Photo courtesy of Josh Weiss - Giant insects infest the prison. New laws effectively outlaw brothels such as the Doll House, permit or not but if Galeota walks with no convictions, it will surely embarrass officials trying to make it look like they're cleaning up the industry. I got a piece of the action of every blowjob that my friends got," Galeota says. Dancers with names like Baby Doll, Tipsie, Trixie, and Crme offered to have sex with the cops for as little as $150, court records show. "It was puppy love," he says. He and Kristy struck up an unlikely romance. Jimmy Galeota has spent the last month-and-a-half grieving his older brother Michael's death - but perhaps the most difficult part of it all to swallow has been the bizarre circumstances that. Join the New Times community and help support But their courtship was cut short. But all the cops found were five grams of weed, a bottle of Viagra, and some mysterious yellow pills. Two days later, he was transferred to La Joya a hellish cinder-block complex an hour outside of Panama City. Join Facebook to connect with Anthony Galeota and others you may know. 2023 NYP Holdings, Inc. All Rights Reserved, Texas man busted in death of DJ galpal found stuffed in suitcase in Colombia, Inside the luxe lives of El Chapo's sons including jailbird Ovidio Guzmn Lpez, Arizona officials say Mexican cartels control US border: 'Ticking time bomb', Passengers on Aeromexico flight crouch in fear as plane caught in cartel crossfire: video. New Times wrote about Galeota's plight last year ("From Porky's to Hell," October 4, 2012), even visiting him in La Joya prison, a crumbling concrete complex in the jungle where inmates kill each other with impunity. Anthony Jr. was taken to a juvenile detention center that wasn't much better. The 43-year-old is shaped like a mini refrigerator: short and squat, with a shaved head and wide-set emerald eyes. He was a character.. I definitely want his number and so I began chasing it from there and actually jumped on a plane, went down and smuggled myself into this Panamanian prison to meet with him.. Eventually, however, he made his way to Tarzan. But instead of classical music, his specialty is sex. Guards with machine guns man rusty metal towers. One man stabbed someone over a $10 debt. Yester told the Colombians that theyd have to pay $35 million for the vessel, even though Tarzan had talked the price down to $5.5 million plus just $600 for a crew to pilot it to Colombia. His father, Arnold, was a strait-laced sales manager but a distant and disapproving dad. ", - Tony Galeota: From Running Porky's, Miami's Most Notorious Strip Joint, to Rotting in a Panamanian Jail, - Sex and Drugs in the Champagne Room: The Truth About Porky's and Other Miami Strip Clubs. TV-14 | 06.05.2013. Then once he sent me this crazy email like, Holy s***! "My father wasn't in the mob, but his friends were," Tony says. On Friday, May 17, Galeota got word that the judge had also dismissed the drug charge because of lack of evidence. When traffickers balked at the price, Yester reminded them that it could hold 40 tons of cocaine and would pay for itself quickly. "Their connections were bigger than ours," he says. Tony Galeota - Historical records and family trees - MyHeritage "It was puppy love," he says. In January 2017, Almeida got federally charged by the Drug Enforcement Administration with conspiracy to possess narcotics with intent to distribute. Years later, Tarzan again found himself behind bars, this time in Panama; in fact, he was serving time in 2011 when Russell first approached him for the documentary. Galeota says the police had already gotten what they wanted: Porky's demise. Miami's underworld may still be seedy, but it has outsourced much of its shadiness to nearby Third-World countries such as Panama. Upon seeing 10 thugs rush the vehicle and hijack it with the unsuspecting passenger in back, Yester realized that the remaining cash would not be forthcoming. But the deal never happened. Galeota is not exactly repentant. "There was no transportation, no cops, no nothing," he says. His Doll House dream began at Porky's. Galeota saw an opportunity. "Another night at Porky's, another shooting," he remembers now from his prison cell in Panama. "It was home to a lot of shrewd and nefarious characters.". Seidle was never charged with a crime. "That's the goal," is all he'll offer. He ogled the women standing on corners in their underwear and high heels. The smugglers boat was destroyed because it was a hazard to navigation. And she launched drunken tirades at Tony after baseball games, no matter how well the all-star shortstop performed. Tony and Kristy were shocked and out of a job. But the story of how the documentary got made is nearly as crazy as the caper plot itself. In describing Tarzan, Almeida says in the film, He struck me as an oddball. Tarzan classifies Almeida as a guy who had two drinks and thought he was Tony Montana. As for movie-star handsome, hooker-loving Yesters first impression of Tarzan: I said, This f- -king guy