The 89-year old man who inspired the Scorsese film The Departed died days ago in his jail cell, after a life of committing the most heinous of crimes. James (Whitey) Bulger's track record speaks for itself. The Irish American mobster racked up a rap sheet that included several degrees of murder, extortion, double-crossing, and worst of all: a penchant for snitching on rival gang leaders, the latter being the reason he was likely targeted in his jail cell by a hired hand operating within the walls of the penitentiary.
Before his incarceration in a state prison, Bulger was facing two inevitabilities: the retribution of his rivals, and his impending arrest by federal agents. So when news broke on Tuesday that Bulger had been murdered in his jail cell, very few on "the inside" were surprised.
“Anyone in criminal activity with him feels grossly betrayed that he was informing on them while he was supposedly their comrade and friend," Michael Kendall, a former federal prosecutor suggested to the New York Times as he accounted for the many wronged individuals who could be responsible for ordering his hit. "And anyone committed to law enforcement wouldn’t consider him a legitimate informant, because he just manipulated law enforcement to carry out criminal activity — including murders."
The four men suspected of carrying out the murder of Bulger stormed into his jail cell, one wielding a "lock in a sock," the other their bare hands. After overpowering him, they seemingly attempted to remove his tongue from his mouth. None of it was captured on surveillance tape.
Afterwards, the four simply replaced their sullied prison garments, going about their day in a casual manner.
