Thursday, 4:30 PM
Mobster sues, says he was framed
By Shelley Murphy, Globe Staff
Three years ago, a federal judge apologized to Pasquale Barone Jr., saying that his 1993 trial on charges that he killed a man for the New England Mafia was ‘‘fraudulent’’ because prosecutors withheld evidence from the defense.
Now Barone, 45, who spent 15 years in prison before he was freed in 2003 amid allegations of government misconduct, is looking for more than an apology.
The North End man has filed a federal lawsuit accusing the government of negligence and alleging that a federal prosecutor, two retired FBI agents, and other unnamed officials plotted to deprive him of a fair trial and orchestrated a malicious prosecution.
The suit is seeking unspecified damages for Barone and his daughter, Consiglia, who was 4 years old when he was sent to prison and, according to the suit, suffered ‘‘severe shock, fear, horror, emotional distress’’ and the loss of his companionship.
Barone’s suit alleges that the prosecutor and agents conspired to ‘‘intentionally frame’’ him.
The suit names Assistant US Attorney Jeffrey Auerhahn and retired FBI agents Michael Buckley and Edward Quinn. The three men could not be reached for comment Thursday.
Three years ago, US Attorney Michael J. Sullivan said the Justice Department had launched an internal investigation into Auerhahn’s handling of the case. Thursday, Samantha Martin, a spokeswoman for Sullivan, said Justice Department regulations prohibited the government from commenting on the outcome of the investigation or on whether any action had been taken against Auerhahn. She also declined to comment on Barone’s lawsuit.
Barone was convicted in federal court in 1993 of murder in aid of racketeering in the 1985 death of his friend, Vincent ‘‘Jimmy’’ Limoli, allegedly at the behest of New England mob captain Vincent Ferrara. Barone, who was serving 10 years after pleading guilty to state manslaughter charges in Limoli’s slaying, was sentenced to life in prison in the racketeering case.
However, three years ago, US District Judge Mark L. Wolf found that Auerhahn had failed to tell Barone’s lawyers that a key witness had recanted before the federal trial and insisted Ferrara had not ordered the slaying.
At the time, Wolf said the evidence ‘‘had the potential to blow the government’s case up completely.’’
Last year, Wolf also reduced Ferrara’s sentence as a result of the government’s conduct in the case, setting him free.
While Wolf was weighing a defense request to overturn Barone’s conviction, Barone reached a plea agreement with the government. Barone pleaded guilty to racketeering and admitted that he shot Limoli on Oct. 28, 1985, in the North End after Limoli stole drugs from a mobster. Barone also admitted that he helped kill another man, Anthony ‘‘Dapper’’ Corlito, on July 21, 1979, and shot a guard in the neck during the robbery of a credit union on Nov. 5, 1982.
In exchange for Barone’s plea, the government agreed he should be sentenced to the time he had served, and he was released.
