Chapter Four

0:00Speaker 1:This series is based on the real events of 9-11. However, names, incidents, locations, and dialogue have been fictionalized for dramatic purposes. This series contains strong language and profanity, and scenes that some listeners could find disturbing.

0:21Speaker 2:We've offered President Bush and the American people our solidarity, our profound sympathy, and our prayers.

0:29Speaker 3:Digging through the rubble with steel cutters, backhoes, picks, and.

0:31Speaker 1:Shovels, our rescue teams were all about one thing.

0:49Speaker 3:Finding survivors.

0:51Speaker 4:Hold up, everybody.

0:52Speaker 3:But more often than not, we found corpses.

0:56Speaker 4:Stop, stop.

0:56Speaker 5:Everybody stop.

1:00Speaker 3:When we did, work would come to a stop and machinery would be shut down. That's another one. After 25 years, I still hear the silence. If the victim was a firefighter, all of us would stand at attention. some saluting, some with helmets over their hearts. An American flag would be draped over the body, and a special version of the 23rd Psalm would be read by an FDNY chaplain.

1:32Speaker 6:The Lord is my chief. He has chosen me to serve. Even though I walk through the shadow of death, I will fear no fire, for he is with me. And when life's final alarm sounds, I will dwell in the station house.

2:03Speaker 7:Of the Lord.

2:04Speaker 4:It was repeated 343 times.

2:06Speaker 5:Okay.

2:06Speaker 8:Back to work, everyone.

2:20Speaker 3:Then the digging would start again. I'm Frank Sturiano, formerly of the New York City Police Department. Think you know the whole story of 9-11? You don't. This is Underground Zero. This is my story of how we took on the mob.

2:43Speaker 7:The debris from the towers was supposed to go to the Staten Island landfill owned by the city. And some of it did. But a lot went to our yards, like the one in Long Island City. There was enough jewelry to fill up the Diamond District, and we wound up selling it on eBay. Cash-free pocketers and hunks of steel and concrete we started carting up to send to the highest bidders overseas. We'd empty the trucks and send them right back to the Trade Center for more. And that was just the start. Yeah, Dip, how you doing?

3:15Speaker 7:As boss of the Genovese family, Dip DiPietro loved being in on the action. He wanted me and Eddie Bernstein, a union veep we owned lock, stock, and barrel, to break it all down for him.

3:28Speaker 4:How you doing? We met a few blocks away in Eddie's car.

3:34Speaker 5:Tell me about this detective in charge of the cleanup. What's his name?

3:38Speaker 4:Frank Sturiano.

3:40Speaker 5:He was your brother-in-law, Joey. Yeah.

3:43Speaker 4:We grew up together.

3:45Speaker 5:Yeah, well... We got a foot in the door, and that's good, but in order to keep this golden goose laying golden eggs for us, we need Frank to look the other way. What'll he cost us?

3:59Speaker 4:Frank? You don't buy him for any amount.

4:03Speaker 5:Everybody has a price.

4:04Speaker 7:I'm telling you, Dick. But don't worry, you won't be a problem. Him and me have an understanding. He don't break my balls, and I don't break his.

4:15Speaker 5:Eddie, how's this gonna work?

4:17Speaker 4:Yeah, it's working already.

4:19Speaker 2:SISO sheets. Sign in, sign out. The crews sign in, each guy with multiple names. Today, they sign for ten hours, but they work eight. The crew chief verifies the signatures. He's one of our guys. But no one from the city notices anyway, because their minds are elsewhere. Tomorrow, our guys sign in for ten hours, but they work six. By Friday, the cruise exists only on paper, but the city's still paying full salaries plus fringes, and as far as the union's concerned, it's all kosher.

4:49Speaker 3:How were we able to listen in?

4:51Speaker 4:In the meantime, we're koshering vehicles and equipment.

4:55Speaker 3:As part of an investigation into union corruption and citywide construction, we put a bug in Eddie's car.

5:02Speaker 7:So while they played to their strength, our focus on saving lives, we played to their weakness.

5:06Speaker 9:Greed.

5:32Speaker 10:What we're now seeing at the site of this disaster is nothing short of remarkable. A line of dump trucks and loaders stretching for blocks, clearing away the uncountable amount of debris. And, of course, the unanswerable question is, are survivors still clinging to life under the wreckage?

5:55Speaker 5:We can only hope and pray.

6:01Speaker 3:When I joined the NYPD, Mickey Cronin was already a legend.

6:06Speaker 4:It's open.

6:07Speaker 3:As a deputy chief, he put me in charge of the 9-11 cleanup. In all the time I knew him, we argued only once. We loved each other. And would until the day he died.

6:18Speaker 4:Hey, Mick.

6:20Speaker 3:We couldn't have known that day would come sooner than we thought.

6:22Speaker 5:You wanted to see me, boss?

6:24Speaker 3:Don't call me that.

6:27Speaker 4:You are, aren't you?

6:28Speaker 9:Then why is your name on.

6:29Speaker 3:This directive that says we'll keep searching for survivors even if we don't have enough oxygen masks and respirators for the rescue team?

6:37Speaker 5:Two reasons. The victims trapped in the rubble probably can't last much longer.

6:42Speaker 3:The same will hold true for the responders if they go in there without equipment.

6:46Speaker 5:No one's being forced to do it, Frank. Anyone who doesn't want to run the risk of exposure to toxic substances will be excused with no repercussions.

6:55Speaker 9:There are always repercussions, Mickey. We both know it.

6:58Speaker 5:And that's the second reason I signed. So I'd be the one on the line, not you.

7:03Speaker 9:I'm not going to hide behind your reputation.

7:05Speaker 5:My reputation's behind me, which is where it belongs. A year from now, I'll be fishing the Jersey Shore, and you'll be deputy chief. I see big things for you, Frank. Mayor, governor, who knows? That's why I wanted you for the job.

7:21Speaker 9:I didn't take it to grow my resume.

7:23Speaker 5:You're going to tell me the thought never crossed your mind? Look, Frank, there's nothing wrong with ambition, especially if it's in service of the right cause. So if there's a shitstorm that comes down, Frank, let it come down on me. Mayor Giuliani speaking to the press here at the Trade Center. So I want to say to everyone.

7:49Speaker 11:and our incredibly brave search and rescue teams. They have so far extricated nine survivors who've been taken to local hospitals, so there's at least something to feel good about.

8:02Speaker 12:Is it true that many of the first responders carried faulty radios and transmitters?

8:07Speaker 11:That's the first I'm hearing about it.

8:10Speaker 12:Are you aware that breakdowns in communication between responders and battalion command may have contributed to the high debt toll among the rescue teams?

8:18Speaker 5:Oh, I haven't heard that either.

8:20Speaker 1:Sir, the issue of faulty radios was also raised eight years ago when terrorists exploded a bomb in the Trade Center garage.

8:26Speaker 5:What's your point, Sarah?

8:27Speaker 12:Just that your administration's had eight years to fix the problem and it doesn't... I.

8:30Speaker 11:Don't sit around recharging batteries. Now, this press conference is over.

8:37Speaker 5:Mr. Mayor. Mr.

8:38Speaker 6:Mayor, the body is over 100.

8:40Speaker 5:Sir, I'm taking no more questions.

8:42Speaker 11:Mr. Mayor.

8:43Speaker 5:Mr.

8:43Speaker 8:Mayor. Mr.

8:43Speaker 5:Mayor.

8:50Speaker 3:Later that night, Mickey and I tailed Eddie Bernstein to the Brewster Hunt and Fish Club, the Genovese social hangout on Staten Island, as he walked down the block to get his car.

9:01Speaker 9:Hey, Eddie.

9:02Speaker 1:What?

9:03Speaker 4:Come for a ride.

9:04Speaker 3:What is this?

9:06Speaker 5:What do you want?

9:07Speaker 8:Come on.

9:07Speaker 12:Let's go.

9:08Speaker 4:Get it.

9:09Speaker 11:Shit.

9:10Speaker 5:The fuck?

9:11Speaker 4:Get in the car, Eddie.

9:12Speaker 12:Mick.

9:14Speaker 5:What the fuck is wrong with you guys?

9:15Speaker 2:You're going to tell me what this is all about?

9:18Speaker 9:Sizo sheets, Eddie.

9:20Speaker 3:Sign in, sign out. No-show jobs to defraud the city. You've been running that scam for years.

9:27Speaker 5:I don't run scams.

9:29Speaker 4:I'm a lawyer.

9:30Speaker 5:Well, there's an admission of guilt if I ever heard one.

9:33Speaker 3:You're also vice president of the International Brotherhood of Carnage and Construction Workers, which is a cover for what you really are. A wholly owned subsidiary of the Genovese family.

9:47Speaker 5:You detained me by force.

9:49Speaker 2:Failure to produce a warrant opens you to charges of false imprisonment, not to mention libel and defamation.

9:56Speaker 5:We bugged your car, you dope. We heard it all between you, diplomat, Pietro, and Joe Bianchi. Shit. Eddie, Jesus.

10:06Speaker 4:What'd you do?

10:07Speaker 5:You just shit yourself.

10:09Speaker 3:If Dip and Joe find out about the bug, one of two things is gonna happen. One, They'll think you can't be trusted because you didn't have your car swept often enough.

10:19Speaker 5:Well, that's the better of the two.

10:21Speaker 3:Or they'll figure you knew about the bug and were trying to get them to rat themselves out because you're working for us.

10:31Speaker 5:Eddie, you know what that'll mean.

