| “ | Look. You got a case to make, run along, get your papers and come back with the bracelets. Otherwise, I got a business to run. | ” |
Michael Russo is a mob boss who hired serial killer and hitman Vincent Perotta in the Season One episode of Criminal Minds, "Natural Born Killer".
Background[]
Little is revealed about Russo, He was a small-time mob boss in Baltimore, Maryland who was investigated for three years. At some point, he hired psychopathic freelance hitman Vincent Perotta for his operations. Russo's employees also included Freddy Condore, a low level mobster, and Jimmy Baker, who was, in actuality, an undercover FBI agent assigned to infiltrate Russo's organization, which he did so by associating with Condore. However, Russo became suspicious of Baker and hired Perotta to kill both him and Condore..
Natural Born Killer[]
In the episode, Vincent kills Condore (along with his uncle and aunt) and abducts Baker, torturing him and leaving him for dead. When Josh Cramer and the BAU tell Russo that Vincent is becoming more paranoid and deviating from Russo's orders, he appears to dismiss the issue, but later that night, Russo calls Perotta from a "secure line" and tells him to meet him at his office, while the agents monitor the call. This contributes to Vincent's arrest by the BAU, followed by Baker's rescue. He isn't mentioned afterwards but was presumably arrested by the Organized Crime Unit for his involvement in the crimes.
Known Victims[]
All of the following were victims by proxy
- Presumably orchestrated numerous other prior murders
- 2005, Baltimore, Maryland: The following were killed by Vincent Perotta:
- November 14: Frederick "Freddy" Condore and his family:
- Helen and William DiMarco (Freddy's aunt and uncle, respectively)
- Helen DiMarco (throat was slashed; was not tortured)
- William DiMarco (was tortured, then disemboweled)
- Frederick "Freddy" Condore (target victim; abducted, tortured, and fatally dismembered)
- Helen and William DiMarco (Freddy's aunt and uncle, respectively)
- November 15-16: James Baker (target victim; abducted, tortured, and left for dead; was rescued)
- November 14: Frederick "Freddy" Condore and his family: