His attorney has warned him that prosecutors will likely appeal, so he plans to stay in Panama until his case is resolved. "There were beautiful girls, just walking the streets, giving blowjobs for $10 or $15.". ", "You hear that?" By now, she knows of his many infidelities, including that he lived and slept with some of the girls at the Doll House. CAKEGATE 2023: Bad Bunny's Restaurant Accused of Gobbling Birthday Girl's Cake, Neighborhood Nazi Jon Minadeo Peddles Hate by the Minute, Sen. Rubio's Permanent Daylight Savings Bill Sees Light of Day Once More, NFL Legend Ray Lewis Joins World Jai-Alai League Board of Directors, Affordable New "Micro-Units" Slated for Little River, Edgewater. "Keep your fucking hands off the girl!" "If you like to eat chocolate and you live in a chocolate factory, you're going to eat chocolate," he says. Follow Miami New Times on Facebook and Twitter @MiamiNewTimes. Tarzan and Tony went so far as to gain access to a Soviet naval base and be taken on a tour of a submarine potentially for sale, even cajoling Russian military officials to pose for photos - which they used to prove to the Colombians that a deal could be brokered (and which are shown in the film). Become a member to support the independent voice of South Florida A kilo of cocaine in Panama costs much less - about $5,000 per. The young mobster needed to lay low, so the Pacciones sent him south to a strip club called the Porthole Pub in Pompano Beach. "We treated the women well.". He and Kristy struck up an unlikely romance. "I've done a lot of shady things in the States," he admits. Within weeks of its April 2011 opening, the club was raking in $6,000 on good nights. "I used to have to patch Tony up all the time," Kristy says. In the second interdiction, a Customs plane spotted another suspicious boat off the coast of Panama on August 28th. 2023 NYP Holdings, Inc. All Rights Reserved, Texas man busted in death of DJ galpal found stuffed in suitcase in Colombia, Inside the luxe lives of El Chapo's sons including jailbird Ovidio Guzmn Lpez, Arizona officials say Mexican cartels control US border: 'Ticking time bomb', Passengers on Aeromexico flight crouch in fear as plane caught in cartel crossfire: video. For two decades, Galeota managed Porky's, a Hialeah dive notorious for drugs, prostitution, and violence, where he was part pimp, part bouncer, and completely untouchable. People named Tony Galeta. His nightmare began in June , when police raided his Panama City strip club and arrested him and his Ukrainian partner for trafficking women and selling drugs. Join the New Times community and help support independent Filthy and crowded cell block of La Joya Prison, Panama. But Tony had darker secrets. Michael Galeota Obituary (1984 - 2016) Chicago Sun-Times Anthony Galeota was born October 17, 1968, on Long Island. Anthony Galeota was born October 17, 1968, on Long Island. Docs need stars just like features need stars. Make a one-time donation today for as little as $1. He answered only to property owner William Seidle, a U.S. Bankruptcy Court trustee who ran a chain of car dealerships. I know its gonna be a strange question. She is a high-powered attorney who has defended two former presidents in corruption cases, but even she hasn't been able to get Galeota out of jail yet. For two decades, Galeota managed Porky's, a Hialeah dive notorious for drugs, prostitution, and violence, where he was part pimp, part bouncer, and completely untouchable. He was very serious and said he would look into it. Of the $10 million, he said, I cannot f- -king believe it how fast I spend it.. According to Yester, the cartel provided an initial payment of $10 million. As he sweated in jail, Galeota's Panamanian empire crumbled. Anthony Galeota was born October 17, 1968, on Long Island. Police again surrounded Porky's in the early hours of May 9, 2009. Tony is my friend, and well always love each other. "Last week we were supposed to have a hearing, but there was no running water in Panama City. And she launched drunken tirades at Tony after baseball games, no matter how well the all-star shortstop performed. With dark hair and pale, wide-set eyes, teenage Tony resembled a stocky Frank Sinatra. "The worst part of being in here is being in here for nothing. This story has been shared 173,716 times. Galeota's enemies say that a life of sin has finally caught up with the flesh-peddler. We asked them some questions and some of their information didnt quite add up, so we conducted a boarding.. "When you're in La Joya for two years, you get used to that environment," Galeota says. "They had what seemed like a dynamite case, but it has ended up in pieces.". Luckier still, a powerful Colombian inmate named Mauricio Ramrez recognized Galeota from his restaurant. Tony Galeota: From Running Porky's, Miami's Most Notorious Strip Joint On Friday, May 17, Galeota got word that the judge had also dismissed the drug charge because of lack of evidence. He met with mobsters in Cali mansions full of women, and he knocked on random doors in search of dancers. Once they spotted the