Tony Fiato
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Anthony "Tony" Fiato aka Tony the Animal and Tony Rome (b. August 31, 1949) is a former vicious mob enforcer and FBI informant who enabled the FBI to capture and convict nearly 70 underworld figures[citation needed]. trial.
Born in Boston, Massachusetts), Fiato grew up in the Hanover Street. At age seventeen, Fiato moved to Hollywood. He rose in rank to enforcer and street boss. He worked with mobsters Anthony Spilotro, John Roselli, Mike Rizzitello, Joey Gallo, Peter Milano, and Jimmy Fratianno. Fiato was a feared and dangerous member of the Los Angeles crime family. He had a reputation for his violent outbursts over minor things.
When Fiato turned FBI informant, he and his brother Larry Fiato were placed in the federal Witness Protection Program. He provided evidence that resulted in the arrest of some of his best friends and confidants in the mafia. Fiato was involved in the investigation of the murder of actor Frank Christi. Tony Fiato claimed that Norman Freeberg attempted to hire Fiato on the contract on Cristi's life[citation needed]. Fiato rejected the hit.
He is known for dating or escorting Denise Brown and testifying in the O.J. Simpson murder. Fiato claimed that Denise Brown was his girlfriend at one point.[citation needed]. Witnesses and photos show the two together. In the Simpson murder trial, Tony and Larry testified that they heard detective Philip Vannatter say he suspected that O.J. Simpson murdered Nicole Brown, revealing that perhaps Vannatter was not impartial. Judge Ito ordered the press to turn off the television camera and microphones to protect the Fiato brothers from endangerment.
[edit] Further reading
- Hunt, Darnell M. O. J. Simpson Facts and Fictions: News Rituals in the Construction of Reality. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1999. ISBN 0-521-62468-1
- Smith, John L. The Animal in Hollywood: Anthony Fiato's Life in the Mafia. Barricade Books, New York, 1998. ISBN 1-56980-126-6
Categories: Articles lacking sources from May 2007 | All articles lacking sources | All articles with unsourced statements | Articles with unsourced statements since May 2007 | 1949 births | Year of death missing | Italian-American mobsters | Contract killers | People from Boston, Massachusetts | Los Angeles crime family | Mafia hitmen
