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Carlos Rafael was made on the waterfront. For decades, the balding seafood magnate haunted the docks and early-morning fish auctions in New Bedford, Massachusetts, where he had gone from gutting fish as a high school dropout to controlling one of the largest fishing fleets in the United States. Though he estimated his net worth at $10 million to $25 million, he still walked the creaky, bait-scented wharves in flannel shirts and worn jeans every day, barking out commands and alternating between foul-mouthed English and rapid-fire Portuguese as he chain-smoked Winston cigarettes and monitored the day’s catch. |
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That all changed in 2016, when federal authorities revealed that Rafael was at the centre of a sprawling criminal investigation involving fake Russian mobsters, fraudulent haddock and duffel bags of cash. Now 67, Rafael will never fish again, according to the terms of a settlement with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration that was announced Monday.
It’s the latest chapter in the downfall of the man known as the “Codfather,” who is serving nearly four years in federal prison, and, under the new settlement, owes the government more than $3 million in fines. |
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