plane, they changed course which is suspicious for us, said Boatswains Mate 1st Class, Joshua McElhaney with the Coast Guard. Prisoners eat stale bread and a slice of cheese for breakfast; rice and sometimes beans is their lunch and dinner. Galeota says the police had already gotten what they wanted: Porky's demise. Prostitutes were everywhere at the weddings, and when Tony asked another employee where they came from, the older kid took him to Manhattan's infamous West End. And last year, Yester was finally arrested in Rome on charges unrelated to the submarine while en route to a wedding. Police repeatedly raided the club, yet Galeota escaped unscathed every time. But it was abundantly clear that the key figure in the deal was Yester and his story would be particularly illuminating though the CIA, DEA and FBI had been after him, without success, for more than two decades. The goods came from sources in the freshly fallen Soviet Union, a place where everything seemed to be up for grabs at ridiculously low prices. Can he prove his innocence and escape? Tony Galletta. If Galeota is freed, it will be a major blow for Panama's prostitution crackdown. "Now I'm living in hell.". They finally fled the country this past July, leaving Tony alone. And like the Italian-American crooner, he loved women a little too much. Become a member to support the independent voice of South Florida But when Galeota was arrested June 19, 2011, and charged with trafficking drugs and women, he was just as innocent as Stephen King's saintly inmate. Next time, I will steal it back from him., Tarzan (left) at the site of the submarine. Tony Gogetta. Miami Mobster Take Down - YouTube "There was no transportation, no cops, no nothing," he says. The domestic bliss lasted only a couple of weeks. Miami's independent source of the agent said. He is currently being held in Italy. Coast Guard members who seized the cocaine said this is what their jobs are all about. When Galeota arrived, his mobster reputation preceded him. Reborn behind bars. There was nothing unusual about it. Somewhere between his native Ukraine, Israel, and Russia, he'd shed his trademark long hair and changed his name to Alon Bar. Then they pushed play on a cassette deck. He ogled the women standing on corners in their underwear and high heels. "It was so slow I couldn't take it," he says. From Porky's to Panama Prison, Tony Galeota Reveals Miami's Mob-Run During the Doll House raid, they found marked bills in the register and several grams of pot on a promoter. Find your friends on Facebook. The 43-year-old is shaped like a mini refrigerator: short and squat, with a shaved head and wide-set emerald eyes. Anthony Galeota was born October 17, 1968, on Long Island. Like a concert pianist, Tony Galeota has spent his life honing a single skill since he was a teenager. "I'm used to getting my water from a rain bucket, not hot from the tap." Tony Galeota lived in 1954, at address, Massachusetts. "I've done a lot of shady things in the States," he admits. Between an undercover agent, a tap on Tarzans cellphone and the wiring of Babushka, federal law enforcement agencies had enough information to shut down the sale. Galeota has seen several murders. I told Juan, I said, Hey. Sheila Flynn For Dailymail.com, Smashing the Sinaloa cartel: Major coup for DEA as agents seize $6MILLION cash, hundreds of pounds of narcotics and indict 75 across America for 'laundering drug money for El Chapo's gang', Is this proof that British aristocrat did NOT smuggle drugs into Africa? "This country is corrupt. With little oversight, military leaders acted as if they were independent of the government. When crews were launched to investigate, the suspected smugglers threw several packages into the water. Tony Galeta. "My wife can say she has regrets, but that's bullshit," he says. Instead of celebrating, he walked through the scuzzy neighbourhood until he found a shabby motel. Murdaugh is heckled as he leaves court, Moment teenager crashes into back of lorry after 100mph police race, Ken Bruce finishes his 30-year tenure as host of BBC Radio 2, Family of a 10-month-old baby filmed vaping open up, Missing hiker buried under snow forces arm out to wave to helicopter, Insane moment river of rocks falls onto Malibu Canyon in CA, Fleet-footed cop chases an offender riding a scooter, Ukrainian soldier takes out five tanks with Javelin missiles. He might have sold them the submarine, taken the money and walked away with the money.. Family members can also bring them food and clean water, however, and inmates bribe guards to smuggle in additional items. This story has been shared 121,048 times. Then an old friend showed up. A dozen plainclothes cops poured in with pistols drawn. "This case has had a big impact here," says Jos Otero, a reporter for Panamanian newspaper La Prensa. The trio convened in Russia, and snapshots of them aboard the football-field-size sub, posing with the captain, hamming it up with one another, were shown to cartel members to make clear that the submarine sale closed with all parties naked in a bathhouse