Genovese associate Masullo, two brothers sentenced

Three Masullo brothers of Brooklyn were sentenced May 25 to prison terms for criminal conduct related to the Genovese Crime Family, according to a press release from the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York. Felice Masullo, 38, was sentenced to 41 months. Anthony Masullo, 35, was sentenced to seven months. Angelo Masullo, 40, was sentenced to one year and a day.
    Felice Masullo, described by federal prosecutors as an up and coming associate in Anthony Palumbo's Genovese crew, pleaded guilty Nov. 6, 2009, to charges related to cocaine distribution conspiracy, extortion conspiracy and illegal gambling conspiracy. According to federal prosecutors, he admitted participating in the racketeering enterprise known as the Genovese Crime Family.
    Anthony and Angelo Masullo pleaded guilty to participating in an extortion conspiracy.
    The press release states that Felice Masullo functioned in part as Palumbo's driver, accompanied him to meetings and delivered Palumbo messages to other members and associates of the Genovese Crime Family. "In connection with his criminal businesses, Felice Masullo relied on the assistance of two of his brothers..., who, among other things, collected cash payments from loansharking victims and gamblers. Felice Masullo, Anthony Masullo and Angelo Masullo operated these illegal businesses out of a restaurant they operated together in the Williamsburg section of Brooklyn, New York," the release said.
    The brothers were indicted with a group of other defendants, including reputed former Genovese acting boss Daniel Leo, his nephew Joseph Leo, Vincent Cotona, Charles Salzano, Arthur Boland and Patsy Aversa. Daniel Leo pleaded guilty to racketeering offenses and was sentenced March 23 to 18 months in prison and the forfeit of $1.3 million. Joseph Leo, who pleaded guilty to related charges, received a year in prison and was ordered to forfeit $200,000.
    Cotona pleaded guilty March 3 to receiving proceeds of extortion and was sentenced March 25 to 10 months in prison. Salzano pleaded guilty March 5 to knowingly receiving the proceeds of extortion and to operating a gambling business. He will be sentenced June 9. Boland pleaded guilty Feb. 19 to loansharking and will be sentenced May 21. Aversa pleaded guilty April 9 to tax evasion and will be sentenced July 8.

Staten Island loan shark to prison

Joseph Datello, 59, will serve up to three and a half years in prison for running a loansharking operation out of his brother's Staten Island bar, according to a story by Frank Donnelly of the Staten Island Advance. 

    Prosecutors charged Datello (right) and his brother with conducting illegal gambling and loansharking from the bar between October 2007 and July 2009. According to court documents, the operation paid tribute to the alleged Lucchese Crime Family capodecina Anthony Croce. Croce pleaded guilty to first-degree criminal usury. He will be sentenced June 22. Michael Peterson, charged with working as a collector for the Datellos, has not yet been tried. 

    Prosecutors say Joseph Datello is a Lucchese Family soldier. Datello was previously convicted of enterprise corruption and served two years in prison.

    The Datello brothers pleaded guilty last month to one felony count of first-degree usury. Joseph Datello was sentenced to serve between one and three-quarter years and three and a half years in prison. Frank Datello remains free on $125,000 bail. He is scheduled to be sentenced June 23.

    The Datellos were arrested in November 2009 during organized crime raids that netted 22 suspects.

Kerik begins four-year prison sentence

Bernard B. Kerik, 54-year-old former commissioner of the New York Police Department, on May 17 began a four-year prison term at the Federal Correctional Institution in Cumberland, Maryland, according to a story by Sam Dolnick of the New York Times. Kerik (left) pleaded guilty in 2009 to eight felony charges. He was indicted back in November 2007 on charges that he concealed favors he received while employed as a New York City official. Apartment renovations valued at $165,000 were provided to him by a construction company government officials linked with the Gambino Crime Family. Kerik admitted tax fraud, making a false statement on a loan application, and lying to White House officials while being interviewed for the position of Homeland Security Department chief for the George W. Bush Administration.

Kerik's pre-scandal autobiography:
The Lost Son: A Life in Pursuit of Justice

Genovese-linked DeLutro gets 20 years

John "Wizzie" DeLutro, 33, of New Dorp, NY, was sentenced May 14 to 20 years in prison for his role in the April 29, 2008, slaying of 43-year-old jeweler Louis Antonelli, according to a story by Frank Donnelly of the Staten Island Advance. DeLutro has been linked with the Genovese Crime Family.

