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21
10 - PEOPLE/(H-M)/Arthur Koestler.md
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@ -1,5 +1,6 @@
---
category: "Authors & Journalists"
updated: 2026-10-15
tags:
- Person
- Military
@ -13,21 +14,29 @@ relations:
with: "[[University of Edinburgh]]"
start: 1985
role: "bequest endowing the Koestler Chair of Parapsychology"
fn: 2
fn: 4
---
Arthur Koestler was a Hungarian-born British novelist, journalist, and critic. He was known for his writings on science, parapsychology, and political philosophy. His 1972 book, *The Roots of Coincidence*, explored the concept of synchronicity and other parapsychological phenomena.[^1]
Koestler's work, particularly *The Roots of Coincidence*, played a role in influencing key figures in the U.S. government's psychic research programs. Major General [[Edmund Thompson]], the Army's assistant chief of staff for intelligence, developed a considerable enthusiasm for psychic spying after reading Koestler's pro-paranormal book. This personal interest contributed to Thompson's approval and support for the [[Stargate Project|Gondola Wish]] program.[^1]
### Geneva conference, 1974
In August 1974 the [[Parapsychology Foundation]] held its 23rd annual conference at the Hotel La Réserve in [[Geneva]] on the subject "Quantum Physics and Parapsychology." A conference report dated October 28, 1974 describes the subject as "a topic selected at the instigation of Arthur Koestler, the well-known author, who in recent years has interested himself in the subject of parapsychology. His recent book, The Roots of Coincidence, reflects this interest." The report records that experiments with gifted subjects were presented by [[Hal Puthoff]] and [[Russell Targ]].[^2]
In March 1974 the magazine [[Time (magazine)|Time]] published a cover story on psychic research that cited Koestler in its survey of the field. [[Martin Gardner]] was quoted in it as listing "the incomplete conclusions of Koestler" beside [[Uri Geller]] and *The Secret Life of Plants*, and as writing that these "all seem part of a new uncritical enthusiasm for pseudo science."[^3]
### Koestler Chair of Parapsychology
Koestler's bequest endowed a chair in parapsychology at the [[University of Edinburgh]]. The Koestler Parapsychology Unit, in the university's psychology department, gives 1985 as its year of establishment, and [[Robert L. Morris]] was appointed the first holder of the Koestler Chair of Parapsychology in 1985.[^2][^3] A paper reproduced in the 1994 DIA peer review plan gives Morris as holding the chair in the Department of Psychology at Edinburgh.[^4] [[James E. Alcock]] described the chair in 1987 as "endowed by a bequest from the late Arthur Koestler, a long-time supporter of parapsychology."[^5]
Koestler's bequest endowed a chair in parapsychology at the [[University of Edinburgh]]. The Koestler Parapsychology Unit, in the university's psychology department, gives 1985 as its year of establishment, and [[Robert L. Morris]] was appointed the first holder of the Koestler Chair of Parapsychology in 1985.[^4][^5] A paper reproduced in the 1994 DIA peer review plan gives Morris as holding the chair in the Department of Psychology at Edinburgh.[^6] [[James E. Alcock]] described the chair in 1987 as "endowed by a bequest from the late Arthur Koestler, a long-time supporter of parapsychology."[^7]
### Footnotes
[^1]: Schnabel, Jim. *Remote Viewers*. Dell, 1997.
[^2]: Koestler Parapsychology Unit, University of Edinburgh, home page ("Established in 1985"). https://koestlerunit.wordpress.com/
[^3]: "Robert Morris," Psi Encyclopedia, Society for Psychical Research ("In 1985, Morris was appointed the first holder of the Koestler Chair of Parapsychology"). https://psi-encyclopedia.spr.ac.uk/articles/robert-morris/
[^4]: Defense Intelligence Agency, *Project STAR GATE Research and Peer Review Plan,* June 1994, CIA-RDP96-00789R002700010001-1. https://www.cia.gov/readingroom/document/cia-rdp96-00789r002700010001-1
[^5]: Alcock, James E. "Parapsychology: Science of the Anomalous or Search for the Soul?" *Behavioral and Brain Sciences* (1987), CIA-RDP96-00789R002200120001-4. https://www.cia.gov/readingroom/document/cia-rdp96-00789r002200120001-4
[^2]: Central Intelligence Agency, report on the 23rd Annual International Conference of the Parapsychology Foundation, Hotel La Réserve, Geneva, August 26 and 27, 1974, "Quantum Physics and Parapsychology," dated October 28, 1974, CIA-RDP96-00787R000200180001-2 (CIA CREST).
[^3]: "Boom Times on the Psychic Frontier," *Time*, March 4, 1974, CIA-RDP96-00787R000100030002-8 (CIA CREST).
[^4]: Koestler Parapsychology Unit, University of Edinburgh, home page ("Established in 1985"). https://koestlerunit.wordpress.com/
[^5]: "Robert Morris," Psi Encyclopedia, Society for Psychical Research ("In 1985, Morris was appointed the first holder of the Koestler Chair of Parapsychology"). https://psi-encyclopedia.spr.ac.uk/articles/robert-morris/
[^6]: Defense Intelligence Agency, *Project STAR GATE Research and Peer Review Plan,* June 1994, CIA-RDP96-00789R002700010001-1. https://www.cia.gov/readingroom/document/cia-rdp96-00789r002700010001-1
[^7]: Alcock, James E. "Parapsychology: Science of the Anomalous or Search for the Soul?" *Behavioral and Brain Sciences* (1987), CIA-RDP96-00789R002200120001-4. https://www.cia.gov/readingroom/document/cia-rdp96-00789r002200120001-4

129
10 - PEOPLE/(H-M)/Ben Kalka.md
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@ -3,27 +3,140 @@ category: "Organized Crime"
tags:
- Person
- OrganizedCrime
- Methamphetamine
- ReverseSting
- PROMIS
aliases:
- "Kalka"
summary: "Kalka estimated he produced 8,000 pounds of drugs worth $10 million, using ingredients that federal agents had allegedly arranged for him to buy."
updated: 2026-10-15
relations:
- type: investigated
with: "[[Robert Barnes]]"
reverse: true
start: 1982
role: "FBI agent who handled Riconosciuto in the San Francisco sting, per Seymour"
fn: 7
- type: investigated
with: "[[Federal Bureau of Investigation]]"
reverse: true
start: 1982
role: "agency of the reverse sting, per Seymour"
fn: 1
- type: investigated
with: "[[John Di Giorgio]]"
reverse: true
start: 1989-10
role: "former Austrian citizen said to be an undercover informant against Kalka"
fn: 1
- type: investigated
with: "[[California Attorney General's Office]]"
reverse: true
start: 1989-10
role: "state case against Kalka, per Seymour"
fn: 1
- type: prosecuted
with: "[[United States]]"
reverse: true
start: 1989-10-26
end: 1993-06-17
role: "N.D. Cal. No. 3:89-cr-00603"
fn: 16
- type: represented
with: "[[Chris Cannon]]"
reverse: true
start: 2000
role: "defense attorney whose deal overturned Kalka's sentence, per Seymour"
fn: 1
- type: partner_of
with: "[[Michael Riconosciuto]]"
start: 1982
role: "business ties at R & R Research, per Seymour"
fn: 1
- type: represented
with: "[[Harland Braun]]"
reverse: true
start: 1982
role: "Los Angeles attorney for Kalka at the time of Riconosciuto's cooperating-witness negotiations, per an INSLAW memorandum"
fn: 11
- type: investigated
with: "[[Sue Todd]]"
reverse: true
start: 2000
role: "detective whose 2000 Octopus probe concluded Kalka was an undercover operative, per Seymour"
fn: 14
---
[[Ben Kalka]] was a figure in the San Francisco drug world, initially a "bit player" who later became a major supplier of methamphetamine. He was arrested in 1982 with 900 pounds of methamphetamine in his possession and was serving time in a Pleasanton prison. Kalka's arrest was part of a federal sting operation, though he claimed the sting had ended by the time he began manufacturing the drug.[^1]
[[Ben Kalka]] was a figure in the [[San Francisco]] drug world, initially a "bit player" who later became a major supplier of [[Methamphetamine|methamphetamine]]. He was arrested in 1982 with 900 pounds of methamphetamine in his possession and was serving time in a [[Pleasanton]] prison. Kalka's arrest was part of a federal sting operation, though he claimed the sting had ended by the time he began manufacturing the drug.[^1]
### Methamphetamine Production and Government Involvement
Kalka estimated he produced 8,000 pounds of drugs worth $10 million, using ingredients that federal agents had allegedly arranged for him to buy. He became involved in methamphetamine production after a chemist friend asked him to find phenyl acetic acid, a key precursor. Despite the chemical not being illegal, its purchase was scrutinized by the government. A contact, [[Paul Palmer]], who had become a government informant after being busted for selling precursors, arranged for Kalka to obtain a semi-truck load of the chemical.[^1]
Kalka estimated he produced 8,000 pounds of drugs worth $10 million, using ingredients that federal agents had allegedly arranged for him to buy. He became involved in methamphetamine production after a chemist friend asked him to find [[Phenylacetic acid|phenyl acetic acid]], a key precursor. Despite the chemical not being illegal, its purchase was scrutinized by the government.[^1] Federal law later brought the chemical under control. A November 1, 1989 hearing of the [[House Select Committee on Narcotics Abuse and Control]] listed phenylacetic acid among the precursor chemicals regulated under the [[Chemical Diversion and Trafficking Act]] of 1988.[^2] The current federal list of List I chemicals includes it.[^3] A letter of September 1, 1989 from the [[Chemical Manufacturers Association]] to the [[Drug Enforcement Administration]] asked for guidance on implementing the act's final rule, published at 54 Fed. Reg. 31657 (August 1, 1989).[^4]
[[Michael Riconosciuto]] was introduced to Kalka by Palmer and helped Kalka find monomethylamine, the last ingredient needed for methamphetamine. Riconosciuto claimed he was working for the [[Federal Bureau of Investigation|FBI]] as part of the sting operation and was authorized to supply Kalka with the final ingredient. The plan to bust Kalka and his subordinates reportedly failed when Kalka diverted the truck carrying the chemicals away from federal agents. Kalka wondered why the [[Federal Bureau of Investigation|FBI]] did not track him down once the methamphetamine began hitting the streets, suggesting the agency stumbled upon his enterprise during another undercover operation.[^1]
A contact, [[Paul Palmer]], who had become a government informant after being busted for selling precursors, arranged for Kalka to obtain a semi-truck load of the chemical.[^1]
Kalka was released from prison in April 2000 after his lawyer, [[Chris Cannon]], struck a deal that overturned his sentence, contingent upon Kalka signing a letter stating he did not obtain his precursors from the [[United States|U.S. government]]. This letter was reportedly written by [[William Shockley]], a [[United States Attorney|U.S. Attorney]] in San Francisco, and found by Detective [[Sue Todd]] in the Di Giorgio Extradition File.[^1]
[[Michael Riconosciuto]] was introduced to Kalka by Palmer and helped Kalka find [[Methylamine|monomethylamine]], the last ingredient needed for methamphetamine. In a statement printed in the November 1, 1989 hearing record, the Chemical Manufacturers Association reviewed methylamine "due to its possible future listing as a CDTA chemical by DEA."[^5] Riconosciuto claimed he was working for the [[Federal Bureau of Investigation|FBI]] as part of the sting operation and was authorized to supply Kalka with the final ingredient. The plan to bust Kalka and his subordinates reportedly failed when Kalka diverted the truck carrying the chemicals away from federal agents. Kalka wondered why the FBI did not track him down once the methamphetamine began hitting the streets, suggesting the agency stumbled upon his enterprise during another undercover operation.[^1]
[[Cheri Seymour|Seymour]]'s notes of an interview with [[Peter Zokosky]] record that Zokosky played a tape on which Riconosciuto narrated. The tape referred to the murder of [[Paul Morasca]] in San Francisco and [[Mary Quick]] in [[Fresno]]. It said that Kalka handled an LSD operation in Fresno and that alleged drug traffickers worked with him, and that at some point Barnes became involved in the investigation.[^6] Zokosky described Riconosciuto as unreliable, a pathological liar with grains of truth in his accounts.[^6]