10:34Speaker 4:Guys, I, um... I never hurt anyone. I got a family... My wife's not well.

10:43Speaker 5:You don't expect a sick wife excuse to fly, do you? Not after a lifetime of collusion with known criminal elements.

10:50Speaker 4:There must be some way to work this out.

10:53Speaker 9:We know you don't want to tell Dip and Joe about the buck. Now, the good news is, we don't want to either.

11:02Speaker 5:What do you need me to do?

11:06Speaker 4:Wear a wire.

11:08Speaker 8:Oh, God.

11:08Speaker 11:No.

11:10Speaker 5:No, Frank.

11:11Speaker 3:Get Joe or Dip, preferably both... No, no. incriminating themselves.

11:15Speaker 2:I can't.

11:17Speaker 9:You'd be surprised at what you can do.

11:19Speaker 5:Ask me anything but that, Frank.

11:22Speaker 2:They find it, they're going to cut me to fucking pieces while I'm still alive.

11:26Speaker 5:We'll have you under surveillance 24-7, guaranteed.

11:29Speaker 9:It's a lifeline, Ed.

11:31Speaker 5:Fuck you. Fuck you. Think about it. Fuck, fuck.

11:41Speaker 3:We had the architectural plans to Building 4 at the Trade Center.

11:46Speaker 7:We had the same plans, because three of the Genovese construction companies built the place to begin with.

11:52Speaker 3:The basement was supposed to hold as much as a billion dollars in gold and silver from financial institutions all over the world.

12:00Speaker 7:Through our informants, we knew the cops were coming in from the southwest corner, so we started digging from the northeast, using hand tools to keep them from hearing us.

12:19Speaker 5:Hold it. Hold it.

12:21Speaker 3:This is ladder six.

12:23Speaker 5:Battalion three, come in. Ladder six, go. You got a body?

12:29Speaker 4:Under a girder? A body?

12:32Speaker 7:Go.

12:33Speaker 5:A firefighter? Signia indicates he's from engine 13.

12:38Speaker 11:Beep.

12:49Speaker 3:Again, we stopped working out of respect. But as the body of a hero began his last journey, Joe Bianchi's crew kept digging, getting closer to the basement with every shovel of dirt.

13:10Speaker 10:When did he finally get home?

13:12Speaker 3:Quarter to six. My wife Connie and my sister Marie were as close as sister-in-laws could be.

13:18Speaker 13:Mass was finally over.

13:19Speaker 3:Especially with me being a cop and Joe a Genovese soldier. The girls promised it wouldn't affect their relationship. And it didn't.

13:28Speaker 13:You know, Connie.

13:29Speaker 3:Until the towers fell and my son Frankie went AWOL.

13:33Speaker 1:Every one of my brothers were altar boys.

13:36Speaker 4:All six?

13:37Speaker 10:Mm-hmm.

13:39Speaker 2:And every one of them hated it.

13:42Speaker 3:That's what's funny, Marie.

13:43Speaker 4:Frankie likes it.

13:47Speaker 9:Well, you never know.

13:48Speaker 3:You may have a seminarian on your hands.

13:52Speaker 13:You wouldn't say that if you saw the stack of Playboys under his bed.

13:55Speaker 1:You know what important thing is?

13:59Speaker 10:He got home okay.

14:00Speaker 9:Not that rage.

14:01Speaker 10:Going to Gino's for a hot slice is worth risking being grounded.

14:04Speaker 4:You know what I mean? Connie?

14:10Speaker 8:Connie?

14:11Speaker 3:What'd you say?

14:12Speaker 5:What?

14:14Speaker 9:All I said was as far.

14:15Speaker 1:As the kids are concerned, Going for pizza's worth the possibility of being grounded.

14:26Speaker 5:Hey!

14:28Speaker 8:Forward that!

14:29Speaker 1:What'd you say?

14:30Speaker 2:Forward, Frankie!

14:32Speaker 5:Now! What's the matter?

14:35Speaker 13:Yesterday you said you went to Gino's.

14:38Speaker 5:I did.

14:38Speaker 9:With a girl. Were you with a girl?

14:42Speaker 5:Yeah.

14:43Speaker 9:What was her name? What do you mean, what was her name? Tell me, Frankie!

14:49Speaker 4:You weren't with a girl.

14:51Speaker 9:Who were you with? This time I want the truth.

14:54Speaker 13:I already told you- Hey!

14:56Speaker 5:Ow!

15:04Speaker 9:Hey, Connie.

15:05Speaker 13:When Frankie said he went to Geno's instead of Mass yesterday, I asked him if anyone else knew. He said no.

15:13Speaker 5:Okay.

15:14Speaker 13:Marie came over for coffee.

15:16Speaker 5:So? She knew Frankie was at Gino's.

15:20Speaker 9:How could she have known?