There are five other defendants in the murder case. DeLutro was the first to be sentenced. Others include shooter Charles Santiago, 27, of Grant City; accomplice Joseph Gencarelli, 27, of Grant City; lookout and Genovese Family associate Anthony Pica, 31, of Bay Terrace; and 74-year-old Anthony "Tico" Antico. Except for Antico who has not yet been tried, the defendants have pleaded guilty or have been found guilty at trial.

A reputed capodecina in the Genovese organization, Antico is scheduled for trial in Brooklyn federal court this summer. His criminal history dates back to 1955 and includes convictions for attempted robbery and racketeering. Antico is serving time in federal prison for intimidating a witness. Prosecutors are seeking to impanel an anonymous jury for his trial.

No added jail time for former Gotti crew member

Michael Finnerty, ex-member of a Gambino Crime Family crew once led by John A. "Junior" Gotti, will serve no additional jail time for crimes he committed as a youth, according to a story by Alison Gendar and Corky Siemaszko of the New York Daily News.

Finnerty became a government informant and aided in the unsuccessful prosecutions of Gotti. Assistant U.S. Attorney Elie Honig said Finnerty, now a father of three, was sincerely "humiliated by the crimes he committed... I don't see any purpose sending him to jail." Manhattan federal Judge Denise Cote agreed and sentenced Finnerty to time already served, three years' probation and a $12,500 fine.

Finnerty pleaded guilty to numerous offenses in September 2009 and faced a possible sentence of six additional years in prison.

Anastasio dies at 81, apparent suicide

Ten days before the scheduled start of a two and a half year prison sentence, 81-year-old Anthony "Todo" Anastasio died of apparently self-inflicted gunshot wounds, according to a story by John Marzulli and Jonathon Lemire of the New York Daily News.

The nephew of legendary crime boss Albert Anastasia, Gambino Crime Family soldier Anastasio was supposed to report to authorities on May 10 to start his sentence for racketeering, extortion and arson. At 7 a.m. on April 30, his wife found him dead in the kitchen of their Dyker Heights home. A .22-caliber handgun, two shell casings and a handwritten note were found nearby.

Police believe Anastasio decided to end his life rather than face prison. They say he fired two bullets into his heart.

He was convicted in October 2009 of extorting a trucking company and a bakery in Brooklyn, as well as of ordering an arson fire at a Dunkin' Donuts establishment. He faced a possible sentence of up to 20 years in prison. Anastasio was to be held at a facility just a few hours from his home. Investigators say the elderly racketeer was in generally good health.

After the disappearance of his predecessor in 1951, Albert Anastasia rose to the position of boss of the organization later known as the Gambino Family. Anastasia was murdered in a barber's chair in 1957.

Leo's sentence grows by 18 months

A conviction for loansharking and gambling has increased the prison sentence of a jailed former Genovese Crime Family boss by 18 months, according to a story by Bruce Golding of the New York Post. Daniel "the Lion" Leo, 69, is 34 months into a five-year prison sentence. Manhattan federal Judge Richard Holwell decided March 24 that the more recent loansharking and gambling charges should have been part of the original 2007 case against Leo. The judge sentenced Leo to 70 months for the additional charges but decided that Leo should be credited for the 34 months served and that half of the remaining time be served concurrently with the original five-year sentence.

House arrest follows mob Christmas party

Philadelphia racketeer Steven Mazzone, 46, was sentenced Feb. 18 to six months of electronically monitored house arrest after being found in violation of his probation, according to a story by George Anastasia of the Philadelphia Inquirer. Mazzone, released from prison last year after serving most of a nine-year racketeering sentence, violated the terms of his probation by attending a South Philadelphia "Cosa Nostra" Christmas party on Dec. 17.

According to authorities, the annual party draws area Mafiosi, who each bring cash gifts for the regional crime boss. Philadelphia organized crime investigators followed reputed mob boss Joseph Ligambi and a reputed top lieutenant Anthony Staino to the event at a South Seventh Street restaurant. They noted the presence of Mazzone, Martin Angelina, Michael Lancelotti, Anthony Nicodemo, Gaetan Lucibello, Joseph Massimino and Joseph Licata.

Federal prosecutors asked that Mazzone be returned to prison for four months. Mazzone admitted to making a mistake and requested some form of house arrest.

Six years for DiNunzio

The New England Crime Family's Boston-based underboss, Carmen "Cheese Man" DiNunzio, was sentenced Sept. 24 to serve six years in prison after pleading guilty of bribery charges.

Carneglia gets life in prison

Gambino Crime Family soldier Charles Carneglia was sentenced Sept. 17 to life in prison for a racketeering and murder conviction.

