November 19, 2004

Gagliano denies mob links

Former federal Cabinet Minister Alphonso Gagliano had been through a lot in the last few months. He's been fingered as responsible for misspending millions of dollars in AdScam, he lost his Ambassadorship to to Denmark as a result and now, the ugly rumours he may have had some connection to the mafia have returned.

A New York Daily News article yesterday says an FBI informant has named Mr. Gagliano as a 'made man' in the Bonanno crime family. The former Public Works Minister denies he has any ties to the mob, while opposition MPs are demanding to know if the RCMP found anything to corroborate this kind of allegation in their routine screening of potential cabinet ministers.

Let's put this allegation in perspective. It comes from a mafia turncoat who is an admitted murderer and whose credibility is still uncertain (the FBI has not yet tested his information in court). These kinds of allegations first surfaced a decade ago before Mr. Gagliano was promoted to the front bench, so the RCMP would have known about the rumours and investigated before Mr. Gagliano was appointed to Cabinet.

Since he was finally given a Cabinet post, it is safe to say that either the RCMP found nothing to support the allegations or then-Prime Minister Jean Chrétien ignored the information he got from the cops. The latter seems very unlikely.

That having been said, the rumour is now front and centre once again and needs to be addressed by the government. It simply would not do to have had a member of the mob in Cabinet and Canadians deserve to know if the RCMP found evidence that would lead them to believe Mr. Gagliano was or was not involved with the mafia.

Paul Martin should clear this one up right away and tell Canadians what the RCMP found.

Further Reading:
Stoolie: Canada pol in mob (New York Daily News)
Claim pol's in mob rocks Canada (New York Daily News)
Gagliano denies report alleging Mob link (Toronto Star)
Gagliano denies ties to crime family (CBC News)
Alfonso Gagliano denies links to mafia (CTV News)

Posted by maxthecat at November 19, 2004 09:11 AM

http://www.maxsmewsings.com/mt/archives/2004/11/gagliano_denies_mob_links.php