A Cabot man already linked to federal charges involving North Little Rock elected officials is now facing new charges involving the mafia. George Wylie Thompson, 64, has been indicted along with three others on organized crime charges in five states, including Arkansas.
This all started in eastern Arkansas when the government started following Thompson for a number of illegal activities that quickly turned into something much bigger. Thursday, a new federal indictment out of Massachusetts identifies Thompson as a member of the organized crime group, the “DeLeo Crew.” Federal prosecutors say the leader of the group, Ralph DeLeo, is a made man in the Colombo crime family of La Cosa Nostra, one of the most powerful organized crime families in the United States. Thompson and three others are charged with selling drugs, loan sharking and extortion in five states including Arkansas.
These new charges come on the heels of another federal indictment involving two North Little Rock aldermen. Former alderman Cary Gaines is charged with conspiring with Thompson to rig bids on city projects and alderman Sam Baggett is charged with selling guns and ammunition to Thompson who is a convicted felon. All three men pleaded not guilty to these charges.
With these new charges linking Thompson to the mob, we talked to North Little Rock City Attorney Jason Carter about the impact this could have on the city. “It certainly doesn’t make things better. It heightens the attention that the conflict has gotten and it has already received a significant amount of attention. It doesn’t make it better that is certain,” says Carter.
Thompson is currently in the Pulaski County jail awaiting trial on January 4th on the fraud and conspiracy charges.
The trial for both Baggett and Gaines is scheduled for January 26th.
Gaines stepped down from the North Little Rock city council on November 20th. Baggett is still serving as a North Little Rock alderman.
