NYC orders Gotti family business to clean up chemicals and pay hefty fine
It was an offer they couldn’t refuse.
Family businesses run by the Gottis have agreed to pay at least $210,000 in fines and clean up toxic chemicals that spewed from a Queens scrap yard they operate, according to a settlement announced Tuesday by state Attorney General Letitia James.
LSM Auto Parts & Recycling (LSM), BGN Real Estate and two related companies agreed to a remediation plan to clean up the dangerous ooze that seeped off their property.
Carmine Gotti Agnello Jr., the grandson of infamous late Gambino crime-family mob boss John Gotti, is one of the owners of the Jamaica-based LSM Auto Parts & Recycling at 155-11 Liberty Ave. in Jamaica.
BGN Real Estate and Three Sons Real Estate Group, which owns the property of the scrap yard, belongs to Victoria Gotti, John Gotti’s daughter and Carmine’s mother.
LSM and its affiliates will be required to clean up the property under the watchful eye of the state Department of Environmental Conservation and pay a penalty of $210,000, according to the settlement.
The companies could pay additional penalties of $287,000 if they fail to meet clean-up requirements — bringing total potential fines to $497,000.
“LSM made an environmental mess, and now they are responsible for cleaning it up,” AG James said in a statement.
A lawsuit filed by James in 2022 alleged that LSM ignored rules governing the proper disposal of toxic automobile waste.
The suit said the lack of care was responsible for significant amounts of oil and antifreeze seeping off the site, contaminating the groundwater and soil in an area near the surrounding low-income neighborhood.
“For too long, LSM ignored basic laws and regulations about handling dangerous chemicals and exposed neighbors to toxic pollutants,” the AG said. “Now, LSM will finally clean up their years of pollution and we’re going to make sure they do it right.”
DEC interim Commissioner Sean Mahar, whose agency is responsible for enforcing the agreement, said in a statement, “This settlement sends a message to other companies — New York State aggressively prosecutes polluters who flout environmental laws and regulations.”
Victoria Gotti signed the settlement “Victoria Agnello,” using the last name of her ex-husband, Carmine Agnello.
A lawyer for the Gotti clan and their firms did not respond to a Post request for comment.
Carmine Gotti Agnello Jr. — who along with his two brothers starred in the reality show “Growing Up Gotti’’ 16 years ago — was busted in 2018 on charges of crushing cars without a license and falsifying business records.
Like his grandfather, he had a touch of Teflon.
Carmine copped a plea to reduced misdemeanor charges — dodging prison time — in exchange for a $1,000 fine and a forfeiture of $4,605 in ill-gotten gains.
Mafioso John Gotti, 61, died of throat cancer in prison in 2002 while serving a life sentence without parole for a string of murders.
https://nypost.com/2024/07/02/us-news/gotti-family-business-ordered-to-clean-up-toxic-chemicals-pay-210k-fine-over-nyc-scrap-yard-mess/
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