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Gambino Crime Family Indicted For Prostitution, Murder
By
Ben Yakas
Published Apr 21, 2010
Modified Apr 21, 2010
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By
Ben Yakas
Published Apr 21, 2010
Modified Apr 21, 2010
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Lately, all the Gambino crime family news has revolved around prodigal son John Gotti Jr. and his many merry mistrials, leading some to believe the crime syndicate had mellowed out in recent years (since their last big bust). But yesterday, the U.S. Attorney and Federal Bureau of Investigation charged 14 top-ranking members of the Gambino family with a host of crimes over the last ten years, including extortion, assault, loan sharking, marijuana and cocaine trafficking, murder, and—in what prosecutors are calling a "new low" for the Gambinos—prostitution.
According to the 23-count indictment, Daniel Marino, 69, commanded a rejuvenated Gambino family of 200 made members and 300 more associates, many in their twenties and thirties, that made over $20 million in illicit profits over the past decade. Among other things, Marino, who reportedly runs the family in a triumvirate-like arrangement with two other top bosses, is accused of authorizing a hit on his own nephew at a strip club in Staten Island in the late '90s, because he had begun cooperating with the government.
More damning, Marino's "most trusted soldier," Thomas Orefice, is accused of pimping out girls between the ages of 15 and 20—they advertised them on the internet, and drove them to clients (and also made them available at high-stakes card games the family ran), splitting the profits 50-50. U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara called it "a new low for the Gambino family."
"Modern mobsters may be less colorful, they may be less flamboyant, they may be less glamorous than some of their predecessors. But, make no mistake, they are still terrorizing businesses, they are still using baseball bats, they are still putting people in the hospital, and they are still sworn to a life of crime," said Bharara.
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la cosa nostra
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murder
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Ben Yakas
Ben Yakas is a former Gothamist reporter.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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