GL NEWS 6/25/20

[Bklyn21]

This Week in Gang Land
By Jerry Capeci

Wiseguy's Song: Gimme A Break Judge; What I Did Wasn't A Genovese Crime Family Thing
Gang Land Exclusive!Frank GiovincoWhen the late legendary mob boss Vincent (Chin) Gigante was still ruling the Genovese crime family roost, one of his cardinal rules was that members were never to acknowledge the existence of the family or organized crime.

But this week, in open court, one of his former loyal cadre blurted out those very words in a bid to win leniency from the judge.

Genovese mobster Frank (Frankie G) Giovinco insisted that his shakedown of a corrupt insurance broker for two New York City labor unions was his own private affair. "It wasn't under the scope of the Genovese crime family and organized crime," said Frankie G.

It was one more reason for Gigante to be rolling around in his grave when it comes to this labor racketeering case that has been endlessly humiliating for the wing of the mob that was once considered the Ivy League of the Mafia.

The case began with his grandson Vincent Fyfe as the key government snitch who fingered the Mafia chieftain's son, Vincent Esposito, as an extortionist, and testified about it at trial.

Vincent FyfeAnd it ended with a made guy publicly admitting the existence of both his crime family and Cosa Nostra — even using the words "Genovese crime family" and "organized crime" in Manhattan Federal Court in an effort to minimize his role in the overall scheme.

Giovinco did not describe what he did with insurance broker-turned informer Clifford Moss that "wasn't fair" but conceded that he "should have never approached" him. That probably took place in 2016, one of the two times Frankie G was tape recorded asking Moss for cash. "There were reasons why I approached him," he stated, "but it wasn't under the scope of the Genovese crime family and organized crime."

Frankie G was seeking a prison term of 10 months. The feds wanted him to serve 11 years. Judge Jed Rakoff split the baby — giving him four years behind bars.

In his plea before the judge, Giovinco never mentioned codefendants Esposito or Genovese mobster Steven (Mad Dog) Arena by name during his remarks to Rakoff, who presided over Giovinco's six-day trial in December and conducted the video conference sentencing of the 53 year-old mobster on Monday.

Clifford MossBut in defending himself of allegations that he was involved in a racketeering conspiracy that began in 2001 and deserved a heavy prison term, Frankie G surely ruffled the feathers of some oldtime wiseguys. And he may get some guff — or worse — when he does his bid, that is currently slated to start on September 22.

"I felt in my heart that I didn't do anything wrong to Fyfe," said Giovinco, who insisted he "was completely in the dark" about the yearly $10,000 payments that Fyfe testified he began paying Esposito in 2001, shortly after he became president of Local 2D of the United Food & Commercial Workers Union, in order to keep his $300,000 a year job.

From the witness stand, Fyfe stated he began stealing union funds starting in 2005 in order to make his payments to Esposito. He also testified that in 2012, after the FBI caught him in corrupt activity with another UFCW union official, he agreed to cooperate with the feds, and that they allowed him to retain his union job as part of his deal.

Vincent EspositoFyfe, who pleaded guilty to charges carrying a maximum sentence of 11years and testified that he hopes to get "no years" in return for his cooperation, was ousted from his union post three months ago. His case remains sealed, even though prosecutors told Judge Paul Crotty back in January that there was no reason for it to remain sealed.

Fyfe was on the stand for two days, and on both days, Fyfe was called "a piece of shit" by one of Esposito's sisters, either Carmella or Lucia as he left the stand, according to prosecutor Kimberly Ravener. "One verbally signaled to him to turn to them, and the other one called him a piece of shit," the prosecutor told Rakoff.

"I never asked him (Fyfe) for money," said Giovinco, who didn't mention the long friendship and business dealings he had with Esposito. He reminded Rakoff that prosecutors had offered him a plea deal of "24 months." He said he had refused to take it because "I never felt that I did anything to Fyfe." (Both Esposito and Cognetta received two years in the slammer for their guilty pleas.)

