Judge Rejects Request To Dismiss Indictments Against Reputed Bonanno Crime Family Members
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- A judge refused Wednesday to toss out the indictments against eight reputed members of the Bonanno crime family.
Nicholas "Nicky Mouth" Santora, the alleged underboss of the gang, appeared in Manhattan Supreme Court with seven co-defedants facing charges of extortion, loan-sharking, gambling and drug dealing, WCBS 880's Irene Cornell.
Prosecutors say the case proves that traditional organized crime persists and that the illegal activities have even branched out to include online crimes. For example, the crew operated a Costa Rica-based online gambling operation that took in $7 million in illegal bets over six months, according to prosecutors.
The reputed Bonanno members, who were seen laughing together in court, are also accused of using one their associates, Nicholas Bernhard, a president of a local Teamsters union chapter, to support the crime family's gambling operations. Union members were allegedly recruited to borrow money from the mob loan sharks and then gamble it away.
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