Switching sides
Federal agents sometimes fall prey to the lurid lifestyles of
their informants
December 1, 1998
By Bill Moushey, Post-Gazette Staff Writer
It was May 22, 1992. FBI agent Christopher Favo was briefing his boss, Special Agent R.
Lindley DeVecchio, who headed the task force trying to end Brooklyns Colombo crime
family war.
Two men loyal to the Colombo faction led by Victor J. Orena had been gunned down on a
Brooklyn Street the night before, Favo announced.
DeVecchios reaction was not what Favo expected. The man charged with stopping the
violence cheered for the shootings.
"He slapped his hand on the desk and he said, Were going to win this
thing, " Favo would recall two years later. "And he seemed excited about
it.
"He seemed like he didnt know we were the FBI. It was like a line had been
blurred . . . over who we were and what this was. . . . He was compromised. He had lost
track of who he was."
The Post-Gazettes two-year investigation found that federal agents are often
placed in positions where they can lose track and end up compromised.
Agents sometimes must make deals with the devil criminal informants to
fight crime. The temptations to become partners with these criminals can be great. And the
safeguards to prevent their defections are few.
Questionable ally
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The late Gregory Scarpa Sr., shown
here in a 1992 photograph, had longtime ties to organized crime and longtime ties to the
FBI. His connections with one federal agent drew protests from within the FBI and charges
that Scarpa was fed government information that he used against his mob enemies. (Newsday) |
No one mentioned Gregory Scarpa Sr. by name when Favo and DeVecchio talked that
morning.
Scarpa, a gangster whos lust for murder earned him the nickname "Killing
Machine" in New Yorks tabloids, had sided with the Carmine Persico faction
against Orena in the bloody Colombo crime family fight.
But Scarpa was also a government informant common in federal law enforcement.
Agents use them to get inside information about criminal conduct. Sometimes these
informants are paid money. Sometimes their reward is leniency if they happen to be facing
a prison term.
For three decades, Scarpa had been an informant for the FBI. His relationship with
DeVecchio, which lasted at least a decade, went beyond any accepted FBI practice, fellow
agents have testified.
DeVecchio not only ignored Scarpas day-to-day criminal activities, he was accused
of assisting in the Mafia killers success.
Accusations against DeVecchio, made in sworn statements by other FBI agents,
cooperating FBI witnesses, government documents and court testimony, include:
Giving Scarpa the names of
other FBI snitches, so Scarpa could put them in harms way while shielding his own
illegal operations.
Telling Scarpa where the FBI
was placing wiretaps so he could avoid them.
Informing Scarpa of pending
indictments against his associates in one instance, allowing Scarpa to help his son
disappear before the younger Scarpa could be arrested.
Handing over the addresses
of Scarpas enemies in the Colombo crime family war so that he could track them down
and kill them.
Fabricating evidence against
Orena and other Scarpa adversaries so they would be sent to prison.
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Victor Orena, shown being led into
federal court in New York City in 1992, was sentenced to life in prison for crimes related
to the Colombo crime family war. Federal agents and informants say FBI Special Agent R.
Lindley DeVecchio helped Orenas organized crime enemy, Gregory Scarpa Sr., fabricate
evidence against Orena. (Newsday) |
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DeVecchio has admitted accepting gifts from Scarpa. But he steadfastly has denied any
other wrongdoing. In several recent court cases, he took the Fifth Amendment rather than
discuss his relationship with Scarpa.
Yet the files and first-hand reports of other agents detailing his actions have
resulted in more than a dozen New York mobsters being acquitted after juries learned the
FBI had conspired with criminals to commit crimes.
Orena wasnt so lucky. He was sentenced to life in prison before the
Scarpa-DeVecchio relationship was uncovered. His attorneys efforts in getting him a
new trial have so far failed.
And what of the Justice Departments probe into the actions of its rogue agent?
The agencys investigation exonerated DeVecchio.
The Post-Gazettes two-year investigation into misconduct by federal law
enforcement officials found the kid glove treatment of DeVecchio is not unusual.
The Justice Department did not respond to questions the newspaper posed about concerns
raised in this story.
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