Louis Marino (March 14, 1933 – March 7, 2017) was an American

mobster A gangster (informally gangsta) is a criminal who is a member of a gang. Most gangs are considered to be part of organized crime. Gangsters are also called mobsters, a term derived from '' mob'' and the suffix '' -ster''. Gangs provide a level ...

and member of the

Chicago Outfit The Chicago Outfit, also known as the Outfit, the Chicago Mafia, the Chicago Mob, the Chicago crime family, the South Side Gang or the Organization, is an Italian Americans, Italian American American Mafia, Mafia crime family based in Chicago, I ...

criminal organization. Marino oversaw the Outfit's rackets in

Lake A lake is often a naturally occurring, relatively large and fixed body of water on or near the Earth's surface. It is localized in a basin or interconnected basins surrounded by dry land. Lakes lie completely on land and are separate from ...

and McHenry counties north of

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

. In 1993, he was sentenced to 28 years in prison for

racketeering Racketeering is a type of organized crime in which the perpetrators set up a coercion, coercive, fraud, fraudulent, extortionary, or otherwise illegal coordinated scheme or operation (a "racket") to repeatedly or consistently collect a profit. ...

Early life

Marino once worked for the Chicago-based Anthony Marano Company, a fruit and vegetable wholesaler.

Chicago Outfit career

Marino joined the

Cicero, Illinois Cicero is a town in Cook County, Illinois, United States, and a suburb of Chicago. As of the 2020 census, the population was 85,268, making it the 11th-most populous municipality in Illinois. The town is named after Marcus Tullius Cicero, a R ...

faction of the

and was one half of an enforcer duo along with his best friend, Salvatore "Solly D" DeLaurentis, during the 1970s and 1980s. Marino and DeLaurentis were allegedly involved in a number of gangland murders.Trusted Outfit Lieutenant ‘Louie Tomatoes’ Marino Dead At 84, Chicago Mafia Boss’ Chum Cashes In Chips
Scott Burnstein, GangsterReport.com (March 9, 2017) During the 1980s, he was a member of the "Good Ship Lollipop" crew headed by Ernest Rocco Infelise. Marino was identified in a July 1986 ''

Chicago Tribune The ''Chicago Tribune'' is an American daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Founded in 1847, it was formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper", a slogan from which its once integrated WGN (AM), WGN radio and ...

'' article as an enforcer and driver for Infelise. In September 1986, Marino was identified as being a lieutenant of Chicago Outfit boss

Joseph Ferriola Joseph Ferriola (March 16, 1927 – March 11, 1989), also known as, "Joe Nagall," "Mr. Clean" and "Oscar," was an American mobster who was Crime boss, boss of the Chicago Outfit, from 1985 to 1988, after Joseph Aiuppa and Jackie Cerone, John ...

, and as being recently elevated to be boss of the Outfit's gambling operation in

McHenry County, Illinois McHenry County is a County (United States), county located in the U.S. state of Illinois. According to the 2020 United States census, 2020 Census, it had a population of 310,229, making it the sixth-most populous county in Illinois. Its count ...

. Also, in September 1986, Marino sued the

FBI The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic Intelligence agency, intelligence and Security agency, security service of the United States and Federal law enforcement in the United States, its principal federal law enforcement ag ...

for allegedly stealing his car while he left home for the

Independence Day An independence day is an annual event memorialization, commemorating the anniversary of a nation's independence or Sovereign state, statehood, usually after ceasing to be a group or part of another nation or state, or after the end of a milit ...

weekend. Marino had left his

Chrysler Fifth Avenue The Chrysler Fifth Avenue was a trim level/option package or model name used by Chrysler (division), Chrysler for its larger sedans from 1979 to 1993. The Fifth Avenue name was no longer used after 1993 when Chrysler introduced its new LH-platform ...

for the weekend at his brother's house in Cicero, Illinois, and the FBI was alleged to have stolen his car and replaced it with a different Fifth Avenue. Marino returned earlier than expected and noticed the switch. The FBI returned the vehicle after Marino reported the theft to police. Marino claimed that, after the car was returned, he noticed holes in it, suggesting that either the FBI had planted and removed listening devices from the car or intended to place listening devices in the car. On February 7, 1990, Marino was

indict An indictment ( ) is a formal accusation that a person has committed a crime. In jurisdictions that use the concept of felonies, the most serious criminal offense is a felony; jurisdictions that do not use that concept often use that of an indi ...

ed in federal court in Chicago on racketeering charges in a sweeping indictment of mobsters. On February 15, 1990, he was ordered held without bond. He was later allowed house arrest and was released on bond to his house in

Palos Park, Illinois Palos Park is a village in southwestern Cook County, Illinois, United States. Per the 2020 census, the population was 4,899. Geography Palos Park is located at (41.665682, -87.836633). According to the 2021 census gazetteer files, Palos Park ...

