With mob witness caught in lies, ex-FBI man cleared of corruption

NEW YORK - It was like a classic episode of "Perry Mason," with an FBI agent charged with murder, a mouthy mob moll, and a twist at the end: The FBI guy walked, after a reporter with secret tapes exposed the gangster's girlfriend as a liar who couldn't keep her story straight.

In a stunning finish to the high-profile law enforcement corruption case, former FBI agent Lindley DeVecchio was cleared yesterday of giving up confidential information that a hit man affiliated with the Colombo family used to kill four fellow mobsters - either rivals or potential informants.

New York State Supreme Court Justice Gustin Reichbach granted a request to dismiss the case, and DeVecchio was cheered by his former colleagues before triumphantly leaving a Brooklyn courtroom, cleared after spending 13 years under suspicion for his long and bizarre relationship with mob killer/mob informant Gregory Scarpa Sr.

"After almost two years, this nightmare is over," said DeVecchio, referring to the time since his indictment. "I'll never forgive the Brooklyn DA's office for irresponsibly pursuing this case. My question is, where do I go to get back my reputation?"

Prosecutors bent on bagging DeVecchio gambled by building their case on the shaky testimony of Linda Schiro, a mob mistress since she met Scarpa at age 16. Their hopes imploded when two reporters surfaced with decade-old interviews, captured on tape, that left her credibility with more holes than any murdered Mafioso.

"We all knew he was innocent," said Jim Kossler, one of several former FBI agents who remained firmly in DeVecchio's corner. "This never should have happened. Never."

Allegations about leaks from DeVecchio to the ruthless mobster known as "The Grim Reaper" began after Scarpa's 1994 death in a Minnesota prison. A Department of Justice internal investigation found no reason to prosecute DeVecchio, who retired to Florida in 1996.

But in March 2006, Brooklyn prosecutors announced DeVecchio's indictment on four murder counts, alleging the FBI agent had cooperated with the Colombo capo between 1987 and 1992.

Prosecutors had alleged that Scarpa showered DeVecchio with cash, stolen jewelry, liquor - even prostitutes - in exchange for the confidential information. The case became a courthouse sensation, with its volatile mix of corruption, sex, and mob violence.

It wasn't until Schiro began testifying this week that the case reached its unexpected conclusion. The key prosecution witness was the lone direct link between DeVecchio and the murders.

Once she finished her first day of testimony, Village Voice reporter Tom Robbins came forward with tapes made in 1997, when he and fellow journalist Jerry Capeci had interviewed Schiro for a never-published book. The tapes contradicted her sworn testimony against DeVecchio.

Her account "was so disturbingly different, we couldn't sit on it," Robbins said outside court after yesterday's dismissal.

Schiro now faces possible perjury charges.