New England mob boss held without bail until trial
The reputed acting boss of the New England mafia on Thursday was ordered to remain held without bail while awaiting trial on charges he participated in the shakedown of Providence strip clubs.
Anthony L. DiNunzio, who lives in the East Boston neighborhood of Boston, has been locked up since his arrest last week on charges including racketeering conspiracy and extortion conspiracy. He has pleaded not guilty.
The 53-year-old DiNunzio is the ninth person described by authorities as a leader, member or associate of the New England branch of La Cosa Nostra to be charged during the investigation into allegations that the mob extorted protection payments from strip clubs.
DiNunzio's attorney, Robert Sheketoff, said that his client should be released and that he would comply with conditions set by a judge, including house arrest. He noted that DiNunzio stayed put even after learning about a year ago that he was a target of an investigation. The FBI searched him, seizing $5,000 after DiNunzio met with admitted Rhode Island capo Edward "Eddy" Lato.
Sheketoff also cited DiNunzio's health issues and said his criminal history includes a 1992 arrest that resulted in a year prison sentence. He declined to comment after the hearing.
DiNunzio assumed control of the New England mob about two years ago, police said. Among his predecessors in that role is his brother, Carmen "The Cheeseman" DiNunzio, said Assistant U.S. Attorney William J. Ferland.
Carmen DiNunzio is serving a six-year sentence for bribing an undercover FBI agent posing as a state official to try to win a $6 million contract on Boston's Big Dig highway project.
The indictment Anthony DiNunzio now faces describes him as a brutal leader who vowed to use violence on anyone who balked at his commands.
"I get to watch you die in the ground ... and I'll dig you back up and make sure (you're) dead," DiNunzio is quoted as telling a senior made member of the Gambino crime family during a June 22 meeting last year at My Cousin Vinny's restaurant in Malden, Mass.
Authorities say the mafia ordered strip club operators to make monthly payments of $2,000 to $6,000 as part of the plot. The conduct of DiNunzio and a co-defendant, Theodore "Teddy" Cardillo, netted at least $2 million in ill-gotten gains, the indictment said. Cardillo, a manager at the Cadillac Lounge, has pleaded not guilty and is scheduled to go to trial next month.
The indictment also claims DiNunzio looked beyond strip clubs for extortion opportunities. Prosecutors say DiNunzio sent a member of the mob to New York to seek permission from the Gambino crime family to shake down an adult entertainment executive from Rhode Island.
The executive, who isn't named by prosecutors, had once made monthly extortion payments of $50,000 to the Gambino crime family to protect his businesses, authorities wrote in court papers.
http://www.dailycomet.com/article/20120503/APN/1205030959?Title=Reputed-mob-boss-ordered-held-sans-bail-in-RI
The 53-year-old DiNunzio is the ninth person described by authorities as a leader, member or associate of the New England branch of La Cosa Nostra to be charged during the investigation into allegations that the mob extorted protection payments from strip clubs.
DiNunzio's attorney, Robert Sheketoff, said that his client should be released and that he would comply with conditions set by a judge, including house arrest. He noted that DiNunzio stayed put even after learning about a year ago that he was a target of an investigation. The FBI searched him, seizing $5,000 after DiNunzio met with admitted Rhode Island capo Edward "Eddy" Lato.
Sheketoff also cited DiNunzio's health issues and said his criminal history includes a 1992 arrest that resulted in a year prison sentence. He declined to comment after the hearing.
DiNunzio assumed control of the New England mob about two years ago, police said. Among his predecessors in that role is his brother, Carmen "The Cheeseman" DiNunzio, said Assistant U.S. Attorney William J. Ferland.
Carmen DiNunzio is serving a six-year sentence for bribing an undercover FBI agent posing as a state official to try to win a $6 million contract on Boston's Big Dig highway project.
The indictment Anthony DiNunzio now faces describes him as a brutal leader who vowed to use violence on anyone who balked at his commands.
"I get to watch you die in the ground ... and I'll dig you back up and make sure (you're) dead," DiNunzio is quoted as telling a senior made member of the Gambino crime family during a June 22 meeting last year at My Cousin Vinny's restaurant in Malden, Mass.
Authorities say the mafia ordered strip club operators to make monthly payments of $2,000 to $6,000 as part of the plot. The conduct of DiNunzio and a co-defendant, Theodore "Teddy" Cardillo, netted at least $2 million in ill-gotten gains, the indictment said. Cardillo, a manager at the Cadillac Lounge, has pleaded not guilty and is scheduled to go to trial next month.
The indictment also claims DiNunzio looked beyond strip clubs for extortion opportunities. Prosecutors say DiNunzio sent a member of the mob to New York to seek permission from the Gambino crime family to shake down an adult entertainment executive from Rhode Island.
The executive, who isn't named by prosecutors, had once made monthly extortion payments of $50,000 to the Gambino crime family to protect his businesses, authorities wrote in court papers.
http://www.dailycomet.com/article/20120503/APN/1205030959?Title=Reputed-mob-boss-ordered-held-sans-bail-in-RI
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