NBA Referee, Bob Delaney, went on 670 the Score to discuss his new book, Covert: My Years Infiltrating the Mob with Mully and Hanley. The book was released on February 1, 2008. In this book, Delaney talk about his time as an undercover agent infiltrating the mob.

Bob Delaney took the identity of Bobby Covert. He was not giving the name to be cute or ironic. At the time, the word covert was not used in association with undercover investigations. Robert Covert was actually a man who died at birth. Delaney was given this identity because Covert had the same first name, had an ethnic sounding last name, and was born in the same time period as Delaney.

Delaney never planned for this, he never even planned to go into law enforcement. But around the age of 18 or 19, he decided to follow in his father’s footsteps and go into law enforcement to make the world a better place. After a year on the job as a New York trooper, he got a call from headquarters that they wanted to talk to him. He was worried that he had done something wrong. Headquarters asked Delaney if he would do some undercover work, and he agreed.

The President’s Organized Crime Task Force issued a grant for 6 months of work. They created a trucking company on the water front. He only signed up for 6 months, but ended up doing the undercover work for 3 years and was part of cases for 6 to 7 years because the investigation just kept going on and on.

Delaney thought that the raid would be the best day of his life. He walked around the police station that day puffing his chest out with a bravado as he was seeing the defendants in a different light for the first time. Then one of the mobsters asked Delaney what they pinned him for. One of the other troopers interrupted, saying, “He’s with us.” The mobster wasn’t angry at Delaney, just disappointed. Delaney’s bravado disappeared.

After his undercover work, Delaney had to get therapy because he was suffering from Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome and Stockholm Syndrome. Delaney felt a sense of guilt because he had become friends with the mobsters. He began to fall back into the role of Bobby Covert, he was living a life in two skins. Eventually Delaney realized that he was feeling the guilt of Bobby Covert, but as Bob Delaney, he was doing his job and doing a good thing for the community.

Basketball was Delaney’s therapy. It was something good and he liked being around all the encouragement. He began refereeing high school games, eventually someone saw him and he was hired into the CBA and eventually hired into the NBA in 1997.

You can purchase Bob Delaney’s book, Covert: My Years Infiltrating the Mob at Amazon.com