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FBI Says No Tie Between NY And Hoffa Mich. Dig

DETROIT (WWJ/AP) - The FBI says there's no connection between a Michigan search for the remains of Jimmy Hoffa and another dig in New York City.

Investigators have been digging this week under a New York City house once occupied by a famous gangster, James Burke.

Meantime, in southeast Michigan, the FBI ended an excavation for any remains of Hoffa, the former leader of the Teamsters union who disappeared from a metro Detroit restaurant in 1975.

Detroit FBI spokesman Simon Shaykhet said there's no tie between the two digs.

The latest tip about Hoffa came from a reputed Mafia captain, Tony Zerilli, who claims Hoffa was buried under a concrete slab in a barn on the northern Oakland Township property, about 20 miles north of Detroit. Zerilli said the plan was to leave Hoffa's body in that field for a bit, before moving it to some land near a hunting lodge in northern Michigan.

The dig ended Wednesday after an FBI official said no evidence was uncovered as an excavation team dug up the property.  The dig, which began Monday morning, was the latest of many spanning nearly two decades.

It's believed that Hoffa was making an attempt to regain control of the Teamsters union following his release from federal prison in 1971, and organized crime figures from around the country ordered Hoffa's death to stop that from happening.

MORE: Nothing Found: Hoffa Dig Ends In Disappointment

Hunt For Hoffa: Complete Coverage

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