Ralph F. Deleo, 82, was arrested Thursday, according to new court documents filed with the US District Court of Massachusetts. Deleo, who had been in the federal prison for about a decade, was released in parole in 2024, according to the website of the American prisons.
The details of his arrest have not yet been announced, but Deleo appeared on Thursday afternoon for a revocation hearing before the American Magistrate of Massachusetts Paul Levenson. He was informed of his rights and accusations against him before being referred in the care of federal officials, according to the minutes of the hearing.
Deleo was planned for a detention hearing at 2:30 p.m. Friday.
FBI spokesperson Kristen Settera said that Deleo had been placed in police custody “without incident”. She returned all the other questions to the office of the American prosecutor.
A spokesperson for the American lawyer for Massachusetts, Leah Foley, refused to comment on the arrest, pending the outcome of the hearing.
Deleo, who grew up and launched his criminal career in the Boston region, has reached the highest levels of the Colombo Crime family, based in New York, becoming a “street boss” renowned for about a year around 2008, according to the FBI.
He pleaded guilty in 2012 for sweeping racket accusations, as well as the illegal possession of firearms and ammunition. As part of the racketeering accusation, federal agents accused him of trafficking in illegal narcotics, extortion and loan sharks among others.
According to the FBI, the so-called “Deleo team” operated mainly in Massachusetts, Rhode Island, New York, Florida and Arkansas.
The Colombo family is considered one of the five most powerful criminal families in New York under the aegis of Cosa Nostra.
Deleo was found guilty of murder in Ohio for the 1977 murder of Dr. Walter Bond, according to the Columbus Dispatch. Deleo’s sentence was commissioned by the governor of Ohio Richard Celeste after serving 12 years.
Celeste told La Dépêche when he had agreed to commute Deleo’s sentence because he was assured that Deleo “was not going to be on the street,” said the newspaper.
https://www.wpri.com/target-12/mobster-ralph-dele-arrest-in-massachusetts/