A letter dated April 13, 1982, signed by Riconosciuto's then-wife Phyllis Riconosciuto and by [[Jimmy Hughes]], engaged Hughes and a second man to provide bodyguard services for Riconosciuto on April 14, 15 and 16 for a flat fee of $1,300, to fly with him to Fresno while he put his affairs in order "until he goes into protective custody with the FBI at the Oakland [California] office." The letter stated that Riconosciuto was to meet [[Robert Barnes]], an FBI special agent, and that the two men could return to Palm Springs once Barnes assumed protection of him.[^7] Seymour places the letter in the period when Riconosciuto worked with [[Dr. John Philip Nichols]], whom she describes as administrator at the [[Cabazon Indian Reservation]] and a partner at the time in the [[Wackenhut Corporation|Wackenhut]] joint venture on the reservation.[^8] Seymour also connects the date of the letter to Riconosciuto's claim that he had worked undercover, on loan from the FBI, for the Fresno prosecutor [[Brian Leighton]], who prosecuted 29 members of the drug and arms group [[The Company]], and she quotes a San Francisco Chronicle article of April 28, 1982 by Bill Wallace headed "Story of Spies, Stolen Arms and Drugs."[^7]
In a statement dated February 16, 1984, Riconosciuto wrote that Nichols directed him to have [[Philip Arthur Thompson]] recover "[all] of Kalka’s assets." He wrote that [[Jim De Silva|DeSilva]], who had control of the assets, agreed to release them and gave the location of the vehicles, which were in the Oakland area. The vehicles held a semi-truck loaded with amphetamine production chemicals and a red Datsun with a portable refrigerator containing acid. He added that Nichols complained that "PAT had made off with everything."[^9]
### Accounts in the Casolaro Papers
In a transcribed interview with [[Ted Gunderson]], a retired FBI special agent in charge, Riconosciuto said that in December 1981 word reached him "through the Wackenhut structure" that an attempt would be made on his life, and that he later learned Kalka had paid the [[Hells Angels|Hell's Angels]] a quarter of a million dollars to kill him. He said Kalka "was just horrified by the fact that I was with Paul Morasca." He said Kalka was "a fugitive from justice" who had been hiding in Colorado when Morasca gathered the company's raw materials, which Riconosciuto described as twelve hundred fifty-five-gallon drums of monomethylamine and close to half a million pounds of phenylacetic acid, collected through DeSilva. Riconosciuto said he gave the location to Barnes and a second FBI agent, that Barnes was interested in Kalka and not in Thompson or Morasca, and that the materials were removed shortly afterward, after DeSilva was beaten and told them where they were. He added that he had persuaded Kalka that a tracking device might be hidden in the phenylacetic acid, that Kalka had all of it screened, and that during the screening he introduced a heavy-metal micro-tagging material into it; he said Paul Palmer of Zero Waste wanted the fiber drums returned.[^10]
An INSLAW memorandum to the record dated July 18, 1990, drawing on that interview, stated that Riconosciuto had initially intended to use the Los Angeles attorney [[Harland Braun|Harlan Braun]] in negotiations with [[Stephen Trott]] in the spring of 1982, but that Braun had a conflict because he represented Kalka, "allegedly one of the leaders in illegal drug trafficking against whom Riconosciuto was about to become a cooperative witness." Braun referred him to Donald Wager. The memorandum added that Riconosciuto had told the authors Pizzo and Fricker in December 1987 that Braun represented the [[Central Intelligence Agency|CIA]] in the Los Angeles area.[^11]
In a letter of October 6, 1983 to Judge Victor Dahman of the Madera County Justice Court, Gunderson wrote that Paul Morasca had been working with federal and San Bernardino authorities to expose and prosecute Kalka, [[Al Holbert]] and a third man, and that after Morasca's death large quantities of drugs and chemicals disappeared from their San Francisco location once the location had been given to San Francisco authorities by informants. He listed 940 pounds of pure methamphetamine, 35,000 pounds of phenylacetic acid and 100 fifty-five-gallon drums of 40 percent monomethylamine, which he stated Kalka, Holbert and the third man had bought in 1980 from Zero Waste Inc. of Oakland and Ark Distribution Company of Contra Costa and had placed in the Fresno and Madera area. Gunderson also wrote that he had been told the "Kalka group" was concerned that a witness was cooperating with him, and that he had information that the group had committed 18 murders since January 1982.[^12]
### Arrest and Sentencing
The Oakland Tribune reported that an Oakland businessman named Ben Kalka, 36, previously convicted twice on drug sale charges, was given the maximum term of four years in prison in Alameda County Superior Court after his arrest on August 28 at his Oakland hills home with two pounds of cocaine and $77,000 in cash. The article stated that he earned about $50,000 a year from a business restoring antique motorcycles for use in Hollywood films.[^13]
### Todd's Conclusions
[[Sue Todd]] concluded that Kalka was an undercover operative and that the entire drug operation was sanctioned by the [[United States|U.S. government]], as Kalka had been arrested multiple times, but the FBI always took possession of him away from the arresting officers.[^1] Seymour reports that Todd interviewed Barnes in 2000, and that Barnes confirmed he had been the "handler" for both Riconosciuto and Thompson in a large drug sting in San Francisco.[^14]
### Connections and Allegations
Kalka's business ties with [[Michael Riconosciuto]] at [[R & R Research]] and the laboratory facilities at Hercules, [[California]], were documented in [[David Mayer]]'s attorney/client files. [[Dr. John Philip Nichols]], administrator at the [[Cabazon Indian Reservation]], also met with Riconosciuto at the Hercules plant. Investigators uncovered evidence of a chemical or drug operation at the Hercules plant that contaminated the entire property.[^1]
Kalka's business ties with Riconosciuto at [[R & R Research]] and the laboratory facilities at Hercules, [[California]], were documented in [[David Mayer]]'s attorney/client files. Nichols, administrator at the Cabazon Indian Reservation, also met with Riconosciuto at the Hercules plant. Investigators uncovered evidence of a chemical or drug operation at the Hercules plant that contaminated the entire property.[^1]
Kalka was close to [[Al Holbert]], a former [[Israel|Israeli]] intelligence agent, and [[Paul Morasca]], who was murdered in San Francisco during the time these sting operations were underway. [[Sue Todd]] concluded that Kalka was an undercover operative and that the entire drug operation was sanctioned by the [[United States|U.S. government]], as Kalka had been arrested multiple times, but the [[Federal Bureau of Investigation|FBI]] always took possession of him away from the arresting officers.[^1]
Kalka was close to Al Holbert, a former [[Israel|Israeli]] intelligence agent, and Morasca, who was murdered in San Francisco during the time these sting operations were underway. The Morasca homicide file (Case No. 82-1052505) reportedly contained over a thousand pages dating to the early 1980s and referenced the [[Fred Alvarez|Alvarez]] murders, according to Seymour.[^15]
[[Michael Riconosciuto]] claimed that the precursors Kalka used were provided by the [[United States|U.S. government]] and that a chemical company was cooperating with the [[Federal Bureau of Investigation|FBI]] by reporting all chemicals Riconosciuto ordered for his companies, which he then provided to Kalka. The money from these operations was reportedly laundered through [[Liechtenstein]] and other countries.[^1]
Riconosciuto claimed that the precursors Kalka used were provided by the U.S. government and that a chemical company was cooperating with the FBI by reporting all chemicals Riconosciuto ordered for his companies, which he then provided to Kalka. The money from these operations was reportedly laundered through [[Liechtenstein]] and other countries.[^1]
### Federal Prosecution and Release
The federal case United States v. Kalka, No. 3:89-cr-00603, was filed in the [[United States District Court for the Northern District of California|Northern District of California]] on October 26, 1989 and terminated on June 17, 1993, according to the docket index.[^16] Seymour cites the same number as the "Di Giorgio Extradition File," captioned United States v. [[John Di Giorgio|Di Giorgio]].[^15] Seymour wrote that at a news conference on November 17, 1989, Attorney General [[John Van de Kamp]] of California described the case as the "biggest methamphetamine seizure in the world," displaying 1,022 pounds of methamphetamine and $1 million in cash.[^1] The precursors supplied to Kalka were reportedly part of a "reverse sting" operation headed by Barnes.[^1]
A 1992 report of the [[House Committee on the Judiciary]] on the [[INSLAW]] matter recorded that Riconosciuto, after his 1991 arrest, "has been convicted of the drug related charges," and that the [[Department of Justice]] declined the committee's requests on the ground that his prosecution was an ongoing investigation.[^17] A 1997 hearing officer's report in a congressional reference proceeding described Riconosciuto as "convicted of manufacturing and selling methamphetamine" when discussing the sources relied on by [[Bill Hamilton]].[^18] The federal case against Riconosciuto, United States v. Riconosciuto, No. 3:91-cr-01034, was filed in the [[United States District Court for the Western District of Washington|Western District of Washington]] on April 1, 1991.[^19]
Kalka was released from prison in April 2000 after his lawyer, [[Chris Cannon]], struck a deal that overturned his sentence, contingent upon Kalka signing a letter stating he did not obtain his precursors from the U.S. government. This letter was reportedly written by [[William Shockley]], a [[United States Attorney|U.S. Attorney]] in San Francisco, and found by Detective Todd in the Di Giorgio Extradition File.[^1] The [[Federal Bureau of Prisons]] inmate locator lists Ben Kalka's actual release date as April 20, 2000, from the [[Federal Correctional Institution Edgefield|Edgefield]] federal facility.[^20]
A California state prisoner named Benio Kalka was sentenced to four years' imprisonment on November 1, 1985, and arrived at the Department of Corrections reception center at [[Vacaville]]. In 1989 the [[United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit|Ninth Circuit]] affirmed the denial of his habeas petition, which concerned work-time credits.[^21] Benio Kalka may be the Ben Kalka sentenced to four years in Alameda County; the term and the Northern California courts match, and neither record carries a shared identifier.
---
### Footnotes
[^1]: Seymour, Cheri. *The Last Circle: Danny Casolaro’s Investigation into the Octopus and the PROMIS Software Scandal*. First Edition. TrineDay, 2010.
[^1]: Seymour, Cheri. *The Last Circle: Danny Casolaro's Investigation into the Octopus and the PROMIS Software Scandal*. First Edition. TrineDay, 2010.
[^2]: U.S. House of Representatives, Select Committee on Narcotics Abuse and Control, hearing on the flow of precursor chemicals and assault weapons from the United States, November 1, 1989 (SCNAC-101-1-18; Government Printing Office, 1990), Attachment 4, "Legitimate Uses for Precursor and Essential Chemicals Regulated by the Chemical Diversion and Trafficking Act," printed p. 196; hearing title "The Flow of Precursor Chemicals and Assault Weapons from the United States into the Andean Nations." https://www.ojp.gov/pdffiles1/Digitization/128172NCJRS.pdf
[^3]: 21 C.F.R. § 1310.02, List I chemicals, entry for phenylacetic acid, its esters and its salts (DEA chemical code 8791). https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/21/1310.02
[^4]: Chemical Manufacturers Association, letter from Robert A. Roland to DEA Administrator John C. Lawn, September 1, 1989, printed as Attachment 5 in the hearing cited in note 2, pp. 198-199. https://www.ojp.gov/pdffiles1/Digitization/128172NCJRS.pdf
[^5]: Chemical Manufacturers Association statement, printed in the hearing cited in note 2, p. 189. https://www.ojp.gov/pdffiles1/Digitization/128172NCJRS.pdf
[^6]: Seymour, *The Last Circle*, p. 340 (interview with Peter Zokosky and an audio tape of Michael Riconosciuto narrating) and p. 344 (Zokosky's assessment of Riconosciuto).
[^7]: Seymour, *The Last Circle*, pp. 404-405, on the letter of April 13, 1982 concerning Riconosciuto's meeting with Robert Barnes and protective custody, and on the Chronicle article of April 28, 1982 and Riconosciuto's claimed work for Brian Leighton.
[^8]: Seymour, *The Last Circle*, p. 405, on Nichols as administrator at the Cabazon Indian Reservation in 1982.
[^9]: Seymour, *The Last Circle*, pp. 344-345, reproducing Riconosciuto's statement of February 16, 1984.
