Paul DiCocco, Sr.

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Paul "Legs" DiCocco, Sr. (June 20, 1924-July 30, 1989) was a New York racketeer involved in illegal gambling and associate of mobster Carmine Galante.

A longtime gambler with a record of numerous minor charges of illegal gambling throughout his forty year career, authorities believed DiCocco to have ties to New York's underworld as well as controlling racketeering and criminal activities with Carmine Galante in Montreal, Quebec (Canada). He also had contacts in New York's labor unions as he and Nicholas Robilotto, President of Teamsters Local #294, later came under investigation of conspiring to underbid rival construction companies.

DiCocco was the focus of a 1951 grand jury investigation on corruption and illegal gambling in Schenectady County, which resulted from allegedly having a traffic ticket removed from city records. This would culminate in the resignation of Police Chief Joseph A. Peters who denied that he had removed the ticket.

Receiving a subpoena from Mayor Samuel S. Stratton, DiCocco appeared before a City Hall investigation on his supposed ties to organized crime and, within a half hour period, he had pled the Fourth and Fifth Amendments over 76 times during his testimony.

A later grand jury investigation continued throughout the 1970s and eventually indicted DiCocco on contempt and perjury in 1977. Shortly after his first trial ended in a hung jury, DiCocco pled guilty to obstructing governmental administration and contempt before a second trial could be held. DiCocco was placed on three years probation and fined $1,000.

Pleading guilty to felony charges, in November 1985, relating to the coercion of a Massachusetts-based gambling operation attempting to expand into five New York counties, including Schenectady, he was released from probation prior to his death on July 30, 1989.

His son, Paul DiCocco, Jr. is a driver for actor Tom Hanks and has appeared in several films including minor roles in Galaxy Quest and One Night at McCool's (2001) [1].

[edit] Further reading

United States. Congress. Senate. Committee on the Judiciary. Confirmation Hearings on Federal Appointments. Washington, D.C.: U.S. G.P.O., 1992. ISBN 978-0-16-037739-6 [2]
United States. Congress. Senate. Committee on Governmental Affairs. Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations. Organized Crime: 25 Years After Valachi: Hearings Before the Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations. 1988. [3]