang enforcer and a former Mafia boss to testify against Connolly. All three men cut deals with prosecutors for lighter sentences in exchange for their testimony.

Kevin Weeks, Bulger's right-hand man, testified that Connolly came to the gang's headquarters in a Boston liquor store on Dec. 23, 1994, and told him to warn Bulger, Flemmi and Salemme that indictments would be coming soon.

Weeks also said he once delivered a $5,000 bribe to Connolly from Bulger. He said Bulger boasted that he had corrupted six FBI agents and more than 20 Boston police officers. At holiday time, Bulger stuffed envelopes with cash, Weeks said.

"He used to say that Christmas was for cops and kids," Weeks said.

John Martorano, a hitman who has confessed to at least 20 murders as a member of the Winter Hill Gang, also testified that Bulger gave Connolly a two-carat diamond ring that the agent then gave to his wife. But jurors found Connolly innocent of accepting the ring.