'He was terrified of dying': Friend of Whitey Bulger victim who hoped to 'drop a bombshell' at gangster's trial reveals man's fears after he is found dead in the woods



Stephen Rakes, 59, was discovered dead with no sign of trauma on Wednesday on a secluded rural road in Lincoln, Massachusetts

Rakes was days from testifying against mobster James 'Whitey' Bulger

Had told friends he was going to give explosive testimony against Bulger



Rakes alleged that Bulger tried to extort his liquor store from him the 1980s



Bulger allegedly held a gun to Rakes' daughter's head to make him give up his business

Friends and family deny that Rakes would kill himself



Friends of a man who hoped to be key witness in the on-going trial of James 'Whitey' Bulger have revealed that he was terrified of dying - just hours after police confirmed that a body found in a secluded wooded area belonged to him.

The body of Stephen 'Stippo' Rakes was found at 1.30pm on Wednesday in Lincoln, Massachusetts and on Thursday afternoon, the Middlesex district attorney said that the autopsy found no sign of trauma to his body. Toxicology tests are now being carried out but could take several weeks.

Police are believed to have told Rakes' relatives that the death appeared to be a suicide. However, a source close to the family said that 'he had no phone, no wallet and police are still looking for his car.'

The stunning development comes just weeks after Rake, 59, revealed he was no longer scared of the gangster and that he was grateful to be alive to testify.

It also comes after he was denied the chance to testify that Bulger, 83, threatened his daughter at gunpoint in an effort to force him to turn over his South Boston liquor store as a headquarters for the notorious mobster for $100,000.'

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Last Picture: Stephen Rakes looks over his shoulder as he leaves the courthouse after attending the trial. The trial of James Bulger continues at the John Joseph Moakley United States Courthouse in Boston on July 8

His friend Steve Davis told the Boston Herald that Rakes had been terrified of dying.

Rakes himself had spoken out just last month to say he was happy to be alive, which he considered lucky as he knew hundreds of victims who were terrified of Bulger, he said.

'They took everything from me,' he said of the mob. 'They don't care about nothing. They don't care about what they take from you... At least I’m still alive. I’m alive and I’m grateful for that.'

Rakes, who had previously refused to testify against Bulger, had told Davis that he was 'nervous' about the 'bombshell' he thought he was going to drop on the stand at the feared mobster's trial.

'He was looking forward to taking the stand. He told me over and over he had a big bombshell to drop,' said Davis.

However, he was robbed of this chance on Tuesday when U.S. Attorney Carmen Ortiz informed Rakes that he was no longer needed as a witness - a decision that reportedly 'devastated' him.

Rakes had harbored decades of anger at Bulger and his accomplices, Stephen 'The Rifleman' Flemmi and Kevin Weeks, after they allegedly forced him to hand over his South Boston liquor store in 1984 by holding a gun to his daughter's head.

'The day I see him in a box, not breathing, will be better,' Rakes said in April.

Indeed, Rakes had been a constant presence at Bulger's trial at the US District Court in South Boston.

Attending every day for the past six weeks, the trial began after the notorious gangster was captured in California two years ago after 16 years on the run from authorities.

Scene: Lincoln Police guard the side of the road where Stephen Rakes was found dead on Wednesday 17 July

Secluded: This is Mill St in Lincoln, Massachusetts, where Stephen 'Stippo' Rakes was discovered dead

A long time friend of Rakes, Steve Davis, whose sister Debbie was allegedly killed by Bulger, said the

first indication of anything amiss with Rakes was on Wednesday afternoon when he was removed from the witness list of U.S. Attorney Carmen Ortiz at the U.S. District Court in South Boston.

This was because on Tuesday, Ortiz told Rakes that she did not plan to call him to testify, a decision that Davis said upset his friend.



A spokesman for Ortiz did not respond when asked to comment by the Boston Globe.

Davis, whose sister is one of 19 murders Bulger is charged with said that he realized something was wrong on Wednesday, when Rakes did not call him back.



He told the Boston Globe that Rakes thought Ortiz's decision had taken away his chance to refute the claims of Weeks, an associate of Bulger, that his claims about being extorted were untrue.