is trouble. Thirty minutes later, I loved the trouble., Abetted by the tumultuous state of the former Soviet Union the ruble was completely devalued and state-owned resources went to whomever had the most firepower gaining access to the submarine was surprisingly easy. His nightmare began in June of 2011, when police raided his Panama City strip club and arrested him and his Ukrainian partner for trafficking women and selling drugs. They taught him the rules, the most important of which Galeota took to heart: "You can have your girlfriends on the side," he remembers hearing, "but never leave your wife.". Reborn behind bars. "I used to have to patch Tony up all the time," Kristy says. Eventually, he moved two dozen ladies to Panama City. But Galeota's plan would soon go catastrophically wrong. Police repeatedly raided the club, yet Galeota escaped unscathed every time. He created a souped-up cigarette boat that went for $2 million and was presumably used to transport cocaine. Back in South Florida, Kristy Galeota vacillates between outrage and empathy for her husband. He met with mobsters in Cali mansions full of women, and he knocked on random doors in search of dancers. Tony Kaleta. The fear was well founded, considering what went down when Tarzan linked up with Cuban outlaws Juan Almeida and Nelson Tony Yester. "I've done a lot of shady things in the States," he admits. As he contemplates the question, Galeota watches his fellow inmates kick a soccer ball across La Joya's putrid playground. Tarzan, got his first job in America as an enforcer for the Gambino crime family. Now the locals want to get rid of guys like Galeota too, as his case has drawn national attention to corruption and human rights abuses. A year later, it was $115,000 per month.". Tony Galeota Profiles | Facebook Watch Locked Up Abroad Season 10 Episode 10 Miami Mobster Take Down Online Cops had made several controlled buys of drugs. "But she's never going to forget. Its about 2,800 kilos, about a ton and a half of contraband. There is no rehabilitation here," he says. Even then, however, he couldn't sleep. "Locked Up Abroad" Miami Mobster Take Down (TV Episode 2020) - IMDb "I was just numb.". Create a free family tree for yourself or for Tony Galeota and we'll search for valuable new information for you. Prostitutes were everywhere at the weddings, and when Tony asked another employee where they came from, the older kid took him to Manhattan's infamous West End. Three weeks after the Doll House raid, Kristy was working the bar at Bongos when three teenagers walked into the restaurant. Russell did as he was told and flew to the appointed city in Africa; as soon as he walked into his hotel room, the phone rang and he was instructed to be downstairs in five minutes, where Tony whisked him off in a Porsche Cayenne and they spent several surreal days together; Tony showed the director his Russian fighter jet, which had $5million in the cockpit as the fugitives getaway plan, and told his part of the story. Instead, they eat rice for lunch and dinner, drink dirty river water, and use a hole in the ground for a toilet. Over the years, Galeota saw nearly a dozen shootings at Porky's, some of them fatal. But when the house of cards tumbles, John . We did outsmart the FBI, we did outsmart the DEA, we even did outsmart the court, Tarzan says in the film. Its a great satisfaction after being two months deployed and everybodys tired but you come home with a case like this its very satisfying, said Castro. "I'm used to getting my water from a rain bucket, not hot from the tap." Once they spotted the plane, they changed course which is suspicious for us, said Boatswains Mate 1st Class, Joshua McElhaney with the Coast Guard. But killings are common in Panama's worst prison, where the smell of raw sewage wafts over the yard, metal shackles hang from mouldy staircases, and overcrowded cells house nearly 3,500 of the Western Hemisphere's vilest murderers, rapists, and drug traffickers. Anthony Galeota was born October 17, 1968, on Long Island. Become a member to support the independent voice of South Florida Follow this journalist on Twitter @MikeMillerMiami. Sign Up. A judge eventually dropped the human trafficking charge, but Galeota still rotted in his sordid cell alongside insects the size of small dogs. Bonnie also shoplifted booze to sustain her hard drinking habit. Its a great success overall. Skip Ancestry main menu Main Menu His father, Arnold, was a strait-laced sales manager but a distant and disapproving dad. And he hopes to open a place in Fort Lauderdale when he's back. We've been here for two years!' Even though Yester may have suspected that the cartel was after him, he couldnt help but try to get his hands on the remaining $25 million. He was the one whod been speaking directly to the cartel; he was the only one who knew the real amount of money Cali were willing to pay; and he was the one who took the risk and disappeared with millions of the cartels drug money. As Yester laid low with the cash, cartel liaisons in the