{"id":156408,"date":"2020-11-24T03:10:08","date_gmt":"2020-11-24T11:10:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/?p=156408"},"modified":"2020-11-24T08:36:23","modified_gmt":"2020-11-24T16:36:23","slug":"philadelphia-mob-spread-reach-in-atlantic-city-by-extorting-bookies","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/philadelphia-mob-spread-reach-in-atlantic-city-by-extorting-bookies\/","title":{"rendered":"Indicted Mob Soldiers in Atlantic City Extort Bookies, Sell Drugs, Feds Say"},"content":{"rendered":"

Federal prosecutors on Monday unsealed indictments against 15 alleged members of the Philadelphia Mob<\/a> for racketeering, extortion, gambling, and drug trafficking.<\/p>\n

\"Philadelphia
Joseph “Joey Electric” Servidio (left) and \u201cHandsome Stevie\u201d Mazzone were among alleged Philadelphia Mob members indicted Monday. (Image: Daily Mail<\/em>)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

According to the US Attorney\u2019s Office for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, since 2015 the Bruno-Scarfo crime family has been adding new soldiers to its ranks. These newly made men have been tasked with spreading mob influence into Atlantic City for reputed underboss Steven \u201cHandsome Stevie\u201d Mazzone and his capo, Domenic \u201cBaby Dom\u201d Grande.<\/p>\n

The revamped mob has achieved this by extorting local bookies and loan sharks while dabbling in cocaine, heroin, and fentanyl distribution, according to the indictments.<\/p>\n

\n

Among those charged are men with names like \u201cTony Meatballs,\u201d \u201cJoey Electric\u201d and \u201cLouie the Sheep.\u201d Mazzone and Grande are also named in the indictment.<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Ten of the 15 are charged with racketeering and the collection of unlawful debts, while the remaining five face a variety of charges, including conducting an illegal gambling business, conspiracy to make extortionate extensions of credit, and conspiracy to distribute controlled substances.<\/p>\n

They are also accused of plotting to kidnap and murder a drug dealer who sold them fake methamphetamine.<\/p>\n

Mob Rule<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Atlantic City was once considered a fiefdom of the Philadelphia crime family. In August 1977, the New Jersey Commission of Investigation (NJCI) confirmed the family had infiltrated legitimate businesses, such as cigarette vending and nightclubs, just as the city prepared to open its first casinos.<\/p>\n

Its Atlantic City operations were headed by Nicodemo \u201cLittle Nicky\u201d Scarfo, who would later replace Angelo Bruno as head of the family after the latter\u2019s murder in 1980.<\/p>\n

Scarfo intimidated many of the city\u2019s casino developers, including Donald Trump, into using his cement contracting company, making a fortune from the new casino industry.<\/p>\n

\n

In 1978, as the first casinos began to open, then-Governor Brendan Byrne warned the Mafia to \u201ckeep your filthy hands out of Atlantic City.\u201d In the same year, Scarfo had a New Jersey judge killed for refusing to be bribed.<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Scarfo also had a stranglehold on Local 54, the union that represents thousands of casino workers in Atlantic City. In 1989, the NJCI concluded that \u201cthe Scarfo family funneled bribes and engaged in other corrupt deals\u201d with Atlantic City Mayor Michael J. Matthews.<\/p>\n

Mob Down but Not Out <\/strong><\/h2>\n

But the Philly Mob was weakened by in-fighting after Scarfo\u2019s imprisonment in 1988, and lost its grip on the city. Recent high-profile prosecutions of former leaders Joseph \u201cUncle Joe\u201d Ligambi and Joseph \u201cSkinny Joey\u201d Merlino<\/a>, suggested the organization\u2019s power and influence had waned further.<\/p>\n

But the indictments show the family is still powerful.<\/p>\n

“We will not rest until the mob is nothing but a bad memory,\u201d US Attorney William McSwain said when announcing the criminal charges.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Federal prosecutors on Monday unsealed indictments against 15 alleged members of the Philadelphia Mob for racketeering, extortion, gambling, and drug trafficking. According to the US Attorney\u2019s Office for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, since 2015 the Bruno-Scarfo crime family has been adding new soldiers to its ranks. These newly made men have been tasked with […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":36,"featured_media":156409,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[21],"tags":[],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nPhiladelphia Mob Spread Reach in Atlantic City by Extorting Bookies<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Philadelphia mob, aka the Bruno-Scarfo crime family, has been making inroads into New Jersey by extorting books and loan sharks, feds say.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/philadelphia-mob-spread-reach-in-atlantic-city-by-extorting-bookies\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Philadelphia Mob Spread Reach in Atlantic City by Extorting Bookies\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Philadelphia mob, aka the Bruno-Scarfo crime family, has been making inroads into New Jersey by extorting books and loan sharks, feds say.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/philadelphia-mob-spread-reach-in-atlantic-city-by-extorting-bookies\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Casino.org\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/Casino.OrgNews\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2020-11-24T11:10:08+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2020-11-24T16:36:23+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/11\/mazzone.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1908\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1146\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Philip Conneller\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@casinoorgphilc\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@Casino_Org\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Philip Conneller\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/philadelphia-mob-spread-reach-in-atlantic-city-by-extorting-bookies\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/philadelphia-mob-spread-reach-in-atlantic-city-by-extorting-bookies\/\",\"name\":\"Philadelphia Mob Spread Reach in Atlantic City by Extorting Bookies\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/philadelphia-mob-spread-reach-in-atlantic-city-by-extorting-bookies\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/philadelphia-mob-spread-reach-in-atlantic-city-by-extorting-bookies\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/11\/mazzone.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2020-11-24T11:10:08+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2020-11-24T16:36:23+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/#\/schema\/person\/58769b72851c8cf117fb58ca150ebf8b\"},\"description\":\"Philadelphia mob, aka the Bruno-Scarfo crime family, has been making inroads into New Jersey by extorting books and loan sharks, feds say.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/philadelphia-mob-spread-reach-in-atlantic-city-by-extorting-bookies\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/philadelphia-mob-spread-reach-in-atlantic-city-by-extorting-bookies\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/philadelphia-mob-spread-reach-in-atlantic-city-by-extorting-bookies\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/11\/mazzone.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/11\/mazzone.jpg\",\"width\":1908,\"height\":1146,\"caption\":\"Joseph 'Joey Electric' Servidio (left) and \u201cHandsome Stevie\u201d Mazzone were among alleged Philadelphia Mob members indicted Monday. 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