Hit man suspected in gangster’s prison death

BOSTON — A Mafia hit man who is said to hate “rats” is under suspicion in the slaying of former Boston crime boss and longtime FBI informant James “Whitey” Bulger, who was found dead hours after he was transferred to a West Virginia prison, an ex-investigator briefed on the case said Wednesday.

The former official said Fotios “Freddy” Geas and at least one other inmate are believed to have been involved in Bulger’s killing. The longtime investigator spoke on the condition of anonymity.

Authorities have not disclosed the cause of death, which is one of many unanswered questions after Bulger was found dead Tuesday: Why was he moved Geas in 2009 to the prison? And why was a frail 89-year-old like Bulger — a known “snitch” — placed in the general population instead of more protective housing?

Geas, 51, and his brother were sentenced to life in prison in 2011 for their roles in several violent crimes, including the 2003 killing of Adolfo “Big Al” Bruno, a Genovese crime family boss.

Private investigator Ted McDonough, who knew Geas, told The Boston Globe, “Freddy hated rats.”

“Freddy hated guys who abused women. Whitey was a rat who killed women. It’s probably that simple,” McDonough told the newspaper, which first reported that Geas was under suspicion.

An FBI spokeswoman declined to comment on Geas. Federal officials said only that they are investigating the death as a homicide.

“What I don’t understand is why the Federal Bureau of Prisons would transfer a super-high-publicity inmate, who is a known snitch, to general population of a high-security prison,” said Cameron Lindsay, a former federal prison warden who now works as a jail security consultant. “You’ve got to be smarter than that.”

Bulger’s death was the third killing in the past six months at the prison, where union officials have raised concerns about dozens of vacant jobs.