[^10]: Transcript of a recorded interview of Michael Riconosciuto by Ted Gunderson, Casolaro papers, Folder 7 (Acc. 5516), transcript pages concerning Kalka, Barnes, DeSilva and phenyl acetic acid; cited in the INSLAW memorandum to the record of July 18, 1990 (note 21). https://archive.org/details/ddosecrets_casolaro_files
[^11]: INSLAW, Inc., Memorandum to the Record, July 18, 1990, pp. 7-8, Casolaro papers, "Inslaw - Press Releases." https://archive.org/details/ddosecrets_casolaro_files
[^12]: Ted Gunderson, letter to Judge Victor Dahman, Justice Court, Madera County, October 6, 1983, pp. 1-2, with enclosures, Casolaro papers, "Misc Docs." https://archive.org/details/ddosecrets_casolaro_files
[^13]: "Businessman gets four-year cocaine term," Oakland Tribune, clipping in the Casolaro papers, "Misc Docs." https://archive.org/details/ddosecrets_casolaro_files
[^14]: Seymour, *The Last Circle*, p. 405, account of Detective Sue Todd's 2000 interview with Robert Barnes.
[^15]: Seymour, *The Last Circle*, p. 400, on the Paul Morasca Homicide Investigation File (Case No. 82-1052505) and the Di Giorgio Extradition File (Case No. CR89-0603 VRW).
[^16]: United States v. Kalka, No. 3:89-cr-00603 (N.D. Cal.), docket record filed October 26, 1989, terminated June 17, 1993. CourtListener. https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/26558922/united-states-v-kalka/
[^17]: U.S. House Committee on the Judiciary, *The INSLAW Affair: Investigative Report*, H. Rept. 102-857 (Washington, D.C.: GPO, September 10, 1992), p. 101. https://archive.org/details/InslawAffairInvestigativeReport
[^18]: INSLAW, Inc. v. United States, 39 Fed. Cl. 307 (1997), congressional reference proceeding, hearing officer's report (Miller, H.O.) on the sources relied on by Hamilton. https://www.courtlistener.com/opinion/6763932/inslaw-inc-v-united-states/
[^19]: United States v. Riconosciuto, No. 3:91-cr-01034 (W.D. Wash.), docket record filed April 1, 1991, including a judgment on revocation (Doc. 220) filed August 18, 2017. CourtListener. https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/6144038/united-states-v-riconosciuto/
[^20]: Federal Bureau of Prisons, Inmate Locator, record for Ben Kalka (Edgefield facility, release date 04/20/2000). https://www.bop.gov/inmateloc/
[^21]: Benio Kalka v. Dan Vasquez, 867 F.2d 546 (9th Cir. 1989), No. 87-2405, decided February 3, 1989. https://law.resource.org/pub/us/case/reporter/F2/867/867.F2d.546.87-2405.html

33
10 - PEOPLE/(H-M)/Bill Hamilton.md
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@ -1,7 +1,7 @@
---
category: "Technologists"
created: 2024-04-25
updated: 2026-10-14
updated: 2026-10-15
tags:
- KeyFigure
- Person
@ -15,35 +15,37 @@ location: "Laude, Indiana"
William A. Hamilton was born around 1940 and grew up in Laude, Indiana, where he was one of seven brothers. He graduated from Notre Dame with an English degree in 1962 and married [[Nancy Hamilton]] in 1963.[^1]
Hamilton worked as an analyst and Vietnamese linguist for the [[NSA]] for seven years. In 1969, he left federal service and became a management consultant at [[Peat, Marwick, Mitchell & Co]]. He left the firm in 1971 to improve the software, which by contract rights belonged to the government. He then worked for eighteen months as an independent contractor for the U.S. Attorney's Office in D.C., and he then founded the [[INSLAW|Institute for Law and Social Research]].[^2][^3] He won a contract through a competitive bid to develop what would become [[PROMIS]], working under the direction of [[Joan E. Jacoby]] and [[Charles R. Work]] with [[LEAA|Law Enforcement Assistance Administration]] funding routed through the [[Office of Crime Analysis of the District of Columbia]]. The resulting software, the Prosecutor's Management Information System, debuted on January 1, 1971, in the D.C. U.S. Attorney's Office.[^1][^7]
Hamilton worked as an analyst and Vietnamese linguist for the [[NSA]] for seven years. In 1969, he left federal service and became a management consultant at [[Peat, Marwick, Mitchell & Co]]. He left the firm in 1971 to improve the software, which by contract rights belonged to the government. He then worked for eighteen months as an independent contractor for the U.S. Attorney's Office in D.C., and he then founded the [[INSLAW|Institute for Law and Social Research]].[^2][^3] He won a contract through a competitive bid to develop what would become [[PROMIS]], working under the direction of [[Joan E. Jacoby]] and [[Charles R. Work]] with [[LEAA|Law Enforcement Assistance Administration]] funding routed through the [[Office of Crime Analysis of the District of Columbia]]. The resulting software, the Prosecutor's Management Information System, debuted on January 1, 1971, in the D.C. U.S. Attorney's Office.[^1][^4]
In 1973, Hamilton and his wife Nancy founded INSLAW (the Institute for Law and Social Research), a non-profit organization that took over stewardship of PROMIS. INSLAW received additional LEAA funding to enhance PROMIS into a transferable system adoptable by other jurisdictions and oversaw its spread to prosecutors' offices around the country. In January 1981, Hamilton reorganized INSLAW as a for-profit entity and acquired the predecessor organization's assets.[^1]
### The DOJ Contract and Bankruptcy
In March 1982, INSLAW signed a $10 million, three-year contract with the [[Department of Justice|DOJ's]] [[Executive Office for United States Attorneys]] to install PROMIS in 20 large U.S. Attorneys' offices and word-processor systems in 74 smaller ones. From the contract's earliest days, Hamilton and [[C. Madison Brewer]], the DOJ's project manager, were in conflict: Hamilton alleged Brewer obstructed INSLAW's proprietary rights claims and engineered advance payment disputes to force the company into financial distress. When INSLAW ran out of funds to sustain litigation against the DOJ while fighting to protect its software rights, it filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in February 1985.[^4]
In March 1982, INSLAW signed a $10 million, three-year contract with the [[Department of Justice|DOJ's]] [[Executive Office for United States Attorneys]] to install PROMIS in 20 large U.S. Attorneys' offices and word-processor systems in 74 smaller ones. From the contract's earliest days, Hamilton and [[C. Madison Brewer]], the DOJ's project manager, were in conflict: Hamilton alleged Brewer obstructed INSLAW's proprietary rights claims and engineered advance payment disputes to force the company into financial distress. When INSLAW ran out of funds to sustain litigation against the DOJ while fighting to protect its software rights, it filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in February 1985.[^5]
Hamilton and Nancy Hamilton sued the DOJ for non-payment on a version of PROMIS called Modification 12 and for the alleged unauthorized distribution of the enhanced software beyond the contract's authorized sites. In September 1987, [[Bankruptcy Judge George F. Bason]] ruled in their favor, finding that the Department of Justice "took, converted, stole, Inslaw's enhanced PROMIS by trickery, fraud, and deceit" and awarding approximately $6.8 million in damages. The ruling was affirmed by the district court but reversed on jurisdictional grounds by the Court of Appeals in May 1991.[^4]
Hamilton and Nancy Hamilton sued the DOJ for non-payment on a version of PROMIS called Modification 12 and for the alleged unauthorized distribution of the enhanced software beyond the contract's authorized sites. In September 1987, [[Bankruptcy Judge George F. Bason]] ruled in their favor, finding that the Department of Justice "took, converted, stole, Inslaw's enhanced PROMIS by trickery, fraud, and deceit" and awarding approximately $6.8 million in damages. The ruling was affirmed by the district court but reversed on jurisdictional grounds by the Court of Appeals in May 1991.[^5]
### Representation by Elliot Richardson
Hamilton retained former [[United States Attorney General|Attorney General]] Elliot Richardson as lead counsel for INSLAW's civil claims. Richardson, who had served as Nixon's Attorney General before his resignation during the Saturday Night Massacre, provided INSLAW with significant public credibility. Richardson told the press and congressional investigators that the affair presented "circumstantial evidence of a sinister conspiracy" that was "at its outer reaches...far more sinister than anything revealed in Watergate." He submitted testimony, sworn statements, and affidavits linking high-level DOJ officials to a conspiracy to steal PROMIS and secretly transfer it.[^5]
Hamilton retained former [[United States Attorney General|Attorney General]] Elliot Richardson as lead counsel for INSLAW's civil claims. Richardson, who had served as Nixon's Attorney General before his resignation during the Saturday Night Massacre, provided INSLAW with significant public credibility. Richardson told the press and congressional investigators that the affair presented "circumstantial evidence of a sinister conspiracy" that was "at its outer reaches...far more sinister than anything revealed in Watergate." He submitted testimony, sworn statements, and affidavits linking high-level DOJ officials to a conspiracy to steal PROMIS and secretly transfer it.[^6]
### The 1985 Intelligence Letter
In November 2004, Hamilton received a document from a source described as a reliable U.S. intelligence contact. Dated May 16, 1985, the letter indicated that PROMIS software was being provided to an Arab sheik for resale and distribution, brokered by [[Manucher Ghorbanifar]], [[Adnan Khashoggi]], and [[Richard Armitage]]. The document had been signed by [[William Bradford Reynolds]], who authenticated it when shown the letter. Hamilton considered this letter significant, because, he said, all copies had been ordered destroyed. The letter corroborated INSLAW's longstanding claim that PROMIS had been distributed internationally through channels that included Middle Eastern arms brokers with Iran-Contra connections.[^6]
In November 2004, Hamilton received a document from a source described as a reliable U.S. intelligence contact. Dated May 16, 1985, the letter indicated that PROMIS software was being provided to an Arab sheik for resale and distribution, brokered by [[Manucher Ghorbanifar]], [[Adnan Khashoggi]], and [[Richard Armitage]]. The document had been signed by [[William Bradford Reynolds]], who authenticated it when shown the letter. Hamilton considered this letter significant, because, he said, all copies had been ordered destroyed. The letter corroborated INSLAW's longstanding claim that PROMIS had been distributed internationally through channels that included Middle Eastern arms brokers with Iran-Contra connections.[^7]
### The Octopus Investigation
In 1990, Hamilton contacted freelance journalist [[Danny Casolaro]], whose subsequent investigation would attempt to connect the PROMIS theft to the [[October Surprise]], the [[Iran-Contra Affair]], and the collapse of [[Bank of Credit and Commerce International|BCCI]] under the unified theory he called "[[The Octopus]]." Hamilton was in daily contact with Casolaro until approximately a week before Casolaro's death on August 10, 1991.[^6]
In 1990, Hamilton contacted freelance journalist [[Danny Casolaro]], whose subsequent investigation would attempt to connect the PROMIS theft to the [[October Surprise]], the [[Iran-Contra Affair]], and the collapse of [[Bank of Credit and Commerce International|BCCI]] under the unified theory he called "[[The Octopus]]." Hamilton was in daily contact with Casolaro until approximately a week before Casolaro's death on August 10, 1991.[^7]
In March 1991, Hamilton received a notarized affidavit from [[Michael Riconosciuto]] claiming that Riconosciuto had modified PROMIS at the [[Cabazon Indian Reservation|Cabazon]]-[[Wackenhut Corporation|Wackenhut]] joint venture. When Riconosciuto later approached Hamilton with a lead about former DOJ official [[Michael Abbell]]'s connections to the [[Cali Drug Cartel]], Hamilton, pressed for time, passed the lead to Casolaro - a handoff that Riconosciuto subsequently alleged led directly to Casolaro's death.[^6]
In March 1991, Hamilton received a notarized affidavit from [[Michael Riconosciuto]] claiming that Riconosciuto had modified PROMIS at the [[Cabazon Indian Reservation|Cabazon]]-[[Wackenhut Corporation|Wackenhut]] joint venture. When Riconosciuto later approached Hamilton with a lead about former DOJ official [[Michael Abbell]]'s connections to the [[Cali Drug Cartel]], Hamilton, pressed for time, passed the lead to Casolaro - a handoff that Riconosciuto subsequently alleged led directly to Casolaro's death.[^7]
Hamilton also described to investigators his belief that the main purpose of the Wackenhut-Cabazon joint venture was to provide a platform for government-sanctioned drug trafficking and money laundering by organized crime groups including the [[Gambino Crime Family]] and the [[Contras]], and that Riconosciuto's role was to use NSA's bank-surveillance version of PROMIS to launder drug proceeds with a portion channeled to unauthorized covert operations.[^6]
Hamilton also described to investigators his belief that the main purpose of the Wackenhut-Cabazon joint venture was to provide a platform for government-sanctioned drug trafficking and money laundering by organized crime groups including the [[Gambino Crime Family]] and the [[Contras]], and that Riconosciuto's role was to use NSA's bank-surveillance version of PROMIS to launder drug proceeds with a portion channeled to unauthorized covert operations.[^7]
On March 14, 1994, Charles R. Work, counsel for Bill and Nancy Hamilton, wrote to [[John C. Dwyer]] after a March 1, 1994 meeting attended by [[Steven E. Zipperstein]] and [[Scott A. Erskine]]. The letter states that Erskine had confirmed that a hotel maid in Martinsburg gave police an eyewitness description of a man leaving Casolaro's room on the Saturday morning of the death: a man in his 30s with "an excellent sun tan," wearing a tee-shirt, dark slacks and deck shoes. The letter also asked whether this man was the "dark-skinned man" whom press accounts described Casolaro waiting for in the hotel bar on the Thursday evening before his death.[^8] On February 14, 1994, INSLAW's lawyers and principals, including [[Elliot Richardson]], Hamilton and Nancy Hamilton, had submitted an addendum to INSLAW's rebuttal of the Bua report that stated that [[Joseph Cuellar]] had a "purportedly chance encounter" with Casolaro in a pub near Casolaro's home less than one month before his death and told Casolaro that [[Peter Videnieks]] had agreed to meet.[^9] A Justice Department record of the same period states that the adjoining-room guest saw a man enter the room with a key at about 9:00 p.m. on August 9, and that no one was seen entering or leaving the room on the morning of August 10.[^10]
### Congressional Testimony and Final Legal Proceedings
Hamilton and INSLAW participated in all major investigations of the affair, including the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations inquiry (1989), the [[House Committee on the Judiciary|House Judiciary Committee]] investigation led by Representative Jack Brooks (1989-1992), and the Special Counsel investigation conducted by [[Nicholas J. Bua]] (1991-1993). In 1995, the U.S. Senate referred INSLAW's remaining claims to the Court of Federal Claims; the court ruled in 1997-1998 that all versions of PROMIS were in the public domain and that the government had always been free to use the software. INSLAW received no compensation.[^4]
Hamilton and INSLAW participated in all major investigations of the affair, including the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations inquiry (1989), the [[House Committee on the Judiciary|House Judiciary Committee]] investigation led by Representative Jack Brooks (1989-1992), and the Special Counsel investigation conducted by [[Nicholas J. Bua]] (1991-1993). In 1995, the U.S. Senate referred INSLAW's remaining claims to the Court of Federal Claims; the court ruled in 1997-1998 that all versions of PROMIS were in the public domain and that the government had always been free to use the software. INSLAW received no compensation.[^5]
Hamilton continued to assert that PROMIS was fraudulently stolen and distributed internationally. He maintained a public website documenting INSLAW's claims long after the formal legal proceedings concluded.
