FBI agents got an extra juicy slice of inside info on the mafia this summer when they arrested a Brooklyn butcher, according to a new report.
Michael "Mike The Butcher" Virtuoso was taken into custody this past July on extortion charges linked to his Graham Ave. Meats & Deli shop in Williamsburg.
The New York Post reports that when agents searched the shop (known for serving the decadent "Godfather" sandwich) they discovered an extensive rolodex Virtuoso kept, complete with the names and contact information of many members of New York organized crime families.
From The Post:
He didn’t even bother to code or otherwise try to disguise his entries.
“For example, a slip of paper within one Rolodex contained the handwritten entry ‘Capo Lucchese’ and the names ‘Johnny Sideburns Cerello’ and ‘Glenn the Wheel Guadagno,’ ” Assistant US Attorney Stephen Frank wrote to a judge.
“Both men are convicted felons associated with the Lucchese organized crime family, and John Cerrella, also known as ‘Johnny Sideburns,’ is a captain in that family,” Frank wrote.
It also appears Virtuoso engaged in, what the Post likes to call, "mafia scrapbooking", collecting newspaper articles on the convictions of city mobsters including Bonanno boss Vincent “Vinny Gorgeous” Basciano.
Feds hope the rolodex, which also contains the contact info of acting Bonanoo capo Anthony “Little Anthony” Pipitone, will convince Judge Sandra Townes in court Tuesday that Virtuoso has too many mob ties to be allowed to make bail.
Virtuoso's lawyer maintains his client's innocence, and when Gothamist called Graham Avenue Meats and Deli Tuesday morning to inquire about the rolodex, a staffer responded, "I don't know what the paper wrote, but it's all bullshit."
When Virtuoso was arrested earlier this summer, feds told The New York Daily News that in one horrifying incident, Virtuoso allegedly brought a debtor inside the walk-in freezer of the butcher shop to collect a loanshark payment and that he threatened others in wiretapped calls.
Virtuoso was previously convicted of extortion in 2009.