Stephen Flemmi - Criminal Career

Criminal Career

After the end of the Korean War, Flemmi and his brother Vincent joined the crew of Portuguese-American mobster Joe Barboza. Barboza had close ties to both the Patriarca crime family of Providence, Rhode Island and the Irish-American Winter Hill Gang of Somerville, Massachusetts.

In the early 1960s, a gangland war broke out on the streets of Boston after George McLaughlin, the younger brother of the Charlestown Mob's boss, groped the girlfriend of a ranking Winter Hill member. In retaliation, McLaughlin was severely beaten and left for dead. Enraged, his brother demanded that Winter Hill boss James "Buddy" McLean sanction the murders of the men responsible. McLean refused, saying that McLaughlin's actions were "out of line". Enraged, the McLaughlins later attempted to wire a bomb under his car and were disrupted by McLean. More than 40 murders throughout the Boston area are believed to be linked to the resulting clash.

During the course of the war, the Barboza crew allied itself with Winter Hill and assisted in several contract killings.

In 1965, Flemmi was secretly recruited as a confidential informant by FBI Agent H. Paul Rico, giving the agency inside information about Boston's gangland. However, Flemmi allegedly used his informant status to get important members of the rival Charlestown Mob arrested and to protect his allies.

In 1967, after Barboza became a cooperating witness and disappeared into the fledgling Witness Protection Program, Flemmi and his partner Frank Salemme arranged the car bombing of Barboza's lawyer, John Fitzgerald, who was suspected of persuading his client to testify. Fitzgerald was severely injured, but survived.

In response, Flemmi and Salemme fled Boston. After Salemme was arrested in New York City in 1972, Flemmi fled to Montreal, Quebec.

In May 1974, Rico told Flemmi it was safe to return to Boston, which he did once the charges against him were dismissed. He moved back with his mistress, Marion Hussey, in suburban Milton, Massachusetts.