The Real Sopranos Busted in New Jersey
Jim Kouri, CPP
August 23, 2005
New Jersey's highest-ranking member of the Genovese Crime Family and 15 other "made" members and associates were named in a Racketeering Indictment on charges of running a sports gambling, loansharking and extortion enterprise that took in millions of dollars for the New York-based crime family, U.S. Attorney Christopher J. Christie announced.
The lead defendant, Lawrence "Little Guy" or "Little Larry" Dentico, allegedly shared ultimate authority in the management and supervision of the Genovese Family's criminal activities, including the gambling and loansharking operations in New Jersey, according to the 19-count Indictment.
Dentico, 81, of Seaside Park, N.J., was among a small group of individuals comprising the Genovese "Administration," which ran the crime family enterprise in the absence of boss Vincent "The Chin" Gigante, following his racketeering conviction in New York in 1997, according to the police. Dentico is presently in custody in New York, following his arrest in April with other reputed Genovese Family members on a RICO indictment in the Eastern District of New York. That Indictment alleges, among other things, extortion conspiracy and conspiracy to commit murder.
This is a major hit against the influence and impact of the mob in New Jersey, particularly the Genovese Crime Family, according to federal and local law enforcement officials. The decline of the major crime families continues with prosecutions like these, but we will tighten our grip even more to further erode their capabilities.
The Genovese Crime Family is widely considered by law enforcement as the most powerful of the mob families in the New York Metropolitan area, if not the entire country.
The Indictment details a pattern of racketeering activities by the defendants in New Jersey and elsewhere beginning in about 1997 to the present. The investigation involved consensual recordings and numerous search warrants, including search warrants executed in November 2003 at three Philadelphia apartments, a Staten Island, NY apartment, a Staten Island storage facility, and a pub in Jersey City. The indictment also includes two forfeiture counts, including one in which the government seeks $5 million, representing approximately $1.6 million in loansharking proceeds, approximately $2.8 million in gambling operation revenue, as well as "tribute" payments to leaders of the enterprise.
Crews of associates worked under the direction of Dentico subordinates from, among other places, several locations in New Jersey, according to police officials. One of those locations was a social club at in Hoboken, NY, famed birthplace of singer Frank Sinatra, where high-level Genovese associate Joseph "Big Joe" Scarbrough directed loansharking, sports bookmaking, numbers and football-ticket gambling as well as extortion, according to the federal indictment.
Michael Crincoli, a reputed "made" member of the Genovese Crime Family, directed loansharking activities of a crew from, among other places, a deli he owned at 944 Westside Ave. in Jersey City, according to the indictment. A search warrant was executed there August 17, 2005. During the college and professional football season, thousands of football betting tickets would be delivered each week to the Downtown Pub, located at 9 Paterson Avenue, Hoboken.
Using actual and threatened violence and the fearsome reputation of the Genovese Crime Family, the defendants would enforce the payment of extortionate loans at usurious rates. The victims identified by initials in the indictment all were Greek business owners targeted by the defendants.
One of the defendants, Russell Fallacara, was formerly an inspector with the Jersey City Incinerator Authority. Fallacara was involved with Scarbrough in the extortion of a business engaged in the cleanup of a site in Jersey City, which criminal activity was facilitated by Fallacara's position as an inspector.
Sources: Jersey City Police Department, Hudson County Prosecutor's Office, US Attorney's Office, American Federation of Police, National Association of Chiefs of Police
The lead defendant, Lawrence "Little Guy" or "Little Larry" Dentico, allegedly shared ultimate authority in the management and supervision of the Genovese Family's criminal activities, including the gambling and loansharking operations in New Jersey, according to the 19-count Indictment.
Dentico, 81, of Seaside Park, N.J., was among a small group of individuals comprising the Genovese "Administration," which ran the crime family enterprise in the absence of boss Vincent "The Chin" Gigante, following his racketeering conviction in New York in 1997, according to the police. Dentico is presently in custody in New York, following his arrest in April with other reputed Genovese Family members on a RICO indictment in the Eastern District of New York. That Indictment alleges, among other things, extortion conspiracy and conspiracy to commit murder.
This is a major hit against the influence and impact of the mob in New Jersey, particularly the Genovese Crime Family, according to federal and local law enforcement officials. The decline of the major crime families continues with prosecutions like these, but we will tighten our grip even more to further erode their capabilities.
The Genovese Crime Family is widely considered by law enforcement as the most powerful of the mob families in the New York Metropolitan area, if not the entire country.
The Indictment details a pattern of racketeering activities by the defendants in New Jersey and elsewhere beginning in about 1997 to the present. The investigation involved consensual recordings and numerous search warrants, including search warrants executed in November 2003 at three Philadelphia apartments, a Staten Island, NY apartment, a Staten Island storage facility, and a pub in Jersey City. The indictment also includes two forfeiture counts, including one in which the government seeks $5 million, representing approximately $1.6 million in loansharking proceeds, approximately $2.8 million in gambling operation revenue, as well as "tribute" payments to leaders of the enterprise.
Crews of associates worked under the direction of Dentico subordinates from, among other places, several locations in New Jersey, according to police officials. One of those locations was a social club at in Hoboken, NY, famed birthplace of singer Frank Sinatra, where high-level Genovese associate Joseph "Big Joe" Scarbrough directed loansharking, sports bookmaking, numbers and football-ticket gambling as well as extortion, according to the federal indictment.
Michael Crincoli, a reputed "made" member of the Genovese Crime Family, directed loansharking activities of a crew from, among other places, a deli he owned at 944 Westside Ave. in Jersey City, according to the indictment. A search warrant was executed there August 17, 2005. During the college and professional football season, thousands of football betting tickets would be delivered each week to the Downtown Pub, located at 9 Paterson Avenue, Hoboken.
Using actual and threatened violence and the fearsome reputation of the Genovese Crime Family, the defendants would enforce the payment of extortionate loans at usurious rates. The victims identified by initials in the indictment all were Greek business owners targeted by the defendants.
One of the defendants, Russell Fallacara, was formerly an inspector with the Jersey City Incinerator Authority. Fallacara was involved with Scarbrough in the extortion of a business engaged in the cleanup of a site in Jersey City, which criminal activity was facilitated by Fallacara's position as an inspector.
Sources: Jersey City Police Department, Hudson County Prosecutor's Office, US Attorney's Office, American Federation of Police, National Association of Chiefs of Police
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