Second man will face charge of extortion

The owner of a Palm Harbor business says he was threatened. One man pleaded guilty. The other suspect turned himself in Wednesday.

By CHRIS TISCH, Times Staff Writer
© St. Petersburg Times
published May 24, 2002

PALM HARBOR -- The two men talked like mobsters when they confronted the man at his Palm Harbor business in November.

They chided the businessman for disrespecting them. They threatened him with a visit from a man from New York if he didn't pay up. They warned him he would get "whacked."

But the businessman reported the threat to Pinellas sheriff's detectives. Now, six months later, both tough-talkers have been arrested on charges of extortion in connection with the threats.

The accused leader, Palm Harbor resident George Cappelli, 55, was arrested about a week after the threat was made. He later pleaded guilty to the extortion charge and was sentenced to two years of probation.

The other suspect, Anthony S. Tracy, 41, of Coral Gables, turned himself in Wednesday. He was booked into the Pinellas County Jail on an extortion charge, then released after posting $15,000 bail.

Though both men have connections to New York, neither is thought to have ties to the Mafia, said sheriff's Lt. Steve Shipman.

"I got the impression these guys were just playing a role, pretending to be connected to organized crime to legitimize their role," Shipman said.

The strange string of events began Nov. 8 when a man confronted businessman James McGuire at his business on Alt. U.S. 19 in Palm Harbor. McGuire told Detective Michael Holbrook that the man was about 6 foot 4 and 260 pounds.

The man said he was there on behalf of Cappelli, who was owed $30,000 by another man, who in turn was owed $30,000 by McGuire. The large man asked to speak to McGuire in a private room, then told him Cappelli was a bad man who wanted to be paid $5,000 per week until the debt among the three men was resolved, an arrest affidavit states.

The big man, later identified as Tracy, told McGuire that if the payments weren't made, "He would not be taking up air anymore," the affidavit states.

Tracy then demanded McGuire's $7,500 watch. McGuire feared for his life and gave it up. Tracy said he would keep the watch until the debt was paid, the affidavit states.

Tracy then took McGuire outside, where Cappelli was waiting. Cappelli screamed at McGuire: "You f------ disrespecting me, I'll blow you up with a grenade. I'll blow up your house," an arrest report states. "I know you got money. If you don't pay me, it won't matter. You'll be dead."

When Cappelli was arrested, Detective Holbrook only knew the suspect as "Tony." Near the time of Cappelli's arrest, an attorney from south Florida called Holbrook claiming to have knowledge about "Tony."

"He was trying to say that he didn't represent this person, but he knew someone who represented him; and they wanted to give the watch back to him, and it was all a misunderstanding," Shipman said.

A day or two later, the watch was sent back in the mail. Cappelli's attorney later provided Holbrook with the full name of "Tony:" Anthony Tracy.

Holbrook then found information in one of Cappelli's notebooks about Tracy. He later got a photograph of Tracy and included it in a photo lineup that he showed to McGuire. He identified Tracy as the man who threatened him and took his watch, the arrest affidavit states.

Arrest reports state Cappelli paid Tracy $1,000 to collect his money from McGuire.

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