. Several months later, Marino informed the court that he was working as a clerk at an archery range in

Berwyn, Illinois Berwyn () is a suburban city in Cook County, Illinois, United States, Coterminous municipality, coterminous with Berwyn Township, Illinois, Berwyn Township, which was formed in 1908 after breaking off from Cicero Township, Cook County, Illinois, ...

. His defense attorney was former United States District Judge George N. Leighton. On March 10, 1992, Marino was convicted of racketeering, income tax violations, and participating in an illegal gambling business. Nevertheless, he was acquitted of murder-conspiracy in the 1985 killing of bookmaker Hal Smith. During the trial, prosecutors alleged that Marino had hung a gambler over a balcony at the

Chicago Board of Trade The Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT), is an American futures exchange, futures and options exchange that was founded in 1848. On July 12, 2007, the CBOT merged with the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) to form CME Group. CBOT and three other excha ...

when the gambler failed to pay a debt. On August 19, 1993, Marino was sentenced by United States District Judge Ann Claire Williams to 28 years in federal prison—the maximum sentence allowed. Marino served his sentence in the federal prison in

Milan, Michigan Milan ( or ) is a city in Monroe and Washtenaw counties in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 6,079 at the 2020 census. The community was settled as early as 1831. Milan incorporated as a village in 1885 and much later as a city ...

. Marino was identified in court during the " Family Secrets" mob trial in Chicago in 2007 by Chicago Outfit turncoat

Nicholas Calabrese Nicholas W. Calabrese (November 30, 1942 – March 13, 2023) was an American mob hitman, best known for being a made man who testified against the Chicago Outfit. His testimony and cooperation with federal prosecutors helped result in the 2007 ...

as having been one of several mobsters in the room during the fatal 1986 beatings of Chicago mobsters

Anthony Spilotro Anthony John Spilotro (May 19, 1938 – June 14, 1986), nicknamed "Tony the Ant", was an American mobster and high-ranking member of the Chicago Outfit who operated in Las Vegas during the 1970s and '80s. Spilotro managed the Outfit's illegal cas ...

and

Michael Spilotro Michael Peter "Micky" Spilotro (September 12, 1944 – June 14, 1986) was the younger brother of Anthony "Tony the Ant" Spilotro and was an associate of the Chicago organized crime organization referred to as " The Outfit". Family background Mi ...

, whose murders were fictionalized in the 1995 film ''

Casino A casino is a facility for gambling. Casinos are often built near or combined with hotels, resorts, restaurants, retail shops, cruise ships, and other tourist attractions. Some casinos also host live entertainment, such as stand-up comedy, conce ...

''. Marino has never been charged with the Spilotros' murders; however, the only person ever convicted of participating in the murders is imprisoned Chicago mob boss

James Marcello James J. Marcello (born December 13, 1943), also known variously as "Little Jimmy", "Jimmy Light" and as "Jimmy the Man", is an American crime boss who was the boss for the Chicago Outfit criminal organization during the early and mid 2000s. Org ...

. Marino was released from federal custody on October 31, 2014.

Family

Marino's son, Dino Marino, pleaded guilty in January 2000 to bilking the town of

, out of more than $130,000 as a ghost-payroller in the town's health department. Marino was later sentenced to a year in federal prison and was released on May 29, 2001.

Death

Marino died of natural causes on March 7, 2017, at the age of 83.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Marino, Louis 1933 births 2017 deaths 20th-century American criminals 21st-century American criminals American gangsters of Italian descent American male criminals American people convicted of tax crimes American prisoners and detainees Chicago Outfit mobsters People convicted of racketeering Prisoners and detainees of the United States federal government