The Con and the FBI Agent: An Unlikely Alliance

Former FBI supervisory special agent David Nadolski and prison inmate Anthony (Tony) Romano team up to take down a dangerous criminal gang involved in art theft and bank robberies. Nadolski recruits Romano to infiltrate the Merlino gang, which is suspected of the largest art theft in history. Romano wears a wire and records their planning sessions, leading to a successful criminal investigation and undercover sting operation.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 290 pages
Publication date: 16 April 2024
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield

While FBI Agent David Nadolski risked his career, his informant, Anthony Romano, risked his life to quash one of the biggest armed robberies of the twentieth century. During the 1990s, Boston was a world leader in arts, culture, higher education, and medicine. It was also a world leader in organized crime. In this exciting account, former FBI supervisory special agent David Nadolski tells the story of an unlikely alliance between two diametrically opposed people—the con and the FBI agent. While investigating a break-in at the Stone Library in Quincy, MA, that houses the personal book collection of John Quincy Adams, the FBI gets a call from prison inmate, Anthony (Tony) Romano, requesting to meet with the case agent on the burglary. Romano provides a helpful tip that leads to the apprehension of the thief and the recovery of four priceless, historically significant books. Recognizing Tony's potential, Nadolski begins to cultivate a relationship in hopes of recruiting Romano as a criminal informant. Nadolski recruits Romano to play a very dangerous game—infiltrate the Merlino gang, controlled by Carmello Merlino, a career criminal who specialized in bank robberies, armored car robberies, and home invasions. The Merlino gang also became suspects in the largest art theft in history, which took place at the Isabella Stuart Gardner Museum in Boston and remains unsolved to this day. Romano, a former armed robber, agrees. With sights set on the Loomis Fargo Armored Car Company money vault, located south of Boston, the Merlino gang gets to work. Little did they know, Romano, at great personal risk, was wearing a wire and recording their planning sessions. After two years of being joined at the hip and learning to trust each other unconditionally, special agent Nadolski and Romano run a sting operation that leads to the arrest of several members of the Merlino gang, including Carmello Merlino himself. The operation also recovers millions of dollars in stolen art and cash. Nadolski and Romano's unlikely partnership is a testament to the power of trust and the ability of two people from different worlds to work together to achieve a common goal. It also highlights the risks and rewards of being a criminal informant and the importance of maintaining trust and loyalty.

Weight: 390g
Dimension: 228 x 150 x 16 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781538189412