New York Paralegal Blog

Justice has been served! Anthony Villani, a powerful captain in the notorious Luchese organized crime family, was sentenced today to 21 months in prison for his role in a massive, illegal online gambling operation. This wasn't just some small-time bookie; Villani's "Rhino Sports" raked in at least $35 million in illicit profits over nearly two decades, all under the "protection" of the Luchese family. And as part of his sentence, he's been ordered to pay a staggering $4 million in forfeiture! This outcome is a huge win for law enforcement, sending a clear message to organized crime: your illegal enterprises and lavish lifestyles funded by criminal activity will be shut down, and you will be held accountable. Unmasking "Rhino Sports": A Deep Dive into the Illegal Empire Villani’s illegal gambling business, operating since the early 2000s, was a sophisticated setup. It used offshore servers in Costa Rica, employing local bookmakers to...

The world of corporate compliance is a fascinating and ever-evolving field. As a student pursuing an advanced paralegal credential in compliance, I've recently had my eyes opened to the intricate legal frameworks that govern the corporate world, and I'm excited to share a glimpse into what I've learned. My journey began with an "Introduction to Compliance" course, a requirement for my 15-credit certificate program at a regionally accredited college. This course was more than just an academic requirement; it was an intellectually stimulating exploration of corporate crime and the justice system designed to hold corporate entities accountable. One of the most compelling aspects of the course was learning about the legal doctrines that form the bedrock of corporate criminal liability. These principles are crucial for understanding how a company, which is a legal entity and not a person, can be held responsible for wrongdoing. Here are three key doctrines that stood ...

Earlier today, following a seven-week trial in federal court in Brooklyn, Thomas Gioeli, the former acting boss of the Colombo organized crime family of La Cosa Nostra (the “Colombo family”), and Colombo family soldier Dino Saracino were found guilty of racketeering conspiracy. As part of the conspiracy, the jury found that Gioeli had participated in three murder conspiracies as predicate acts of racketeering and that Saracino had engaged in five racketeering acts, including two murder conspiracies, conspiring to make and making an extortionate extension of credit, witness tampering, and obstruction of justice. Saracino was also found guilty of four additional counts, including charges of conspiring to make an extortionate extension of credit, witness tampering, and obstruction of justice. The jury found the defendants not guilty of the murders in-aid-of racketeering related to the murder of Richard Greaves, the murder of New York City Police Officer Ralph Dols, and the murder of Willi...

Preet Bharara, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced today that VINCENZO FROGIERO, TODD LABARCA, JOHN BRANCACCIO, CHRISTOPHER REYNOLDS, and SEAN DUNN—all of whom are either members or associates of the Gambino organized crime family of La Cosa Nostra—pled guilty to crimes including racketeering, narcotics trafficking, assault, and extortion. LABARCA also pled guilty to conspiring to commit the January 2002 murder of Martin Bosshart, which was part of a turf war over control of a Gambino family marijuana trafficking operation. These five defendants were charged along with 17 others in the Southern District of New York in January 2011 in U.S. v. Joseph Corozzo, et al. as part of a nationwide takedown of members and associates of organized crime. FROGIERO, LABARCA, BRANCACCIO, and REYNOLDS pled guilty today before U.S. District Judge Richard M. Berman. DUNN pled guilty on Monday before Judge Berman.

Following a three-day trial, a federal jury in Brooklyn today returned a verdict convicting Genovese Organized Crime Family associate Frank DiMattina, also known as “Frankie D” and “Frankie Ariana,” of Hobbs Act extortion and a related firearms charge.

OAKLAND, Calif. — Oakland-based Crime Scene Cleaners, a trauma scene cleaning company specializing in homicide, suicide and accidental death scene cleanup operations, violated federal law by refusing to hire a qualified female applicant because of her gender, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) charged in a lawsuit filed today.

WASHINGTON – The Justice Department announced today the arrest of Sean Popejoy, 19, and Frankie Maybee, 20, both of Green Forest, Ark., on charges related to a racially-motivated assault on five Hispanic men. A federal grand jury in the Western District of Arkansas returned an indictment on April 5, 2011, charging Popejoy and Maybee with federal hate crime charges and conspiracy to commit a federal hate crime. According to the indictment, Popejoy and Maybee have been charged with one count of conspiracy and five counts of violating the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act, which was enacted in October 2009. Specifically, the indictment alleges that on June 20, 2010, the defendants yelled anti-Latino epithets at the victims while at a gas station parking lot. When the victims drove away, the defendants chased after them in the defendants’ truck. The defendants eventually caught up to the victims’ car and repeatedly rammed their truck into the victims’ car,...

