Carmine Agnello, the grandson of notorious mob boss John Gotti, has been sentenced to 15 months in prison for his role in a $1.1 million Covid-19 relief fund scam, with proceeds partially invested in cryptocurrency. According to the Department of Justice, Agnello fraudulently obtained multiple disaster relief loans from the Small Business Administration and used the funds for personal gain, including cryptocurrency investments.
Between April 2020 and November 2021, Agnello submitted false information to the SBA, claiming the funds were for his autoparts and recycling business in Queens. The US Attorney's Eastern District of New York office stated that Agnello diverted the proceeds for personal use, investing approximately $420,000 in a cryptocurrency business.
Agnello will begin his sentence on July 1 and must repay the stolen funds as part of his sentence. The case is part of a larger trend of Covid-19 relief fund fraud, with an estimated $135 billion lost to scams.
Agnello's grandfather, John Gotti, was a notorious figure who exerted power through violence and was eventually convicted on 13 criminal counts, dying in federal prison in 1992.