Trio Associated With Lucchese Crime Family Plead Guilty to Conspiracy

A member of the Lucchese organized crime family and two of his associates have pleaded guilty to charges of conspiracy, according to the U.S. Attorney's office.

Carmine Avellino, 72, of Stony Brook, a member of the family of La Cosa Nostra, pleaded guilty to an extortionate collection of credit conspiracy on Friday, according to the U.S. Attorney.

In addition, Lucchese crime family associates 52-year-old Michael Capra, of Smithtown, and 58-year-old Daniel Capra, of Hauppauge, plead guilty to the extortion conspiracy in July and August of this year, the U.S. Attorney said.

When sentenced, each man could face up to 20 years in prison.

Between January and July 2010, the trio conspired and attempted to collect a loan through the use of threats, according to the U.S. Attorney.

In one instance, Avellino allegedly gave a loan of $100,000, but after making the majority of the payments on the loan, the victim had difficulty repaying the rest of the money, according to the U.S. Attorney.

The three men then used force and coercive means, including threats of physical violence, in order to try to collect the outstanding loan amount, according to the U.S. Attorney.

“As this case illustrates, members of La Cosa Nostra are still doing business as usual and continue to threaten victims with violence when a loan is not repaid," FBI Assistant Director-in-Charge Diego Rodriguez said. "The FBI, working with our law enforcement partners, stand committed to rooting out organized crime enterprises in our communities."