Two more Gambino guilty pleas

Frank Cali, 43, and Leonard DiMaria, 67, pleaded guilty in Brooklyn federal court yesterday to extortion-related charges, according to a story by Anthony M. DeStefano of Newsday. The two men were arrested in February along with dozens of others suspected of involvement in the Gambino Crime Family. Roughly half of the 60-plus defendants have reached plea deals.

Cali admitted to conspiring to extort money from a trucker working at a Staten Island NASCAR construction site. Prosecutors believe he is an acting "captain" in the Gambino criminal organization and also close to members of the Mafia in Sicily. He could get up to 24 months in prison when sentenced in September.

DiMaria admitted to conspiring to extort money from contractor/trucker Joseph Vollaro. Vollaro, a former mob associate, cooperated with investigators in the case. DiMaria, now ailing but once considered a powerhouse in the Gambino clan, faces up to five years in prison.

In a story by Murray Weiss last August, the New York Post called Cali a Gambino "ambassador to Sicilian mobsters" and linked him to the Inzerillo Mafia clan. That information was apparently obtained through Sicilian wiretaps. Authorities at the time still hadn't precisely identified Cali. In February, the New York Daily News reported that the Frank Cali arrested in the Gambino raids was linked with Sicily's Inzerillo Crime Family. The Italian Repubblica reported that Cali was born in New York on March 26, 1965, as Francesco Paolo Augusto Cali. His father, who has no criminal record, was an immigrant to New York who maintained a residence in Palermo. Cali married into the Inzerillo family. The Inzerillos had fled to New Jersey during the 1980s Mafia wars in Sicily. In 2003, much of the family returned to Sicily and became influential in the underworld there.

Alleged Gambino leaders make a deal

John "Jackie Nose" D'Amico and Domenico "Italian Dom" Cefalu, reputed leaders of the Gambino Crime Family, have agreed to plead guilty to a single count of extortion, according to a story by John Marzulli of the New York Daily News. Through their plea deal, each could spend less than two years in prison.

Prosecutors say D'Amico (left), 71, is the acting boss and Cefalu, 61, the acting underboss of the Gambino clan. Those two men and reputed Gambino consigliere Joseph "JoJo" Corozzo, 66, appeared to be the main targets of early February's FBI arrests of dozens of suspected Mafia members and associates. Corozzo also appears close to reaching a plea deal with prosecutors.

The D'Amico deal was made possible, according to defense attorney Elizabeth Macedonio, when prosecutors agreed to allow D'Amico to plead guilty to extortion rather than racketeering, which carries a tougher penalty. D'Amico and Cefalu admitted to extorting $100,000 from Staten Island cement company owner Joseph Vollaro. Vollaro later assisted the government's case.

Sixty-two people were indicted on federal charges in February. More than two dozen others were charged in related New York State matters.

D'Amico was recently in the New York newspapers as he hoped to win his release on $2 million bail in order to return to his $71,000 a year job as a sales representative for the Big Geyser beverage distribution company in Queens. D'Amico has worked for the company since 1991, according to a story by Tom Robbins of the Village Voice. The company also reportedly employs Matthew Madonna, 72, a reputed big shot in the Lucchese Crime Family, according to stories in the Daily News and the Village Voice.

Mob-linked businessman flipped for feds

Joseph Vollaro, owner of Staten Island trucking and cement companies, secretly recorded conversations related to the leadership of the Gambino Crime Family for years, according to stories by Barry Paddock and John Marzulli of the New York Daily News and William K. Rashbaum of the New York Times.

Vollaro (left), 42, agreed to cooperate with state and federal law enforcement after he was arrested several years ago on drug charges. He wore a hidden recording device during meetings with reputed Gambino Family lieutenant Nicholas Corozzo, whom he met while in prison on an extortion charge in the late 1990s. Over two years, Vollaro made tribute payments estimated at $400,000 from his businesses to Gambino gangsters.

Evidence acquired through Vollaro's undercover work aided authorities in their early February move against 62 accused mobsters and associates. Just days before the arrests, Vollaro disappeared from his Staten Island home. He is now reportedly under federal protection.

Corozzo slipped away when the arrests went down. His brother, reputed Gambino consigliere Joseph Corozzo, was arrested along with reputed acting boss John D'Amico and dozens of others linked to the crime family.