An alleged Lucchese mafia soldier and five of his friends are facing various racketeering charges after running an online gambling enterprise that took millions in unauthorized sports bets.
Tuesday’s unsealing of an indictment in Brooklyn federal court revealed that the multimillion-dollar operation included an offshore website and dozens of bookies throughout the New York metropolitan region.
The indictment alleges that Anthony Villani, 57, of Elmsford, New York, oversaw the large-scale operation from at least 2004 to December 2020. Annually, he allegedly received more than $1 million from the business.
At their New York residences, Villani and three of his friends, Louis ‘Tooch’ Tucci, Jr., 59, of Tuckahoe, Dennis Filizzola, 58, of Cortlandt Manor, and James Coumoutsos, 59, of the Bronx, were arrested.
Michael ‘Platinum’ Praino, 44, of the Bronx, who functioned as the bookmaker or ‘bookie,’ was detained in West Palm Beach, Florida and will appear in federal court in West Palm Beach, Florida on Thursday. A fifth associate is yet to be appointed.
According to the indictment, over the more than 15 years the enterprise was active, it used offshore servers in Costa Rica and recruited local bookies to pay and collect profits in cash.
According to data seized from the company’s website, Villani’s unlawful gambling enterprise typically accepted wagers from between 400 and 1,300 New York City-based gamblers every week.
Allegedly, among Villani’s bookmakers were members and affiliates of the Lucchese criminal family and other La Cosa Nostra groups.
As part of the plot, Villani enlisted the assistance of co-conspirators Louis Tucci, Jr. and Dennis Filizzola as runners.
During searches conducted in December 2020, authorities seized almost $407,000 in cash, brass knuckles, and gambling ledgers from one of Villani’s residences.
In the unsealed indictment, Villani is charged with racketeering in relation to his involvement in a variety of criminal enterprises, including unlawful gambling, money laundering, and attempted extortion.
As part of their money laundering scheme, Villani and co-defendant Filizzola purchased U.S. Postal Service money orders disguised as rent payments to a Villani-owned property using gaming winnings.
Between April 2020 and October 2020, Villani sought to extort a person described in the indictment as John Doe, including by telling John Doe, ‘I’m telling you right now, you don’t get this money – [expletive] run away.’
Wednesday, Breon Peace, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, and Michael J. Driscoll, Assistant Director-in-Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, New York Field Office, announced the accusations in Brooklyn federal court (FBI).
‘As alleged, this conduct demonstrates how members of La Cosa Nostra continue to engage in illegal gambling operations and money laundering money-marking schemes that lead to threats of violence against anyone who stands in their way and has resulted in millions of dollars in profits to the Lucchese crime family,’ stated United States Attorney Peace.
‘These charges illustrate this Office’s continued commitment to rooting La Cosa Nostra out of New York.’
The Lucchese family is one of the most powerful of the five New York City-based American mafia organisations.
‘Members of the mafia are not giving up the tried and true methods of criminal behaviour, even in the face of the burgeoning world of legal gambling,’ Assistant Director-in-Charge Driscoll stated.
‘As we allege, a Lucchese soldier and other family members ran an illegal gambling operation and offered their clientele the same twisted customer service: do what they say or face terrifying consequences. One thing these criminals can bet on – the FBI will continue our pursuit.’
The Lucchese family, also referred to as ‘Lukes,’ was initially involved in rackets involving the clothing business. It is named for its second crime boss, Tommy Lucchese, who ruled from 1951 to 1967 as a fairly calm leader.
This changed under the leadership of Victor ‘Little Vic’ Amuso dubbed ‘The Deadly Don’ and his underboss Anthony ‘Gaspipe’ Caso, who ushered in one of organised crime’s bloodiest eras from the early 1980s to the early 1990s. It’s thought that they’re responsible for more than 100 hits, and they’ve even recruited NYPD officers to carry out some of their hits.
In 2017, 17 members of the mafia group were accused on allegations of racketeering, murder, money laundering, illicit gambling, drugs, and selling counterfeit cigarettes.