Florida Declares War On Mafia

Press, Volume CVIII, Issue 31587, 26 January 1968, Page 15

Florida Declares War On Mafia

(N.Z.P.A -Reuter—Copyright) MIAMI, January 25. A Florida Senator today declared war on the Mafia after a double murder had brought to eight the number of gangland killings in Dade County in the last 10 months.

The police said Dolores Castillo, aged 37, and Brian Perez, aged 27, were found handcuffed and shot in the head at a fashionable Miami waterfront home last night. They described Perez as “a semi-professional thief” and said Miss Castillo was given a 30-month prison sentence in 1966 for extortion, but had been free on bond for the past 14 months. Senator Robert Shevin announced the formation of a crime committee “willing to march into hell for a heavenly cause” to rid Florida of the Mafia and organised racketeering. He said sweeping state-wide subpoena powers would permit his bipartisan committee to move in on criminals who, up to now, have found sanctuary by crossing municipal or county boundaries. Senator Shevin said the underworld had declared Miami “an open city” and claimed that at least 50 members of the Mafia now resided or did business in South Florida.

The Senator, whose father died from injuries sustained in a beating during an armed

robbery several years ago, said “an open city” was an area where the members of any Mafia “family” could operate in specific illicit activities without hierarchy approval. Their operations Included loan sharking, narcotics trafficking and illicit gambling, he said. Only one arrest has been made in connection with the eight murders committed since March 17 last year.