TWO SUSPECTS have been identified in the murder of James 'Whitey' Bulger as further grizzly details emerge following the death of the 89-year-old incarcerated Boston crime lord.
Bulger was found unresponsive on the morning of Tuesday, October 30th, at Hazelton prison in Bruceton Mills, having only been transferred to the facility the previous day.
The Irish Post previously reported on the gruesome details behind the deadly beating that ended Bulger's life.
According to those reports, three unnamed inmates took the wheelchair-bound Bulger to a corner of the prison away from watching eye of the security cameras.
It was reported that they then attempted to gouge out his eyes using a rudimentary shiv before beating him to death with a 'lock-in-a-sock' weapon.
Now CNN has revealed that when Bulger was discovered he had been beaten beyond recognition and that his attackers also tried to cut out his tongue.
Much like the act of gouging out eyes, cutting out the tongue is seen by those in organised crime circles as an appropriate punishment for anyone talking to the authorities.
Despite his reputation as one of the most feared and deadly gangsters in South Boston, Bulger also served as an FBI informant during his reign of terror.
Whitey also had a reputation for meted out brutal punishments himself, suggesting the motives behind the attack are still far from crystal clear.
The move to the new prison, which put Bulger in the general population, gave other inmates easy access to the notorious crime boss, one federal official confirmed to CNN.
Now the two men suspected of the killing have been identified as Fotios "Freddy" Geas and Paul Weadick.
UNDATED: This FBI Ten Most Wanted Fugitive poster shows reputed Boston mobster James "Whitey" Bulger. (Photo by FBI/Getty Images)
A Mafia hitman from Massachusetts, the 51-year-old Geas was moved to solitary confinement following Bulger's death.
Geas was handed a life sentence back in 2011 for his role in several crimes including the 2003 killing of Adolfo "Big Al" Bruno, a Genovese crime family boss.
That particular murder is notable for the fact that Bruno was also believed to be an FBI informant at the time.
Private investigator Ted McDonough knew Geas and told The Boston Globe: "Freddy hated rats.
"Freddy hated guys who abused women. Whitey was a rat who killed women. It's probably that simple."
The other suspect, the 32-year-old Weadick, is a former rival of Bulger in the Boston criminal underworld.
Weadick is serving time for his role in the murder of South Boston nightclub owner Steven DiSarro, back in 1993.
He was only convicted following the discovery of DiSarro’s remains in Providence, Rhode Island, in 2016.
Arrested back in June 2011 following a 16-year manhunt, Bulger was serving time for a series of crimes that included 11 different murders.
He was linked to another eight deaths though his involvement could not be proven in a court of law.
