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Big-Time NY Lawyer Has Lost Mob Clients After Cooperating With
the Feds
Posted By allan On June 10, 2011 @ 8:13 am In News Story | No Comments
[1]
Joseph Tacopina/law firm photo
By Allan Lengel
ticklethewire.com
The headline on the website Gang Land News[2]
says it all: “Red Hot NY Lawyer Tacopina Gets
Big Chill From Wiseguys.”
The headline was in reference to hotshot lawyer Joseph Tacopina, who was once the go-to
guy for a lot of mobsters.
But no more — apparently not since he became a cooperating witness and dished info to the
feds.
“While Tacopina has represented numerous wiseguys and cohorts of at least four New York
area crime families in years past, his current roster of clients appears devoid of mob-tied
customers, local court databases show,” writes Jerry Capeci, editor of Gang Land News.
Gang Land News reported that Tacopina’s wiseguy clients seemed to vanish after he found
himself in the middle of a fee-splitting and tax evasion probe of a prominent New York
lawyers and became a cooperating witness. Gang Land reported that the probe stemmed
from an investigation into former NYPD Commissioner Bernie Kerik, who was a Tacopina
client.
Gangland reported that Tacopina became a cooperating witness against Kerik and also told
federal investigators that he had funneled about $100,000 to attorney Ronald Fischetti ” from
legal fees that he had received from a client whom Fischetti had referred to him in a major
state court prosecution.”
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Gang Land reported that the fee splitting is not a crime, but could lead to disciplinary action.
It can also lead to criminal tax problems. The investigation never lead to any criminal
charges.
Still, Gang Land News quoted an unnamed defense attorney as saying:
“It’s an open secret that Tacopina threw Fischetti under the bus four years ago, and that’s a
really big issue for wiseguys – and lots of lawyers too.”
Tacopina declined to comment for Gang Land News. Fischetti told the website that the
allegations against him were not true.
Article printed from Tickle The Wire: http://www.ticklethewire.com
URL to article: http://www.ticklethewire.com/2011/06/10/big-time-ny-lawyer-
has-lost-mob-clients-after-cooperating-with-the-feds/
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[1] Image: http://www.ticklethewire.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/joseph-
tacopina-law-firm.jpg
[2] Gang Land News : http://www.ganglandnews.com/
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