FBI arrests more than 40 East Coast mobsters

The FBI said it leapt from the pages of a mafia novel. The arrests spotlight an Italian mafia purportedly alive and kicking in 21st century America, not confined to Hollywood legend, and one which prosecutors said has diversified in keeping with the times. The defendants are accused of orchestrating a vast criminal enterprise that stretched from Massachusetts to Florida, engaging in extortion, arson, fraud, illegal gambling, firearms trafficking and assault.