Frank “Bobo” Marrapese a capo for the New England mafia also known as the Patriarca crime family plead guilty to racketeering conspiracy and was sentenced to nine years in prison. He was arrested back in 2011 for his role in an illegal gambling operation while he was on parole for a previous murder conviction. Marrapese will be credited for time served for the 2.5 years he has spent in prison since his arrest. Although he looked like an ordinary 70 year old senior citizen in court he has a reputation for being a vicious enforcer for the New England mob. He was caught on a secret wiretap in February 2011 in a conversation with mob associate Thomas “Red Ball” Hartley saying “People know about me and what im about, people soil their pants when they hear my name”.

“Frank Marrapese”

Marrapese spent 25 years in prison for the 1975 murder of mafia associate Richard A. “Dickie” Callei. The hit went unsolved for several years with Marrapese as a prime suspect before he was finally convicted for it in 1987. He was also charged with the mob murders of Anthony “The Moron” Mirabella and Ronald McElroy in the 1980’s but was found not guilty in both cases. Only five years out of prison and Marrapese had already resumed his criminal ways running the illegal sports gambling operation along with fellow mobsters Edward Lato and Alfred “Chippy” Scivola Jr. Both Lato and Scivola are currently in prison after pleading guilty to their parts in a mob shakedown scheme of Providence strip clubs.

The New England mafia is thought by many to be on the ropes and almost completely dismantled from recent convictions by the feds. Marrapese is another of the few remaining active Patricarca family mobsters taken off the streets in last couple of years. With many of its leaders now in prison and its remaining hierarchy aging many wonder how stable the La Cosa Nostra family in New England is currently and if any power remains.