Carmine Agnello, grandson of the notorious mob boss John Gotti, has received a 15-month prison sentence for his role in defrauding the US government's Covid-19 relief funding system of $1.1 million, with at least half of the proceeds being invested in cryptocurrency, according to the Department of Justice. A statement from 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 (SBA) under false pretenses and used the funds to invest in cryptocurrency. The statement further noted that Gotti's grandson misused the loan proceeds for personal gain, including investing approximately $420,000 in a cryptocurrency business. Agnello, 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 loan proceeds were intended for his autoparts and recycling business in Queens, including employee salaries.
US Attorney Joseph Nocella condemned Agnello's actions, stating that he 'shamefully lined his own pockets with government and taxpayers' dollars' during the Covid-19 pandemic. US Postal Inspection Service Inspector in Charge Larco-Ward also criticized Agnello, stating that he '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 convicted of defrauding the government's Covid relief fund, including Bruce Choi, who illegally obtained $2 million in pandemic-related business loans and used the funds to purchase cryptocurrency via Kraken. 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 notorious figure who exerted power through violent means and was eventually convicted on 13 criminal counts in 1992, dying in federal prison at the age of 61.