@ -52,7 +54,10 @@ Hamilton continued to assert that PROMIS was fraudulently stolen and distributed
[^1]: Newspapers.com, Hamilton family records, Notre Dame graduation records (via https://www.newspapers.com/newspage/139683581/).
[^2]: Mitchell Pacelle and Robert Safian, "Vendetta," *The American Lawyer*, December (year not printed in the reprint). Reprinted in U.S. Senate, Committee on Governmental Affairs, *Staff Study of Allegations Pertaining to the Department of Justice's Handling of a Contract with INSLAW, Inc.*, Committee Print, 101st Congress, 1st Session (Washington: GPO, 1989). Archive.org, item micro_IA41152832_0145.
[^3]: Same committee print, the passage on the profile's account of Hamilton's career (the reprinted profile, "The Rise and Fall of INSLAW").
[^4]: U.S. House of Representatives, Committee on the Judiciary. *The INSLAW Affair: Investigative Report.* House Report 102-857, 102nd Congress, 2nd Session, September 10, 1992; U.S. Court of Federal Claims, *Inslaw, Inc. v. United States*, Ruling of Hearing Officer Christine Miller, July 31, 1997.
[^5]: U.S. House of Representatives, Committee on the Judiciary. *The INSLAW Affair: Investigative Report.* House Report 102-857, 102nd Congress, 2nd Session, September 10, 1992; Richardson, Elliot L. Testimony before the House Judiciary Committee, 1992.
[^6]: Seymour, Cheri. *The Last Circle: Danny Casolaro's Investigation into the Octopus and the PROMIS Software Scandal.* TrineDay, 2010.
[^7]: Peat, Marwick, Mitchell & Co., *System Overview and Report Formats for PROMIS* (May 1971), prepared for the District of Columbia Government Office of Crime Analysis under LEAA Grant No. 70-DF-047, note 1 to the passage on the design team, NCJ 32469. https://www.ojp.gov/pdffiles1/Digitization/32469NCJRS.pdf
[^4]: Peat, Marwick, Mitchell & Co., *System Overview and Report Formats for PROMIS* (May 1971), prepared for the District of Columbia Government Office of Crime Analysis under LEAA Grant No. 70-DF-047, note 1 to the passage on the design team, NCJ 32469. https://www.ojp.gov/pdffiles1/Digitization/32469NCJRS.pdf
[^5]: U.S. House of Representatives, Committee on the Judiciary. *The INSLAW Affair: Investigative Report.* House Report 102-857, 102nd Congress, 2nd Session, September 10, 1992; U.S. Court of Federal Claims, *Inslaw, Inc. v. United States*, Ruling of Hearing Officer Christine Miller, July 31, 1997.
[^6]: U.S. House of Representatives, Committee on the Judiciary. *The INSLAW Affair: Investigative Report.* House Report 102-857, 102nd Congress, 2nd Session, September 10, 1992; Richardson, Elliot L. Testimony before the House Judiciary Committee, 1992.
[^7]: Seymour, Cheri. *The Last Circle: Danny Casolaro's Investigation into the Octopus and the PROMIS Software Scandal.* TrineDay, 2010.
[^8]: Letter from Charles R. Work, McDermott, Will & Emery, counsel for William and Nancy Hamilton, to John C. Dwyer, Assistant Associate Attorney General, U.S. Department of Justice, March 14, 1994. https://archive.org/details/MaidWitnessCasolaroDeath
[^9]: Richardson, Elliot L., et al. *Addendum to INSLAW's Analysis and Rebuttal of the Bua Report*, February 14, 1994, p. 24 and n.5. https://archive.org/details/AddendumToInslawsAnalysisAndRebuttalOfTheBuaReport
[^10]: U.S. Department of Justice, review of the Casolaro matter by Steven E. Zipperstein and Scott A. Erskine, DOCID 70002067, release pp. 70-71 (printed pp. 54-55). https://archive.org/details/INSLAW-Casolaro

8
10 - PEOPLE/(H-M)/Jimmy Hughes.md
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@ -29,7 +29,7 @@ relations:
role: "distant cousin"
fn: 1
created: 2025-08-05
updated: 2026-09-22
updated: 2026-10-15
---
James "Jimmy" Hughes was the security director of the casino and bingo operations of the [[Cabazon Indian Reservation|Cabazon Band of Mission Indians]] for four years, until 1984.[^1] In a statement to investigators reported by the *[[Los Angeles Times]]* in 1985, he said that in the summer of 1981 he had been instructed, in the presence of the tribe's financial adviser [[Dr. John Philip Nichols]], to take 25,000 dollars to Idyllwild and give it to a man as partial payment for the killing of [[Fred Alvarez]].[^1] He later described himself as a former Army Ranger who had become a "Mafia hit-man," said he had worked for the [[Central Intelligence Agency|CIA]] abroad and been protected by the [[Federal Bureau of Investigation|FBI]] in exchange for information, and alleged that Nichols issued murder contracts and that the tribe's gambling enterprises were fronts for government-sanctioned covert military activity and arms shipments to Central and [[South America]].[^2]
@ -50,6 +50,10 @@ Hughes was held without bail for nearly nine months. On July 1, 2010, Deputy Att
Hughes joined the [[Full Gospel Business Men's Fellowship International]] in 1987 and founded Jimmy Hughes Ministries, Free the Oppressed, in Honduras, where he ministered to and trained military personnel at Zambrano. In February 2008 he spoke at a fellowship dinner in Fresno, California, with General [[Daniel Lopez Carballo]] of Honduras. The writer Cheri Seymour wrote that he was involved in planning the June 2009 [[Honduras coup|coup]] that removed President [[Manuel Zelaya]]; its leaders, Generals [[Romeo Vasquez Velasquez]] and Lopez Carballo, who installed [[Roberto Micheletti]], were members of the fellowship and friends of Hughes.[^2]
### Riconosciuto's 1982 protective-custody letter
A letter dated April 13, 1982, signed by Phyllis Riconosciuto, then the wife of Michael Riconosciuto, and by Hughes, engaged Hughes and a second man to provide bodyguard services for Riconosciuto on April 14, 15 and 16 for a flat fee of $1,300, including airfare, hotel and meals, to fly to [[Fresno]] and help him "get his affairs in order" until he went into protective custody with the FBI at its [[Oakland, California|Oakland]] office.[^6] The letter stated that Riconosciuto was to meet FBI special agent [[Robert Barnes]], and that Hughes and the second man could return to Palm Springs once Barnes assumed protection of him.[^6] [[Cheri Seymour]] wrote that the letter indicates Hughes had either met or known Barnes.[^7]
### Footnotes
[^1]: "California authorities believe an unsolved 1981 triple murder was a hit job," Associated Press, September 2009 (Fox News mirror), citing the *Los Angeles Times* of 1985 and state attorney general's spokesman Evan Westrup. https://www.foxnews.com/story/unsolved-1981-triple-murder-in-california-was-hit-job-authorities-say.amp ; "Authorities say triple tribe murder was hit job," Associated Press, September 2009. https://www.foxnews.com/story/authorities-triple-tribe-murder-was-hit-job.amp
@ -57,3 +61,5 @@ Hughes joined the [[Full Gospel Business Men's Fellowship International]] in 198
[^3]: "Jimmy Hughes Speaks To KESQ After Charges Dropped," KESQ News Channel 3, Palm Springs, July 2, 2010. https://kesq.com/news/2010/07/02/jimmy-hughes-speaks-to-kesq-after-charges-dropped/
[^4]: Taxin, Amy, with Jennifer Kay. "Arrest in 1981 tribal murders revives old mystery." Associated Press, in *The Press Democrat,* November 22, 2009. https://www.pressdemocrat.com/2009/11/22/arrest-in-1981-tribal-murders-revives-old-mystery/
[^5]: "Murder case against preacher abruptly dropped in mysterious 1981 California tribal slaying," Associated Press, July 2010 (Fox News). https://www.foxnews.com/us/murder-case-against-preacher-abruptly-dropped-in-mysterious-1981-california-tribal-slaying
[^6]: Seymour, Cheri. *The Last Circle: Danny Casolaro's Investigation into the Octopus and the PROMIS Software Scandal*. First Edition. TrineDay, 2010, pp. 404-405.
[^7]: Seymour, Cheri. *The Last Circle: Danny Casolaro's Investigation into the Octopus and the PROMIS Software Scandal*. First Edition. TrineDay, 2010, p. 405.

