FBI Top 10 fugitive captured in Santa Monica
SANTA MONICA (BDCi) – FBI Agents have arrested James “Whitey” Bulger, a reputed Boston gangster who has been on the FBI’s top ten fugitive list for more than a decade, at an apartment on Third Street in Santa Monica.
James “Whitey” Bulger, 81, and Catherine Greig, 60 have been using the aliases Charles and Carol Gasko and lived an uneventful life in their rent-controlled Santa Monica apartment for more than a decade. Bulger is a notorious Boston crime boss sought in connection with at least 19 killings, racketeering and other crimes.
Just couple of days prior, authorities launched a campaign offering $100,000 for the whereabouts of his long-time girlfriend, Catherine Greig. The campaign produced a tip, which led agents to the pair in Santa Monica. FBI agents, with the help of local law enforcement, reportedly staked out the location where they confirmed both Bulger and Greig early Wednesday evening. The pair was arrested without incident, according to a release from the Los Angeles FBI office.
Both are scheduled for an initial appearance in U.S. District Court in the Central District of California (downtown Los Angeles) on Thursday to face charges that include murder, conspiracy to commit murder, extortion, money laundering, and narcotics distribution.
Bulger had been on the FBI’s 10 most wanted fugitive list for more than 15 years, and the agency has offered a $2 million reward for his arrest. He fled Boston in the mid-1990s as
FBI agents were about to arrest him in connection to his role in nearly two dozen murders committed from the early 1970s through the mid-1980s. Bulger’s role in these murders is also tied to his leadership of an organized crime group that allegedly controlled extortion, drug deals, and other illegal activities in the Boston area.
After the arrests, members of the Fugitive Task Force, which included the FBI and police, searched the apartment. Agents found firearms and a large amount of cash, a law enforcement official said.
By: Adrianna Lobo Source: CNN & LA Times
June 23, 2011