Records show start of alleged Boulis plot.

Byline: Wanda J. Demarzo And Evan S. Ben

Sep. 29--The alleged plot to kill Gus Boulis was planned at least three months before the tycoon was executed on the streets of downtown Fort Lauderdale in 2001.

Authorities aren't saying where the hit on Boulis was hatched or what motive the suspects might have had.

But court papers released Wednesday allege that a series of phone calls and meetings began on Nov. 24, 2000, and that one of the suspects, Anthony "Little Tony" Ferrari, solicited a man named Dwayne Nicholson to kill the gambling boat owner and Miami Subs founder.

Ferrari, 48, who authorities describe as a gangster wannabe who liked to say he knew New York mobster John Gotti, hung with a crew of cohorts who provided security for clients in and around Miami.

One of the indictments asserts that Ferrari tried to hire Nicholson between Nov. 24 and Nov. 29, 2000, to kill Boulis.

Nicholson, 36, who hung with Ferrari and members of his crew, has not been charged, and did not take part in the slaying, according to a source. Records show he is a one-time Maryland resident who more recently lived in the Miami area. Police said he worked as a bodyguard for Ferrari.