By Laurel J. Sweet and Matt Stout
The Boston Herald
The latest state trooper stripped of his badge for running afoul of the law is behind bars pending a detention and probable cause hearing Friday on charges he threatened to kill a bookie and sexually assault his mother.
Arrested Saturday, John Analetto, 48, of Belmont, a 19-year state police veteran and father of two teens, faces up to 20 years in federal prison if convicted of extortion, Magistrate Judge Marianne B. Bowler said yesterday at his initial appearance in U.S. District Court.
‘The situation is not as it appears at first blush,’ attorney Daniel O’Malley told reporters.
State police have suspended Analetto without pay. A ‘disgusted’ state police Col. Marian J. McGovern called Analetto’s alleged betrayal ‘beneath contempt’ and worthy of a ‘street thug.’
The FBI alleges that Analetto - who earned nearly $113,000 in 2010 - loaned his bookie $24,000 last fall, but demanded a cut of his business in return. An FBI affidavit said that in a secretly recorded Dec. 23 meeting, Analetto told the bookie, an FBI informant who owed him money, ‘Will I kill you? Ya, I’ll (expletive) kill you.’
The FBI also reported Analetto told the informant he would sexually assault his mother.
Last week, Analetto became violent, head-butting and slapping the informant, according to the affidavit, which also said he left a message for a bettor, saying, ‘We’d appreciate if you contact the right people and start doing the right thing. Or 2012 isn’t going to be too good for you. ... So Happy New Year to you and your mom and dad and family.’
The FBI arrested Analetto Saturday in Belmont.
He is the third state trooper to face criminal charges in the past two months. Capt. Thomas McCarthy was arrested in November after leading Saugus cops on a chase down Route 1 and is due in court later this month where he faces a possible drunken driving charge. Last month police said they caught Trooper Efrain Montanez with an accused hooker.
Copyright 2012 Boston Herald Inc.