Notorious Boston mob boss James “Whitey” Bulger was found dead at a West Virginia prison on Tuesday, federal officials told NBC News.
Bulger, 89, was reportedly killed at Hazleton Penitentiary, a federal prison where he’d recently been transferred, according to multiple reports. It is not yet clear why Bulger was moved.
The mobster was reportedly beaten to death by fellow inmates who left him disfigured beyond recognition, according to The New York Times.
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The penitentiary where Bulger was killed is known as one of the federal system’s roughest prisons, according to local outlet WVNews.
The former organized crime boss led the Winter Hill Gang in Boston for years before he was convicted in 2013 of 11 murders across multiple states. He was also convicted of racketeering, extortion, conspiracy, money-laundering and drug dealing.
Bulger spent 16 years as one of the nation’s most-wanted fugitives until he was captured in 2011, NBC reported.
He was serving two life sentences.
— Updated 4:24 p.m.