CARLINO BOMBING - 1931

 

Denver was a Mafia town once upon a time.

On March 17, 1931, a bomb leveled the home of Colorado mobster Pete Carlino on Federal Boulevard in Denver. Firemen combed the ruins for bodies but found none. Carlino, his wife and seven children had left town.

Carlino had a mark on his back. He was attempting to extend his booze network from Pueblo to Denver and survived an earlier ambush by gunmen on a Denver street.

Carlino's mobster brother, Sam, wasn't as lucky. He and another thug were shot dead in Denver on May 8, 1931.

Pete's luck faltered, too. He was mortally wounded on Sept. 10 or 11 while traveling to Canon City. His body was found on a rural road riddled with bullets.

In the aftermath, bombs rocked Denver on the night of Sept. 28, 1931.

In a strange twist, if thing weren't strange enough, the original bombing of Carlino's home was determined to be a a facade - a deliberate attempt by his gang to collect insurance money.

Three of them were convicted of the crime. Pete Carlino faced charges in the matter, too, and was out on bail when he succumbed.