Grandson of Infamous Mob Boss John Gotti Sentenced to Prison for $1.1 Million COVID-19 Relief Scam and Crypto Scheme

Carmine Agnello, grandson of the infamous 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 and used a significant portion to invest 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 submitted false information to secure multiple disaster relief loans, claiming the funds were needed for his autoparts and recycling business in Queens, including for employee salaries. Instead, he diverted approximately $420,000 of the proceeds to invest in a cryptocurrency business. The fraud occurred between April 2020 and November 2021, during the height of the pandemic, with Agnello set to begin his prison sentence on July 1. US Attorney Joseph Nocella condemned Agnello's actions, stating that he 'shamefully lined his own pockets with government and taxpayers' dollars' during a time of great need. Agnello's case is not an isolated incident, as numerous individuals have been caught defrauding the government's COVID-19 relief fund, including Bruce Choi, who illegally obtained $2 million in pandemic-related business loans to purchase cryptocurrency, and David T. Hines, who used $3.9 million in relief funds to buy a Lamborghini. According to 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 rose to power through brutal violence and oversaw a criminal empire that generated an estimated $500 million annually from extortion, illegal gambling, loan-sharking, and stock fraud. He was convicted on 13 criminal counts in 1992 and died in federal prison at the age of 61.