11
10 - PEOPLE/(H-M)/John Krol.md
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@ -17,7 +17,7 @@ born: 1910-10-26
died: 1996-03-03
location: "Philadelphia, Pennsylvania"
created: 2026-09-23
updated: 2026-09-23
updated: 2026-10-15
relations:
- type: head_of
with: "[[Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Philadelphia]]"
@ -50,11 +50,11 @@ Krol was born in [[Cleveland, Ohio|Cleveland]] to Polish immigrants, the fourth
### Black Mass
In February 1975 a midnight run of *Black Mass*, a film of a satanic mass, was cancelled at the [[Arcadia Theatre (Philadelphia)|Arcadia]] in Center City "after reported pressure by the Philadelphia Archdiocese," according to [[Art Carduner]], whose [[Bandbox Theater]] in [[Germantown, Philadelphia|Germantown]] showed it instead on March 1.[^3] Krol led sixteen Catholic, Protestant, Orthodox, and Jewish leaders in a joint statement that called the film "a blasphemous attack on the religious rites held in sacred reverence by millions of Christian believers" and "a frontal attack on the sacred itself," said that it was "obviously intended not to be viewed as a film, but as a blasphemous ritualistic observance," and asked everyone in the local film industry "to resist and reject every attempt to market or portray this film." The signers included Rabbi Charles Lacks of the [[Greater Philadelphia Board of Rabbis]] and Francis G. Brown of the [[Philadelphia Yearly Meeting]] of the Religious Society of Friends.[^4] Eleven weeks before the Bandbox screening, on December 10, 1974, Hoersch had been arrested by the [[United States Secret Service]] for counterfeiting ten-dollar bills.[^5]
In February 1975 a midnight run of *Black Mass*, a film of a satanic mass, was cancelled at the [[Arcadia Theatre (Philadelphia)|Arcadia]] in Center City "after reported pressure by the Philadelphia Archdiocese," according to [[Art Carduner]], whose [[Bandbox Theater]] in [[Germantown, Philadelphia|Germantown]] showed it instead on March 1.[^3] The *Inquirer* of February 28, 1975 announced the midnight showing there.[^3] On February 27, 1975, Krol led sixteen Catholic, Protestant, Orthodox, and Jewish leaders in a joint statement that called the film "a blasphemous attack on the religious rites held in sacred reverence by millions of Christian believers" and "a frontal attack on the sacred itself," said that it was "obviously intended not to be viewed as a film, but as a blasphemous ritualistic observance," and asked everyone in the local film industry "to resist and reject every attempt to market or portray this film." The signers included Rabbi Charles Lacks of the [[Greater Philadelphia Board of Rabbis]] and Francis G. Brown of the [[Philadelphia Yearly Meeting]] of the Religious Society of Friends.[^4] The *Inquirer* reported the statement the next morning, naming "John Cardinal Krol, archbishop of Philadelphia" among the 16 signers.[^5] Eleven weeks before the Bandbox screening, on December 10, 1974, Hoersch had been apprehended by Hatboro police after a shop reported a suspicious ten-dollar bill, and [[United States Secret Service]] agents found counterfeit ten-dollar bills in his car under a search warrant.[^6]
### Death
Krol, who had diabetes and a heart ailment, was hospitalized on February 14, 1996, and failed to respond to treatment for kidney problems and a blood clot in a lung, according to the [[Associated Press]]. He died at his home on March 3, 1996, aged 85.[^2] He was buried in the crypt of the [[Cathedral Basilica of Saints Peter and Paul]] after a funeral attended by seven cardinals, sixty bishops, and 1,500 priests, at which Cardinal [[John O'Connor]] of [[New York City|New York]] preached.[^6]
Krol, who had diabetes and a heart ailment, was hospitalized on February 14, 1996, and failed to respond to treatment for kidney problems and a blood clot in a lung, according to the [[Associated Press]]. He died at his home on March 3, 1996, aged 85.[^2] He was buried in the crypt of the [[Cathedral Basilica of Saints Peter and Paul]] after a funeral attended by seven cardinals, sixty bishops, and 1,500 priests, at which Cardinal [[John O'Connor]] of [[New York City|New York]] preached.[^7]
### Footnotes
@ -62,5 +62,6 @@ Krol, who had diabetes and a heart ailment, was hospitalized on February 14, 199
[^2]: Weil, Martin. "Cardinal John Krol Dies; Philadelphia Archbishop," *The Washington Post,* March 4, 1996. https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/local/1996/03/04/cardinal-john-krol-dies/8d845f35-61a2-4b44-934a-0bdc39ca14df/
[^3]: [Society and nightlife column], *The Philadelphia Inquirer,* February 28, 1975, p. 21. https://www.newspapers.com/image/173366667/
[^4]: "Offensive Material: Leaders Condemn Black Mass Film," Religious News Service, *Lake Shore Visitor* (Erie), March 7, 1975, p. 3. https://www.newspapers.com/image/951794835/
[^5]: "[...] bogus $180,000 in Bucks raid," *The Morning Call* (Allentown), December 11, 1974, p. 5. https://www.newspapers.com/image/275702319/
[^6]: "Cardinal Krol laid to rest," United Press International, March 8, 1996. https://www.upi.com/Archives/1996/03/08/Cardinal-Krol-laid-to-rest/8760826261200/
[^5]: "Protest Raised Here On 'Black Mass' Film," *The Philadelphia Inquirer,* February 28, 1975, p. 11. https://www.newspapers.com/image/173364962/
[^6]: "[...] bogus $180,000 in Bucks raid," *The Morning Call* (Allentown), December 11, 1974, p. 5. https://www.newspapers.com/image/275702319/
[^7]: "Cardinal Krol laid to rest," United Press International, March 8, 1996. https://www.upi.com/Archives/1996/03/08/Cardinal-Krol-laid-to-rest/8760826261200/

20
10 - PEOPLE/(H-M)/Karel Maasdam.md
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@ -12,7 +12,7 @@ aliases:
- Alex Privee
summary: "Karel Maasdam, alias 'Alex Privee,' was described by Nick Davies in 1998 as the owner of the Bell Boys escort agency in the Netherlands."
created: 2026-05-14
updated: 2026-10-09
updated: 2026-10-15
location: "Netherlands"
relations:
- type: owned
@ -53,34 +53,22 @@ A [[Brussels]] magistrate identified in [[X-Dossier]] witness statements only by
### Accounts in the Dovey book
S. Dovey wrote that Maasdam had a bookkeeper who told the Dutch current-affairs programme EenVandaag that [[Warwick Spinks]] frequently supplied boys to Demmink and Holthuis, and that Maasdam's accountant gave Dutch intelligence services a dossier identifying [[Gero-Video]] as a distributor of child pornography. Dovey also wrote that Glandorf was investigated alongside associates such as Maasdam.[^12]
S. Dovey wrote that a man Dovey describes as Maasdam's bookkeeper told the Dutch current-affairs programme EenVandaag that [[Warwick Spinks]] frequently supplied boys to Demmink and to Holthuis. Dovey also wrote that Maasdam's accountant gave Dutch intelligence services a dossier identifying [[Gero-Video]] as a distributor of child pornography, and that Glandorf was investigated alongside associates such as Maasdam.[^12]
The Morkhoven Workgroup dossier, as reported by Dovey, identified the owner of the [[G-Force nightclub]] in Amsterdam as an American named John Edward Mullaney and linked him through a company called [[Korper and Korver]] to [[John Stamford]]'s [[Spartacus Network]] and through a company called [[Adonis]] to Maasdam. Dovey also wrote that Gero-Video was linked to [[TAG Films]].[^12] The Dutch commercial register lists a J.E. Mullaney Holding B.V., registered in Amsterdam and no longer active, and an active Korper B.V. and Adonis B.V.; the register entries do not state who held the companies.[^13]
### Footnotes
[^1]: Nick Davies, "Paedophile network trafficks young boys across Europe," nickdavies.net, dated October 1, 1998 and marked previously unpublished. https://www.nickdavies.net/1998/10/01/paedophile-network-trafficks-young-boys-across-europe/
[^2]: "Samenvatting van de aanleiding, het verloop, de resultaten en de besluitvorming in het Rolodex-onderzoek," December 23, 2013, enclosure to a letter of the Minister van Veiligheid en Justitie to the Tweede Kamer (Kamerstuk 33 750 VI, nr. 116), Eerste Kamer copy. https://eerstekamer.nl/9370000/1/j4nvgs5kjg27kof_j9vvkfvj6b325az/vjigib8p5szh
[^3]: Het Parool, classified advertisements, December 24, 1983 (ABCDDD:010846300:mpeg21:a0137), January 30, 1984 (ABCDDD:010833158:mpeg21:a0039), February 1, 1984 (ABCDDD:010833236:mpeg21:a0079) and October 28, 1985 (ABCDDD:010831481:mpeg21:a0029), Koninklijke Bibliotheek, Delpher. http://resolver.kb.nl/resolve?urn=ABCDDD:010846300:mpeg21:a0137
[^4]: Het Parool, classified advertisements, March 4, 1985 (ABCDDD:010831409:mpeg21:a0033), March 6, 1985 (ABCDDD:010831411:mpeg21:a0060) and March 8, 1985 (ABCDDD:010831413:mpeg21:a0023), Koninklijke Bibliotheek, Delpher. http://resolver.kb.nl/resolve?urn=ABCDDD:010831413:mpeg21:a0023
[^5]: Tweede Kamer der Staten-Generaal, Kamerstuk 31 015, nr. 115, letter of the Minister van Veiligheid en Justitie, July 1, 2015, answers to questions 2 and 8. https://eerstekamer.nl/9370000/1/j4nvi0xeni9vr2l_j9vvkfvj6b325az/vme26leaeuex/f=/vjvdn6hc42z9.pdf
[^6]: "Politie onderzocht Demmink in '97," NOS, March 5, 2014. https://nos.nl/artikel/619220-politie-onderzocht-demmink-in-97
[^7]: "Oud-hoofdofficier justitie Jan Wolter Wabeke uit Best genoemd in zedenzaak Joris Demmink," Omroep Brabant, March 5, 2014. https://www.omroepbrabant.nl/nieuws/1720283/oud-hoofdofficier-justitie-jan-wolter-wabeke-uit-best-genoemd-in-zedenzaak-joris-demmink
[^8]: Tweede Kamer der Staten-Generaal, Kamerstuk 33 750 VI, nr. 116, letter of the Minister van Veiligheid en Justitie, March 27, 2014. https://www.eerstekamer.nl/behandeling/20140327/brief_regering/document3/f=/vjifeja4nlzk.pdf
[^9]: "Politicians and officials named in court as 'boy brothel' case begins," DutchNews.nl, April 18, 2016. https://www.dutchnews.nl/news/2016/04/politicians-and-officials-named-in-court-as-boy-brothel-case-begins/
[^10]: "Forced child prostitution case: Netherlands elite, royalty under microscope," NL Times, April 18, 2016. https://nltimes.nl/node/28758
[^10]: "Forced child prostitution case: Netherlands elite, royalty under microscope," NL Times, April 18, 2016. https://nltimes.nl/2016/04/18/forced-child-prostitution-case-netherlands-elite-royalty-microscope
[^11]: "Dutroux case and X-Dossier victim-witnesses," crimesandconsequences.com, updated 2021. PV 117.535, November 19, 1996, as quoted in the document. https://crimesandconsequences.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/dutroux-case-and-x-dossier-victim-witnesses.pdf
[^12]: Dovey, S. *Eye of the Chickenhawk.* Thehotstar, 2023.
[^12]: Dovey, S. *Eye of the Chickenhawk,* on the bookkeeper's account, the accountant's dossier and the Glandorf investigation. Thehotstar, 2023.
[^13]: Kamer van Koophandel, Handelsregister, entries 33304101, 65922646 and 09208081. https://opencorporates.com/companies/nl/33304101

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10 - PEOPLE/(H-M)/R.C. Horsch.md
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21
10 - PEOPLE/(H-M)/Ramon J. Martinez.md
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@ -6,15 +6,22 @@ tags:
- The_Finders
- Washington_DC
- 1980s
summary: "Ramon J. Martinez was the U.S. Customs Special Agent in Washington D.C. who conducted the February 1987 investigation of The Finders' properties and authored the reports documenting warehouse contents, CIA interference in the investigation, and the subsequent suppression of the case."
summary: "Ramon J. Martinez was the U.S. Customs Special Agent whose February and April 1987 reports documented the contents of The Finders' warehouse and the end of the investigation."
location: "Washington, D.C."
