Is this another example of how the WTC were easy targets?

Discussion in 'General' started by AustinPowerz1, Aug 8, 2012.

  1. ""In January of 1998, struggling mobster Ralph Guarino, the 42 year old short and skinny hot-tempered Guarino decided to rob the World Trade Center's Bank of America. He recruited his Brooklyn neighbor, elderly WWII veteran and "senior mobster" named Salvatore Calciano, a 74 year old man who had a long list of connections. Calciano then recruited a down and out Vietnam veteran, 51 year old Irish American - Charles Flynn from Queens, he had worked at the World Trade Center (WTC) as a stockbroker for over 10 years from 1977 until 1991, Flynn was arrested on insider trading charges and served 14 months in a federal prison in the early 1990s, after his release Flynn was let go by his company due to his severe drug and alcohol use. Flynn first became involved with the mob in the late 1980s after exchanging inside information with a mob affiliated company.The former millionaire broker was now living on welfare and heavily addicted to cocaine.

    Flynn explained to Calciano that following the 1993 World Trade Center bombing, there was camera surveillance of almost everywhere inside the World Trade Centers, inside garages and even in elevators. Also, all employees had to wear ID tags when operating within the building. This obviously posed a problem, after a conversation between Calciano and Guarino, the persuasive Guarino cajoled Salvatore into having Flynn lend an ID badge that was only issued to trusted employees, like Flynn. Flynn informed Guarino that at a specific time a Brinks van arrived to deliver money in U.S. and foreign currencies from the Bank of America's many branches and was sent, by elevator, to the 11th floor of the first tower of the WTC. Guarino realized the potential this robbery had, financially. Guarino and his brothers had been in and out of prisons for petty thefts, and truck hijacking.

    In addition to to Flynn, three men selected were known for their criminal prowess and experience. Charles Flynn a good looking, well groomed, tall and slim former stockbroker with slicked back wavy dark hair and light Green eyes, who was a sniper during the Vietnam war was the "backup" and stood in front of WTC 1 smoking cigarettes as he waited with a bullet-proof vest, a UZI semi-automatic weapon and a 9mm handgun, Flynn was paid to shoot and kill any of the pursuing security guards or police officers. The lead bandit and second cousin of Guarnio was Richie Gilletti from Brooklyn, a 39 year old unemployed body builder standing about 6 feet tall. He had a 12 page long arrest sheet for drug possession and bribery, amongst other offenses. Gilletti had not held down a steady job since 1996 and had a 17 year-old son to support as well as his drug habit.
    Gilletti reccomended two black men he had met while in prison, Melvin Folk and Mike Reed. Folk was a 48 year-old alcoholic; he had drug and alcohol problems, and he, his wife, and son had been homeless for months since their Queens house burned down.
    Reed was a 35 year-old heroin abuser, whose parents had died of heroin overdoses when he was 8; his Grandmother raised him. In the Bishop Boardman Apartments in Windsor Terrace, Brooklyn, he had been found to be thieving from elderly residents and was forced to leave. Just before the robbery, he had stolen a homeless man's food stamps. The get-away driver selected was 58 year old Marty "Fat Jew" Goldberg, Calciano's private accountant who was known for his 5 foot 11 - 300 plus pound build, high IQ, curly hair and his "goofy looking glasses", Goldberg was also armed with a fully loaded handgun and circled around the financial district in case additional backup was needed.

    The reason Gilletti picked such undesirables like Folk and Reed was that he and his cousin Guarino could encourage them to believe that if ever they informed on him or anyone else, or failed, they could be murdered by the Mafia. Guarino was persuasive and they truly believed that he was a high-ranking mobster.

    On Wednesday 14 January 1998 a Brinks van pulled into the WTC garage, two employees stayed in the van, while the others unloaded the bags of money. It was in U.S., Italian, Japanese and French currency. The two guards were, however, carrying guns and were joined by some cleaners as they went up in the elevator to the 11th floor.Simultaneously the three thieves were entering the WTC in winter wear, but only Gilletti had the presence of mind to wear a hooded top, to conceal identity to the many cameras. The other two, Reed and Folk, were in attire from which they could easily be identified. Each of the men carried a duffel bag, as the plan included two handguns, Reed and Folk's contained pistols, whereas Gilletti's contained handcuffs.The three men entered a passenger elevator, they got off at 8.28 a.m. and then pulled on their ski masks. Precisely 1 minute later the elevator, containing the money, arrived on the 11th floor. The two guards began to push out the cart containing money when they looked up and saw two men carrying guns. A cleaner began praying and screaming, Gilletti handcuffed the employees. As Gilletti was keeping the employees under control Folk and Reed produced some box-cutters and slashed away at the bags containing money. After 8 minutes in the elevator they pressed the button to ascend to the 22nd floor, leaving the shocked victims tied up. At around 8.45 a.m. the three thieves left through the WTC's revolving doors, Guarino and the elderly Calciano watched from a Mercedes Benz parked across the street as the men quickly removed their ski masks and put away their guns as Flynn ushered the trio into a tinted window black work-van as the driver, Marty Goldberg sped off with Guarino and Calciano following closely behind.""


    Makes me wonder. How unsecure the towers really were
     
  2. ....as much as most any other place at the time that held large amounts of money? I mean, you got places like Fort Knox but most places don't need that much security since events like this are uncommon.
     
  3. Well when you had a terror attack, armed robbery and then finally the worst attack on US soil three years later, it is pretty bad. I am from the UK but interested on the 9/11 events
     
  4. Unless they installed anti-aircraft artillery, no amount of security would have stopped 9/11.
     

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