Carlo Mastrototaro

Carlo Mastrototaro (1920– October 5, 2009) was an Italian-American gangster who served as a capo with the Genovese crime family, which was affiliated with the Patriarca crime family. Mastototaro reigned as local crime boss of Worcester, Massachusetts for half-a-century.

During his reign as the boss of New England organized crime, Raymond L.S. Patriarca (Il Patrone) formed strong relationships with the New York City families particularly the Colombo. Il Patrone worked with the Genovese family and decided that dividing line between the New York families and his family would be the Connecticut River.

First Arrest As a result of his criminal activities, Mastrotaro was arrested and convicted of gambling, racketeering, and wire fraud, among other charges. In 1971, he was convicted of abetting the transporting of stolen U.S. Treasury bills on the testimony of Vincent "Big Vinnie" Teresa, a Patriarca family associate. Teresa testified against Mastrototaro in return for a lighter sentence and a place in the federal witness protection program.

The new store, Green Street News & Smoke Shop, was managed by a man with ties to the Gambino crime family, which supplied the store with pornography. The new store led to a bitter dispute with Angiulo and sent shockwaves through the New England criminal underground. Mastrototaro had violated the rule by which a competing family had to get the permission of the family that controlled the territory, in this case the Patriarca's, before going into business.

At the time of the dispute, Worcester County District Attorney John Conte, in league with federal and state law enforcement officials, had launched "Operation Big League" against Mastrototaro and other organized crime figures in Worcester. Starting in October 1980, the investigation used electronic surveillance to get the goods on the gangsters.

The dispute had to be mediated at the top levels of the three families. After Mastrototaro was indicted under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act in 1981, the Green Street porn shop was shuttered in December.

One of 44 defendants, Mastrototaro was hit with multiple charges, including running an illegal gambling ring and the theft of $45,000 worth of pornographic videos. Other of his confederates were charged with narcotics trafficking. Mastrototaro pleaded guilty to some of the charges and was sentenced to eighteen months imprisonment. Released from prison, he was convicted of fraud in 1984 for participating in a travel scam that defrauded customers of $1 million and was sentenced to three years in jail.