updated: 2026-10-15
relations:
- type: investigated
with: "[[The Finders]]"
start: 1987-02-05
end: 1987-04-13
fn: 1
---
Ramon J. Martinez was a U.S. Customs Special Agent based in Washington D.C. who conducted the primary federal investigation of [[The Finders]]' properties in February 1987. His reports, filed February 7, 1987 and April 13, 1987, constitute the principal primary documentary record of what investigators found at the group's warehouse and Glover Park properties, including the telex communications describing international operations involving children and the subsequent CIA interference in the investigation. Both reports were included in the FBI Vault's November 2019 release of Finders documents under FOIA case number 1372462-0.[^1][^2]
### The 1987 Finders Investigation
Martinez was called in by Metropolitan Police to assist with the investigation after the van used to transport six malnourished children in Tallahassee, Florida on February 4, 1987 was traced to [[The Finders]]' warehouse at 1307 Fourth Street NE in Washington D.C. He executed search warrants on the warehouse and the Glover Park duplex alongside MPD Detective Bradley on February 5-6, 1987.[^1]
Martinez was called in by Metropolitan Police to assist with the investigation after the van used to transport six malnourished children in Tallahassee, Florida on February 4, 1987 was traced to The Finders' warehouse at 1307 Fourth Street NE in Washington D.C. He executed search warrants on the warehouse and the Glover Park duplex alongside MPD Detective Bradley on February 5-6, 1987.[^1]
His February 7, 1987 report documented the following at the warehouse:
@ -36,9 +43,9 @@ Martinez's overall documented assessment: the files indicated "international tra
On February 6, 1987, the [[Federal Bureau of Investigation|FBI]] took over the investigation and took possession of the computers and floppy disks seized from Finders properties. The FBI's Foreign Counterintelligence Division directed the Metropolitan Police Department to classify all MPD reports as Secret and directed MPD not to brief the FBI's own Washington Field Office.[^1][^2]
In late March or early April 1987, Martinez met with MPD Sgt. [[John H. Stitcher Jr.]], who informed him that the investigation "had become a CIA internal matter" and that "the Finders was a CIA front gone bad." An MPD report filed by Stitcher on February 19, 1987 had previously documented a CIA official's acknowledgment that the investigation was "treading on their toes," that the CIA had "had someone working on the case since it first broke," and that the agency had a "vested interest" in the group.[^1]
On March 31, 1987 Martinez contacted an MPD detective to review the seized documents, and on April 2, 1987 he spoke at the Metropolitan Police Department with a third party who discussed the case with him on an "off the record" basis. Martinez reported that this person said the MPD report had been classified secret, that the FBI had directed MPD not to advise the FBI's Washington Field Office, that the FBI had withdrawn from the investigation several weeks earlier, and that the investigation had become a CIA internal matter.[^3] The same person said the State Department had advised MPD that the passport holders' travel to Moscow, North Korea and North Vietnam from the late 1950s to the mid-1970s was within the law.[^3] A Customs Service memorandum quoted by U.S. News & World Report in December 1993 recorded that the CIA "admitted to owning the Finders organization as a front for a domestic computer training operation but that it had gone bad."[^4] An MPD report filed by Stitcher on February 19, 1987 had previously documented a CIA official's acknowledgment that the investigation was "treading on their toes," that the CIA had "had someone working on the case since it first broke," and that the agency had a "vested interest" in the group.[^1]
Martinez's April 13, 1987 report concluded: "The MPD report has been classified SECRET... FBI had withdrawn from the investigation... FBI Foreign Counter Intelligence Division had directed MPD not to advise the FBI Washington Field Office... No further information will be available. No further action will be taken."[^1]
Martinez's April 13, 1987 report concluded: "No further information will be available. No further action will be taken."[^3]
### Professional Consequences
@ -48,10 +55,12 @@ In 1994, the U.S. Customs Service proposed to remove Martinez from his position.
### Significance as a Primary Source
Martinez's reports, confirmed authentic by the FBI Vault's 2019 release, remain the most detailed primary-source description of what federal investigators found at [[The Finders]]' properties. The key evidentiary limitation is that no second investigator present at the same raids independently confirmed all elements of his reports in records accessible to the public, particularly the specific telex describing the Hong Kong children purchase order.[^3] His April 1987 report provides the primary documentary basis for the claim that the CIA intervened to end the investigation.
Martinez's reports, confirmed authentic by the FBI Vault's 2019 release, remain the most detailed primary-source description of what federal investigators found at The Finders' properties. The key evidentiary limitation is that no second investigator present at the same raids independently confirmed all elements of his reports in records accessible to the public, particularly the specific telex describing the Hong Kong children purchase order.[^5] His April 1987 report provides the primary documentary basis for the claim that the CIA intervened to end the investigation.
### Footnotes
[^1]: Martinez, Ramon J. U.S. Customs Service Reports, February 7, 1987 and April 13, 1987. Internet Archive, https://archive.org/details/ted-gunderson-fbi-the-finders.
[^2]: MintPress News. "Losing Finders: How the US Government Worked to Keep the CIA Connection Secret." 2019. https://www.mintpressnews.com/finders-cult-us-government-worked-keep-cia-connection-secret/277948/. Also: FBI Vault, "The Finders," FOIA case number 1372462-0, vault.fbi.gov/the-finders.
[^3]: Sword, Autumn. "Were 'The Finders' a CIA-Fronted Satanic Cult?" Skeptical Inquirer, February 28, 2023. https://skepticalinquirer.org/exclusive/were-the-finders-a-cia-fronted-satanic-cult/.
[^3]: U.S. Customs Service, Report of Investigation (Continuation), signed by Ramon J. Martinez, April 13, 1987, FBI Vault "The Finders," FOIA 1372462-0, Part 2 of 4. https://archive.org/details/report_of_investigation_finders
[^4]: Witkin, Gordon, Peter Cary, and Angel Martinez. "Through a glass, very darkly: Cops, spies and a very odd investigation." U.S. News & World Report, December 27, 1993. Text as enclosed in FBI WMFO teletype dated December 23, 1993, FBI Vault "The Finders," FOIA 1372462-0, Part 1 of 4. https://archive.org/details/the-finders-part-01-of-04
[^5]: Sword, Autumn. "Were 'The Finders' a CIA-Fronted Satanic Cult?" Skeptical Inquirer, February 28, 2023. https://skepticalinquirer.org/exclusive/were-the-finders-a-cia-fronted-satanic-cult/.

51
10 - PEOPLE/(H-M)/Salvatore La Russa.md
View file

@ -37,9 +37,9 @@ relations:
- type: relative_of
with: "[[Michael LaRussa]]"
role: "brother"
fn: 17
fn: 22
created: 2026-09-23
updated: 2026-10-07
updated: 2026-10-15
---
Salvatore "Sam the Barber" LaRussa (1938 to August 18, 1996) was a [[Philadelphia]] barber, bust-out bar operator, restaurateur and club owner who gained notoriety in law enforcement and underworld circles through his friendship with [[Nicodemo Scarfo]].[^1] [[R.C. Horsch]] said that most of the budget of the 1973 pornographic feature *[[The Erotic Memoirs of a Male Chauvinist Pig]]* came from LaRussa.[^2]
@ -54,19 +54,21 @@ In the early 1960s, while in his early twenties, LaRussa began opening what came
The Crime Commission listed bust-out operations at several Locust Street addresses in its 1974 report on police corruption in Philadelphia, among them the Skabidoo/AU in the Family at 1301 Locust Street, the Why Not Lounge at 1305 Locust Street and the RD Club on the second floor at 1301 Locust Street.[^5]
The Crime Commission's 1974 report also describes payments to police. It says that an officer passed word of an anticipated raid on liquor establishments to LaRussa, owner of the Sugar Shack, which was not raided.[^6] The report describes LaRussa as the manager of the Why Not Lounge, owned by [[Irvin Goltzer]], and says that LaRussa "also negotiated the payoffs" to uniformed officers. It quotes LaRussa advising Goltzer to pay, or "they will bust the joint."[^7] In a recorded conversation an officer told Goltzer, "I always understood that Sam the Barber [LaRussa] ran the place," and Goltzer replied, "He works for me."[^8] In another passage an officer said, "I took a couple of Sammy the Barber's joints. I took the Bag O'Nails."[^9] The report also describes a month in which Goltzer and LaRussa ran the Brass Monkey, a former bust-out operation at 1227 Walnut Street, at the request of its owner.[^10]
In the early 1970s LaRussa bought the [[Piccadilly Club]] on [[South Street (Philadelphia)|South Street]] near Front, reopened it as Scruples and later renamed it Christine's, after his granddaughter.[^3] Next door he opened [[La Cucina Ristorante]], a restaurant near Second and South Streets that he owned.[^1][^3]
### La Cucina and the Scarfo circle
The Crime Commission's 1990 report describes La Cucina Ristorante, 121 South Street, as having "long been a hangout for members of Scarfo's LCN Family."[^4] [[Philip Leonetti]], Scarfo's nephew, said that "There was a place on South Street called La Cucina that we used to go to. Sam the Barber, who was with us, owned it. We rented the place out and threw a big party," and placed there the Christmas party that Scarfo threw for himself after he became boss.[^6] In the mid-1980s Scarfo and several of his senior associates were frequent customers at La Cucina.[^1] In a 1987 account, [[Thomas DelGiorno]] said that on one night he met Scarfo, Leonetti and [[Salvatore Merlino]] at La Cucina, "a restaurant on South Street near Front," and told the three men that [[Salvatore Testa]] had been murdered.[^7]
The Crime Commission's 1990 report describes La Cucina Ristorante, 121 South Street, as having "long been a hangout for members of Scarfo's LCN Family."[^4] [[Philip Leonetti]], Scarfo's nephew, said that "There was a place on South Street called La Cucina that we used to go to. Sam the Barber, who was with us, owned it. We rented the place out and threw a big party," and placed there the Christmas party that Scarfo threw for himself after he became boss.[^11] In the mid-1980s Scarfo and several of his senior associates were frequent customers at La Cucina.[^1] In a 1987 account, [[Thomas DelGiorno]] said that on one night he met Scarfo, Leonetti and [[Salvatore Merlino]] at La Cucina, "a restaurant on South Street near Front," and told the three men that [[Salvatore Testa]] had been murdered.[^12]
Scarfo's 1985 Christmas party at the restaurant drew police attention.[^1] The journalist [[George Anastasia]] quoted an unnamed participant describing Scarfo hosting "this big thing" at La Cucina that Christmas, with "forty, maybe fifty" members present from about two o'clock and invited nonmembers arriving after four o'clock.[^8] In the 1987 extortion trial, prosecutors showed the jury an FBI videotape of [[Leland Beloff]], [[Robert Rego]] and former state senator [[Henry Cianfrani]] entering "LaCucina Ristorante Extraordinaire, 117 South Street," at 4:30 p.m. on December 19, 1985, when a Scarfo Christmas party allegedly was under way inside.[^9] [[George Anastasia]] wrote that during a celebration at La Cucina, Scarfo offered [[Nicholas Caramandi]] his personal congratulations.[^10]
Scarfo's 1985 Christmas party at the restaurant drew police attention.[^1] The journalist [[George Anastasia]] quoted an unnamed participant describing Scarfo hosting "this big thing" at La Cucina that Christmas, with "forty, maybe fifty" members present from about two o'clock and invited nonmembers arriving after four o'clock.[^13] In the 1987 extortion trial, prosecutors showed the jury an FBI videotape of [[Leland Beloff]], [[Robert Rego]] and former state senator [[Henry Cianfrani]] entering "LaCucina Ristorante Extraordinaire, 117 South Street," at 4:30 p.m. on December 19, 1985, when a Scarfo Christmas party allegedly was under way inside.[^14] George Anastasia wrote that during a celebration at La Cucina, Scarfo offered [[Nicholas Caramandi]] his personal congratulations.[^15]