Prisco gets life in prison

The Genovese Crime Family's New Jersey crew leader Angelo Prisco, 69, was sentenced Aug. 18 to life in prison for cooperating in the murder of Angelo Sangiuolo and for conducting a series of home invasion robberies.

'Little Nick' goes away for 13+ years

A federal judge in Brooklyn has sentenced Nicholas "Little Nick" Corozzo, 69, to 13 and a half years in prison for the 1996 killing of Lucchese Crime Family associate Robert Arena that also left an innocent bystander dead, according to stories by the UPI and Newsday.

Corozzo (left), reputedly a high-level lieutenant in the Gambino Crime Family, admitted to ordering the Arena killing and to racketeering. He was sentenced April 17.

Last week, prosecutors attempted to restrict Corozzo's activities while in prison. They hoped to keep him from interacting with other mobsters or with family members linked to organized crime. Judge Jack Weinstein turned down the request, saying it would require prison officials to isolate Corozzo and/or place him in a penitentiary far from his family.

Four Secrets defendants to pay $24 million

Chicago mob bosses, convicted of racketeering and murders in the 2007 Family Secrets trial, have been ordered to pay more than $24 million in fines and restitution to their victims, according to stories by Mike Robinson of the Associated Press and Chuck Goudie of WLS-TV Chicago.

One defense attorney called the amount "ridiculous."

Judge James Zagel yesterday ordered Frank Calabrese Sr., Joseph Lombardo, James Marcello and Paul Schiro to pay $4.3 million as restitution to the families of 14 men who were killed by the mob. (Back in October, prosecutors calculated that the victims' families were owed $3.9 million in lost wages.) Calabrese, Lombardo and Marcello were found guilty of racketeering and murders. Schiro was convicted of racketeering. He was charged with racketeering murder, but a jury deadlocked on the question of his guilt.

The remainder of the $24 million, the judge said, "represents the total amount of proceeds acquired and maintained by the Chicago Outfit since the 1960s" in criminal endeavors charged in the Family Secrets trial.

Family Secrets defendant Anthony Doyle, convicted of racketeering but not charged with murder, was assessed a fine of $44,225.

Nick Calabrese gets 12+ years

A federal judge today sentenced Chicago Outfit hitman Nicholas Calabrese to 12 years and four months in prison, according to published accounts by the Chicago Tribune and the Chicago Sun-Times. Calabrese, who became the only "made" member of the Chicago Outfit to testify against the organization in court, admitted involvement in a number of Mafia murders. He was convicted of killing 14 people.

In the Family Secrets trial of 2007, Nicholas Calabrese testified against his older brother Frank Calabrese Sr. and other leaders of the Outfit. His testimony helped to secure convictions and long prison sentences for several Outfit bosses.

Nicholas Calabrese, 67, will be credited for time already served. A previous loansharking sentence expired in 2002, but he has remained in prison since that time, as he cooperated with authorities. He is expected to serve an additional for years in prison.

Bonanno associate Young sentenced to life

Joseph Young, former associate of the Bonanno Crime Family, was sentenced last week to a mandatory term of life imprisonment for a 2008 murder conviction and other crimes, according to a press release from the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of New York.

Young, 30, was convicted of the March 29, 2005, murder of Robert McKelvey. According to prosecutors, Young belonged to a Bonanno crew led by crime family soldier Gino Galestro. Galestro ordered the murder of McKelvey, who was also a crew associate, after McKelvey openly boasted of the criminal organization's activities.

McKelvey was lured to the historic Kreischer Mansion on Staten Island by another crime family associate. Young worked at the mansion as a caretaker and lived there. Young stabbed McKelvey as he entered the mansion. The victim fled. Young tackled McKelvey and dragged him to a garden pool, drowing him there. Young and three Bonanno associates dismembered McKelvey's body and burned the remains in the mansion's furnace. Ashes and bone fragments were later disposed of in the facility's septic system.

Galestro previously pleaded guilty to ordering the McKelvey murder.

Young was also convicted of arson, attempted arson, extortion, gunpoint robbery, robbery conspiracy, assault, and illegal purchases and transport of firearms.

"Young's gruesome criminal conduct reminds us that organized crime is alive and well," said U.S. Attorney Benton J. Campbell. "We will continue to prosecute the members and associates of organized crime who engage in such wanton acts of violence in our communities."

Chicago's 'Twan' Doyle gets 12 years

The last of Chicago's Family Secrets defendants, former police officer Anthony "Twan" Doyle, was sentenced today to 12 years in prison, according to a story by Steve Warmbir of the Chicago Sun-Times.

