John Joseph Conte is an American politician who served in the Massachusetts Senate and was the District Attorney for

Worcester County, Massachusetts Worcester County is a County (United States), county located in the U.S. state of Massachusetts. At the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 862,111, making it the second-most populous county in Massachusetts while also b ...

(Middle District), which includes 59 cities and towns in Worcester County and the town of Bellingham in Norfolk County, Massachusetts. Conte was born on May 3, 1930, in

Worcester, Massachusetts Worcester ( , ) is a city and county seat of Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. Named after Worcester, England, the city's population was 206,518 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the second-List of cities i ...

. He graduated from the

College of the Holy Cross The College of the Holy Cross is a private, Jesuit liberal arts college in Worcester, Massachusetts, about 40 miles (64 km) west of Boston. Founded in 1843, Holy Cross is the oldest Catholic college in New England and one of the oldest ...

and the

New England School of Law New England Law , Boston (formerly New England School of Law) is a private law school in Boston, Massachusetts. It was founded as Portia School of Law in 1908 and is located in downtown Boston near the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court, Fina ...

. Conte was a member of the Massachusetts Senate from 1963 until he was appointed District Attorney by Governor

Michael Dukakis Michael Stanley Dukakis (; born November 3, 1933) is an American retired lawyer and politician who served as governor of Massachusetts from 1975 to 1979 and again from 1983 to 1991. He is the longest-serving governor in Massachusetts history a ...

in 1976. He was elected to the first of seven terms in 1978. He announced his retirement in January 2006 and was succeeded by Joseph Early, Jr. on January 3, 2007.

Operation Big League

In 1981, Conte successfully prosecuted Worcester crime boss

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, Massach ...

, a

Genovese crime family The Genovese crime family, () also sometimes referred to as the Westside, is an Italian-American Mafia crime family and one of the "Five Families" that dominate organized crime activities in New York City and New Jersey as part of the American M ...

caporegime who also was affiliated with the

Patriarca crime family The Patriarca crime family (, ), also known as the New England Mafia, the Boston Mafia, the Providence Mafia, or The Office is an Italian-American Mafia family in New England. It has two distinct factions, one based in Providence, Rhode Island, ...

. In league with federal and state law enforcement officials, Conte 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. In August 1981, police raids were launched against 17 locations in Worcester,

Springfield Springfield may refer to: * Springfield (toponym), the place name in general Places and locations Australia * Springfield, New South Wales (Central Coast) * Springfield, New South Wales (Snowy Monaro Regional Council) * Springfield, Queenslan ...

and other Massachusetts cities. Conte announced, "All aspects of organized crime, from gaming and drugs to extortion, porno shops and prostitution – you name it, it was all uncovered in one fashion or another in this investigation". 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. In June 1983, Conte launched "Operation Rackets" against those running a gambling network in the Leominster area. The investigation led to the indictment of thirteen people.

References

1930 births District attorneys in Worcester County, Massachusetts College of the Holy Cross alumni Massachusetts state senators New England Law Boston alumni Living people {{US-law-bio-stub

Operation Big League

See also

References