Tag:

Extortion

8 NYers Among 16 Gambino Crime Family Members Nabbed In Coordinated US-Italian Takedown: Feds 8 NYers Among 16 Gambino Crime Family Members Nabbed In Coordinated US-Italian Takedown: Feds
8 NYers Among 16 Gambino Crime Family Members Nabbed In Coordinated Us-italian Takedown: Feds A total of 16 people in the United States and Italy have been charged after a two-year investigation that targeted members of New York's notorious Gambino crime family and some of its Sicilian associates. A 16-count indictment was unsealed on Wednesday, Nov. 8 in federal court in Brooklyn detailing the alleged involvement of the 10 Americans -- eight New Yorkers and two New Jersey residents -- in an attempt to dominate the New York carting and demolition industries. The 10 Americans have been charged with racketeering conspiracy, extortion, witness retaliation, and union-related crimes comm…
Fairfield County Man Among 6 Genovese Crime Family Suspects Sentenced For Racketeering Fairfield County Man Among 6 Genovese Crime Family Suspects Sentenced For Racketeering
Fairfield County Man Among 6 Genovese Crime Family Suspects Sentenced For Racketeering Six members and associates of the Genovese organized crime family, including a Westchester man and a Fairfield County resident, have been sentenced on racketeering charges, federal officials said.  The sentencings were announced on Friday, Aug. 4 by US Attorney for the Southern District of New York Damian Williams.  According to Williams, the six men were associated with the Genovese Organized Crime Family, part of a nationwide criminal organization known by various names such as "La Cosa Nostra" and the “Mafia."  Those sentenced included two "captains," who were r…
5 Charged In illegal Gambling Operation Allegedly Run By Lucchese Crime Family 5 Charged In illegal Gambling Operation Allegedly Run By Lucchese Crime Family
5 Charged In illegal Gambling Operation Allegedly Run By Lucchese Crime Family Five New York men, including three from Westchester County, have been accused of overseeing and operating a 15-year long, large-scale illegal, online gambling business with suspected ties to the Lucchese crime family, federal authorities announced. An indictment was unsealed in Brooklyn Federal Court on Wednesday, Sept. 14 charging them for their roles overseeing and operating a large-scale illegal, online gambling business under the protection of the Lucchese organized crime family. The gambling business known as “Rhino Sports” utilized an offshore website and dozens of bookmakers in …
CT Man Accused Of Smuggling People From Brazil To US For Profit CT Man Accused Of Smuggling People From Brazil To US For Profit
CT Man Accused Of Smuggling People From Brazil To US For Profit By the time he was busted by federal agents in June 2022, Connecticut resident Fagner De Lima told police he had been smuggling humans into the country for two decades. De Lima, age 41, of East Hartford, was indicted by a grand jury Thursday, Aug. 18, on one count of attempted human smuggling in federal court in Worcester, Massachusetts. Prosecutors said De Lima has a history of conspiring with others to illegally smuggle people from Brazil to the United States, making thousands of dollars along the way. He regularly made travel arrangements for clients to illegally enter the country by pl…
CT Man Charged With Attempted Human Smuggling CT Man Charged With Attempted Human Smuggling
CT Man Charged With Attempted Human Smuggling A 41-year-old Connecticut man is accused of running a business to illegally smuggle people from Brazil to the United States and extorting his clients during their journey. Fagner Chaves De Lima, of East Hartford, was charged with one count of attempted human smuggling, according to an announcement from the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Massachusetts on Thursday, June 30. “It is alleged that Mr. De Lima orchestrated an elaborate and manipulative human smuggling operation. For a steep price, Mr. De Lima allegedly made arrangements for victims to travel fro…
Alleged Crime Family Member From Fairfield County Charged With Racketeering Alleged Crime Family Member From Fairfield County Charged With Racketeering
Alleged Crime Family Member From Fairfield County Charged With Racketeering Alleged members of the Genovese Organized Crime Family from Westchester and Fairfield counties are facing racketeering charges for their roles within the organization. Federal prosecutors announced that four members and two associates of the family have been charged with racketeering conspiracy involving illegal gambling and extortion. Those charged in Manhattan federal court: Michael Messina, age 69, of New Fairfield, Connecticut; Ralph Balsamo, age 51, of Tuckahoe, NY; Michael Poli, age 37, of Hawthorne, NY; Nicholas Calisi, age 63, of Boca Raton, Florida; John Campanella, age 47, of t…
NY College Sex Cult Leader Found Guilty On All Charges NY College Sex Cult Leader Found Guilty On All Charges
