Fugitive Boston crimeboss James ‘Whitey’ Bulger has been arrested by the FBI near Los Angeles after nearly 16 years on the run.
Bulger, who is now 81 years old, was on the FBI’s 10 most wanted list for his connection to 19 murders committed from the early 70’s to the mid 80’s.
The aging mobster, who once ruled the Boston underworld with an iron fist, was found living in a three-story, 28-unit apartment building in Santa Monica, California, with his girlfriend Catherine Greig, 60.
Their capture came days after the government launched a publicity campaign to locate the fugitive crime boss by circulating pictures of Greig on daytime TV and numerous billboards.
The arrest- which marked the end of an epic manhunt that included reported sightings from all over the world including Ireland, France, Italy, Thailand, Brazil and Spain- was directly based on a tip prompted by those TV ads, according to Federal authorities.
“He was like the criminal version of Elvis,” said form FBI assistant director, Tom Fuentes. “At one point, he was sighted on two different continents at the same time. The FBI pulled out all of the stops.”
Bulger, who was the inspiration for Jack Nicholson’s character, Frank Costello, in the 2006 Hollywood film “The Departed,” will appear at a hearing later this afternoon.
