Carmine Agnello, grandson of the notorious John Gotti, has received a 15-month prison sentence for his role in a $1.1 million Covid-19 relief fund scam, with the proceeds partially invested in cryptocurrency ventures, according to the Department of Justice. In a statement, the US Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of New York revealed that Agnello secured multiple disaster relief loans from the Small Business Administration by submitting false information, which he then used for personal gain, including investing around $420,000 in a cryptocurrency business.
The fraud occurred between April 2020 and November 2021, with Agnello falsely claiming the funds were for his autoparts and recycling business in Queens. US Attorney Joseph Nocella condemned Agnello's actions, stating that he 'shamefully lined his own pockets with government and taxpayers' dollars' during the pandemic.
Agnello's case is not an isolated incident, as numerous individuals have been caught defrauding the government's Covid relief fund, including Bruce Choi, who obtained $2 million in pandemic-related business loans for non-existent companies, and David T. Hines, who fraudulently secured $3.9 million. According to the US Government Accountability Office, an estimated $135 billion, or up to 15% of the total Covid relief funds, was lost to scams.
Agnello's grandfather, John Gotti, was a powerful figure in the Gambino crime family, with an empire that generated approximately $500 million annually from various illicit activities, including extortion, illegal gambling, loan-sharking, and stock fraud. He was found guilty on 13 criminal counts in 1992 and died in federal prison at the age of 61.