Boston gangster James “Whitey” Bulger says he’ll forfeit the guns and $822,000 in cash that officials found in his California apartment, but he wants to keep one thing: a Stanley Cup ring.
In a document filed last week and signed by Bulger, the 83-year-old said the ring commemorating the NHL championship series was a gift from an unnamed “third party.”
Because it was a gift, it’s not among assets directly acquired from Bulger’s alleged crimes that the government is trying to force him to forfeit, such as the wads of cash found hidden in his apartment’s walls. And in the document Bulger said he doesn’t want to give the ring up.
“The defendant elects to have the forfeitability of this specific property decided by the court,” the document reads.
The court document gave no details about the ring or who gave it to him. The ring is believed to be from the Cup-winning 1986 Montreal Canadiens.
Even if the court decides Bulger doesn’t have to forfeit the ring, the government could later seek to keep it as it pursues Bulger assets unrelated to his alleged crimes. The US attorney’s office has said it wants to return as much as possible to Bulger’s innocent victims.
Bulger fled Boston in 1994 on the eve of an indictment and was one of the nation’s most-wanted fugitives until his capture. He was arrested in Santa Monica, Calif., in 2011 after 16 years on the run.
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