### The Whitemarsh house
In the 1987 trial, Caramandi described an alleged event on November 25, 1984, "in a house in [[Whitemarsh Township, Pennsylvania|Whitemarsh]], [[Montgomery County, Pennsylvania|Montgomery County]]," with some 30 Mafia members standing around a dining-room table, at which he was initiated into the Mafia. He testified that Scarfo put a piece of tissue paper in his palm and lit it.[^11] The Third Circuit's 1990 opinion in [[United States v. Pungitore]] states that in the fall of 1984 [[Charles Iannece]] and [[Joseph Grande]], along with government witness Caramandi, became made members.[^12]
In the 1987 trial, Caramandi described an alleged event on November 25, 1984, "in a house in [[Whitemarsh Township, Pennsylvania|Whitemarsh]], [[Montgomery County, Pennsylvania|Montgomery County]]," with some 30 Mafia members standing around a dining-room table, at which he was initiated into the Mafia. He testified that Scarfo put a piece of tissue paper in his palm and lit it.[^16] The Third Circuit's 1990 opinion in [[United States v. Pungitore]] states that in the fall of 1984 [[Charles Iannece]] and [[Joseph Grande]], along with government witness Caramandi, became made members.[^17]
Caramandi told Anastasia that "Finally, we get to the house and it's Sam the Barber's house," in Whitemarsh, which he said LaRussa built himself and was later offered about nine hundred thousand dollars for. Anastasia wrote that thirty-five members of the Philadelphia mob looked on as Scarfo administered the oath, and that LaRussa had left his house before the ceremony began; by four o'clock that afternoon, he wrote, the ceremonies were over and the drinks and food were served.[^13]
Caramandi told Anastasia that "Finally, we get to the house and it's Sam the Barber's house," in Whitemarsh, which he said LaRussa built himself and was later offered about nine hundred thousand dollars for. Anastasia wrote that thirty-five members of the Philadelphia mob looked on as Scarfo administered the oath, and that LaRussa had left his house before the ceremony began; by four o'clock that afternoon, he wrote, the ceremonies were over and the drinks and food were served.[^18]
LaRussa's own account, given to a federal grand jury in 1987, concerned his home in Whitemarsh. He said he had invited Scarfo to his home several times and that Scarfo finally accepted. LaRussa said he was called away to work that day and did not share in a catered meal for about 40 people that he had brought in from his restaurant. He told the grand jury: "I told him it's my pleasure to have him there."[^1] Caramandi later testified that he and two other mob figures were formally initiated, or "made," that afternoon, after LaRussa had left the house.[^1] DelGiorno and Caramandi testified that LaRussa allowed Scarfo to use his Whitemarsh home for Mafia initiation ceremonies.[^3] The Crime Commission's 1990 report states the same of the two witnesses' testimony.[^4]
@ -74,7 +76,7 @@ LaRussa's own account, given to a federal grand jury in 1987, concerned his home
LaRussa told the grand jury that he was a frequent guest at Scarfo's waterfront home in [[Fort Lauderdale, Florida|Fort Lauderdale]], had supervised construction work there, and usually picked up the check when Scarfo ate at La Cucina. He said he was in the dark about Scarfo's mob activities: "I never ask him any questions," he said. "We go out. We have dinner. We eat. We drink. We laugh. Christmas, we exchange gifts."[^1]
Leonetti said that Scarfo had him pay $650,000 in cash for a Fort Lauderdale house on the water, which Scarfo named Casablanca South. He said that "Sam wasn't a made guy, but he was with us," that Scarfo put LaRussa in charge of the renovations, and that Scarfo ended up spending close to $100,000 on them.[^14]
Leonetti said that Scarfo had him pay $650,000 in cash for a Fort Lauderdale house on the water, which Scarfo named Casablanca South. He said that "Sam wasn't a made guy, but he was with us," that Scarfo put LaRussa in charge of the renovations, and that Scarfo ended up spending close to $100,000 on them.[^19]
### The 1973 film
@ -84,11 +86,11 @@ Horsch then said that "Sam was always complaining that it didn't make any money,
### Waterfront clubs
LaRussa operated establishments along South Street and, most recently, along [[Delaware Avenue]].[^1] In the 1990s he opened clubs along the [[Delaware River]] waterfront, among them [[Club Vegas]], the [[South Beach Club]] and the [[Aztec Club]]. The Aztec Club was one he built, operated and later sold. A correction published August 21, 1996 stated that he constructed Club Vegas and South Beach but did not own the building or the liquor license of either.[^3] In May 1992 the Aztec Club was among the waterfront's old showplace standbys, with the [[Riverfront Dinner Theater]] and the Barbary.[^15] In May 1995 Club Vegas was new that year among about a dozen clubs along the waterfront.[^16]
LaRussa operated establishments along South Street and, most recently, along [[Delaware Avenue]].[^1] In the 1990s he opened clubs along the [[Delaware River]] waterfront, among them [[Club Vegas]], the [[South Beach Club]] and the [[Aztec Club]]. The Aztec Club was one he built, operated and later sold. A correction published August 21, 1996 stated that he constructed Club Vegas and South Beach but did not own the building or the liquor license of either.[^3] In May 1992 the Aztec Club was among the waterfront's old showplace standbys, with the [[Riverfront Dinner Theater]] and the Barbary.[^20] In May 1995 Club Vegas was new that year among about a dozen clubs along the waterfront.[^21]
### Family
LaRussa was married twice.[^3] His brother [[Michael LaRussa]] was described in 2012 as the owner of [[Dante & Luigi's]] at 10th and Catharine Streets in Bella Vista, where he said: "I do still have people that are 'connected' come in here. I don't make a fuss about it."[^17]
LaRussa was married twice.[^3] His brother [[Michael LaRussa]] was described in 2012 as the owner of [[Dante & Luigi's]] at 10th and Catharine Streets in Bella Vista, where he said: "I do still have people that are 'connected' come in here. I don't make a fuss about it."[^22]
### Death and survivors
@ -96,20 +98,27 @@ LaRussa died of a heart attack on Sunday, August 18, 1996. The Inquirer gave the
The Inquirer listed four sons, Joseph, Salvatore Jr., Michael and Giovanni, a daughter, Sharlene Pantisano, and five grandchildren.[^1] The Daily News listed three sons and a daughter besides the fifth child, and said that his companion of eight years, [[Nadeen Seuss]], had recently borne him that child, Giovanni, named for a brother who had died 19 years earlier.[^3]
### Footnotes
[^1]: Anastasia, George, "Salvatore Larussa, 58, Friend Of Mob Figures," *Philadelphia Inquirer*, August 21, 1996, Wayback copy of the articles.philly.com page: https://web.archive.org/web/20150928205738id_/http://articles.philly.com/1996-08-21/news/25645305_1_nicodemo-little-nicky-scarfo-grand-jury-mob-activities
[^2]: West, Ashley, "Unknowing Ray Horsch, Episode 2: Performance," *The Rialto Report*, Podcast 172, September 20, 2026, audio transcript at 20:33 to 21:07 and 28:59 to 29:49 (republishing interviews recorded in 2013): https://www.therialtoreport.com/2026/09/20/ray-horsch-3/ In the transcript, "Sam" without a surname follows the reference to Sam Lake and is used for the buyer, the person complaining and the person said to have made four or five million dollars.
[^3]: Caparella, Kitty, "Heart Attack Claims `Sam The Barber'," *Philadelphia Daily News*, August 20, 1996, with the correction published August 21, 1996, Wayback copy: https://web.archive.org/web/2015id_/http://articles.philly.com/1996-08-20/news/25645508_1_heart-transplant-heart-attack-mob
[^4]: Pennsylvania Crime Commission, *Organized Crime in Pennsylvania: A Decade of Change, 1990 Report* (1991), p. 159 (entry for Salvatore LaRussa, also known as Samuel LaRussa, Salvatore LaRusso and "Sam the Barber"; the index also lists La Cucina Ristorante, 121 South Street, at p. 159), NCJ 133208: https://www.ojp.gov/pdffiles1/Digitization/133208NCJRS.pdf
[^5]: Pennsylvania Crime Commission, *Report on Police Corruption and the Quality of Law Enforcement in Philadelphia* (1974), public document on Internet Archive: https://archive.org/details/reportonpoliceco00penn
[^6]: Leonetti, Philip, with Scott Burnstein, *Mafia Prince: Inside America's Most Violent Crime Family and the Bloody Fall of La Cosa Nostra* (Philadelphia: Running Press, 2012), pp. 131-133 (lending copy): https://archive.org/details/mafiaprinceinsid0000leon
[^7]: Daughen, Joseph R., "It All Began With Bug On One Mobster's Pad," *Philadelphia Daily News*, April 10, 1987, Wayback copy: https://web.archive.org/web/2015id_/http://articles.philly.com/1987-04-10/news/26194567_1_salvatore-testa-scarfo-family-mob-members
[^8]: Anastasia, George, *Blood and Honor: Inside the Scarfo Mob, the Mafia's Most Violent Family* (New York: William Morrow, 1991), p. 277 (lending copy): https://archive.org/details/bloodhonorinside00anas The passage does not name the quoted speaker.
[^9]: Smith, Jim, "Prosecution Rests Case In Scarfo Trial," *Philadelphia Daily News*, May 4, 1987, Wayback copy: https://web.archive.org/web/2015id_/http://articles.philly.com/1987-05-04/news/26163517_1_philadelphia-south-jersey-extortion-case-nicodemo-little-nicky-scarfo
[^10]: Anastasia, *Blood and Honor*, p. 211 (lending copy): https://archive.org/details/bloodhonorinside00anas
[^11]: Smith, Jim, "Big Scores Easy For Caramandi," *Philadelphia Daily News*, May 1, 1987, Wayback copy: https://web.archive.org/web/2015id_/http://articles.philly.com/1987-05-01/news/26161878_1_nicodemo-little-nicky-scarfo-mafia-members-knife
[^12]: *United States v. Pungitore*, 910 F.2d 1084 (3d Cir. 1990), text from the Caselaw Access Project: https://static.case.law/f2d/910/cases/1084-01.json
[^13]: Anastasia, *Blood and Honor*, pp. 214-215, 217, quoting Caramandi (lending copy; the book's index lists LaRussa at pp. 214 and 215): https://archive.org/details/bloodhonorinside00anas
[^14]: Leonetti, *Mafia Prince*, pp. 191, 193 (lending copy): https://archive.org/details/mafiaprinceinsid0000leon
[^15]: de la Vina, Mark, "Riverfront Jam Once Just Wet, It's Getting Wild," *Philadelphia Daily News*, May 22, 1992, Wayback copy: https://web.archive.org/web/2015id_/http://articles.philly.com/1992-05-22/news/26015302_1_waterfront-entertainment-aztec-club
[^16]: Weiner, Jennifer, "Checking Out The Clubs . . .," *Philadelphia Inquirer*, May 19, 1995, Wayback copy: https://web.archive.org/web/2015id_/http://articles.philly.com/1995-05-19/entertainment/25672572_1_club-vegas-waterfront-family-reunion-day
[^17]: Bender, William, "Dante & Luigi's: Still a longtime hit," *Philadelphia Daily News*, January 30, 2012: https://www.inquirer.com/philly/hp/news_update/20120130_Dante___Luigi_s__Still_a_longtime_hit.html
[^6]: Pennsylvania Crime Commission, *Report on Police Corruption and the Quality of Law Enforcement in Philadelphia* (1974), p. 108. https://archive.org/details/reportonpoliceco00penn
[^7]: Pennsylvania Crime Commission, *Report on Police Corruption and the Quality of Law Enforcement in Philadelphia* (1974), pp. 112-113 (manager, p. 112; "also negotiated the payoffs" and "they will bust the joint," p. 113). https://archive.org/details/reportonpoliceco00penn
[^8]: Pennsylvania Crime Commission, *Report on Police Corruption and the Quality of Law Enforcement in Philadelphia* (1974), p. 114 (taped conversation between Goltzer and an officer, as quoted in the report). https://archive.org/details/reportonpoliceco00penn
[^9]: Pennsylvania Crime Commission, *Report on Police Corruption and the Quality of Law Enforcement in Philadelphia* (1974), p. 117. https://archive.org/details/reportonpoliceco00penn
[^10]: Pennsylvania Crime Commission, *Report on Police Corruption and the Quality of Law Enforcement in Philadelphia* (1974), p. 124. https://archive.org/details/reportonpoliceco00penn
[^11]: Leonetti, Philip, with Scott Burnstein, *Mafia Prince: Inside America's Most Violent Crime Family and the Bloody Fall of La Cosa Nostra* (Philadelphia: Running Press, 2012), pp. 131-133 (lending copy): https://archive.org/details/mafiaprinceinsid0000leon
[^12]: Daughen, Joseph R., "It All Began With Bug On One Mobster's Pad," *Philadelphia Daily News*, April 10, 1987, Wayback copy: https://web.archive.org/web/2015id_/http://articles.philly.com/1987-04-10/news/26194567_1_salvatore-testa-scarfo-family-mob-members
[^13]: Anastasia, George, *Blood and Honor: Inside the Scarfo Mob, the Mafia's Most Violent Family* (New York: William Morrow, 1991), p. 277 (lending copy): https://archive.org/details/bloodhonorinside00anas The passage does not name the quoted speaker.
