Rhode Island Cops Allege Fall River Businessman Is A “Made Man” With New Engand Mafia

Joseph Ruggiero Sr. is celebrated in Fall River, MA as a job-creating businessman who is saving the local economy but Col. Steven O’Donnell, superintendent of the Rhode Island State Police, “said in a September interview that Mafia investigators have identified Ruggiero as a ‘made man’ in the New England La Cosa Nostra, based on interviews with Mafia associates” as reported by Jo C. Goode for The Herald News.

Ruggiero and one-time Patriarca boss Frank Salemme “go way back” according to O’Donnell.

Some city officials have raised concerns over the relationship between Ruggiero and Fall River Mayor Will Flanagan, and question the “judgment of the board of directors of the Fall River Office of Economic Development which unanimously voted for Ruggiero’s position as an at-large member” as reported by Jo C. Goode for The Herald News.

Meanwhile, Mayor Flanagan, a former state prosecutor, “soundly defends” Ruggiero whom he “describes as ‘a self-made billionaire’ who coaches Little League and donates to charitable organizations” as reported by Jo C. Goode for The Herald News:

“Mr. Ruggiero is in his late 60s, and to date, he’s never received even a speeding ticket. This was a very in-depth (FBI) criminal investigation, and there have been several very in-depth criminal investigations into organized crime, both in Rhode Island and Massachusetts,” Flanagan said.  “At no point, even in the documents that you have, has he ever been alleged to commit a crime. At no point has he ever been charged with a crime and no point has he ever been convicted of a crime. I’ve spoken to Mr. Ruggiero about these allegations when I first met with him, and I’ve even spoken to him about these allegations as late as yesterday (last Thursday). He has definitively told me that he has never been involved in any wrongdoing.”

Speaking of Salemme, trial continues in a Boston court against Enrico Ponzo for his alleged role in the 1989 murder attempt against Cadillac Frank during a family squabble, and among those who testified yesterday for federal prosecutors was Vinnie Federico who recounted his mob induction ceremony which was secretly recorded by the FBI as reported by Laurel J. Sweet for the Boston Herald:  “on the tape played yesterday, convicted wiseguy Biagio DiGiacomo reminded Federico his service to the mob was for a whole lot longer and warned him, ‘you can never get out alive.’”