3 Chicago Mobsters Convicted In 10 Murders

CHICAGO -- A federal jury blamed 10 murders on three aging mobsters Thursday, after an extraordinary trial that included a parade of colorful witnesses who exposed the seedy inner workings of organized crime in Chicago.

NBC5's Charlie Wojciechowski reported that the jury found reputed mobster Joseph "Joey the Clown" Lombardo, 78; mob boss James Marcello, 65; and convicted loan shark Frank Calabrese Sr., 70; all guilty.

The jury found convicted jewel thief Paul Schiro, 70 not guilty.

The defendants were accused of taking part in a conspiracy that included 18 long-unsolved murders, illegal gambling, loan sharking and extortion.

The jury had already convicted the defendants of taking part in a racketeering conspiracy, but Thursday night's murder verdicts will boost their prison time.

"From what I can tell from the demeanor of the jurors, they have done their best," U.S. District Judge James B. Zagel said, suggesting the jury may be hopelessly deadlocked on some of the 18 murder allegations.

Four men already have been convicted by the jury of racketeering conspiracy and other charges involving illegal gambling, extortion, loan sharking and 18 long unsolved murders.

For the last eight days, the jury has tried to determine which murders if any are the individual responsibility of each defendant. If the jurors find that any defendant is individually responsible for a specific murder, that defendant faces a maximum life sentence.

Prosecutors had detailed gruesome killings, including events leading up to the trial's most high-profile death -- that of Tony "The Ant" Spilotro, who was beaten to death along with his brother, Michael, and buried in an Indiana cornfield.

Tony Spilotro, known as the mob's man in Las Vegas, was the inspiration for Joe Pesci's character in the 1995 movie "Casino." In the film, Pesci's character was beaten with bats and buried alive.

All defendants had pleaded not guilty, and any of the four found responsible for one or more of the killings faced a sentence of up to life in prison.

The star witness in the case was Frank Calabrese Sr.'s brother, "made guy" Nicholas Calabrese, who has pleaded guilty to the charges.

Throughout the trial, Frank Calabrese's colorful attorney, Joe Lopez, tried to paint Nick -- who has already pleaded guilty to 14 murders -- as the heavy.

When the trial opened, the prosecuting attorney told jurors: "This is not 'The Sopranos,' this is not 'The Godfather.' These are real people -- very corrupt and without honor."

The so-called Operation Family Secrets trial is the biggest organized crime case in Chicago in many years. The defendants were convicted of operating the Chicago Outfit, as the city's organized crime family is called, as a racketeering enterprise.