How much do you really know about your neighbors? You know that Mr. Malarkey likes to sunbathe
in a speedo every morning around 8AM - just as you’re going to get the paper. You know that Mrs. Bellingham will call the
police at the slightest unusual sound in the neighborhood - even if it’s just you dropping
a plate in the kitchen. But then there’s the guy at the corner,
Mr. Smith. You brought him a fruit basket when he moved
in, but he seemed tense and didn’t want to talk. You don’t know where he works, where he
comes from, and he doesn’t seem eager to share. You wonder - is he just a normal, shy guy
in the neighborhood, or is he hiding a secret? Is he even who he says he is? The federal witness protection program was
founded in 1971 to protect high-value witnesses in criminal trials from retaliation or assassination,
and it does this by giving them new identities and placing them anonymously around the country
in quiet communities - like yours. There are over 19,000 witnesses in the program
since its founding, and it’s estimated that 95% of them are criminals themselves. Most are low-level members of criminal organizations
who decided to save themselves from a prison sentence by turning on the boss, but not all
of them. The federal government has cut sweetheart
deals with some of the most dangerous criminals around - and they might be living right next
door. Here are ten of the most dangerous criminals
in witness protection you should keep an eye out for… 10. John Kelley John Kelley was one of the most prolific robbers
and hit men the Irish mob had ever seen, and he was notorious in the community for his
patience - they called him “Swiss Watch” due to how meticulous and careful he was. So careful, in fact, that he was involved
in some of the most famous robberies of the 1960s, including the Plymouth Mall robbery
and the Boston Brinks holdup. Both times he was arrested and put on trial
after people fingered him as playing a role, but he had a secret weapon - his lawyer, F.
Lee Bailey. The legendary trial lawyer was able to cast
doubt on Kelley’s involvement, and he walked free both times. But Kelley’s careful planning didn’t work
out for his mob bosses. When mob boss Raymond Patriarca went on trial
for murder, John Kelley saw the opportunity to get out before his luck ran out. He fingered Patriarca and several other associates
for two murders, and they all went to prison. Kelley was now a marked man, and he went into
the witness protection program under the protection of the FBI. Where did he go? No one knows, but he stayed under the radar
for more than thirty years until his death - but many of the others in the program are
still alive and living quietly around the country. #9. Sammy Gravano John Gotti was one of the most notorious mobsters
in American history, but there was one thing he hadn’t planned for - someone taking down
his crime syndicate from within. His underboss, Sammy “The Bull” Gravano,
had worked for both the Colombo and Gambino families, and even successfully plotted to
kill Gambino boss Paul Castellano. That earned him a promotion, but the ambitious
and ruthless Gravano was always looking for a better deal. He became the highest-ranking mob boss to
ever turn government witness, and confessed to being involved in 19 murders. While John Gotti went to prison for life,
Gravano got a light five years - and was out in one due to time served. He went into the federal witness protection
program, but as someone who could never stay in one place long, it didn’t surprise people
when he decided to leave and resume his old life. Despite being a hunted man, he took advantage
of his celebrity to collaborate on a biography. And from there, he stayed law-abiding...for
a few years. In 2000, he and forty other people were arrested
for involvement in a massive drug ring. One trial later, he returned to prison for
a much longer stretch - but was released in 2017. The Bull is out there under his own name,
but many notorious criminals are still completely anonymous. #8. Rayful Edmond One witness protection resident that you don’t
need to worry about being right next door - yet - is drug trafficker Rayful Edmond. In the 1980s, Washington DC came under threat
from a new scourge - crack cocaine. This potent drug led to a rising crime rate,
even causing the capital to be called “the murder capital of the United States”, And
it all traced back to one man - Rayful Edmond, a heavy-duty trafficker who had deals with
some of the most notorious cartels in the world. A go-between who sold his wares to low-level
drug dealers, he was notorious in the city for his fancy clothing - and he had no problem
keeping his power by hiring people to murder rivals. He was only 24 when he was arrested for multiple