was for real. A friend suggested Panama. June 4, 2013 Galeota is one of several Americans locked up here. Tony Galeta Profiles | Facebook He bought seven properties pretty much sight unseen.". "Many times, I worried about him getting killed. And like the Italian-American crooner, he loved women a little too much. Tony Goleta Profiles | Facebook And I'm not asking her to.". October 4, 2012 The gig introduced him to a lifelong vice. On a Sunday night in July of 1991, a 29-year-old electrician named Phillip John Shea came into Quarterbacks shortly after Tony and Kristy left. "There was probably a lot more fun going on at Porky's than we even knew of," says one Hialeah police officer who asked not to be identified. On a crowded balcony overlooking La Joya, Galeota describes the past 16 months as a nightmare. He paid for her to secretly get an abortion. But when he opens a new club in Panama City, the competition isn't happy and frames him for drug dealing. Miami's underworld may still be seedy, but it has outsourced much of its shadiness to nearby Third-World countries such as Panama. Making the documentary, he says: I found the story so compelling and so riveting that I was just relentlessly magnetized to it. "I was 16 years old and amazed," he says. Everything here has a cost.". And, above all, selling it. The Coast Guard said each one of the kilos is worth $33,000. "They shot him in the middle of the night," Galeota continues quietly, "and buried his body behind the pavilion.". They were concerned that Tarzan and his arriviste colleagues in crime would merge with Cuban mobsters who already used brutal, bloody force to rule Miamis underworld and create a sort of supergroup of criminality. independent local journalism in Miami. Anthony Jr. was taken to a juvenile detention center that wasn't much better. Sixteen months later, the two men have yet to appear in court. TV-14 | 06.05.2013. His name was Tony Galeota, he said, and he had run Porky's for 18 years before being locked up in Panama's worst prison for a crime he didn't commit. There is no rehabilitation here," he says. "The first month, we had $15,000 in gross sales. Now the locals want to get rid of guys like Galeota too, as his case has drawn national attention to corruption and human rights abuses. "She hasn't worked for 15 years. The entire situation sounds like something dreamed up for a Miami Vice-inspired action thriller, but it actually happened in the 1990s and the trio came very close to pulling it off before one of them pocketed the cartels millions and went on the run. "They would describe what they looked like," Galeota says. Galeota was crammed into a sweltering holding cell with 150 others. Rats, roaches, and beetles the size of Chihuahuas crawl over inmates at night. Tony Kaleta. But this was Hialeah.". The offload is a result of two successful drug interdictions in the Caribbean since August 23. 8:00AM. Prosecutors say police never filed the necessary paperwork. Prostitutes were everywhere at the weddings, and when Tony asked another employee where they came from, the older kid took him to Manhattan's infamous West End. The two ran Porky's for another decade after Fainberg's deportation. Inside, the bar is still littered with half-empty bottles of Chivas Regal. MIAMI BEACH (CBSMiami) The Coast Guard offloaded about $93 million of cocaine Thursday afternoon on Miami Beach. But the men kept in touch as Russell pursued other projects, with Tarzan sending random messages such as Christmas greetings until he finally sent the email the filmmaker had been awaiting (although he couldnt have guessed the other crazy details in the communication. The heavy-set Italian even signed a release. Theyre nice guys [the cartel members], and I didnt ask what they needed the submarine for., If they woke up and were hungry, they would fly a private jet to Cancun for lunch, says Tiller Russell, director of Operation Odessa. Then theyd roll to Venezuela to check out a new casino. "It was a nightmare in there. Even though Yester may have suspected that the cartel was after him, he couldnt help but try to get his hands on the remaining $25 million. For the most part, Doll House dancers agree. Tony Galeota Wikipedia: Everything To Know About The Film Actor "I wouldn't leave a dog in that prison, let alone my husband.". Galeota also found himself in the back of an unmarked FBI car. Galeota's imprisonment abroad marks the end of one of Miami's most outrageous eras, when Russian and Colombian cartels stocked strip clubs with cheap prostitutes and cheaper cocaine. Is this possible, to buy a military submarine - used one? And he said, What a question! "She would use shoe polish to change our driver's licenses so we could go to clubs and drink when we were 15. "That clean, business-friendly, postcard-Panama bullshit is just a faade," Galeota says. If he didnt give them the information, he was afraid that he would have gotten killed, and he was probably right., In the meantime, Yester may have been too in love with his eight-figure haul to really care and there was ultimately no retribution