NY College Sex Cult Leader Found Guilty On All Charges Larry Ray, the leader of a sex cult run out of his daughter's dorm room at a New York college located in Westchester County, will face life in prison after being found guilty by a jury of sexually exploiting and trafficking girls. Ray, now 62 years old following multiple delays in his trial and prosecution, was found guilty of 15 counts that include racketeering, sex trafficking, conspiracy, forced labor, extortion, tax evasion, and other crimes in relation to his scheme at Sarah Lawrence College, located near the border of Yonkers and Bronxville. Related story - DOJ Acciden…
FBI Arrests Superintendent Of Schools In New England FBI Arrests Superintendent Of Schools In New England
FBI Arrests Superintendent Of Schools In New England The FBI has arrested a school superintendent in the region for allegedly obstructing the department's investigation into the alleged extortion of a city employee. Western Massachusetts resident Lynn Clark age 51, of Belchertown in Hampden County, was arrested early Wednesday, April 6, said FBI Boston Division spokesperson Kristen Setera. Clark is the superintendent of Chicopee Public Schools. Clark was arrested for allegedly making false statements in connection with sending threatening messages to a candidate for Chicopee chief of police, said US Attorney Rachael S. Rollins …
DOJ Accidentally Publishes List Of Alleged 121 Clients In Westchester Sex Cult Trial DOJ Accidentally Publishes List Of Alleged 121 Clients In Westchester Sex Cult Trial
DOJ Accidentally Publishes List Of Alleged 121 Clients In Westchester Sex Cult Trial The trial of a father accused of running an alleged sex cult out of his daughter’s college dorm room in Westchester County took an unexpected twist after federal prosecutors reportedly released a list of former clients tied to the operation. Lawrence Ray, age 62, the man who allegedly ran the cult out of Sarah Lawrence College near the border of Yonkers and Bronxville in Westchester, has been on trial in Manhattan for more than a week on charges that include sex trafficking, extortion, forced labor, and other offenses for running the shady operation at the school. Original story - Father O…
Woman Accused Of Conspiring With Father In So-Called Westchester College Sex Cult Case Woman Accused Of Conspiring With Father In So-Called Westchester College Sex Cult Case
Woman Accused Of Conspiring With Father In So-Called Westchester College Sex Cult Case A female cohort of the man accused of running a sex cult out of his daughter’s dorm at Sarah Lawrence College in Westchester Countyis facing charges for her role in helping him run the scheme. Staten Island resident Isabella Pollok, age 29, has been charged with racketeering conspiracy, conspiracy to commit sex trafficking, and extortion conspiracy for helping Lawrence Ray manipulate and groom the college students, who the convicted felon met after moving into his daughter’s on-campus room in 2010. Original story - Father Of College Student In Westchester Charged With Sex Trafficking Her F…
College Sex Trafficking Case Dad Pleads Not Guilty To Nine Charges College Sex Trafficking Case Dad Pleads Not Guilty To Nine Charges
College Sex Trafficking Case Dad Pleads Not Guilty To Nine Charges The father of a former college student in Westchester has denied that he ran a sex cult out of his daughter’s dorm room by manipulating students. Lawrence Ray, 60, has pleaded not guilty to nine federal charges that he’s facing for allegedly moving into his daughter’s dorm at Sarah Lawrence College near the border of Bronxville and Yonkers and operating a sex cult. Specifically, Ray is charged with: Conspiracy to commit extortion; Extortion; Sex trafficking; Obtaining forced labor; Forced labor trafficking; Conspiracy to obtain forced labor; Two counts of violating the travel act; Money l…
Father Of Student At Area College Charged With Sex Trafficking Her Friends Father Of Student At Area College Charged With Sex Trafficking Her Friends
Father Of Student At Area College Charged With Sex Trafficking Her Friends The father of a former college student in Westchester has been charged with running an alleged sex cult out of his daughter’s dorm room for nearly a decade. Lawrence Ray, 60, who was the subject of a cover story for New York Magazine, has been charged with sex trafficking, extortion, forced labor, and other offenses, officials announced on Tuesday, Feb. 11. Ray was released from prison in 2010 and moved into the co-ed dorm of his daughter at Sarah Lawrence College near the border of Yonkers and Bronxville. It is alleged that Ray subjected “his victims to sexual and psychological manipulati…
Four Lucchese Family Mobsters Found Guilty In Brutal Hit Of Gang Leader Four Lucchese Family Mobsters Found Guilty In Brutal Hit Of Gang Leader
