An inmate who was involved in the fatal bludgeoning of notorious Boston gangster James “Whitey” Bulger in a West Virginia prison has been sentenced to more than four years behind bars.
Massachusetts gangster Paul J DeCologero was sentenced in federal court on Thursday after pleading guilty to an assault charge . He could have faced up to 10 years in prison.
DeCologero was already serving a 25-year sentence handed down in 2006 after he was convicted of buying heroin used to try to kill a teenage girl.
Prosecutors originally alleged that, along with fellow inmate Fotios “Freddy” Geas, DeCologero used a lock attached to a belt to repeatedly beat 89-year-old Bulger on the head, hours after he arrived at USP Hazelton from another lockup in Florida in 2018.
However, on Thursday both sides agreed that DeCologero had only served as a lookout and had not physically assaulted Bulger himself.
According to court records, inmates had found out ahead of time that Bulger would be arriving at Hazelton. An inmate previously told a grand jury that DeCologero said to him that Bulger was a snitch and they planned to kill him as soon as he came into their unit.
Prosecutors said that DeCologero and Geas spent about seven minutes in Bulger’s cell. During that time, DeCologero served as a lookout and helped cover Bulger’s body after he had been beaten to death by Geas.
DeCologero’s DNA was found on two blankets, assistant US Attorney Brandon Flower said.
Geas has been charged with murder and conspiracy to commit first-degree murder, which carries up to a life sentence. His hearing is scheduled for September 6. Last year, the Justice Department said it would not seek the death penalty.
During the trial, DeCologero’s attorney, Patrick Nash, described him as the victim of an “abusive and neglectful” upbringing, which meant he was “easily led” and had been subsequently recruited into a life of crime.
When it came to Bulger’s killing, “Paul was involved," Nash said. "He is guilty. But his role was limited.”
Flower declined to comment after the sentencing.
Prior to Bulger’s death, employees at USP Hazelton had voiced concerns about violence and understaffing. After Bulger was killed, prison officials were criticized for placing him in the general population instead of protective housing.
A Justice Department inspector general investigation found in 2022 that the killing was the result of multiple layers of management failures, widespread incompetence and flawed policies at the federal Bureau of Prisons.
The inspector general found no evidence of “malicious intent” by any bureau employees but said a series of bureaucratic blunders left Bulger at the mercy of rival gangsters.
Bulger, who ran the largely Irish mob in Boston in the 1970s and 80s, was also an FBI informant who provided the agency with information on the main rival to his gang.
He became one of the nation’s most wanted fugitives after fleeing Boston in 1994, thanks to a tip from his FBI handler that he was about to be indicted. He was captured at age 81 after more than 16 years on the run.
Bulger was convicted in 2013 in a string of 11 killings and dozens of other gangland crimes, many of them committed while he was said to be an FBI informant.
DeCologero, who was in a gang led by his uncle, was convicted of buying heroin that was used to try to kill a teenage girl because his uncle feared she would betray the crew to police.
After the heroin did not kill her, another man broke her neck, dismembered her body and buried her remains in the woods, court records said.
The Associated Press contributed to this report
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