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Thomas "Tommy" Manzo, 59, pleaded guilty to two counts of fourth-degree stalking, Monmouth County Prosecutor Raymond Santiago said in a news release on Wednesday, Oct. 30.
The Franklin Lakes man entered the guilty plea on Wednesday, Oct. 23 — about a week after he was sentenced to seven years in federal prison for enlisting a mobster to assault David Cantin in 2015, as reported by Daily Voice.
Manzo hired John Perna of the Lucchese crime family to rough up the Bravo TV show's then-boyfriend and paid for the hit job with a free wedding reception.
Prosecutors said Tommy Manzo repeatedly stalked Claudine "Dina" Cantin (formerly Claudine Manzo) and her now-husband David Cantin between 2015 and 2019. Tommy and Dina officially divorced in 2016, People magazine reported.
Holmdel police responded to a 911 call at the Cantins' townhome on Banyan Boulevard at around 10:54 p.m. on Saturday, May 13, 2017. Officers found the Cantins had freed themselves from zip-ties after they were hit several times with a baseball bat. The home invaders stole the couple’s new engagement ring and $500 in cash.
Investigators said DNA evidence linked 51-year-old James Mainello of Bayonne to the home invasion. He was arrested and charged in May 2018.
According to prosecutors, Manzo was found to have stalked his ex-wife and her new husband. He was also aware of the home invasion carried out by Mainello and another unidentified man.
Dina Cantin appeared on the first two seasons of "The Real Housewives of New Jersey" and returned for the sixth season. She also once hosted her own show "Dina's Party" on HGTV.
Manzo's plea in the home invasion called for a three-year state prison sentence. He would serve that sentence at the same time as his federal sentence.
Mainello pleaded guilty to second-degree conspiracy to commit first-degree armed robbery on Tuesday, May 12, 2023. He was facing up to seven years in state prison and would have to serve nearly six years before being eligible for parole.
Manzo and Mainello were scheduled for sentencing on Friday, Dec. 13.
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