Queens prosecutors Wednesday took down an $8 million sports betting ring with ties to the Bonanno crime family.
Four men - three from Queens and one from Long Island - were named in a 64-count indictment for running a betting ring that used offshore accounts to rake in huge profits while threatening deadbeat gamblers with force if they didn't pay on time.
Among those nabbed was reputed Bonanno soldier Michael Palmaccio, 39, the ring's alleged bookmaker, a law enforcement source said.
Also arrested was Cono Natale, 46, whose family ran the defunct Williamsburg, Brooklyn, fish restaurant, Cono & Sons, sources say.
Natale, 46, worked as a "runner," recruiting bettors and managing accounts in exchange for a share of the profits, prosecutors say.
The two and a half-year investigation led by the Queens District Attorney's NYPD Squad revealed an operation that relied heavily on automated bookkeeping software to track bets and profits.
Palmaccio, of Howard Beach, recruited Gerry Gullotti, 45, of Oceanside, Long Island, to manage the ring's loan sharking operation, which used threats of physical harm to collect debts, prosecutors say.
"Today's indictments will send a clear signal that when it comes to illegal gambling in Queens County, all bets are off," said Queens District Attorney Richard Brown.
The offshore accounts were linked to the gambling site, arrowaction.net.
Prosecutors say Ronald Salerno, 33, of Howard Beach, collected money from bettors and borrowers.
http://www.nydailynews.com/news/ny_...to_bonanno_crime_family_busted_in_queens.html
Four men - three from Queens and one from Long Island - were named in a 64-count indictment for running a betting ring that used offshore accounts to rake in huge profits while threatening deadbeat gamblers with force if they didn't pay on time.
Among those nabbed was reputed Bonanno soldier Michael Palmaccio, 39, the ring's alleged bookmaker, a law enforcement source said.
Also arrested was Cono Natale, 46, whose family ran the defunct Williamsburg, Brooklyn, fish restaurant, Cono & Sons, sources say.
Natale, 46, worked as a "runner," recruiting bettors and managing accounts in exchange for a share of the profits, prosecutors say.
The two and a half-year investigation led by the Queens District Attorney's NYPD Squad revealed an operation that relied heavily on automated bookkeeping software to track bets and profits.
Palmaccio, of Howard Beach, recruited Gerry Gullotti, 45, of Oceanside, Long Island, to manage the ring's loan sharking operation, which used threats of physical harm to collect debts, prosecutors say.
"Today's indictments will send a clear signal that when it comes to illegal gambling in Queens County, all bets are off," said Queens District Attorney Richard Brown.
The offshore accounts were linked to the gambling site, arrowaction.net.
Prosecutors say Ronald Salerno, 33, of Howard Beach, collected money from bettors and borrowers.
http://www.nydailynews.com/news/ny_...to_bonanno_crime_family_busted_in_queens.html
