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News and Features about Organized Crime, Mafia and La Cosa Nostra taken from National and Local News Sources. In an attempt to get you this type of coverage in a timely manner we can not be responsible for the content of the following material. |
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12-12-01 Mob Rides Bioterror For Cash: FBI. By MIKE CLAFFEY, New York Daily News Staff Writer A mobbed-up biotech company tried to cash in on the anthrax scare by promoting a hand-held gadget it falsely claimed could kill the deadly bacteria, authorities charged yesterday. Four men, including a reputed Colombo crime family associate, were indicted for profiting from a pump-and-dump stock scam after they secretly took control of Spectrum Brands Corp. The Hauppauge, L.I.-based company claimed to have a device that zaps anthrax germs with ultraviolet light. "The defendants profited by pumping the price of Spectrum stock with unsubstantiated — indeed, patently false — claims exploiting the fears over anthrax," said FBI Assistant Director Barry Mawn. Saverio (Sammy) Galasso was awaiting sentencing on a racketeering conviction when he engineered the fraud, according to prosecutors James Miskiewicz and John Curran. Galasso, 34, of Woodbury, L.I., pleaded guilty in August to heading a crew the feds said operated under the protection of the Colombo crime family. Galasso and his cohorts allegedly seized control of Spectrum, whose stock trades over the counter on Nasdaq, in late October, just as the bioterrorism scare was gripping the nation. Also charged in the case were David Hutter, 35, of Syosset, L.I, who pleaded guilty to money laundering in the earlier case along with Galasso; Charles Dilluvio, 31, of the Bronx, and Michael Burns, 36, of Lake Grove, L.I. The men allegedly pumped up the price of the stock from virtually nothing to more than $14 per share, then dumped it for a large profit, according to the federal complaint. Original Publication Date: 12/12/01
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