PREET BHARARA, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced that ARTHUR NIGRO, former acting boss of the Genovese organized crime family of La Cosa Nostra; and FOTIOS GEAS and TY GEAS, associates of the Genovese organized crime family, were convicted today after a three-week jury trial of various crimes, including multiple murders, attempted murder, murder conspiracies, racketeering, racketeering conspiracy, extortion, and loansharking. All three defendants were convicted for their participation in the November 2003 murder of Adolfo Bruno in Springfield, Massachusetts. FOTIOS GEAS and TY GEAS also were convicted of the November 2003 murder of Gary Westerman in Agawam, Massachusetts. Manhattan U.S. Attorney PREET BHARARA said: “The jury’s swift verdict in this case takes some very dangerous men off the streets—men who clearly did not think twice about killing anyone who got in their way. Today’s verdict makes it clear that those who so flagrantly and rep...

PREET BHARARA, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced today that JOSEPH WATTS, a longtime associate of the Gambino Organized Crime Family of La Cosa Nostra (the "Gambino Family"), pled guilty this morning before U.S. District Judge COLLEEN MCMAHON to a two-count Superseding Information that charges WATTS with participating in murder and assault conspiracies in order to maintain and increase his influence in the Gambino Family. According to the Information, the plea proceeding, and the record of the case: WATTS was a close associate of one-time Gambino Family Boss JOHN A. GOTTI and others. Although WATTS was never formally inducted into the Gambino Family as a "made" member because of his non-Italian lineage, he was afforded the status of a Gambino Family capo.

LOS ANGELES - Praising the "dedicated and courageous efforts" of local law enforcement officials, Attorney General Edmund G. Brown Jr. today released the California Department of Justice's annual crime report for 2009, which continued the promising trend of declining crime rates in California, including a 6.6% reduction in the state's violent crime rate. "This latest drop in crime," Brown said, "is good news for Californians and reflects well on the dedicated and courageous efforts of peace officers throughout the state. Yet it is no cause for complacency. Crime remains a serious problem in California, and law enforcement officials at every level must redouble their efforts to ensure public safety."

Preliminary 2009 statistics indicate that violent crime in the nation decreased 5.5 percent and property crime declined 4.9 percent when compared with data from 2008, according to the FBI’s Preliminary Annual Uniform Crime Report, which was released today. Data in the report came from 13,237 law enforcement agencies that submitted six to 12 months of data in both 2008 and 2009.

19 Individuals Charged in Connection With Illegal Gambling Enterprise that Bribed Undercover NYPD Offficers Arrests Include Several Members of Luchese Crime Family NEW YORK, NY (October 1, 2009) - Attorney General Andrew M. Cuomo, along with Southern District of New York United States Attorney Preet Bharara, New York City Police Commissioner Raymond W. Kelly, and Westchester County District Attorney Janet DiFiore, today announced the indictment of 19 individuals on charges relating to an illegal gambling, sports betting and loan sharking enterprise controlled by the Luchese Organized Crime Family. This morning’s raids capped a two-year investigation dubbed “Operation Crooked House,” which uncovered that members of the Luchese enterprise bribed undercover members of the NYPD for protection of their illegal card clubs. In total, 19 individuals were indicted on federal felony charges filed in the Southern District of New York. Twelve of them were charged in the federal indictment with pa...

Multi-Agency Group in Phoenix Responsible for 93 Arrests and $150 Million in Seizures PHOENIX – Deputy Attorney General David W. Ogden, along with U.S. Attorney Dennis K. Burke, Acting Director of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms Kenneth Melson, Drug Enforcement Administration Deputy Chief of Operations Dave Gaddis, and other federal and local officials today officially unveiled the new Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) Strike Force site in Phoenix. The Phoenix Strike Force is housed in the offices of the DEA Phoenix Division. The OCDETF Strike Force functions as a cohesive unit by bringing together representatives of the partner agencies to more effectively focus on specific investigative targets. Federal, state, and local agencies represented include the DEA; ATF; the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI); the U.S. Marshals Service (USMS); the Criminal Division of the Internal Revenue Service (IRS); U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE); the ...