against his family. Tony Galeota - IMDb "Their connections were bigger than ours," he says. In describing Tarzan, Almeida says in the film, He struck me as an oddball. Tarzan classifies Almeida as a guy who had two drinks and thought he was Tony Montana. As for movie-star handsome, hooker-loving Yesters first impression of Tarzan: I said, This f- -king guy is trouble. Thirty minutes later, I loved the trouble., Abetted by the tumultuous state of the former Soviet Union the ruble was completely devalued and state-owned resources went to whomever had the most firepower gaining access to the submarine was surprisingly easy. I said, Thank you, Cali cartel. Meet me in Africa for a cup of coffee tomorrow.. Its Colombian dancers were in Panama on six-month tourist visas, weren't licensed as prostitutes, and weren't getting required weekly health checkups. During a visit last month, a New Times reporter witnessed one police official receive a $20 bill in a barely disguised handshake. "They shot him in the middle of the night," Galeota continues quietly, "and buried his body behind the pavilion.". We've been here for two years!' He was talking to Fainberg about a murder he'd witnessed in Porky's parking lot. He left, but returned with a gun. Two days later, he was transferred to La Joya a hellish cinder-block complex an hour outside of Panama City. And there was absolutely no bullshit. We have a lot of laughs about it now," he says. Porky's: Notes from inside South Florida's sleaziest strip club He'd already invested in seven apartments in Panama City and rented a storefront on the capital's seediest street, where prostitution was legal. Galeota yelled. As for Yester taking a flier with the cartel money, Tarzan says he would have done the same himself if he could have and expresses no hard feelings. See Photos. (Panama passed harsher penalties for human trafficking during Galeota's incarceration, but Galeota can't be prosecuted under laws that weren't in place when he was arrested. He could convince you that the sky was green." And I'm not asking her to. It was like this super weird, incredibly sketchy circumstance that we came together in, Russell tells DailyMail.com of his visit to the Mad Max-like prison where at night they lock the gates. She's forgiven me, for the most part. "He never forced us to do anything. Bonnie also shoplifted booze to sustain her hard drinking habit. "I lived it up in Miami," he says. Research > Galeota > Tony Galeota. "We went there and we couldn't believe what we saw," says Josh Weiss, a former DJ at Porky's and one of Galeota's closest friends. Then she'd charge my friends $50 each," he says. GALEOTA, Joseph A., Sr. Joseph A. Galeota Sr., 86, of Ashford CT, died on Wednesday (January 26, 2011) at Windham Hospital from congestive heart failure. Guards with machine guns man rusty metal towers. Yester told the Colombians that theyd have to pay $35 million for the vessel, even though Tarzan had talked the price down to $5.5 million plus just $600 for a crew to pilot it to Colombia. In this real life Goodfellas tale, New York teen John Alite gets a job at his local Deli, a hangout for 'wise guys'. ", McDonald has succeeded, however, in chipping away at the case, persuading a judge three weeks ago to drop the trafficking charge on a technicality. "Anthony has been in jail for more than 15 months, and a judge hasn't even heard his case yet!" And, above all, selling it. But the man's paws were soon on her crotch again. "That's the problem.". His mother, Bonnie Gellilti, was "a bit of a criminal," Tony remembers. Skip Ancestry main menu Main Menu Prostitutes were everywhere at the weddings, and when Tony asked another employee where they came from, the older kid took him to Manhattan's infamous West End. The American says he's giving up the strip club and brothel businesses. With dark hair and pale, wide-set eyes, teenage Tony resembled a stocky Frank Sinatra. At the entrance to La Joya, ant hills and wasp nests surround a wooden sign. I flew to a little island near St. Petersburg, met with a retired Russian admiral, and he took me to the navy base, says Tarzan. Filmography (by Job) Trailers and Videos. Banged Up Abroad - National Geographic for everyone in everywhere "Maybe we didn't have the permits we were supposed to have, but we're foreigners who didn't understand the rules.". "My father wasn't in the mob, but his friends were," Tony says. But bloodshed would follow them to Miami. For 18 years, Galeota ran Porky's with the same punishing justice he learned from the mob and transformed it into Miami's most notorious whorehouse, where Russian gangsters and Cuban criminals spent millions on sex and drugs. And so it was extraordinary, where sort of person after person was this larger-than-life character, from Fat Tony the bartender to Tony Yester the spy-turned-dope-dealer-turned-fugitive. "But she's never going to forget. Thousands of teachers walk out demanding pay, funding incr Canadian teacher with size-Z prosthetic breasts placed on paid leave, What's next for Buster Murdaugh after dad's murder