Among 46 Accused Mobsters in Racketeering Conspiracy: Mount Vernon, Pelham, Scarsdale, Tuckahoe, Yonkers Residents

Federal prosecutors revealed indictments Thursday against 46 accused mobsters, alleged members of the most infamous crime families in La Cosa Nostra — including several residents of Putnam, Rockland and Westchester counties.

The Indictment charges 46 defendants for their alleged roles in a sprawling and long-running racketeering conspiracy composed of leaders, members and associates of the Genovese, Gambino, Luchese, Bonanno and Philadelphia organized crime Families who worked together to engage in a multitude of criminal activities throughout the East Coast.

The defendants are charged with racketeering conspiracy, arson, illegal trafficking in firearms, and conspiracy to commit assault in aid of racketeering, according to the announcement from Preet Bharara, the United States attorney for the Southern District of New York; Diego Rodriguez, assistant director in charge of the New York Field Office of the FBI; William J. Bratton, commissioner of the New York City Police Department; and James A. McCarty, acting district attorney for Westchester County.

“The indictment reads like an old school mafia novel, where extortion, illegal gambling, arson and threats to ‘whack’ someone are carried out along with some modern-day crimes of credit card skimming," Rodriguez said in the announcement. "But the 40-plus arrests of mob associates, soldiers, capos, and a boss this morning show this isn’t fiction. As alleged, Genovese, Gambino, Luchese, and Bonanno LCN crime families are still carrying out their criminal activities from Mulberry Street here in New York City to areas of Springfield, Massachusetts. The FBI, working with our task force partners from the New York Police Department, are just as steadfast investigating and rooting out organized crime as wise guys are to bringing it our streets."

The nicknames alone are like something out of that mafia novel he cited — "Mustache Pat," "Harpo," "Tony the Wig."

Read the indictment here.

Thirty-nine of the accused were taken into custody today, officials said. During the arrests, law enforcement officers recovered, among other items, three handguns, a shotgun, gambling paraphernalia and more than $30,000 in cash.

The local men named in the indictment are:

• Nicholas Devito, 64, of Monticello
• Anthony Depalma, 70, of Stony Point
• Paul Cassano, 37, of Nanuet
• Agostino Camacho, 40, of Yonkers
• Mitchell Fusco, 52, of Yonkers
• Bradford Wedra, 61, of Mount Vernon
• Anthony Vazzano, 51, of Brewster
• Joseph Tomanelli, 70, Yonkers, NY
• Vincent Terracciano, 40 Yonkers, NY
• Pasquale Parrello, 72 Tuckahoe, NY
• Mark Maiuzzo, 37 Scarsdale, NY
• Richard LaCava, 67 Pelham, NY

The charges are the culmination of a multiyear joint investigation conducted by the FBI, the FBI-NYPD Organized Crime Task Force, the Westchester County District Attorney’s Office, the New York City Police Department and the U.S. Attorney's office. The evidence includes thousands of hours of consensual recordings obtained by a cooperating witness and an FBI Special Agent working undercover.

Bharara said members and associates of the enterprise promoted a climate of fear in the community through threats of economic harm and violence, as well as actual violence, including assault and arson. Members and associates of the enterprise generated or attempted to generate income for the enterprise through firearms trafficking, extortion, operating illegal gambling businesses, health care fraud, credit card fraud, selling untaxed cigarettes, making extortionate extensions of credit and other offenses.

Members and associates of the enterprise at times allegedly engaged in criminal conduct or coordinated their criminal activities with leaders, members and associates of their respective LCN families. At other times, members and associates of the enterprise allegedly met with leaders, members and associates of their respective LCN families to resolve disputes over their criminal activities.

One of the centers of criminal activity was an illegal gambling operation on Saw Mill River Road called the Yonkers Club, prosecutors said. The casino-style gambling club that held poker tournaments and took bets on horse races, was struggling at one point, according the indictment. Two members of the enterprise working at the Yonkers Club, Mark Maiuzzo and Anthony Zinzi, set fire to a car parked outside a competitor's operation around the corner, according to the indictment.

Camacho was also at one point on the receiving end of the loansharking operation. Prosecutors said:

HAROLD THOMAS said to AGOSTINO CAMACHO, a/k/a “Augie,” who owed an outstanding debt to HAROLD THOMAS: “If you don’t have my money the first of the month you will never hear another sound I give you [my] word on that. . . . If you miss don’t call me. You’ve had enough breaks. I’ve just given you the biggest break in your life. . . . [I]n about a minute I’m going to go over to the car and take the fucking pistol and I’m going to kill you.”

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Amanda Kramer, Abigail Kurland, Jessica Lonergan and Jonathan Rebold, along with Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Lauren Abinanti of the Westchester County District Attorney’s Office, are in charge of the prosecution. The case is being handled by the office’s Violent and Organized Crime Unit.

The charges contained in the indictment are merely accusations, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

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