Sreven ArenaHe then tried to pull at the judge's heart strings as he insisted the hefty 135-month guidelines sentence that prosecutors wanted was unfair.

"I'm a father of three boys," he said. "They're good kids. You think I should be apart from them that long? They're at that stage where they could become bad kids. I try to make sure that they're not bad kids."

Giovinco told the judge that Fyfe "never offered me money" and he reminded the judge that "there were taped conversations of people handling money and transferring money" that were played at his trial but that "never once was my name interjected into that."

Frankie G also insisted that he never "threatened" Frank Cognetta, the convicted secretary treasurer of Local 1D of the UFCW, a sister local that shared the same office building as Local 2D. "I never warned him," he told Rakoff. "If I'm this notorious Mafia guy, how come I never threatened anybody. I never raised my hands to anybody?"

Kimberly Ravener"I went to trial" because "I didn't do anything wrong" to Fyfe or Cognetta, and "I wasn't going to admit to it," he told Rakoff. .

"If I'm a big tough mob guy, then I should have just done the 24 months and went about my life," Giovinco said. "But that's not what I felt. I felt it was against my grain to admit to something that I didn't believe I did. And that's all I have to say your honor."

Before addressing the Court, Frankie G asked his court appointed attorney, Aaron Goldsmith, if it was "in my best interests to speak." But before Goldsmith could respond, Rakoff encouraged Giovinco to speak his mind.

The judge stated that in his 23 years on the bench, he had never "increased a sentence because of something that the defendant said" but that on "numerous occasions" he had "decreased the sentences" of others. "So you can't hurt yourself by speaking," Rakoff said.

Aaron GoldsmithIn Goldsmith's court filings, and in his appeal to the judge, the attorney argued that since there was no evidence against Giovinco involving the Fyfe extortion and other scams that were committed by his codefendants, his client deserved a similar sentence, reminding Rakoff that he had told prosecutors that he does not impose a "trial tax" on defendants who reject plea deals.

Asserting that "parity is one of the pillars of sentencing in the judiciary," Goldsmith argued that Giovinco deserved less prison time than what Esposito and Cognetta received, and should be sentenced in line with the year and a day term that Mad Dog Arena got or the 10 months that Local 2D official Frank D'Acunto received.

In pushing for a sentence between 108 and 135 months, prosecutors Ravener, Jason Richman, Justin Rodriguez argued that Giovinco was "a loyal and longstanding participant in" Genovese crime family business and deserved "a substantial term of imprisonment" for joining "a decades-long conspiracy to siphon money from unions and corrupt their mission."

Judge Jed RakoffNoting that Giovinco's 1990s conviction and prison term for labor racketeering in the waste carting industry had "not dulled his involvement with organized crime," the prosecutors argued that a "guidelines sentence" for Frankie G was the only way "to prevent the defendant from threatening or harming others in his community" in the future.

Rakoff stated that he does not levy a "trial penalty" on defendants, but what he "saw (at trial) was much more consistent with the government's view than what" Giovinco had voiced. The judge decided that Frankie G deserved more than two years in prison, but much less time behind bars than the government wanted. And noting Giovinco's stable family life and his positive role as a dad, Rakoff sliced a year off the five years that probation officials had recommended.

In addition to the four years behind bars, Giovinco will serve three years of post-prison supervised release.

Poster Boy For Senate Bill Barring 'Pernicious' Sentencing Rules Cops A Tiny Victory
Edmund BoyleOnetime Gambino family associate Edmund (Eddie) Boyle qualifies for the nickname Two Times. Not because he says everything twice like the Jimmy Two Times character in Goodfellas. But because he has twice been convicted in federal court of the same bank burglaries. He's also twice been sentenced for crimes for which he was found "Not Guilty."

He also deserves a new nickname because he has established a great rapport with the tough-sentencing federal judge who was the first to give him a heavy prison term for acquitted conduct.

More on that below, along with news of a small victory Eddie won in court last week, but first the basics of Boyle's predicament: The one-time alleged right hand man to Gambino soldier Thomas (Huck) Carbonaro has been behind bars since 2004.

