Michael (Cookie) Durso and wife Vanessa sold their Coral Springs, Florida place for $830,000 five months ago, but they still own seven Williamsburg, Brooklyn apartment buildings worth an estimated $3.7 million, according to court and real estate records.

Not bad for a wannabe wiseguy who first heard of Vincent (Chin) Gigante, and his stature in the Mafia, in early 1986, while Durso was 16 and a busboy at Ruggiero's Restaurant in Greenwich Village.

After hearing that John Gotti, the architect of the 1985 assassination of Paul Castellano, had become the most powerful mob Boss, Durso asked his cousin, Tino Lombardi, a maitre d' who doubled as a loanshark for Ruggiero's owner, Genovese soldier Joseph Zito, (right) whether this was true.

"Tino told (Durso) that wasn't true. He identified the real Boss of all Bosses as

A dozen years later, when Durso got jammed up in a murder case and he began cooperating with the FBI, he had made millions as a loanshark and bank scam artist and well-to-do Brooklyn landlord, according to Durso's own accounts from the witness stand at two trials.

And last month, with important help from dozens of conversations he taped with Genovese wiseguys, the feds were able to hit Gigante with additional charges that could doom the jailed Mafia boss – now scheduled for release in 2007 – to spend the rest of his life behind bars.

In addition, Gigante's son Andrew (left) and three top gangsters who have all served as acting boss at one time or another – Liborio (Barney) Bellomo, (right) Frank (Farby) Serpico and Ernest Muscarella – as well as a slew of capos, soldiers and associates, are awaiting trial on racketeering and other charges.

"For an associate, Durso had unbelievable access to wiseguys who were

The source listed Zito, a soldier with influence much greater than his rank, as well as capos and acting capos Ross Gangi, (left) Alan (Baldie) Longo, Sammy Meatballs Aparo (right) and Petey Red DiChiara, all indicted and awaiting trial.

The feds were also fortunate. And smart. They sent him out as an operative on June 18, 1998, the day after he was arrested on a murder charge, knowing it was something he had planned for months, and wanted to do, if only to get even with wiseguys who had killed his cousin and shot Durso and left him for dead in 1994, according to court papers.

On two prior occasions, he had discussed cooperating with Mark Feldman, the head of the Brooklyn U.S. Attorney's Organized Crime unit, and with Paul Weinstein, the lead prosecutor in the case, Durso testified last month at the racketeering trial of Colombo underboss John (Jackie) DeRoss.

"They just asked me what I had to offer, and I told them I could offer up some members of the Genovese Crime family. My intention was to make a

On June 17, 1998, a day Durso had been scheduled to meet with Feldman and Weinstein a third time, he was arrested for taking part in a 1996 murder. The next day, he pleaded guilty and began serving up a whole bunch of Genovese wiseguys.

The prosecutors would not discuss their Durso meetings or arrest strategies, but there's little doubt that they knew they had a live wire going in, and have to be pretty pleased with the results of Durso's cooperation, so far.

His trial work – he also testified against John A. (Junior) Gotti associate Joseph O'Kane – has resulted in two convictions and sources say many Genovese wiseguys are trying to negotiate plea deals rather than confront him and his tapes.

And as Durso has admitted, he and his wife Vanessa now possess new identities under the federal Witness Protection Program, own plenty of property and are having no problems making ends meet.

Who said crime doesn't pay? 

We'll pick it up after LeMole has already asked a couple of questions about the day of the arrest and Durso has said he decided to cooperate "later in the day"but wasn't sure what building he had been taken to.

Q. Did you make it (your decision to cooperate) at the office of the FBI on the date of your arrest?
A. I don't know where they housed me. I don't know the facility.

When LeMole followed with, "Sir, will you answer the question," Judge Reena Raggi interrupted and admonished him. "He's answered the question. I want you to be careful about doing that Mr. LeMole."

When LeMole protested Durso hadn't, Raggi said he had, and told LeMole to ask another question.

When he asked, "Sir, did you decide to cooperate while you were in the FBI's office?," Raggi called the lawyer to the bench for a whispered sidebar conference and said: "He has tried to answer that question repeatedly."

LeMole replied that Durso had said "afternoon" and he was trying to establish "how long he was at the FBI office."

Raggi: Why don't you ask him what time he decided to cooperate, if that's what you want to know?
LeMole: Because what time, I knew he'd have more problems with. Rather than the locus of it.
Raggi: Let me suggest to you when you have to ask a question three times and you get an answer, and you don't think you have gotten an answer, the problem may be with the questioner, not the witness. Go ahead.

Q. Sir, can you tell us the time of day that you decided to cooperate?
A. It was probably 4:00, 5:00 o'clock.