15:21Speaker 5:Because Frankie was with Joe. Frankie just told me.

15:27Speaker 13:For an hour and a half.

15:29Speaker 5:He and Joe were shooting the shit.

15:31Speaker 13:Then Joe told him.

15:32Speaker 5:To tell us he was with a girl.

15:35Speaker 13:Joe put us through hell, Frank.

15:37Speaker 5:Just to fuck with us.

15:38Speaker 2:Joe.

15:44Speaker 5:Where do you think you're going? This is a private club.

15:46Speaker 9:I'm going inside.

15:47Speaker 5:Members only, pal. Members only.

15:49Speaker 9:I don't give a fuck what kind of club it is.

15:51Speaker 3:You see this badge?

15:53Speaker 6:Take it easy.

15:54Speaker 8:It's okay.

15:55Speaker 9:Open the fucking door or I'm going to kick it in.

15:57Speaker 5:Easy. Out of the way.

16:02Speaker 4:How are you, Frank?

16:07Speaker 9:Clear the room, Joe.

16:08Speaker 4:You just walked past three guys who could have made really bad decisions.

16:12Speaker 9:I was hoping they would.

16:15Speaker 4:Give us the room, fellas.

16:24Speaker 9:You don't ever, ever play dad with my son.

16:29Speaker 4:Take it easy. I bought him a slice, Frank.

16:32Speaker 7:Which he said he couldn't remember the last time that you did.

16:36Speaker 5:Get up, Joe.

16:38Speaker 4:I'm fine where I am.

16:39Speaker 12:Get up!

16:44Speaker 4:Okay, I'm up. What, you're going to arrest me, punch me, shoot me?

16:49Speaker 9:You fucked with me? My wife? You won't do it again.

16:57Speaker 4:Listen, if I really wanted to fuck with you.

16:58Speaker 9:You won't do it again.

17:01Speaker 4:You ever wonder, Frank?

17:06Speaker 7:You think he'll grow up more like you or like me?

17:11Speaker 9:I don't want him to be like me. But I know he won't be like you.

17:21Speaker 1:Connie.

17:23Speaker 5:Hey. Come in. Come in.

17:26Speaker 9:You talk to Joe? About?

17:30Speaker 7:Come on, Marie.

17:32Speaker 13:About Frankie.

17:33Speaker 5:Yeah. Look, I just.

17:36Speaker 13:I'm going to make this quick. Frankie and I will do anything to protect our son. Like you and Joe would do for Nicky.

17:43Speaker 9:All right, look, I'm sorry about what happened, Connie. I hope you know that.

17:48Speaker 13:I love you, Marie. But if anything ever happens to Frank or Frank Jr., ever, I'll kill you with my bare fucking hands.

17:59Speaker 2:Connie, you can save it.

18:00Speaker 8:Connie!

18:21Speaker 4:Frank.

18:22Speaker 3:Mickey, all right?

18:24Speaker 5:I'm not the guy I used to be, I'll tell you that.

18:27Speaker 9:Let me get your mask.

18:28Speaker 5:No, I'm okay. Let one of the other guys have it.

18:34Speaker 9:Up ahead, look over there.

18:36Speaker 3:The door's partially open.

18:38Speaker 9:You guys, point your flashlights out the door.

18:43Speaker 8:Open it.

18:57Speaker 5:Frank, there's... There's nothing here.

19:01Speaker 10:What?

19:03Speaker 9:Should be millions. Should be hundreds of millions.

19:10Speaker 3:How could anyone have taken so much of it in so short a time?

19:14Speaker 5:Unless we were wrong, there was never anything here to begin with.

19:19Speaker 3:What's this?

19:22Speaker 9:It's a body. Bring the lights over.

19:27Speaker 5:Shine them over there, to the right. Shine the lights on his face.

19:34Speaker 9:Jesus Christ, Mickey.

19:35Speaker 5:It's Eddie Bernstein. Eddie Bernstein. He wouldn't have been down here on his own accord. Joe and his guys must have found the wire. Jesus. We told Eddie.

19:49Speaker 9:We promised him. he'd be under surveillance to keep them safe.

19:53Speaker 5:I know. I don't... I don't... How'd this happen, Mickey? Oh, shit.

20:03Speaker 8:Oh, shit.

20:21Speaker 5:Eddie's back was turned, so he never saw it coming. I caved in his skull, and I wedged him under some beams so it would look good for the coroners. And just so we're clear, I took care of Eddie so no one goes after Frank. I just want to keep the operation moving forward. So nothing happens to Frank, right?

20:45Speaker 4:Good night, Mickey.

20:47Speaker 5:Good night, y'all.

20:49Speaker 8:Good night.

21:06Speaker 1:Underground Zero, 9-11 and the Mob is a production of Thoroughbred Studios, Goldhawk Productions, and IHAR Podcasts.