He is not slated to get out until New Year's Eve of 2029. Boyle's lengthy and complicated series of convictions are too complicated to do them justice here. But suffice it to say he could be the poster boy for a bi-partisan Senate bill sponsored by six U.S. Senators that would bar federal judges from sentencing defendants for acquitted conduct.

The Prohibiting Punishment of Acquitted Conduct Act of 2019 has been endorsed by a political odd couple, the American Civil Liberties Union and the American Conservative Union.

Thomas (Huck) CarbonaroThe gist of the problem, encountered by more than a few wiseguys, is that judges are allowed to sentence defendants not just for the crimes for which they were convicted, but also for the alleged charges of which they were acquitted. A conservative think tank called the Cato Institute refers to this as a "pernicious practice" that allows the government to do an end run around the basic cornerstone of democracy, a verdict reached by citizen jurors.

The FBI and the feds in Manhattan got him for the same bank jobs in 2010, and again he was sentenced for acquitted conduct. That makes Boyle, according to Gang Land's investigation, the only defendant in America who's been convicted and sentenced three times for the same crimes, and also gotten prison time for crimes in two federal courts where juries stated he was "Not guilty."

Boyle, who is 55, won one round against this legally loathsome practice a few years back when the 2d Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that Boyle had served 33 months in state prison in the 1990s for the same bank heists that the FBI and the feds in Brooklyn nailed him for in 2003. The appeals court ordered the judge to credit Boyle with that time.

The judge who had hit with him that over-the-top sentence was Brooklyn Federal Court Judge Sterling Johnson who hammered Eddie with a 151-month prison term for bank burglaries with sentencing guidelines of four years.

Last week, Boyle found himself back before Johnson arguing that the jurist should do the right thing about a small but annoying problem that was an outgrowth of that over-sentencing.

Judge Sterling JohnsonAs Boyle told Johnson, when the judge ordered Boyle credited with the time he'd spent in state prison, through a "clerical error," the court docket sheet erroneously noted that he owed restitution. Six years later, someone at the BOP saw it and dunned him, and prison officials refused to believe Boyle's claim that it was an error, forcing him to file a pro se motion.

As Boyle's case shows, Johnson has a rightfully deserved reputation as a tough sentencing judge if ever there was one. But you never would have known that listening to the exchange between the judge and Boyle as the one time mob associate sought to explain the details of his pro se motion to the judge:

"The last time I was in your courtroom was in 2008," Boyle said. "Before that it was 2005 when there was no restitution order issued. You adjusted the sentence to give me credit for the time I spent in state prison for the same crimes," Boyle said, noting, "that's when the mistake occurred."

After assistant U.S. attorney Genny Ngai, who began her freshman year at Dartmouth in 2003, the same year her office obtained an indictment against Boyle, and who became a prosecutor last year, confirmed Boyle's account, Johnson said: "I should issue an order that there is no restitution and the BOP should stop taking it out of his commissary account, is that right Mr. Boyle?"

"Yes, and every quarter, they take out $25, and so far its $575 and I would like that returned," Boyle replied.
"We can put something like that in the order. We can get that done today," said Johnson.

Genny NgaiAfter speaking to his clerks and explaining what the order should say, Johnson resumed talking to Boyle, saying, "It's a lot of money over there."
"Yes," replied Boyle. "It's a slow drain, but it adds up over time."
"What institution are you in?"
"Fort Dix."
"That's better than a lot of them."
"I have no complaints. Everyone treats me well. We're coronavirus free; we're a little better than most."
"Okay your motion is granted."
"Thank you so much your honor."
"You be safe."
"Thank you, your honor. You be safe."

As the judge spoke to his clerks and AUSA Ngai about the order he wanted to draft and one of them posed a question about the judgment, Boyle, who was still on the line, said: "I could clarify that a little bit, from what I remember," but was interrupted by Johnson.

