Undercover Cop - Book Review

I've always been a big fan of True Crime books that surround organized crime, but I'm even more of a fan of the sub-genre of that sub-genre that is True Crime stories told by undercover police. Donnie Brasco is probably my favorite book of all time, so I went into reading this one with similar, but tempered expectations. I bought this a while back, but never got around to reading it, so it kind of just sat around collecting dust for a couple of years. After finally picking it back up, I was surprised to find that this is quite the entertaining read, however I am a little suspect of some of the stuff that goes on in the book.

*

General Information

Undercover Cop was published in 2013 and is written by former New Jersey State Police officer, Mike Russell, with Patrick Picciarelli assisting. It tells the (allegedly) true story of how Russell infiltrated the Genovese Crime Family in Newark, NJ during the mid 1980s after surviving an assassination attempt. I couldn't find much of a critical reception for this book, however Russell has been featured in television as the central figure in HBO's Confessions of an Undercover Cop. His story has also been optioned for film production.

**

Mike Russell today

I want to clarify that I'm thankful for Russell's service as a state police officer, but I can't help but question some elements in this lengthy story. I have a few concerns with the legitimacy of some of the aspects of Russell's book, as there are times that it seems too fantastical to be true. I have no doubt that there are times where truth is stranger than fiction, but it is the combination of this over-the-top nature and Russell's self-interest that makes me wonder if there were times that he attempted to stretch the truth so that his story would be more interesting. 

Unfortunately, after more research, it appears that my doubts were not unfounded. According to the Star-Ledger, interviews with New Jersey State Police officials (who are mentioned in the book) claimed that there were multiple inconsistencies with the book. One official who handled Russell doubted Russell had actually been shot in the head during the attempt on his life, while others even stated he was never a member of the New Jersey State Police. With all that being said, I believe there is some truth to Russell's story (there are photos of his head injury in the book), however I believe he exaggerated many parts of his story in the hope that he would get a movie deal.

The Story

Things start out in 1983 with Russell undercover as an ex-cop trying to earn his way up the ranks of the New Jersey faction of the Lucchese Crime Family. He's at the very bottom rung of the syndicate when he tries to stand out by ripping off a major member's briefcase. In retaliation, he gets lured to fake job where he's shot in the back of the head. Somehow, he survives and his supervisor suggests that he return back to the job and use his survival of the attack as a credibility boost. After some time, Russell ingratiates himself with Genovese Crime Family capo, Andy Gerardo, who brings him into his crew as a driver and hired muscle. Once that happens, Russell will have to navigate mob politics and survive the tumultuous underbelly of Newark's criminal underworld.

***

Andy Gerardo upon his arrest

From a story-telling perspective, I thought Russell does a great job of describing his adventure from beginning to end. There's never any doubt that the people he's with are bad guys. Many of them brag about their murderous bona fides, while they all actively do everything they can to bleed Newark dry of every cent they can get their hands on. Unlike Donnie Brasco, there's never really a point where Russell's cover is at risk, however there are a couple of times where Russell's life is mortally in danger. Russell also has to frequently contend with interagency politics as the top brass and FBI try to steal his case from him.

I've read more than a few undercover books and this is by far the crudest of all of them by far. The biggest issues of the story come in the final chapters of the book. Russell's exaggerations start to stand out a bit more and the audience starts to see that Russell is far more interested in himself than catching criminals. At one point, Russell seemingly quits the force on a whim, but the New Jersey State Police begs and pleads for him to come back so that their case isn't blown. I found this incredibly hard to believe, while I also thought it was rather selfish of Russell to self-destruct his own case and career simply to make a point. The other point that was disturbing was when Russell actively compromised the investigation by bringing a news reporter (and camera man) onto the scene (while the investigation was still ongoing) so that he could sell his story to HBO.