counts of drug trafficking. His trial was top-secret, with the jurors’
identities hidden and their panel behind bulletproof glass to protect them from retaliation. He was convicted on all counts - and promptly
sentenced to life in prison, where he became a dealer behind bars. Why did he turn government informant? No one knows, but he was transferred to a
top-secret new prison where he remains to this day. He’s still locked up, but a growing movement
wants to see his sentence commuted due to his cooperation. Coming to a neighborhood near you? #7. Abdul Majid Giaka In the 1980s, the regime of Muammar al-Gaddafi
was one of the most feared in the world, and its security force had a wide reach that allowed
it to commit crimes around the world. The most notorious of these was the downing
of Pan Am Flight 103 in 1988, which led to a decade-long manhunt. They finally arrested Abdelbaset al-Meghari
for the crime, but the prosecutors in Scotland were worried about evidence - until they were
approached by a man on the inside. Abdul Majid Giaka, a pseudonym for a member
of the Libyan intelligence service, approached the CIA and said he wanted to become an asset. But was he trustworthy? He gave them a lot of information about the
inner workings of the Libyan government, but he overstated his importance. And for every bit of information, he had a
new demand. He wanted the CIA to pay him a salary, to
pay for a surgery that would get him out of military service, and to finance a car rental
business idea of his. His theories became more and more outlandish,
claiming a powerful Masonic conspiracy behind Gaddafi’s regime - but his testimony about
seeing Meghari plant a suitcase on the plane was enough to get a conviction. Was Giaka a turncoat or a scammer? No one knows, but the CIA took a risk on him
- and some even more dangerous criminals. #6. Marion Albert Pruett Not everyone who goes into the witness protection
program works out for the government, but they rarely have a high-profile disaster as
bad as Marion Albert Pruett. He was a federal inmate in 1979 when he witnessed
a murder, and agreed to testify. His sentence was commuted and he was given
a new name - Charles “Sonny” Pearson, and set free to begin a new life. But that was only the beginning of his crime
spree, and wherever Pruett went, death followed. He robbed a bank, kidnapped teller Peggy Lowe,
and killed her. Bobbie Jean Robertson, a convenience store
clerk, soon followed. By the time the government caught up to Pruett,
he had racked up five deaths, including his common-law wife. Convicted individually for each murder, he
received three life sentences and a death sentence for Robertson’s murder. As his execution date awaited, he didn’t
change his colors a bit - he tried to extort the media for information on murders he supposedly
committed in Florida. But all of Marion Albert Pruett’s scheming
couldn’t get him out of his meeting with Arkansas’ death row in 1999. He’s not coming to a neighborhood near you,
but that’s not the case for some of the following criminals... #5. Jorge Salcedo Cabrera South of the border, the drug cartels hold
a lot of power, and there are whole sectors of Columbia where they’re in control. It’s notoriously hard for the federal government
to stem the tide of drugs when many of the powerful dealers are out of their reach. But that changed with Operation Cornerstone,
which took down the deadly Cali Cartel. At the center of this operation - their head
of security, Jorge Salcedo Cabrera. A skilled civil engineer recruited into the
cartel as a young man, he was involved in a near-assassination of rival cartel leader
Pablo Escobar. When an attorney close to the cartel was arrested,
Cabrera saw an opportunity to get out before it was too late. He consulted with the DEA and developed a
plan to arrest leader Miguel Rodriguez Orejuela. It took two tries, but Cabrera’s information
was accurate. He waited six and a half years for permission
to come to the United States with his family, where they entered the witness protection
program - where they’ve been since 1995, living in quiet obscurity. Something the next criminal knows very little
about. #4. Mickey Featherstone Few names invoked more fear in the middle
of the 20th century in New York than the Westies, a ruthless Irish mob based in Hell’s Kitchen. And one of their most notorious members was
hitman Francis “Mickey” Featherstone. A member of James Coonan’s gang, he came
back from the Vietnam War and had a reputation for unstable behavior. When he came home, he promptly picked a fight
with some New Jersey gangsters moving in, and shot one of them in the arm. Coonan took a liking to the ruthless young