Donald Trump"Mr. Boyle, you have won. I would advise you not to say anything else," said the judge.
"Thank you very much for your wisdom, your honor," said Boyle.

In his ruling on Boyle's pro se motion, Johnson ordered the BOP to return $575 that it wrongly took from the inmate's commissary account over the last six years, and to stop dunning him $100 a year for a $192,000 in restitution that he doesn't owe.

Now all Eddie Two Times needs is for Congress to pass the bill against that pernicious practice of making people do extra time for crimes of which they were acquitted — and to make it retroactive for poor shnooks like him who fell victim. And then he needs President Trump to sign it into law. Based on Trump's dealings on other criminal convictions, like that of his old pal Roger Stone, it might help for Boyle to start sending fan mail to 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.

As they say in Brooklyn, sometimes it's better to know the judge than the law.

After Thinking About It Over The Weekend, Prosecutor Agrees To Let Him Plead Guilty
Peter TuccioPeter Tuccio, the accused baby-faced arsonist and extortionist from Howard Beach, will go it alone when trials resume in Brooklyn Federal Court. That's because his codefendant, Jonathan Gurino, will soon plead guilty, Gang Land has learned.

Gurino, like Tuccio is another young Howard Beach mob associate. Gurino, 27, had originally wanted to plead back in March. But that court date was put off due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Both men are nephews of New York mobsters.

Tuccio, 27, is a nephew of Luchese capo Joseph (Joe Caffe) DeSena. He has insisted on going to trial on charges that he terrorized a pizzeria owner and then set the victim's car on fire in front of his Queens home in order to extort a $5000 payoff from him in 2015. The duo was indicted in November of 2018. Gurino, who is a nephew of Gambino soldier Caesar Gurino, decided months back to get it over with and plead guilty.

Nadia MooreThings were more or less on track, despite the COVID-19 delay. But last week, the prosecutor threw a small wrench into the works. The judge threw it right back at her. It was no contest.

On Friday, after Gurino's lawyer stated that he had "No objection" to a video conference proceeding for his client's guilty plea, Judge LaShann DeArcy Hall clearly expected the same two-word reply from the government prosecutor. Instead, Hall sounded surprised and taken aback by the response she got from assistant U.S. attorney Nadia Moore.

Moore told Hall that she was concerned that a guilty plea by Gurino taken electronically under procedures the Court has been using since March might violate provisions of the Cares Act that was signed into law by President Trump that month. She suggested the plea could "seriously subvert the interests of justice" for Gurino, and Tuccio.

Hall questioned how a guilty plea by Gurino — who agreed to waive his right to proceed in court, as others had done in recent months — would subvert the "interests of justice." The judge also supplied her own tutorial for Moore about the Cares Act.

"The Cares Act requires that there be a specific finding that the proceeding is in the interests of justice," said Hall. "The interests of justice" apply to both defendants, the judge continued, "and I can't proceed with a trial adequately, in terms of timing, unless I have a clear sense of how many defendants I have."

Judge LaShann DeArcy HallL"The undertaking is going to be a significant one, and whether I'm proceeding with a one defendant case or a two defendant case will absolutely affect the timing of this trial," said Hall, stating she was "not asking" the prosecutor for her "permission. I'm just asking if you have an objection."

Eddie Wagner, Peter Tuccio, Dominic GrandeWhen Moore stated she would discuss "case management" of the guilty plea with her supervisors and "write the court a letter within the week to let you know . . . ," the judge cut her off.

"Stop," said the judge. "You can write me a letter by tomorrow and let me know if you have an objection."

After what seemed like a long time but was probably just a few seconds, Moore stated, "Okay."

Hall then told the prosecutor to "submit a letter to the court" on Monday.

On Monday, Moore and co-prosecutor Nicholas Moscow submitted a two-page letter stating that the government "does not object" to Gurino pleading guilty during a "proceeding conducted by video conference."