conviction, life sentence, US home prices just did something they haven't done since 2012, Rebel Wilson says Meghan Markle isnt as naturally warm as Prince Harry, Kristen Doute supports Ariana Madix amid mutual ex Tom Sandovals scandal, Celeb-loved jewelry brand Dorsey drops dazzling new styles, Undertaker transforms coffin into barbecue grill, Tom Sizemore And The Dangerous Burden of Desperation, Tom Sandoval breaks silence on Ariana Madix split amid cheating claims. Were out there to cause an effect in the drug industry and I believe we made a little dent on it.. Instead, they eat rice for lunch and dinner, drink dirty river water, and use a hole in the ground for a toilet. He was a loan shark: generously offering money but punishing those who didn't pay back. "But I've always paid for everything, either with stitches in my head, concussions, or jail time. He was a character.. The eight crew members aboard the Hope II and the vessel were taken into custody and will be turned over to U.S. officials for further investigation. Panamanian newspapers put "Operation Fiesta" on the front page as prosecutors alleged Galeota was part of an international crime ring. Instead, he's trapped in a labyrinthine legal system, alone and unable to speak Spanish. Nobody was impressed more than Kristy Sharpe, an 18-year-old waitress from Orlando with blond hair, blue eyes, and lightly freckled skin. Russian immigrant Ludwig Fainberg, a.k.a. Johns paid $100 to rent a VIP room downstairs. Log In. Anywhere other than La Joya, this news would be shocking. 16:56 GMT 13 Mar 2018 , updated Miami mobster Tony Galeota is locked up in Panama after being framed for drug dealing and human trafficking. Prosecutors charged Galeota and Fainberg with not only drug dealing but also human trafficking. Facilitating it. "I'm not a religious person, but I believe I went to jail because I was living like a rock star -- running around with all these women, drinking a bottle of vodka every day for two years," he says. Now the locals want to get rid of guys like Galeota too, as his case has drawn national attention to corruption and human rights abuses. I definitely want his number and so I began chasing it from there and actually jumped on a plane, went down and smuggled myself into this Panamanian prison to meet with him.. He was hilarious and charming and garrulous, and it was as if hed stepped right out of a Scorsese movie, Russell says, adding: You know whats the funny thing people dont know about docs? Locked up in one of the world's worst prisons, Tony has to prove his innocence and attempt an audacious escape. It wasn't until he ordered some Italian food and a cold Guinness that he finally felt like he was free. But in South Florida, he was once a strip club king. Galeota's enemies say that a life of sin has finally caught up with the flesh-peddler. You could not mislead him in any way or you could tell that the consequences could be serious, but I loved him. He was 31. They taught him the rules, the most important of which Galeota took to heart: "You can have your girlfriends on the side," he remembers hearing, "but never leave your wife.". A tattoo of an Italian Mafioso emerges from an extra-large sleeveless T-shirt. "I thought I would kick up my heels together like 'Oh my God, I'm finally out,'" he says. As the authorities closed in, they picked up Juan and Tarzan, but they couldnt find Tony and neither could the cartel. The year before, his father helped him land a job as a wedding DJ. It's not quite Shawshank Redemption, but when Tony Galeota walked out of a Panama City jail cell May 23, it was still a small serving of justice. Tarzan, Almeida and Yester had previously teamed on multimillion-dollar deals for Colombian cocaine barons, snagging motorcycles and Kamov 32 military helicopters (with two rotors and capable of transporting 5,000 kilos of cocaine via hook). His mother, Bonnie Gellilti, was "a bit of a criminal," Tony remembers. Fainberg allegedly told undercover cops he had sent coke to Russia in a shipment of frozen shrimp and had bought six $1 million Russian military helicopters for the South Americans. And twice they had given up. According to the Coast Guard: It first took place north of the Gulf of Uraba. His government protection would evaporate, the Doll House would be raided, his investments would be stolen, and he would be arrested. Seidle was never charged with a crime. Sign Up. The gig introduced him to a lifelong vice. Tony Galeota has a wife named Kristy Galeota, with whom he lives. Moreover, trafficking prostitutes and drugs and involvement in organized crime are some serious charges.". "She would use shoe polish to change our driver's licenses so we could go to clubs and drink when we were 15. With dark hair and pale, wide-set eyes, teenage Tony resembled a stocky Frank Sinatra. Gunshots flashed like fireworks in the darkness. In an instant, Galeota's meaty hand was around the customer's neck, shoving him outside. In the early 1990s, three friends set out to hustle the Russian mob, the Cali cartel and the DEA for the score of a lifetime.