-Illegal dumping of toxic waste into municipal sewer lines by a family associate who had been contracted to remove the sub- stances legitimately.
-Strong-arm extortion of recording industry executives.
-Frauds perpetrated against long distance telephone and mail order companies.
-Hiring of illegal aliens by a pallet company owned by a family associate.
Although perhaps not as violent as some otherLCN families, the DeCavalcante/Riggi family is not averse to violence and the threat of violence to maintain control of its members. For example, during the past three years, two family members have been homicide victims:
-Vincenzo Sorce, a local construction company owner, was found dead under the Goethal's Bridge between Elizabeth and Staten Island after an altercation between himself and another family member at their meeting place, the Ribera Club. This murder occurred three weeks after the headquarters of Local 394 in Elizabeth and 14 other business locations were searched by the FBI and local law enforcement officials in con- nection with the federal investigation of mob influence in the construction industry in New Jersey
-Vincent "Jimmy" Rotundo, once the second-in- command of the DeCavalcante family and an organizer for Local 1814 of the Longshoreman's Union, was killed in Brooklyn in January, 1988. Law enforce- ment sources say one motive for Rotundo's murder may have been because he had in- troduced into the family an individual who has since become a federally protected government informant and testified against Riggi. Because of Rotundo's rank within the DeCavalcante/Riggi organization, this homicide was most likely sanctioned by both Riggi and Gambino family boss John Gotti.
The relationships that the DeCavalcante family has maintained with other LCN families have, for the most part, been amicable. Their closest relationship, however, seems to be with the Gam-bino family. For example, intelligence information indicates that Riggi and Gotti meet regularly to discuss construction projects in New Jersey. Purportedly, Gotti has an interest in a New York City-based steel erecting company, which was involved in a large construction project in Central New Jersey. To undertake the project, Gotti and his associates would need not only Riggi's laborers but also Riggi's advice as to favored local subcontractors and other individuals needed for a project of this size. Not surprisingly, there have been no pickets at this job site.
Increasing development of suburban and rural areas of the state provide organized crime-controlled construction entities an even greater opportunity to expand and to make tremendous profits. Additionally, increased scrutiny by federal, state and local law enforcement in the Newark and Elizabeth areas has caused Riggi's group to seek new opportunities in other locales.