Carmine Agnello, the grandson of the infamous mob boss John Gotti, has been sentenced to 15 months in prison for perpetrating a $1.1 million Covid relief funding scam, with the proceeds partially used to invest in cryptocurrency, as stated by the Department of Justice. According to a statement released by the US Attorney's Eastern District of New York office, Agnello fraudulently obtained multiple disaster relief loans from the government's Small Business Administration and utilized the funds for cryptocurrency investments. The US Attorney's office revealed that Gotti's grandson diverted the proceeds for his personal use, including investing approximately $420,000 in a cryptocurrency business.
The fraudster, who is set to begin his prison term on July 1, submitted false information to the SBA between April 2020 and November 2021, claiming the proceeds were for his autoparts and recycling business in Queens, including employee salaries. US Attorney Joseph Nocella stated, 'During the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, the defendant shamefully lined his own pockets with government and taxpayers' dollars, which he must repay as part of today's sentence.' The US Postal Inspection Service's New York Division Inspector in Charge, Larco-Ward, added, 'Mr. Agnello defrauded a program designed to assist businesses and employees during the pandemic.' Agnello's case is not an isolated incident, as several individuals have been found guilty of defrauding the government's Covid relief fund, including Bruce Choi, who illegally obtained $2 million in pandemic-related business loans and used the money to buy cryptocurrency. According to statistics from the US Government Accountability Office, fraud against Covid-related relief funds was widespread, with approximately $135 billion, or up to 15% of the total funds, lost to scams.
Agnello's grandfather, John Gotti, was a notorious figure who exerted power through brutal violence and enjoyed the spotlight, running enterprises that allegedly earned him roughly $500 million a year from ventures including extortion, illegal gambling, loan-sharking, and stock fraud.