[^14]: Smith, Jim, "Prosecution Rests Case In Scarfo Trial," *Philadelphia Daily News*, May 4, 1987, Wayback copy: https://web.archive.org/web/2015id_/http://articles.philly.com/1987-05-04/news/26163517_1_philadelphia-south-jersey-extortion-case-nicodemo-little-nicky-scarfo
[^15]: Anastasia, *Blood and Honor*, p. 211 (lending copy): https://archive.org/details/bloodhonorinside00anas
[^16]: Smith, Jim, "Big Scores Easy For Caramandi," *Philadelphia Daily News*, May 1, 1987, Wayback copy: https://web.archive.org/web/2015id_/http://articles.philly.com/1987-05-01/news/26161878_1_nicodemo-little-nicky-scarfo-mafia-members-knife
[^17]: *United States v. Pungitore*, 910 F.2d 1084 (3d Cir. 1990), text from the Caselaw Access Project: https://static.case.law/f2d/910/cases/1084-01.json
[^18]: Anastasia, *Blood and Honor*, pp. 214-215, 217, quoting Caramandi (lending copy; the book's index lists LaRussa at pp. 214 and 215): https://archive.org/details/bloodhonorinside00anas
[^19]: Leonetti, *Mafia Prince*, pp. 191, 193 (lending copy): https://archive.org/details/mafiaprinceinsid0000leon
[^20]: de la Vina, Mark, "Riverfront Jam Once Just Wet, It's Getting Wild," *Philadelphia Daily News*, May 22, 1992, Wayback copy: https://web.archive.org/web/2015id_/http://articles.philly.com/1992-05-22/news/26015302_1_waterfront-entertainment-aztec-club
[^21]: Weiner, Jennifer, "Checking Out The Clubs . . .," *Philadelphia Inquirer*, May 19, 1995, Wayback copy: https://web.archive.org/web/2015id_/http://articles.philly.com/1995-05-19/entertainment/25672572_1_club-vegas-waterfront-family-reunion-day
[^22]: Bender, William, "Dante & Luigi's: Still a longtime hit," *Philadelphia Daily News*, January 30, 2012: https://www.inquirer.com/philly/hp/news_update/20120130_Dante___Luigi_s__Still_a_longtime_hit.html

25
10 - PEOPLE/(H-M)/Sam Lake.md
View file

@ -81,7 +81,7 @@ relations:
with: "[[Scorpio '70]]"
start: 1970
role: "producer, and writer from an idea by Lake"
fn: 16
fn: 17
created: 2026-09-23
updated: 2026-10-15
---
@ -110,23 +110,23 @@ The film magazine [[Take One]] named the company in its March-April 1973 issue.
The [[Boxoffice (magazine)|Boxoffice]] booking chart of the Canadian edition, dated February 4, 1974, lists the film under the distributor "Mature," with a booking date of October 15, 1973.[^14] Take One attributes the company to Bob Sumner, and Horsch attributes it to Lake.
A New York corporation named Mature Pictures, Inc. appears in the state registry under the alternate name Mature Pictures Incorporated. Its status is listed as inactive, with the dissolution type "Dissolution By Proclamation / Annulment Of Authority." Its registered address is in care of the law firm Kassner & Detsky at 350 Fifth Avenue.[^15]
A New York corporation named Mature Pictures, Inc. appears in the state registry under the alternate name Mature Pictures Incorporated. Its status is listed as inactive, with the dissolution type "Dissolution By Proclamation / Annulment Of Authority." Its registered address is in care of the law firm Kassner & Detsky at 350 Fifth Avenue.[^15] In *Walt Disney Productions v. Mature Pictures Corp.* (Southern District of New York, No. 75 Civ. 394, decided February 14, 1975), Judge Kevin Thomas Duffy granted [[The Walt Disney Company|Walt Disney Productions]] and the Walt Disney Music Company a preliminary injunction over the use of the "Mickey Mouse March" in a film titled *The Life and Times of the Happy Hooker* or *The Life and Times of Xaviera*. Kassner & Detsky, by Seymour S. Detsky, appeared for the defendants Mature Pictures Corp. and Robert Sumner.[^16]
### Scorpio '70
The [[American Film Institute]] catalog lists Sam Lake as the producer of *Scorpio '70* (1970), directed by [[Ron Sullivan]] from a script by Dario Finelli, with a writing credit to Lake "from an idea by." The catalog lists the distribution company as Sam Lake Enterprises.[^16]
The [[American Film Institute]] catalog lists Sam Lake as the producer of *Scorpio '70* (1970), directed by [[Ron Sullivan]] from a script by Dario Finelli, with a writing credit to Lake "from an idea by." The catalog lists the distribution company as Sam Lake Enterprises.[^17]
### Robert Sumner and Quality X
Alilunas wrote that Robert Sumner premiered *Deep Throat* at the [[World Theater]] in New York in 1972 "to record crowds," and that in spring 1977, as "president of Mature Pictures in New York," with his World Theater lease expiring, he put his film library on videotape, licensing titles from the [[Mitchell Brothers]], [[Alex de Renzy]] and [[Radley Metzger]] as well as his own. The initial investment was 75,000 dollars; the first stock was thirty cassettes at 110 dollars each, sold at the East World Theater. The label was Quality X, advertised in *Screw* from October 1977.[^4] By October 1978 the Sweetheart's Home Video Center stores of [[Arthur Morowitz]], in the lobbies of the World Theater and the Manhattan Twin, carried Quality X tapes supplied by Sumner.[^17] In 1979, Alilunas wrote, "Sumner's Mature Pictures" released [[Gerard Damiano]]'s *People* and *Misbehavin'* to theaters and on video at the same time, the first use of that release pattern.[^18]
Alilunas wrote that Robert Sumner premiered *Deep Throat* at the [[World Theater]] in New York in 1972 "to record crowds," and that in spring 1977, as "president of Mature Pictures in New York," with his World Theater lease expiring, he put his film library on videotape, licensing titles from the [[Mitchell Brothers]], [[Alex de Renzy]] and [[Radley Metzger]] as well as his own. The initial investment was 75,000 dollars; the first stock was thirty cassettes at 110 dollars each, sold at the East World Theater. The label was Quality X, advertised in *Screw* from October 1977.[^4] By October 1978 the Sweetheart's Home Video Center stores of [[Arthur Morowitz]], in the lobbies of the World Theater and the Manhattan Twin, carried Quality X tapes supplied by Sumner.[^18] In 1979, Alilunas wrote, "Sumner's Mature Pictures" released [[Gerard Damiano]]'s *People* and *Misbehavin'* to theaters and on video at the same time, the first use of that release pattern.[^19]
In a note based on his 2012 email correspondence with Revene, Alilunas wrote that the Swedish producer [[Per Sjöstedt]], investor for the director [[Joe Sarno]], kept connections to the New York adult-film trade "particularly with Sam Lake at Mature Pictures, where Sarno had made many of his early sexploitation films." Sjöstedt became assistant producer and production manager for Lake alongside the producer Robert Sumner, and Lake's connections "were deep, with links to Howard Farber and Arthur Morowitz's Distribpix." Sumner "also founded Quality-X Video," and the Sjöstedt connection led to the formation of [[Femme Productions]].[^3]
### The World Theater and Mature Enterprises
The [[Boston Globe]] obituary of the New York judge [[Joel J. Tyler]] reports that charges were filed in August 1972 against Mature Enterprises, the company that owned the New Mature World Theater, for promoting obscene material, and that the trial began in December 1972. The obituary says that the film tried was [[Deep Throat]], which had opened at that theater on June 12, 1972, and that Tyler fined Mature Enterprises 100,000 dollars, a sum later reduced on appeal.[^19]
The [[Boston Globe]] obituary of the New York judge [[Joel J. Tyler]] reports that charges were filed in August 1972 against Mature Enterprises, the company that owned the New Mature World Theater, for promoting obscene material, and that the trial began in December 1972. The obituary says that the film tried was [[Deep Throat]], which had opened at that theater on June 12, 1972, and that Tyler fined Mature Enterprises 100,000 dollars, a sum later reduced on appeal.[^20]
A game designer identified in video titles as "Remedy's Sam Lake" shares the name and is a different person.[^20]
A game designer identified in video titles as "Remedy's Sam Lake" shares the name and is a different person.[^21]
### Footnotes
@ -142,11 +142,12 @@ A game designer identified in video titles as "Remedy's Sam Lake" shares the nam
[^10]: GOTHAM RELEASING CORP. "Exec: Sam Lake, Pres.," 630 Ninth Ave., New York, *Motion Picture Exhibitor,* August-November 1960. https://lantern.mediahist.org/catalog/motionpictureexh64jaye_0_0637 The same listing, April-July 1964. https://lantern.mediahist.org/catalog/motionpictureexh71jaye_0_0302 Also September-December 1961 and September-December 1962 editions, https://lantern.mediahist.org/catalog/motionpictureexh68jaye_0_0460
[^11]: "Sam Lake Enterprises, Inc., 630 Ninth Ave., New York 36, N. Y.," and "Sam Lake, President," *The Film Daily Year Book of Motion Pictures 1963.* https://lantern.mediahist.org/catalog/1963filmdailyyea1963wids_0432
[^12]: "SAM LAKE of Sam Lake Enterprises Inc., New York, one of the foremost distributors of sex-exploitation pictures in the world," *CINE World,* nos. 6-7, April 1965. https://lantern.mediahist.org/catalog/cine-world-6-7_0022 Photograph caption identifying "U.S. Distributor Sam Lake," https://lantern.mediahist.org/catalog/cine-world-6-7_0014
[^13]: Morthland, John. "Porn Films: An In-Depth Report," *Take One,* vol. 3, no. 6 (March-April 1973), pp. 11-15. The passages quoted appear on page 15 and page 16 of the issue. https://archive.org/details/take-one-1973-03 and https://lantern.mediahist.org/catalog/take-one-1973-03_0016
[^13]: Morthland, John. "Porn Films: An In-Depth Report," *Take One,* vol. 3, no. 6 (March-April 1973), pp. 11-17. The Sumner passage appears on page 16 and the "highly visible" passage on page 17. https://archive.org/details/take-one-1973-03 and https://lantern.mediahist.org/catalog/take-one-1973-03_0016
[^14]: "Boxoffice Bookinguide," *Boxoffice* (Canadian edition), February 4, 1974, national booking chart, entry for *Erotic Memoirs/Male Chauvinist Pig* ("Mature 10-15-73"). https://archive.org/details/boxoffice-canadian-1974-02-04 and https://lantern.mediahist.org/catalog/boxoffice-canadian-1974-02-04_0018
[^15]: "MATURE PICTURES, INC.," New York (US) entity, status "Inactive," "Dissolution By Proclamation / Annulment Of Authority," registered address "%KASSNER & DETSKY, 350 FIFTH AVE., NEW YORK, NEW YORK, 10001," previously known as "MATURE PICTURES INCORPORATED." OpenCorporates, accessed October 15, 2026. https://opencorporates.com/companies/us_ny/248644
[^16]: "Scorpio '70 (1970)," *AFI Catalog of Feature Films,* production and distribution credits (producer "Sam Lake, Pres."; writer "Sam Lake, From an idea by"; distribution "Sam Lake Enterprises"). https://catalog.afi.com/Film/20729-SCORPIO-'70
[^17]: Alilunas, *Smutty Little Movies,* p. 75.
[^18]: Alilunas, *Smutty Little Movies,* p. 77.
[^19]: "Obituary of Judge Joel J. Tyler," *The Boston Globe,* January 16, 2012 (charges filed against Mature Enterprises in August 1972; trial began December 1972; the New Mature World Theater; fine of $100,000 later reduced on appeal). https://www.bostonglobe.com/metro/obituaries/2012/01/16/joel-tyler-judge-deep-throat-case/hbiQ0keQ0VW0y26CY035SL/story.html
[^20]: "Remedy's Sam Lake addresses Alan Wake fans," video title, Internet Archive item youtube-k5CRjoQKyY8. https://archive.org/details/youtube-k5CRjoQKyY8
[^16]: *Walt Disney Productions v. Mature Pictures Corp.*, 389 F. Supp. 1397 (S.D.N.Y. 1975) (No. 75 Civ. 394, Duffy, J., February 14, 1975; counsel Kassner & Detsky, Seymour S. Detsky, for defendants Mature Pictures Corp. and Robert Sumner). https://static.case.law/f-supp/389/cases/1397-01.json
[^17]: "Scorpio '70 (1970)," *AFI Catalog of Feature Films,* production and distribution credits (producer "Sam Lake, Pres."; writer "Sam Lake, From an idea by"; distribution "Sam Lake Enterprises"). https://catalog.afi.com/Film/20729-SCORPIO-'70
[^18]: Alilunas, *Smutty Little Movies,* p. 75.
[^19]: Alilunas, *Smutty Little Movies,* p. 77.
[^20]: "Obituary of Judge Joel J. Tyler," *The Boston Globe,* January 16, 2012 (charges filed against Mature Enterprises in August 1972; trial began December 1972; the New Mature World Theater; fine of $100,000 later reduced on appeal). https://www.bostonglobe.com/metro/obituaries/2012/01/16/joel-tyler-judge-deep-throat-case/hbiQ0keQ0VW0y26CY035SL/story.html
[^21]: "Remedy's Sam Lake addresses Alan Wake fans," video title, Internet Archive item youtube-k5CRjoQKyY8. https://archive.org/details/youtube-k5CRjoQKyY8