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 the proceeds used to invest in cryptocurrency, according to the Department of Justice. In a statement released on Monday, the US Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of New York revealed that Agnello had fraudulently obtained multiple disaster relief loans from the Small Business Administration and used the funds for personal gain, including investing approximately $420,000 in a cryptocurrency business.
The fraudulent activities took place between April 2020 and November 2021, during which time Agnello submitted false information to the SBA, claiming the funds were for his autoparts and recycling business in Queens. US Attorney Joseph Nocella stated that Agnello's actions were shameful, and that he must repay the funds as part of his sentence.
Agnello is not the only individual to have been caught defrauding the government's COVID-19 relief fund, with numerous cases resulting in court action. According to statistics from the US Government Accountability Office, an estimated $135 billion, or up to 15% of the total COVID-19 relief funds, was lost to scams. Agnello's grandfather, John Gotti, was a notorious figure who exerted power through brutal violence and amassed a significant fortune through various illicit activities, including extortion, illegal gambling, and stock fraud.