United States, aware that they had been burned, pressured Almeida to show them where Yesters relatives lived in and around Miami. And, above all, selling it. ", McDonald has succeeded, however, in chipping away at the case, persuading a judge three weeks ago to drop the trafficking charge on a technicality. It could be worse. Unfortunately, Galeota's defense isn't as simple as quoting strippers, says his lawyer, Guillermina McDonald. Instead, he's trapped in a labyrinthine legal system, alone and unable to speak Spanish. "It was a real moneymaker. And theyre like, F*** yeah, lets do it. "I'm not a religious person, but I believe I went to jail because I was living like a rock star -- running around with all these women, drinking a bottle of vodka every day for two years," he says. He faced nine years in prison, but because he provided evidence against Almeida, he served just three years before being deported to his adopted homeland of Israel. Finally, on May 23, the gate on Galeota's cramped cell swung open, and he was free to go. "There was no transportation, no cops, no nothing," he says. Twice, American authorities had investigated Galeota. A friend suggested Panama. "I was 16 years old and amazed," he says. He was 31. Behind him, 12-foot-high fences topped with spools of barbed wire frame a muddy soccer field. This looks great. . In the second interdiction, a Customs plane spotted another suspicious boat off the coast of Panama on August 28th. His father, Arnold, was a strait-laced sales manager but a distant and disapproving dad. But Monday morning, when it came time to walk out of La Joya, there was no vehicle waiting. He sold the shop and in 2010 opened Bongos, a restaurant serving wings and beer. He hired 'Fat Tony' Galeota as Porky's manager. And he hopes to open a place in Fort Lauderdale when he's back, Just not a strip club. But Tarzan a seasoned wheeler-dealer, strip club owner and former mob enforcer took it in his stride and went back to his partners with the response. His mother, Bonnie Gellilti, was "a bit of a criminal," Tony remembers. Thousands of teachers walk out demanding pay, funding incr Canadian teacher with size-Z prosthetic breasts placed on paid leave, What's next for Buster Murdaugh after dad's murder conviction, life sentence, US home prices just did something they haven't done since 2012, Rebel Wilson says Meghan Markle isnt as naturally warm as Prince Harry, Kristen Doute supports Ariana Madix amid mutual ex Tom Sandovals scandal, Celeb-loved jewelry brand Dorsey drops dazzling new styles, Undertaker transforms coffin into barbecue grill, Tom Sizemore And The Dangerous Burden of Desperation, Tom Sandoval breaks silence on Ariana Madix split amid cheating claims. Galeota is one of several Americans locked up here. This time, I'm innocent.". But she insists that her husband's imprisonment has brought them closer. Michael Galeota's Obituary (1984 - 2016) Estes Park Trail-Gazette local Journalism in South Florida. Miami's underworld may still be seedy, but it has outsourced much of its shadiness to nearby Third-World countries such as Panama. Kristy was able to pay a lawyer $500 to get her son released, but there was no bond for Galeota's drug offense. Tony Galeota in the 1940 Census | Ancestry SO I started with the cops and I had been kind of circling the others without knowing if it was really possible or not. Then my friend got back to me a couple days later and said there was just one question: Do you want a sub with missiles or without? , For all their camaraderie, though, the criminals opinions of one another were mixed. The domestic bliss lasted only a couple of weeks. He paid for her to secretly get an abortion. His government protection would evaporate, the Doll House would be raided, his investments would be stolen, and he would be arrested. The last one locked the door. Make a one-time donation today for as little as $1. Facebook Email or phone Password Forgot account? The irony is not lost on Galeota that after a life of crime in Miami, he was arrested in Panama just as he was going legit. she scoffs. But Tony had darker secrets. Galeota's wife Kristy comments "Porky's was definitely a place you could get killed." ", Coast Guard Offloads More Than $93 Million In Cocaine, Miami Beach. But instead of classical music, his specialty is sex. She is a high-powered attorney who has defended two former presidents in corruption cases, but even she hasn't been able to get Galeota out of jail yet. The value then triples to $100,000 per kilo at the street level when it's busted down for individual use. Tarzan, Almeida and Yester had previously teamed on multimillion-dollar deals for Colombian cocaine barons, snagging motorcycles and Kamov 32 military helicopters (with two rotors and capable of transporting 5,000 kilos of cocaine via hook). But Galeota was convinced the cops were bluffing and refused to cooperate. And, above all, selling it. He'd already invested in seven apartments in Panama City and rented a storefront on the capital's seediest street, where