The Vatican Connection, Richard Hammer
The Vatican Connection, Richard Hammer
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The Vatican Connection
The True Story of a Billion-Dollar Conspiracy Between the Catholic Church and the Mafia

Author: Richard Hammer

Narrator: Stephen Bowlby

Unabridged: 11 hr 45 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Publisher: Tantor Media

Published: 08/22/2023

Synopsis

With a round, open face and a penchant for tall tales, Matteo de Lorenzo resembled everyone's kindly uncle. But Uncle Marty, as he was known throughout the Genovese crime family, was one of the New York mob's top earners throughout the 1960s and '70s, the mastermind of a billion-dollar trade in stolen and counterfeit securities.

In the spring of 1972, de Lorenzo and his business partner, Vincent Rizzo, traveled to Europe to discuss a plan to launder millions of dollars' worth of phony securities. Shockingly, the plot involved Archbishop Paul Marcinkus, the scandal-plagued president of the Vatican Bank. Unbeknownst to de Lorenzo and Rizzo, however, the NYPD was already on the case—thanks to the work of Det. Joseph Coffey.

Coffey, the New York policeman who investigated the Lufthansa heist and took the Son of Sam's confession, learned of the scheme in a wiretap related to the attempted mob takeover of the Playboy Club in Manhattan. He worked tirelessly to trace the fraudulent stocks and bonds around the world and deep into the corridors of power in Washington, DC, and Rome.

Meticulously researched and relentlessly gripping, The Vatican Connection is a true story of corruption and deceit.

About Richard Hammer

Richard Hammer is the author of more than twenty fiction and nonfiction books, as well as numerous short stories, articles, and essays for major publications worldwide. He has won two Edgar Awards for Best Fact Crime, for The Vatican Connection (1982) and The CBS Murders (1987) and was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize and the National Book Award for The Court-Martial of Lt. Calley (1971). Both the New York Times and the Washington Post named One Morning in the War (1970) and The Court-Martial of Lt. Calley one of the ten best books of the respective years in which they were published. Hammer's first book, Between Life and Death (1969), explored the case that led to the landmark Supreme Court decision in Brady v. Maryland and its repercussions. He wrote and narrated the Academy Award-winning documentary Interviews with My-Lai Veterans (1970) and has been involved in many TV films and motion pictures. Before becoming a full-time freelance writer, he wrote for the New York Times and its Week in Review section, where he covered the war in Vietnam, the civil rights struggle, and most other major stories of the times. A native of Hartford, Connecticut, Hammer attended Mount Hermon School, earned degrees from Syracuse University and Trinity College, and did postgraduate work at Columbia University. He and his wife currently reside in New York City.

Reviews

Goodreads review by Joy on January 31, 2018

Author Richard Hammer's point, stated near his ending, is: "There are people so powerful and so highly placed that they are impervious to the law, and that society’s rules and codes do not apply to them." Henry II of England would have felt a serious deja vu, with the 1972 Catholic Church protecting......more

Goodreads review by Liz on December 17, 2019

Meticulously researched nonfiction account of fraudulent security deals by the mob, involving diverse players including knowing participants from within the Vatican. The cast of characters is at times dizzying, and the story unfolds chronologically, often with details presented before later evidence......more

Goodreads review by Dianeparente62gmail.com on May 20, 2018

I rated this a four star book mainly in admiration for the extensive research and the skill in weaving a multitude of facts into a cohesive narrative. This is bàsically the saga of an intuitive New York City cop who slowly unravels the Mafia 's far flung scheme to acquire wealth through the manufact......more

Goodreads review by Renee on January 21, 2025

Fascinating subject that is fairly contemporary - 70's - with names that many of us remember or recognize. The book documents the huge investigative work done with state and federal law enforcement plus European country law offices. The crimes were many and generally white collar but you can't have......more

Goodreads review by Molly on April 10, 2019

Questionable book I did enjoy the book until the Vatican part. I think there were too many questionable accusations about the Vatican that did not fit the rest of the book. Lots of detail in the first three quarters f the book and then it seemed a rush to get it published with a fancy title. Also the......more

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