Hamilton community leaders vouch for drug-dealing mobsters

A local priest. The head of the union that represents Hamilton's paramedics. A manager at Hamilton Health Sciences. The former head of the city's airport.

These are amongthe people who have voiced their support in court for one or both of theVioli brothers a pair of Hamilton drug traffickers who were busted in a massive cross-border police operation that had infiltrated organized crime.

Their crimes are numerous. Domenico Violi, 52, was sentenced to eight years in prison in a Hamilton courtroom on Monday after pleading guilty to multiple counts of drug trafficking, in a court hearing that revealed connections to U.S.-basedcrime families.

Media reports from the courthouse describe his family and friendsbreaking out into a round of applause in a show ofsupport as he was led from the courtroom.

Then there's his brother, Giuseppe (Joey) Violi, 48, who pleaded guilty in Milton courtback in June totrafficking fentanyl, cocaine and conspiring to import cocaine. He was sentenced to 16 years in prison.

This represents the backbone of Mafia power the idea that you can count on people outside the organization.-AntonioNicaso, Mafia expert

Despite the severity of those crimes, high-ranking members of Hamilton institutions are vouching in court hearings for theViolis.

Several people submitted sterling character references to thecourt for Joey Violi, describing him as a kind and generousfamily man who has done much for the city. In the letters, thepeople who wrote them said they had no prior knowledge of the criminal activity of either brother. Theletters were, however, written after he was charged.

"Joey is truly an individual who cares for those less fortunate," wrote David Anthony DiSimoni, customer support services site manager for Hamilton Health Sciences.

"Joey Violi is a valuable member of our community," wrote Mario Posteraro, president of Ontario Public Service Employees Union Local 256, which represents Hamilton's paramedics.

People involved in organized crime are usually intricately embedded into their communities in which they operate, and so they are able to build a perception of goodwill to those around them, saidAntonio Nicaso, a Mafia expert who teaches courses on organized crime at Queen's University.

"This represents the backbone of Mafia power the idea that you can count on people outside the organization," he said. "This aspect of creating a network of trust is the most important aspect of Mafia culture."

Support pledged to drug trafficker as opioids kill record numbers

Character reference letters are a routine part of sentencing submissions in criminal trials, where people voice their support for a person who is being sentenced in an effort to lessen the severity of that sentence.There is no indication that the people who sent these letters did so with any outright support for criminality in mind.

But what is startling is to see high-ranking members of public institutionsstand behind convicted drug traffickers.

The inclusion of letters from people affiliated with local healthcare raises especially glaring questions.

Opioid-relateddeaths are increasing each year inHamilton.Last year,87 people diedfromopioidoverdoses inthe city adeath rate72 per cent higher than the rest of Ontario.

And in the first three months of 2018, the preliminarynumber ofopioid-relateddeaths was almost two times higher than in the same timeframe last year,according to the city.

So why is the head of the city's paramedic unionwho would be more intimately familiar with the opioidcrisis than just about anyone else be throwing his support behind a man who has been trafficking fentanyl, which is quite possibly the most potent opioid there is?

Posteraro, who also still works as a frontline paramedic, told CBCNews that he absolutely understands that fentanylhas a destructive impact on society, and that he doesn't condone or accept drug use on any level.

He says he "wasn't compelled" to send a character reference letter to court in support of Violi, his friend of 28 years, but he was asked.

"He acknowledged his indiscretions and paid a heavy price," said Posteraro, who said he had no inkling of his friend's criminal connections before he was charged.

"[His crimes] don't take away from some of the good things he and his brother have done for the community," he said.

Hospital worker calls Violi'generous'

Violi's defence lawyer, Dean Paquette, told The Globe and Mail that the crowd in the courtroom for Monday's hearing and evidence ofVioli's community and charity work say "a lot about Domenic's larger character."

Michael Sanderson, the chief of the city's paramedic service, refused to comment onPosteraro's letter, citing respect for the court process a process that is alreadyfinished, with these guilty pleas.

Posteraro isn't the only person working in the healthcare industry who is pledging support to the Violis.DiSimoni, who works with Hamilton Health Sciences (HHS) said in his letter that Joey Violimanaged UNICANLinen and Laundry Services, which was under contract to provide "specialty laundry services" for the five area hospitals under the umbrella of HHS, stretching back 15 years.

Lillian Badzioch, spokesperson for HHS, told CBCNews that it has been "many years" since the organization's contract with UNICANended.

She said in an email thatHHS"did not endorse the reference letter" and didn't know anything about it prior to media reports.

"Our focus is on working with our community and health partners to address the opioid crisis in Hamilton," Badzioch said.

In his letter, DiSimoni characterized Violi as a "generous" and "proud family man." Hedid not respond to a request for comment for this story.

The support for the Violis doesn't end there. Stoney Creek priest Father Francesco Cucchialso wrote a letter of support to the court, calling Joey Violi"a good guy," if "maybe too extrovert[ed]."

Cucchialso did not respond to a request for comment. The Diocese of Hamilton refused to comment on one of its priests voicing support for a convicted drug trafficker.

Former airport head offered to post bail

Then there'sthe former head of the Hamilton airport, Tony Battaglia. He's the president and CEO of local homebuilderWestpark Homes anda past president of the Hamilton-Halton Home Builders' Association. Healso offered to be a surety for DomenicoVioliat bail hearing last December.

Battaglia told CBC Newsthat his friendship withVioli stretches back 25 years, after they were introduced through a mutual friend. He said he didn't have any idea of his friend's criminal ties.

Battagliasaid Violiwas a "very generous person who was very involved in the community."

"He was always the first person at Christmastime to pick up 20 or 30 turkeys and take them down to the Good Shepherd and no one would even know," he said. "I was surprised that he would be involved in such a thing."

TheViolibrothers' roots in organized crime stretch back to the1970s. Theirfather was once the acting headof the Montreal Mafia, before he was shot and killed at close range back in 1978.

The agreed statement of facts filed in court for these casesshows the depths in which the two brothers were involved in organized crime.

Court documents outlinehow Joey Violi brokered the sale of kilograms of fentanyl to a paid RCMPagent, who was at the timea made member of the New York City-based Bonanno crime family.

In transcripts of wiretap conversations, Violitells the agent about how he also flooded Hamilton with crack cocaine.

"I brought it to Hamilton," he said, according to court documents.

"A lot of people here were crack heads?" the agent responded.

"Oh after a year ... you should have seen the city," Violi responded.

Court documents alsooutline similar situations with DomenicoVioli. The agreed statement of facts showhow the RCMPagent and police officers who were working with him bought a variety of drugs involving Violi, and also had numerous discussions about organized crime groups operating in both Canada and the U.S.

The investigation found Violi trafficked PCP, MDMA and methamphetamine to the agent for $416,000 USD.

adam.carter@cbc.ca