The Spilotro Era - 1979

by Denny Griffin

As the 1970s neared an end, things heated up in the law’s battle against Tony Spilotro. And Sheriff John McCarthy quickly learned that organized crime wasn’t his only problem — far from it. But his new administration brought about quick and positive results in the relationship between Metro and the FBI.

FBI agent Emmett Michaels welcomed the improvement. In a 2004 interview, he recalled the night in 1978 that he and a team of agents bugged and wiretapped Spilotro’s Gold Rush. “At that time Metro had a reputation of being corrupt, so we didn’t tell them we were going to place bugs in Spilotro’s store and tap the phones. There were about ten agents involved altogether. I and three other guys were up on the telephone poles when the alarm system activated. A Metro car showed up and the officer got out to investigate. The four of us dangled from those poles, holding our breath and hoping the cop didn’t look up. He didn’t. He left a few minutes later without detecting us.” Had they been caught in the act, the incident would have been embarrassing at the least, and word may have gotten back to Spilotro at the worst.

And then, ironically, the new Sheriff was forced to defend himself from reports in local newspapers claiming that organized crime was attempting to gain influence over him. One story alleged that Spilotro money had actually paid for McCarthy’s post-election victory party. This was a real slap in the face to the man who had campaigned on the promise of ridding Las Vegas of the Ant and his ilk. McCarthy vehemently denied the allegations and they were never proved, but they were an omen of things to come.

While those controversies raged on, in October the local chapter of the NAACP accused Metro of mistreating blacks. They alleged that some cops operated under the premise that all blacks were criminals, or at least prone to crime, and weren’t entitled to the same rights afforded other citizens. Sheriff McCarthy responded, admitting that misconduct could sometimes occur in a department with 900 sworn personnel. He argued that any mistreatment of blacks involved disrespect and not physical abuse. One officer was already under investigation for misconduct and other cases were pending, he assured them. McCarthy also used the charges as an opportunity to reach out to the black community, asking that a dialogue be established to make sure similar complaints were handled fairly.

Also in October, Kent Clifford and the Intelligence Bureau found their way into the media limelight in a negative way. Two local gun-shop owners, who had been arrested for criminal possession of brass knuckles, questioned the tactics used by Clifford’s detectives during the investigation that led to their arrests. After making their complaint, the pair claimed they received anonymous threatening phone calls. A female police informant they knew supposedly told them that the cops were planning to retaliate against them. It wouldn’t be the last time Commander Clifford and his officers would be accused of using questionable methods.
On the organized-crime front, two incidents occurred during the year that later had a major impact on the law’s altercation with Tony Spilotro.

In early 1979 a new player was added to the Spilotro team. Frank Cullotta, a Chicago native and boyhood pal of the Ant, arrived in Las Vegas. Cullotta didn’t just show up out of the blue. He had an extensive criminal record and had recently been released from an Illinois prison. Tony had gone to Illinois, where he and some of the old gang threw Frank a coming-out party. At that celebration, Tony extended an invitation for the 41-year-old ex-con to join him in Vegas. Cullotta accepted the offer and was soon enjoying life in Sin City as one of Spilotro’s trusted lieutenants.

An accomplished burglar, Cullotta oversaw the operation of the Hole in the Wall Gang. However, thievery wasn’t his only forte. He was also capable of violence and carried out killings when ordered.

The Lisner Murder

At approximately 4:30 a.m. on October 11, 1979, a dead man was found floating face down in the swimming pool of his residence at 2302 Rawhide Avenue in Las Vegas. He’d been shot in the head several times by a small-caliber handgun. The deceased was 46-year-old Sherwin “Jerry” Lisner. His wife Jeannie, a cocktail waitress at the Aladdin, found the body. She’d left work early after becoming concerned when her husband failed to answer her telephone calls and made the grisly discovery.

According to investigating police officers, Lisner had put up quite a fight. Bullet holes were discovered throughout the inside of the dwelling, and blood was found on the walls and floor leading from the garage, through the residence, and out to the pool. Although the house had been ransacked, the cops didn’t believe robbery or burglary was the motive. They declined to speculate on the reason Lisner was killed, but they did have a theory on how the murder went down. The killer, or killers, knocked on the garage door, surprising Lisner. When he answered the knock, the shooting started. Although wounded, the victim attempted to escape his assailant, running through his home, the would-be killer in close pursuit and bullets flying. After a valiant effort to survive, Lisner’s luck ran out when he reached the pool. No murder weapon was found and no suspect named.

But the police had their suspicions on the why and who of it. They knew that the dead man had mob connections. He’d been arrested by the FBI on July 11 and charged with interstate transportation of stolen property, aiding and abetting, grand larceny, and conspiracy. Free on $75,000 bail, Lisner was scheduled to go on trial October 29, in U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C.

Lisner was also known to have been acquainted with Tony Spilotro, though he wasn’t considered to have been a member of the Ant’s crew. He’d been rumored to be a part-time informant for the Drug Enforcement Agency and was believed to have been negotiating with the FBI to work out a deal in the cases pending against him in Washington. Those particular charges had no direct ties to Spilotro or the Outfit, but Tony was aware the feds wanted him bad. If they got Lisner talking, what guarantee was there that the conversation wouldn’t include Tony and his Las Vegas activities?

Metro investigators knew all this and drew the logical conclusion that in Spilotro’s mind, Lisner had to be considered a threat. And, as everyone was learning, people in that position tended to meet violent ends. So the police had a pretty good idea that Tony was behind the Lisner murder, but they couldn’t prove it.

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