At the outset of the status conference on Friday, Judge Hall agreed to consider a post-guilty plea request by lawyer James Froccaro to delay Gurino's sentencing and the start of his prison term, "and any argument that the government may make in opposition" if the attorney made a motion to do so. Froccaro raised the issue because Gurino has asthma and would be likely to contract the COVID-19 virus if it was still an active problem in the federal prison system.

James FroccaroNo date has been set for his guilty plea, and the details have yet to be released. But sources say Gurino agreed to resolve his case early this year after prosecutors and Froccaro worked out a plea agreement that limits his exposure. The arson charges in the original indictment carry a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years.

Tuccio, who was a constant companion of Philadelphia mob boss Joseph (Skinny Joey) Merlino during his racketeering trial in Manhattan Federal Court in early 2018, is still pining for Skinny Joey and City of Brotherly Love wiseguys as he awaits trial under house arrest. This month, he posted a picture of himself with Philadelphia capo Dominic Grande on Instagram.

Tuccio's attorney James Kousouros declined to discuss his client's social media activity, telling Gang Land only that his client intends to prove his innocence at trial.

Editor's Note: We hope you enjoyed this week's effort about the trials and tribulations of Frankie G Giovinco and Eddie Two Times Boyle as well as the inside dope about the Peter Tuccio arson case. We trust you'll be able to wait two weeks for the next Gang Land column, because we're taking off next week. Be well, stay safe, and have a glorious Fourth of July holiday weekend

[Bklyn21]

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[dack2001]

Good for Tuccio and good for Congress if they can get that bill passed. We need more trials in the federal system. The prosecutors think they are the judge and jury with all the power they have. Allowing people to be sentenced even for acquitted conduct is just another tool used to bully Defendants into taking a plea.

Now the wisdom of Tuccio posting a picture to Instagram of him and Dom and Wags last month....that's another story.

[mafiastudent]

The question is...how is something like that even legal? If that's how the system works, why even have a trial?

[Bklyn21]

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[AntComello]

I’m still confused as to how Tuccio up and left his home of Howard beach and ended up fitting right in with philly lol is the mob like a corporation these days where you can just transfer to a different branch? Lol

[StandUpGuy]

Giovinco should be permanently shelved because of his comments... an absolute joke or a grade A moron...

[Costigan]

I’d say Giovinco is neither or he wouldnt be with Genovese. On the other hand he seems to have crossed a line. They don’t shelve people like some of the other families do, at least that’s what I’ve read.

[givememysocks]

I seriously doubt that Giovinco will get shelved or any real punishment for what he said. The westside is known to make their people take pleas and if a soldier had to admit his crimes and the existence of the mafia to get a lighter sentance i doubt the leadership would care that much.

[SonnyBlackstein]

What the fuck are Philly doing letting Tuccio hang around.
Do they want to be a joke?

[slimshady_007]

What the fuck are Philly doing letting Tuccio hang around.
Do they want to be a joke?

Ya never know. Maybe he’s a great earner.

[TommyGambino]

What the fuck are Philly doing letting Tuccio hang around.
Do they want to be a joke?

Maybe a favour to his uncle? He was getting into beefs in ny I read on here, no idea how true it is

[SonnyBlackstein]

What the fuck are Philly doing letting Tuccio hang around.
Do they want to be a joke?

Maybe a favour to his uncle? He was getting into beefs in ny I read on here, no idea how true it is

That’s the obvious connection.
It’s interesting that Philly May have connections with the Lukes. Maybe through Jersey/perna’s? Interesting theory/rabbit hole.

[TommyGambino]

|No gangland this week?

[moneyman]

What the fuck are Philly doing letting Tuccio hang around.
Do they want to be a joke?

Maybe a favour to his uncle? He was getting into beefs in ny I read on here, no idea how true it is

That’s the obvious connection.
It’s interesting that Philly May have connections with the Lukes. Maybe through Jersey/perna’s? Interesting theory/rabbit hole.

I think it's moreso that Merlino thinks that he can make money off Tuccio. Remember Stanley Stein? The rich Florida lawyer who bankrolled Merlino’s restaurant? When was the last time you saw that guy in a picture with Merlino....