Lawrence A. Ricci (June 17, 1945 – October 2005) was a reputed

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 ...

acting capo. Officially a dairy products salesman, Ricci was allegedly a major mob figure. In 1979, Ricci was sentenced to prison for attempting to extort $4,800 from a Parsippany, New Jersey restaurant owner. In February 2005, Ricci was charged with

wire fraud Mail fraud and wire fraud are terms used in the United States to describe the use of a physical or electronic mail system to fraud, defraud another, and are Federal crime in the United States, federal crimes there. Jurisdiction is claimed by the ...

and

extortion Extortion is the practice of obtaining benefit through coercion. In most jurisdictions it is likely to constitute a criminal offence; the bulk of this article deals with such cases. Robbery is the simplest and most common form of extortion, ...

. Using his alleged control of an

International Longshoremen’s Association The International Longshoremen's Association (ILA) is a North American labor union representing longshore workers along the East Coast of the United States and Canada, the Gulf Coast, the Great Lakes, Puerto Rico, and inland waterways. The ILA h ...

Newark, New Jersey Newark ( , ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of New Jersey and the seat of Essex County and the second largest city within the New York metropolitan area.Cosa Nostra The Sicilian Mafia, also simply known as the Mafia and frequently referred to as Cosa nostra (, ; "our thing") by its members, is an Italian Mafia-terrorist-type organized crime syndicate and criminal society originating in the region of Sicily a ...

from a medical fund for

longshoremen A stevedore (), also called a longshoreman, a docker or a dockworker, is a waterfront manual laborer who is involved in loading and unloading ships, trucks, trains or airplanes. After the shipping container revolution of the 1960s, the number o ...

. Ricci allegedly embezzled the money by steering a union

pharmaceutical A medication (also called medicament, medicine, pharmaceutical drug, medicinal drug or simply drug) is a drug used to diagnose, cure, treat, or prevent disease. Drug therapy (pharmacotherapy) is an important part of the medical field and re ...

contract to a company with known Mafia ties. The Genovese and Gambino crime families netted over $400,000 and Ricci received $70,000. The trial began in mid-September. On October 7, 2005, Ricci failed to show up in court. The judge issued an

arrest warrant An arrest warrant is a warrant issued by a judge or magistrate on behalf of the state, which authorizes the arrest and detention of an individual, or the search and seizure of an individual's property. Canada Arrest warrants are issued by a j ...

for Ricci and the trial continued. On November 7, 2005, the absent Ricci and his two co-defendants were acquitted on all counts. On November 30, 2005, a patron complained about a foul odor and flies around a car at the Huck Finn Diner in Union, New Jersey. The car had been parked at the diner for the last six weeks. The restaurant manager called police, who discovered the decomposing body of Lawrence Ricci in the trunk; he had been shot. There was speculation that the Genovese family killed Ricci during his trial because he had refused to accept a

plea bargain A plea bargain (also plea agreement or plea deal) is an agreement in criminal law proceedings, whereby the prosecutor provides a concession to the defendant in exchange for a plea of guilt or '' nolo contendere.'' This may mean that the defendan ...

and a prison sentence. A law enforcement official was also quoted as saying the slaying resulted from an unrelated power struggle in Ricci's mob crew. In March 2007, federal authorities linked Genovese member Michael Coppola to the Ricci murder."Metro Briefing , New York: Brooklyn: Court Papers Detail Mob Killing"
By WILLIAM K. RASHBAUM New York Times However, no charges have been filed against Coppola.

References

External links

LONGSHOREMEN (ILA) Body in Car Trunk Was Ricci’s; Funeral Held
by the National Legal and Policy Center
LONGSHOREMEN (ILA)Union Officials, Mobster Found Not Guilty; Questions Remain
by the National Legal and Policy Center * http://www.state.nj.us/sci/pdf/solidwaste.pdf {{DEFAULTSORT:Ricci, Lawrence 1945 births 2005 deaths Genovese crime family Murdered American gangsters of Italian descent People murdered in New Jersey