Republican Minority leader DeLuca affidavit exposes ties with trashman James Galante

Seems like Minority Leader Louis DeLuca had a VERY close relationship with the trash king James Galante (you know, the guy who has ties to to a Genovese crime family member). Seems like DeLuca meet with Galante and asked him for a "favor" regarding a problem he had with someone and is now the minority leader is in a bit a trouble.

Actually, he's in a LOT of trouble.

UPDATE: Here's a better report on the story which includes how the Republican leaders are attempting to circle the wagons.

Senate Minority Leader Louis DeLuca was arrested Friday on charges that he asked a businessman at the center of a federal racketeering probe to rough up someone the senator believed had abused a relative.

State and federal authorities said DeLuca in 2005 sought help from James Galante, a Danbury trash hauler who first caught DeLuca's eye by making a large charitable contribution. Galante is currently awaiting trial on 72 counts of tax fraud, racketeering, threatening and extortion.

[...]

"When you approach someone who is alleged to be a member of organized crime or affiliated with organized crime and you ask for this help, and you slip a note to them in a diner as opposed to even having a conversation, I think it's fair to draw an inference that you don't exactly have the best of intentions," U.S. Attorney Kevin O'Connor said Friday.

[...]

DeLuca is scheduled to be arraigned Monday in Waterbury Superior Court.

"I tried to protect a family member who was vulnerable, who was in a physically abusive domestic relationship and who needed help," DeLuca said in a written statement. "My family and I went to the police three times to get help for my relative, but the police said that they couldn't help because the victim wouldn't file a complaint."

DeLuca said he was frustrated by the situation and discussed it with Galante. Authorities said the conversation occurred in April 2005 in a Woodbury diner, where Galante passed DeLuca a note that asked, "Do you want me to have someone pay him a visit?"

Authorities said DeLuca told Galante he wanted the offender roughed up and gave Galante the name and address of the alleged abuser.

The assault never happened. Prosecutors, who recovered the note in a search of Galante's home, said they stopped the beating by parking a police car in front of the associate's house.

Insane...it's like the Sopranos in Connecticut.

Here's a press release from the State of CT's Division of Criminal Justice.

Chief State’s Attorney Kevin T. Kane and Kevin J. O’Connor, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced today the arrest of LOUIS DeLUCA of Woodbury on one count for Conspiracy to Commit Threatening in the Second Degree.

Mr. DeLuca, who is the State Senator from the 32nd District and the Minority Leader of the Connecticut State Senate, is accused of conspiring with a Danbury-area businessman to arrange a threat against an individual whom Mr. DeLuca believed had abused one of his relatives.

The arrest is the result of information discovered in the course of a federal investigation of the businessman, who operates several trash hauling companies in western Connecticut and is under a 117-count federal indictment. The case against Mr. DeLuca will be jointly prosecuted in Waterbury Superior Court by the Office of the Chief State’s Attorney and the Office of the United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut.

According to the arrest warrant affidavit, Mr. DeLuca met with the businessman in April 2005 and described a problem that Mr. DeLuca was having with an individual whom he believed had abused one of his relatives. At that meeting, the businessman passed Mr. DeLuca a note containing the written question, "Do you want me to have someone pay him a visit?" Mr. DeLuca said "yes" and provided the businessman with the name and address of the intended target. The plan was subsequently called off, however, when authorities learned of it and made their presence known to the businessman's associate who was to have carried out the plan, the warrant alleges.

Mr. DeLuca was arrested today by Inspectors from the Office of the Chief State’s Attorney. He was released on a Written Promise to Appear in Waterbury Superior Court, G.A. No. 4, on Monday, June 4, 2007.

Conspiracy to Commit Threatening in the Second Degree is a class A misdemeanor punishable by a term of incarceration not to exceed one year and a fine not to exceed $2,000. The charge is merely an accusation and the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.

The best source of information regarding this story is from the great Christine Stuart of CTNewsJunkie.

The arrest warrant affidavit that lead to Senator Louis DeLuca’s arrest Friday claims DeLuca had a “close and confidential relationship with” Danbury trash hauler James Galante, who has ties to a Genovese crime family member.

The relationship “would explain why DeLuca would seek out Businessman A’s assistance and why Businessman A would be willing to help DeLuca,” the affidavit states. Galante is referred to as Businessman A in the affidavit.

In Sept. 2006 an undercover federal agent, posing as a business associate of Galante, met with DeLuca. At that meeting DeLuca told the agent, “anytime [Businessman A] needs anything, anything, within my power, that I can do, I will do.” DeLuca then told the agent he was shocked when Galante was indicted because he “is not a careless guy.” Then DeLuca advised the agent that if they needed his assistance the best way to contact him is through a specific individual because “nobody knows [about] that relationship.”

Two days later DeLuca met with the undercover agent again. The agent asked DeLuca to influence legislation to help Galante. DeLuca said, “I can’t influence it at this point because it’s out of my hands, but if it gets to the point where I have appointments, I can influence it that way. You know, if somebody, if it’s a commission that needs to be in that, that, is gonna be a watchdog on CRRA and make recommendations then I’ll make an appoint...generally I get an appointment.”

During this conversation the affidavit says DeLuca refused $5,000 in cash from the agent, saying he was “afraid them guys...tracing things and shit like that.” He later told the agent to tell Galante to “hang in there and I’ll keep my eyes and ears open.”

On Sept. 21, 2006 DeLuca had a meeting with FBI agents and “admitted that his true purpose of his meeting with Businessman A had nothing to do with securing employment for the target, but rather was to see if Businessman A could pay a visit to the target identified by DeLuca in order to scare him,” the affidavit states.

It was also learned during the course of the investigation that Galante made a large donation in 2001 to a charitable cause sponsored by DeLuca. “Thereafter, DeLuca used his influence to cause Businessman A to be named ‘Italian-American Man of the Year’ by the Connecticut Italian-American legislative caucus. These facts were later confirmed by DeLuca,” according to the affidavit.

Stuart has the affidavit and will make it available online later tonight.

UPDATE: Here's a copy of the arrest affidavit (pdf format). Hat tip again to CTNewsJunkie for scanning the document.