prostitution was legal. "I lived it up in Miami," he says. And so it was extraordinary, where sort of person after person was this larger-than-life character, from Fat Tony the bartender to Tony Yester the spy-turned-dope-dealer-turned-fugitive. "We went there and we couldn't believe what we saw," says Josh Weiss, a former DJ at Porky's and one of Galeota's closest friends. Here, Galeota is just one of 500 prisoners crammed into a filthy cell block designed to hold 200 people. "The first month, we had $15,000 in gross sales. The Marin Post and help keep the future of New Times, Use of this website constitutes acceptance of our. A large Russian man called Tarzan sits in an armchair against the backdrop of a cracked and stained wall, a pack of cigarettes, lighter and an ash tray on a table to his left, and he shrugs as he talks about a deal he tried to broker more than 20 years ago. Galeota examines a bruise from a prison fight in La Joya. "I'm not a religious person, but I believe I went to jail because I was living like a rock star -- running around with all these women, drinking a bottle of vodka every day for two years," he says. (A New York Police Department spokesman says records from that far back aren't available.) As the couple drove south on I-95, they thought they were leaving the worst behind them. "I was always looking for their approval," he says, "but I never got that. Galeota is no angelic Andy Dufresne, the main character in Shawshank who serves two decades behind bars for a crime he didn't commit. Most of them were robberies gone wrong or simple revenge. See Photos. Controlling it. Log In. Tarzan and one of his partners, 'Fat Tony' Galeota, had opened a strip club in Panama similar to a previous enterprise in Miami called Porky's - but they landed behind bars in Central America.. The bartender hid in the bathroom and dialed 911. There was a spate of murders, several police raids, and a federal drug-trafficking trial. Prostitutes were everywhere at the weddings, and when Tony asked another employee where they came from, the older kid took him to Manhattan's infamous West End. Panama became Galeota's personal paradise. While on routine patrol, a U.S. Customs and Border Protection plane spotted a suspicious speed boat. For 18 years, Galeota ran Porky's with the same punishing justice he learned from the mob and transformed it into Miami's most notorious whorehouse, where Russian gangsters and Cuban criminals spent millions on sex and drugs. Garrulous and bearish, the dentist-turned-hood (practicing the former in the Soviet Union and training for the latter in Brighton Beach) routinely carried two pistols and operated out of his. Banged Up Abroad - National Geographic for everyone in everywhere Prostitutes were everywhere at the weddings, and when Tony asked another employee where they came from, the older kid took him to Manhattan's infamous West End. If only there were a place where prostitution was legal, he thought, a city full of beautiful women like Miami, but no rules. But Galeota's problems aren't completely behind him. Furious and Busted Rick Cedar steals radios to support his family. Tony Galeto. The heavy-set Italian even signed a release. Miami's independent source of "That's the problem.". We are no longer accepting comments on this article. Tony Galeta Profiles | Facebook He knew that the owners of a local strip club called Moulin Rouge David Fridman and Jake Lita (an Israeli wanted by German police on human-trafficking charges) had a business offer for the duo. On Friday, May 17, Galeota got word that the judge had also dismissed the drug charge because of lack of evidence. So looking back on it and all the hijinks, from being smuggled in to a Panamanian prison to crossing paths with the FSB in Moscow to being met in a Porsche Cayenne by Tony Yester and driving away thinking: Okay, the CIA, DEA, FBI and US Marshals have been looking for this guy for 25 years, and Im in his car by myself with no notion of where were going or when were coming back. In retrospect, its like, Im a moron, but at the time I was full-throttle chase the story., Of the finished product Operation Odessa, he says: Hopefully, its a rocknroll thrill ride into the underworld, where you get a passport to a life and lifestyle and characters that you didnt even imagine existed much less having a ringside seat with them., The comments below have not been moderated, By His mother, Bonnie Gellilti, was "a bit of a criminal," Tony remembers. "We were like: 'We want to get the fuck out of here. It was 1990, and Galeota transformed the place by wiring in subwoofers and bringing in New York dancers. "But she's never going to forget. All the services here are free. In the distance, La Cordillera de San Blas cuts through the Panamanian jungle like a serrated knife. Tony Galeota Wikipedia: Everything To Know About The Film Actor But Galeota's problems aren't completely behind him. One scammer stole from another scammer; of course I accept it, he says.
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