Montreal police have arrested one of their own for his alleged involvement in an illegal bookmaking ring with ties to organized crime. Early Thursday morning, units of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, Sûreté du Québec, municipal police departments and the Canada Border Services Agency conducted a series of raids at 16 locations in Laval, Québec City and Blainville following a two-year investigation.
Eleven individuals were arrested, including Sgt. André Thibodeau, a 25-year veteran of the Montreal police force, while a warrant is out for a 12th suspect. The accused are facing charges of illegal bookmaking, conspiracy and gangsterism. Thibodeau, who has been suspended without pay, faces additional charges of abuse of confidence and obstruction of justice.
Montreal police Cmdr. Ian Lafrenière said officers had “seized a lot of money” in the course of their raids and that the betting operation was no small time outfit. “The biggest bet recovered by investigators is $125k.” Lafrenière said the investigation is ongoing.
Police say they first got inklings of Thibodeau’s conflicted loyalties after fellow officers told internal affairs that Thibodeau had some “bad friends.” Among those arrested was Natalino Paccione, who was previously arrested for bookmaking in 2006 as part of the Project Colisée investigation. In 2011, Paccione was fined $20k for his involvement in the Montreal Mafia-led bookmaking operation.
Thibodeau is believed to have conducted activities on behalf of the betting operation while he was on duty. Lafrenière lamented the fact that an officer had apparently been playing both ends of the street but celebrated the fact that it was other officers who helped expose Thibodeau’s activities. “If it proves anything, it is that there is no Omerta in the police.”
LOUISIANA BOOKIE SENTENCED AFTER IN-LAW RATS HIM OUT
South of the border, an online credit bookie was handed an eight-month prison sentence by a federal judge on Wednesday. Frank Frabbiele pled guilty last year to charges of money laundering and violating the Wire Act for processing wagers via a Costa Rica-based pay-per-head online betting site, while settling up with customers in person.
The 79-year-old Frabbiele has a previous conviction for bookmaking dating all the way back to 1991 but by 2008 Frabbiele had discovered the internet. A “former family member” blew the whistle to the FBI, which proves there’s also no Omerta for in-laws. The feds caught Frabbiele stashing $20k in cash in a safety deposit box in November 2012 and charges were laid in July 2014. Frabbiele ultimately worked out a deal in which he agreed to forfeit $200k of his ill-gotten gains.
