Carmine Agnello, the grandson of John Gotti, has been sentenced to 15 months in prison for his role in a COVID-19 relief fund scam, in which he fraudulently obtained $1.1 million from the US government's Small Business Administration, according to the Department of Justice. The funds were then used for personal gain, including investing approximately $420,000 in a cryptocurrency business.
Agnello submitted false information to the SBA between April 2020 and November 2021, claiming the funds were for his autoparts and recycling business in Queens. The US Attorney's office stated that Agnello 'diverted the proceeds for his personal use', and he will be required to repay the funds as part of his sentence. This case is not an isolated incident, as numerous individuals have been found guilty of defrauding the government's COVID-19 relief program, with estimated losses of up to $135 billion. Agnello's grandfather, John Gotti, was a notorious mob boss who headed the Gambino crime family and was convicted of 13 criminal counts in 1992.