http://articles.boston.com/2011-08-12/news/29881074_1_fbi-informant-crime-ring-wiretap
Reputed mob boss is called FBI informant
Court papers say state was wiretapping Rossetti
August 12, 2011|By Milton J. Valencia and Shelley Murphy, Globe Staff
Mark Rossetti, a reputed Mafia leader who was indicted last year on state charges of running a
sprawling criminal enterprise of drug trafficking, gambling, and loan sharking, had been working all
along as an informant for the FBI, according to documents filed yesterday in Suffolk Superior Court.
The documents, filed by two lower-level players in Rossetti’s alleged crime ring as part of a legal
strategy in their own case, do not identify Rossetti by name. But he can be clearly identified through
descriptions of his conversations with his FBI handler, and through a State Police organizational chart
of his alleged crime ring, the Rossetti Criminal Organization. Rossetti is a reputed capo in the New
England Mafia.
State Police recorded more than 40 conversations between Rossetti and his FBI handler in the spring
of 2010, through a wiretap on Rossetti’s FBI-issued phone, according to the court documents. In the
conversations, they discussed other Mafia figures and the possible role of Rossetti’s cousin in the
1990 art heist at the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, as well as Rossetti’s debt collections.
According to the documents, it was during these conversations that State Police discovered Rossetti
was an FBI informant.
Rossetti later grew concerned that he was being investigated by the State Police. He revealed to his
handler on May 14, 2010, that his phone had been tapped, according to court records.
The disclosure that Rossetti, a high-ranking Mafioso, was working with the FBI at the same time he
was being targeted by the State Police raises questions about how closely the FBI was monitoring
him and whether the bureau was aware of the extent of his alleged activities.
The complete nature of Rossetti’s relationship with the FBI was not immediately clear yesterday.
When working with informants, the bureau is required to follow clear guidelines that restrict what the
informant may do.
Gregory Comcowich, a spokesman for the FBI’s Boston office, said last night that he was aware of
the court filings but would not comment on details of Rossetti’s relationship with the bureau.
“The Department of Justice rules require us to report criminal wrongdoing by any of our sources,’’ he
said. “The FBI followed those guidelines.’’
According to court documents, Rossetti expected to be spared from prosecution for the crimes he
committed with the FBI’s knowledge, but he worried for his safety if it appeared he was getting special
treatment from authorities.