“As alleged in the indictment, Vincent Asaro and his
co-conspirators were not only involved in typical mob
activities of extortion and murder, but Asaro himself
was in on one of the most notorious heists, the
Lufthansa robbery in 1978. It may be decades later, but
the FBI’s determination to investigate and bring
wiseguys to justice will never waver,”
As
alleged in the indictment and a detention memorandum
filed by the government, over the last 45 years, Vincent
Asaro and various co-conspirators, including his son
Jerome Asaro, engaged in a pattern of violence and
threats of violence in order to profit from their
illegal activity and evade prosecution. The indictment
announced today is the result of a long-term
investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation
that utilized, among other law enforcement techniques,
consensual recordings, cooperating witnesses and
confidential sources, and electronic and visual
surveillance.
1978 Lufthansa Heist - Vincent Asaro is charged for his
participation in the 1978 robbery at the Lufthansa
Terminal at John F. Kennedy Airport of more than $5
million in United States currency and approximately $1
million in jewelry. Asaro, Lucchese crime family
associate James “Jimmy the Gent” Burke, and their
co-conspirators each expected to receive approximately
$750,000 in cash and large quantities of gold jewelry
from the proceeds of the robbery.
Murder of Paul Katz - Vincent Asaro is charged with the
murder of Paul Katz, who disappeared in 1969, and Asaro
and his son Jerome are also charged with accessory after
the fact for their roles in moving Katz’s body to
prevent its discovery by law enforcement. Vincent Asaro
and Burke allegedly strangled Katz with a dog chain
because they believed he was cooperating with law
enforcement.
They then buried his body in the basement of a vacant
home in Queens, New York, where it remained until the
mid-1980s when, alerted to a state law enforcement
investigation into Katz’s murder, Vincent Asaro directed
Jerome Asaro and another individual to dig up Katz’s
body and move it. Almost 35 years later, in June 2013,
the FBI executed a search warrant at the Queens
residence, which was still owned by the Burke family,
and recovered remnants of Katz’s remains buried in the
basement. Katz’s identity was confirmed through DNA
testing.
Vincent Asaro and Jerome Asaro are charged with
solicitation to murder their cousin, identified in the
indictment as John Doe #1, because he was perceived to
be a “rat” for testifying against another family member
in a federal trial on fraud charges. Vincent
Asaro and Jerome Asaro are charged variously with
participating in additional armed robberies and armed
robbery conspiracies, including the robbery of
approximately $1 million in gold salts.
All five defendants, including Thomas Di Fiore, the
highest ranking member of the Bonanno family at liberty,
are charged with using and conspiring to use
extortionate means to collect an extension of credit
from a Bonanno family associate. During an April 26,
2013 consensual recording of Vincent Asaro and John
Ragano, Ragano asked Asaro, “When do we stab this
guy...in the neck? That’s what I want to know.” Asaro
responded, “Stab him today.” Asaro continued, “I told
you to give him a...beating. Give him a...beating, I
told you that. Listen, I sent three guys there to give
him a beating already, so it won’t be the first time he
got a beating from me.”
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