Boston Gangster James “Whitey” Bulger Killed While in Prison
Courtesy of Creative Commons
By Matthew Grady 10/31/2018
Boston gangster James “Whitey” Bulger, 89, was found dead in his cell Tuesday at USP Hazelton in West Virginia according to sources.
Bulger was a feared and violent mob boss in South Boston where mostly blue-collar, Irish-Catholic families raised their children and the community was tight-knit.
He was transferred from a Florida prison and arrived in West Virginia after making a stop at a transfer facility in Oklahoma.
Bulger committed a variety of crimes through the years, however, he was consistently ruthless and violent.
In 1956, Bulger was arrested for bank robbery in three states. After being released in 1965, he returned to Boston and became involved with gang violence in the South End. He organized his gang in the 70s and 80s when the South End had a much rougher feel. Today, the neighborhood has a hip, urban feel to it where millennials who frequent expensive coffee shops buy upscale condos.
Bulger was also an FBI informant up until 1994 where he provided them with information about Mafia activities in the area. After receiving a tip from a corrupt FBI agent in 1995 that Bulger would soon be indicted, Bulger vanished for 16 years before being captured in Santa Monica, California.
He was found guilty in 2013 of racketeering and participating in 11 murders through the 1970-90s. He received two life sentences plus five years.
A prison union official says Bulger’s death is being investigated as a homicide. Bulger’s lawyer, Attorney J.W. Carney Jr., is blaming the Federal Bureau of Prisons for the death of the Boston gangster.
The prison bureau has declined to comment on Carney’s statement.