Have you seen the FBI website recently? I was briefly researching real mafia families, enthused by a sudden rush of Soprano’s fandom, and ended up on their pages. It’s like a parody. They are only a step away from Western style “Wanted” fonts with “Reward, dead or alive” at the bottom of a sepia photo. See this WANTED page for a woman who kidnapped her own child from the father, the legal guardian. Wanted for INTERFERENCE WITH CHILD CUSTODY. Oh, and note the nice use of and font color=“red”.
Other featured criminals from the Top Ten include this stylish murderer and racketeer James J. Bulger, who with his partner are “lovers of animals and may frequent animal shelters”. His list of offences looks like this:
RACKETEERING INFLUENCED AND CORRUPT ORGANIZATIONS (RICO) - MURDER (18 COUNTS), CONSPIRACY TO COMMIT MURDER, CONSPIRACY TO COMMIT EXTORTION, NARCOTICS DISTRIBUTION, CONSPIRACY TO COMMIT MONEY LAUNDERING; EXTORTION; MONEY LAUNDERING
The problem with the FBI website is that some of these criminals’ profiles have an exciting, roguish appeal. I find myself nodding appreciatively at the lists of felonies, and quietly hoping they are living it up on a beach far away.