"I made him an offer he couldn't refuse."
Posted on 08/29/2005 5:52:47 PM PDT by Coleus
A lawyer for reputed mobster Angelo Prisco communicated with then-Gov. James E. McGreevey's chief of staff, Gary B. Taffet, before Prisco's unexpected parole from prison, according to a published report.
Controversy has surrounded the unusual way Prisco was paroled in 2002, although state prosecutors cleared a different senior McGreevey official of improperly intervening in the reputed mobster's early release. This is the first time Taffet's name has been publicly mentioned in the case.
In a May 7, 2002, letter obtained by Gannett New Jersey, politically connected lawyer Donald Scarinci told Taffet it was "very important" that the State Parole Board review its earlier denial of Prisco's parole.
Scarinci also said he was "reminding" Taffet of a meeting Scarinci was scheduled to have the next day with then-chairman of the parole board, Mario Paparozzi.
Prisco was later granted parole on May 23, despite already being denied early release.
Neither McGreevey, Scarinci or Taffet responded to Gannett requests for comment, although a spokesman for Attorney General Peter C. Harvey said investigators had looked into communication between Scarinci and Taffet about Prisco but had decided there was not enough evidence to justify criminal charges.
In 1998, Prisco was sentenced to 12 years in prison after pleading guilty to arson and conspiracy.
He was suspected to be a high-ranking member of the Genovese crime family operating in New Jersey.
In February 2003, when the unusual circumstances of Prisco's release became known, McGreevey insisted his office was not involved in the parole.
Scarinci, who is also an important Democratic fund-raiser, told Gannett at the time that his office did not discuss Prisco's parole with McGreevey's office.
Federal and state officials investigated Prisco's release, specifically allegations that McGreevey's chief of management and operations James M. Davy, made a phone call to facilitate the parole.
(Excerpt) Read more at nj.com ...
Yo! It's Joisey, whaddayaexpect, huh?;)
"I made him an offer he couldn't refuse."
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