The Characters

As this is allegedly a true story, all of the characters in the story are real people (although Russell does state that he changed some names and locations to protect the safety of others). With that being said, the character we see the most of is Russell as it is all told through his eyes. Compared to other undercovers like NYPD's Rick Cowan or FBI's Joaquin Garcia or Joe Pistone, Russell is crude in a way that befits the streets that he worked. Despite his hard work, I found Russell to be relatively unlikable as he's prone to moments of self-aggrandizement throughout the book, as well as rather narcissistic in how he views both most things to include his family, occupation, and even the criminals he worked against. We see plenty of moments where he rationalizes lying to his wife and demands he be recognized for the great job he's doing. Russell isn't the only undercover to seek movie and book deals (Joaquin Garcia also pursued that, while Donnie Brasco is considered one of the more popular mafia movies), however I found myself empathizing less and less with Russell as I saw more of him.

Andy Gerardo's crew has a cast of colorful members that Russell does a great job of exploring. Gerardo's second-in-command Robert Vicaro is sheepish and tired, while Sal Cetrulo is a murderous up-and-comer. I especially liked how Russell discussed Genovese soldato, Joe Zarra, as he was the first major obstacle in Russell's path to convincing Gerardo's crew that he was a stand-up guy.

The Best of the Best: When Russell stepped into a restroom to take a leak and Cetrulo blew some guy's head in half when no one was looking.

The Worst of the Worst: Selling out an investigation for a movie deal (that has still yet to get made). 

Would I Recommend?

I'm actually going to say "no" unless you're a hardcore fan of this type of sub-genre. The more I think about Russell's story, the more I question its legitimacy. By the end of the book, I had an incredibly bad taste in my mouth. Instead of this book, I recommend Rick Cowan's Takedown, or Joe Pistone's Donnie Brasco. I have a feeling that if this book ever gets adapted to a green-lit film, we'll see more conflicting facts come out that challenge the truthfulness behind this story. It's a shame, as this was a successful investigation (45 wiseguys went down by the end), but it feels tainted. 

-------------------------------------------------Spoiler Comments-----------------------------------------------------

• A list of the things I didn't believe in this book:
• Russell, Zarra, and Cetrulo survive a machine gunning when a rival crew corner them in a closed up illegal gambling joint. The cops apparently don't feel inclined to investigate it and it's not mentioned again at any point.
• In a single day, Russell quits the New Jersey State Police without even telling his chain of command or the mobsters he's undercover with while using his real name. Not only is this incredibly unprofessional, but it's insanely dangerous. Did Russell expect the wiseguys to just shrug and accept his disappearance after randomly not showing up?
• Russell received no administrative action for bringing a camera man and reporter into a mobbed up club where he wasn't even allowed to enter until months of earning the confidence of the Gerardo's crew.
• Russell seemingly shrugging off a homicide that occurred in the next room while going to the bathroom.
• The New Jersey State Police let their star witness sit directly behind the defendants at the Gerardo Crew's trial so that he could harass them during the trial.
• No one apparently had any issue with letting Russell threaten to burn down Zarra's house in front of police and court officials either.
• Oh, it doesn't stop their either, let's not forget the part where Russell openly threatened to kill Gerardo, while outside Gerardo's home, in front of a Florida detective.
• Russell can magically invoke the aid of the people of Newark to set up barricades against FBI agents who tailed him.
• Russell's supervisor, James Sweeney, used a .50 caliber machine gun on tenement buildings in the projects during the 1960s' race riots.
• There's a small connection between this book and Takedown as Russell mentions Angelo Ponte (one of the major criminals heavily featured in Cowan's book) as a major fixture in the Tri-State Area's garbage network.
• Well Actually: I shook my head a little at the invocation of the Sopranos on the cover of this book. The Sopranos were based on the DeCavalcante Crime Family, who are New Jersey's dominant crime syndicate. Russell is correct that other mafia families operate in New Jersey, but there's no point in this book that he even mentions the New Jersey mafia.

----------------------------------------------------References--------------------------------------------------

*MacMillan Publishers. (n.d.). Book cover image. Retrieved from: https://us.macmillan.com/books/9781250005878.

**Connelly, S. (2013, July 20). Mike Russell image. Daily News. Retrieved from: https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/6821541913776018296/4832048507195505642.

***Arpa, V. (n.d.). Andy Gerardo arrest image. Pinterest. Retrieved from: https://www.pinterest.ca/pin/541206080205753068/.