Four Lucchese Family Mobsters Found Guilty In Brutal Hit Of Gang Leader Four accused mobsters, including two from Westchester, were convicted of murder, conspiracy to commit racketeering, and other felonies that could land them in prison for life. Christopher Londonio, 45, of Hartsdale, and Steven L. Crea, 72, of the Crestwood section of Yonkers were found guilty Friday, Nov. 15 after a six-week jury trial on an assortment of charges, including conspiracy to commit murder in aid of racketeering for the 2013 execution of notorious gang leader Michael Meldish. “The violent and disturbing acts of these four organized crime figures included the brutal murder …
Alec Baldwin Sues Man Who Said Actor Beat Him Up Over Parking Spot Alec Baldwin Sues Man Who Said Actor Beat Him Up Over Parking Spot
Alec Baldwin Sues Man Who Said Actor Beat Him Up Over Parking Spot Alec Baldwin is fighting back against a Hudson Valley business owner who was involved with an altercation with the actor over a parking spot in New York City last year. Earlier this year, Baldwin pleaded guilty to second-degree harassment after being involved with Wojciech Cieszkowski, a 49-year-old construction business owner from Pearl River who got involved in an altercation in Greenwich Village. In a new lawsuit, filed in Manhattan Supreme Court, Baldwin is alleging that Cieszkowski lied about what took place during the incident. “When two New Yorkers get into an argument over a parkin…
Romanian National Sentenced For Role In CT Home Invasion, Fake Virus Threat Romanian National Sentenced For Role In CT Home Invasion, Fake Virus Threat
Romanian National Sentenced For Role In CT Home Invasion, Fake Virus Threat A Romanian national has been sentenced for his role in a Connecticut home invasion that mirrored the script of a Hollywood film. Alexandru Lucian Nicolescu has been sentenced to 121 months in prison for his role in a 2007 home invasion in South Kent, U.S. Attorney John Durham announced this week. Nicolescu pleaded guilty to one count of attempted extortion and one count of conspiracy to commit extortion. Shortly before midnight on April 15, 2007, Nicolescu, Emmanuel Nicolescu - who are not related - and a third man brandished masks, knives and guns and broke into the South Kent home. The th…
Don't Fall For It: Police Warn Of Extortion Scam Don't Fall For It: Police Warn Of Extortion Scam
Don't Fall For It: Police Warn Of Extortion Scam A new scam is making the rounds, prompting police agencies in the area to issue an alert from scammers attempting to extort doctors. Using spoofed phone numbers that make the call appear to come from the Drug Enforcement Administration’s medical offices, scammers have been targeting medical offices and officials, police said. Police said that some of the callers have spoken broken English and have been threatening to revoke doctors’ licenses and block their ability to prescribe drugs if they don’t comply with extortion requests. The DEA has confirmed that the calls are scams and doctors sho…
Seen Him? FBI Offers Reward For Suspect Wanted In Connecticut Seen Him? FBI Offers Reward For Suspect Wanted In Connecticut
Seen Him? FBI Offers Reward For Suspect Wanted In Connecticut Have you seen him? The FBI is offering a reward and asking the public's help in its search for a 32-year-old man wanted in Connecticut. Stefan Alexandru Barabas, a native of Romania, has an active federal warrant for his arrest on the charges of attempt to interfere with commerce by extortion, conspiracy to interfere with commerce by extortion and possession of a stolen vehicle. He is described as being 6-feet tall, weighing 280 pounds with black hair and brown eyes. A reward of up to $10,000 is being offered by the FBI for information leading to the arrest of Barabas. Anyone who thinks …
Trio Face 100 Years Each In Prison For Connecticut Kidnapping Plot Trio Face 100 Years Each In Prison For Connecticut Kidnapping Plot
Trio Face 100 Years Each In Prison For Connecticut Kidnapping Plot Three Bridgeport cab drivers are facing 100 years in prison after a federal jury found them guilty of kidnapping and extorting money from immigrants trying to find their way to Connecticut, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office. The trio, Lucilo Cabrera, 44, Carlos Hernandez, 53, and Francisco Betancourt, 67, were convicted Friday, March 9, on multiple counts of kidnapping and extortion, confirmed U.S Attorney's Spokesman Tom Carson. A fourth cab driver, Pascual Rodriguez, 49, had his case severed and he is scheduled for trial in June, Carson said. In court documents, which offer sketchy…
'Virtual Kidnapping' Scam Advisory Issued In Fairfield County 'Virtual Kidnapping' Scam Advisory Issued In Fairfield County
'Virtual Kidnapping' Scam Advisory Issued In Fairfield County Police in Fairfield County are cautioning homeowners to be on high alert following several reports of “virtual kidnapping” in the area. The Monroe Police Department issued an alert this week after receiving multiple calls from local residents complaining that a fraudster attempted to scam them by claiming they had a family member in their possession and demanding ransom. “Virtual kidnapping takes on many forms, it is always an extortion scheme - one that tricks victims into paying a ransom to free a loved one they believe is being threatened with violence or death,” police said. “Hang up a…