Grandson of Notorious Mob Boss John Gotti Sentenced to Prison for Covid-19 Relief Fraud and Crypto Scheme

Carmine Agnello, the grandson of notorious mob boss John Gotti, has been sentenced to 15 months in prison for his role in a Covid-19 relief fund scheme, in which he fraudulently obtained $1.1 million from the US government's Small Business Administration. According to the Department of Justice, Agnello used at least half of the funds to invest in cryptocurrency. In a statement, the US Attorney's Eastern District of New York office revealed that Agnello had submitted false information to secure multiple disaster relief loans, claiming the funds were for his autoparts and recycling business in Queens. Instead, he diverted the proceeds for personal use, including a $420,000 investment in a cryptocurrency business. Agnello will begin his prison sentence on July 1. The case is part of a larger pattern of fraud against Covid-related relief funds, with an estimated $135 billion lost to scams. Agnello's grandfather, John Gotti, was a notorious figure who ran the Gambino crime family, earning an estimated $500 million annually from various illicit ventures. He was found guilty on 13 criminal counts in 1992 and died in federal prison in 2002.