Doyle (left), 64, was convicted of racketeering in the 2007 Family Secrets case. His four codefendants already have been sentenced. James Marcello, Joseph Lombardo and Frank Calabrese Sr., convicted of racketeering and murders, were sentenced to life in prison. Paul Schiro, convicted of racketeering, was sentenced to 20 years.

Prosecutors charged that Doyle was an associate of the Chicago underworld organization known as the Outfit since the 1960s. He became a member of the local police force in 1980.

Mafia cops sentenced to life in prison

Former New York Police Detectives Louis Eppolito, 61, and Stephen Caracappa, 67, convicted of participating in organized crime murders, were sentenced this afternoon to life in prison, according to a story by Christine Kearney of Reuters.

Dubbed the "Mafia Cops," Eppolito and Caracappa (left) were convicted in 2006 of moonlighting for the Lucchese Crime Family in New York. Federal prosecutors said that, while the two men were detectives on the NYPD, they used police cars and police badges to stop or kidnap victims and provided the Lucchese family with details on organized crime informants. They reportedly collected retainer payments of $4,000 a month from the crime family.

A jury convicted the pair of racketeering and conspiracy charges, including participating in 11 murders or attempted murders. The trial judge, however, ruled that the statute of limitations on the most serious federal charges against them had run out. He threw out the verdict. Prosecutors appealed the ruling, and the guilty verdict was reinstated in September 2008.

Allie Boy Persico sentenced to life in prison

Alphonse "Allie Boy" Persico, 55, was sentenced yesterday to life in prison without parole for ordering the 1999 murder of underworld rival William "Wild Bill" Cutolo, according to a story by John Marzulli of the New York Daily News.

"The defendant was born into 'the life,' and like his father, Carmine Persico, will spend the rest of his life in prison," said federal Judge Joanna Seybert at sentencing.

In 2007, Alphonse Persico (left) was convicted of ordering the death of Cutolo, leader of a rival faction within the Colombo Crime Family. Codefendant Jackie DeRoss, 71, was also convicted of involvement in the murder and was also sentenced to life in prison. The Persico and Cutolo factions warred for control of the crime family in 1991, shortly after boss Carmine Persico's 1986 conviction for racketeering and murder.

Cutolo disappeared in 1999. His remains were not discovered until last fall.

Outfit's Marcello sentenced to life in prison

Former Chicago mob boss James Marcello, convicted of racketeering and racketeering murders in the 2007 Family Secrets case, was sentenced yesterday to life in prison, according to reports by Jeff Coen of the Chicago Tribune and the Associated Press.

Prosecutors believe Marcello (right) was the highest ranking mob leader brought down in the case. Among other crimes, he was convicted of involvement in the 1986 murders of brothers Anthony and Michael Spilotro. The Spilotros beaten bodies were found buried in an Indiana cornfield. Anthony Spilotro led an Outfit arm in Las Vegas for more than a decade. The Spilotro story was fictionalized in the movie "Casino."

At sentencing, Marcello maintained his innocence, allowing his attorneys to speak for him: "Mr. Marcello has denied his involvement in the Spilotro brothers' murder... That's all he can do."

Marcello was also convicted of participating in the 1981 beating death of Nicholas D'Andrea. D'Andrea and Spilotro relatives spoke at the sentencing hearing yesterday.

"[Marcello] should have known better," said Patrick Spilotro, brother of the murdered Spilotros, "having lost his own father in a grisly, horrible fashion - stuffed into a 50-gallon barrel."

Video from WGN9.

"Joey the Clown" to prison for life

Chicago Outfit big shot "Joey the Clown" Lombardo, convicted of racketeering and the 1974 racketeering murder of Daniel Seifert, was sentenced yesterday to life in federal prison, according to reports by Jeff Coen of the Chicago Tribune and Mike Robinson of the Associated Press.

Lombardo (right), now 80, and four other defendants were convicted of racketeering in the landmark Family Secrets trial of September 2007. Lombardo, Frank Calabrese Sr. and James Marcello were also convicted of racketeering murders. Calabrese was sentenced last week to life in prison.

Before sentencing, Lombardo remarked, "I suppose the court is going to send me to a life in prison for something I did not do... I did not kill Danny Seifert."

Seifert was shot to death by masked men at his Bensenville plastics company, as his wife and son looked on. Seifert was expected to testify against Lombardo in a 1974 case. After Seifert's death, the charges against Lombardo were dropped.

Trial witnesses described Lombardo as boss of the Outfit's Grand Avenue crew and indicated that he extorted "street tax" payments from area businesses.