man, and he bounced in and out of hospitals, usually getting away with his crimes by being
found unfit to stand trial. But his luck took a turn when he was convicted
for the murder of Michael Holly. He hadn’t actually committed this murder,
but he was facing twenty-five years in prison. And suddenly, having a wild card like Featherstone
wasn’t looking so good for Coonan. Featherstone turned informant, had his sentence
overturned, and gave the government everything they needed to convict Coonan of racketeering. His own sentence was suspended, and he was
released into the witness protection program. His current whereabouts are unknown, but by
all accounts the man dog of Hell’s Kitchen is still out there. Our next undercover criminal was once one
of America’s most bitter enemies... #3. Stanislav Lunev Most witness protection residents have the
fate of a crime syndicate in their hands, but one had the fate of the entire world. It was the height of the cold war when Stanislav
Lunev rose to prominence in the Soviet military. He traveled the world, being stationed in
Singapore, China, and the United States undercover. But in 1992, he shocked the world when he
became the highest-ranking Soviet officer to ever defect to the United States. And what he told US authorities was a game-changer. Everyone knew the Soviets and Americans were
in an arms race, but Lunev had information on an elaborate series of nuclear sabotage
operations including the possibility of hidden tactical nuclear weapons. He also alleged that these bombs could be
used to assassinate US leaders. He even alleged a plan to poison the Potomac
River. While many speculated that Lunev’s stories
were exaggerated, he was considered a credible witness, and disappeared into the witness
protection program. The spy in the United States had become one
of its secret assets. Our next undercover witness would be the inspiration
for one of the best tv shows ever. #2. Vincent Palermo Who doesn’t love The Sopranos? Even if we still don’t know what happened
at the end. But the real-life inspiration for Tony Soprano
took a very different path. Vincent Palermo was a New Jersey mob boss,
head of the DeCavalcante crime family, and the owner of a strip club named Wiggles which
was notorious for being a hub of mob business. He was a family man in more ways than one,
and if you crossed either of his families, he was notorious for getting violent. But the power struggle in the family was getting
hotter, and no one was sure how long Palermo could hold on as his allies and enemies were
gunned down. When his associate Ralph Guarino was arrested
and became an informant to avoid prison, Palermo was arrested and faced capital offenses. He was not going to die in prison, and so
Palermo took the only route he could - he confessed and offered up the entire De Cavalcante
crime family on a silver platter. He disappeared - but he was one of the most
high-profile informants in the program, and in 2009 he was found in Houston, Texas, under
the name Vincent Cabella. He was out of organized crime, but some things
never change - he was running a strip club that was a hub of illegal activity. Our number one criminal could be both a mass
murderer, and living next door to you right now! #1. Michael Townley The regime of Augusto Pinochet in Chile during
the 1970s was notorious for its brutality, and for one Iowa-born young man, he looked
at its atrocities and said - I want in. Michael Townley had gone back and forth between
Chile and the United States, working for Pinochet’s secret service in collaboration with the CIA. The US government was affiliated with Pinochet’s
regime for anti-communist reasons, but Townley went much further than most of their American
allies. He went around the world, assassinating enemies
of the regime in exile. In 1974 he killed Carlos Prats in Buenos Aires,
and made an attempt on other lives in Italy and Washington. It was his assassination of Chilean diplomat
Orlando Letelier in Washington that proved his undoing, as he was extradited to Washington
in 1978 after being convicted in absentia. He wasted no time cutting a deal, offering
everything he knew about the operations in Chile. He served 62 months in prison for the killing,
but was released into witness protection - where he lives to this day. The number of people he killed is unknown,
and he’s even suspected in the death of Nobel Prize winning Chilean novelist Pablo
Neruda. Townley’s current whereabouts are unknown,
and one of the Pinochet regime’s most brutal killers could be anywhere. Want to know about more criminals still out
there? Check out “Most Wanted Americans by Interpol
(2019), or check out this video instead.