Middlesex District Attorney Marian Ryan's office confirmed on Thursday that a body was found at 1.30 p.m. on Wednesday in the area of Mill Street and that it was 59-year-old Rakes, of Quincy .

Testimony: Stephen Rakes smiles after greeting an acquaintance outside the liquor store he once owned in the South Boston neighborhood of Boston, Thursday, June 6th, 2013

Davis told ABC News that the last time he saw Rakes was on Tuesday in court but he failed to reach him during the night and alarms bells started ringing when he didn't meet him for breakfast on Wednesday.

'Stippo would not kill himself. Absolutely not,' said Davis to ABC News on Thursday morning.

Davis said that his friend was 'in good shape' and the two of them would frequently cycle across Boston.

James 'Whitey' Bulger: He was one of the nation's most wanted fugitives after he fled Boston in 1994. He was finally captured two years ago in Santa Monica, California and faces 32 counts, including 19 murder charges

'He had everything to live for and was looking forward to his day in court. It doesn't make sense.'

Experts watching the trial said that Rakes' death will not affect the outcome of the case against Bulger.



'He had a special level of outrage and really wanted to tell his story, but his story was not consistent' with prior testimony by key prosecution witness Kevin Weeks, said Rosanna Cavallaro, a Suffolk University criminal law professor to USA Today.

There were no obvious signs of trauma. The office of the Chief Medical Examiner is conducting an autopsy to determine the cause and manner of death.

Davis said he was told by authorities that Rakes was still dressed in the clothes he was wearing Tuesday when he was found in Lincoln.

Authorities initially said they believe that Rakes may have been out for a walk and suffered some kind of medical episode.



Rakes' death remains under investigation by Massachusetts State Police assigned to the district attorney's office and Lincoln Police.

Federal prosecutors confirmed Rakes was supposed to testify that Bulger and associate Stephen Flemmi threatened his daughter at gunpoint and forced him to turn over his South Boston liquor store to become Bulger's headquarters.

Bulger's right-hand man, Kevin Weeks testified last week Rakes' expected upcoming testimony that Bulger's gang put a gun to his daughter's head was bogus.

Arrested: This pair of file booking photos shows Stephen "The Rifleman" Flemmi, left, in 1974 from the Boston Police Department, and James "Whitey" Bulger, right, in 1984 from the FBI

Weeks, who was a close associate of Bulger's for two decades, later became a government witness and eventually led authorities to the bodies of people who were allegedly killed by Bulger and the gang.



He served five years in prison after pleading guilty to being an accessory to five murders.



Bulger stared straight ahead during much of Weeks' testimony and only glanced at him occasionally.

Weeks also described how Bulger acquired a liquor store in South Boston.



Prosecutors say Bulger forced Stephen Rakes to sell his liquor store to him in 1984 to use as a headquarters for his gang and as a source of ‘legitimate’ income.

Weeks denied that the gang forced Rakes to sell the store, saying Rakes had agreed with an offer from Bulger to buy the store for $100,000

He said when they arrived at Rakes' house to close the deal, Rakes said his wife didn't want to sell the store and complained about the selling price.

Steve Davis, brother of alleged murder victim Debra Davis, answers a reporter's question outside federal court on Monday, July 8th, in Boston while Kevin Weeks (right) speaks during a 2011 prison interview

Stephen Rakes (L) and Stephen Davis arrive for the first day of the trial of accused mob boss James "Whitey" Bulger at the U.S. Federal Courthouse in Boston, Massachusetts June 12, 2013

‘He was trying to shake us down,’ Weeks said.

At the time, Rakes' two young daughters were in the room and Bulger was bouncing one of the girls on his lap, Weeks said.



He said he pulled a gun out of his waistband and put it on the table. The girl on Bulger's lap reached for the gun, Weeks said. Bulger then told him to put it away.



Weeks said Bulger told Rakes he couldn't back out of the sale.

‘At that point, we went through with the deal,’ he said.



‘We didn't go to him to buy the store. He came to us. It wasn't your regular extortion,’ Weeks said.



Rakes, who was in the courtroom for Weeks' testimony, later disputed his account and said he was forced to sell his store to Bulger.

