Re: "The Rifleman".... Did you know that Whitey Bulger the convict who was murdered in prison last month was known as "The Rifleman" in mafia circles? Bulger was a amoral killer and a crack shot with a rifle.... He was given the moniker " The Rifleman" after the murder of JFK....
Is there a connection?.... I don't know.
I'm pretty sure the rifleman moniker was attached to his associate Stephen "The Rifleman" Flemmi.
Bulger was incarcerated 9 nine years for bank robbery and was in a number of places including Alcatraz from 1956 to 1965.
Stephen Joseph "The Rifleman" Flemmi (born June 9, 1934) is an Italian-American gangster and close associate of Winter Hill Gang boss Whitey Bulger. Beginning in 1975, Flemmi was a top echelon informant for the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). Despite delivering a great deal of intelligence about the inner workings of the Patriarca crime family, Flemmi's own criminal activities proved a public relations nightmare for the FBI. He was ultimately brought up on charges under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO), and pleaded guilty in return for a sentence of life in prison.
His nickname comes from the fact that Flemmi enlisted in the Army in 1951 at the age of 17 and served two tours of duty in Korea with the 187th Airborne Regimental Combat Team. He was awarded the Silver Star and Bronze Star Medal decorations for valor
