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Feds: The Mob Still Shaking Down At San Gennaro
By
Garth Johnston
Published Apr 19, 2012
Modified Apr 19, 2012
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By
Garth Johnston
Published Apr 19, 2012
Modified Apr 19, 2012
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After a tough battle San Gennaro got to keep its length last year and, if a just unsealed indictment in Brooklyn federal court holds true, that wasn't the only thing the unending Little Italy food fest has been able to keep in recent years. According to prosecutors the mob—which Rudy Giuliani so proudly declared the feast to be free of in 1996—is back. Or maybe it never left?
Prosecutors yesterday indicted 11 alleged members of the Genovese crime family with charges including racketeering conspiracy, extortion, illegal gambling, union embezzlement and obstruction of justice. The charges that are causing the most eyebrows to cock, however, are the accusations that the men, allegedly led by 68-year-old Conrad Ianniello, tried to shake down vendors at the fair in 2008. Presumably for cash, not cannolis.
Response to the indictment has been a mixture of pseudo-shock, genuine surprise and hopes that this news of possible mob activity won't overshadow positive Italian additions to the community. NYPD commissioner Kelly seemed exasperated in his statement, saying "As alleged in the indictment, the defendants’ extortion knew no bounds—in fact, one of the defendants allegedly even used the feast of San Gennaro to extort money from vendors involved in the celebration of the saint’s life." And a street-fair specialist who runs the feast told the Times that “I find it incredible,” “No one’s ever said a word to me — and some of these people are my close friends.” DiPalo's owner Lou DiPalo just seemed to want to change the topic.
Additionally, Ianniello and alleged associates Ryan Ellis, 30, and Robert Scalza, 66, are accused of attempting to extort a labor union into not organizing workers at a company on Long Island. The goal of the extortion attempt was apparently to have the International Union of Journeymen and Allied Trades, a union run by Scalza, organize the workers instead.
Beyond those three, eight other defendants were charged in the indictment. The group face sentences ranging from 5 to 20 years of imprisonment on each count of the 18-count indictment. You can read the full list of charges and defendants here.
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