Reputed elderly mobsters admit racketeering
BY ANTHONY M. DESTEFANO
October 19, 2005
None of the four men who trooped before Brooklyn federal Judge Sandra Townes Tuesday were younger than the age of 70 or had gone beyond the 10th grade in high school.
Most are plagued with typical health problems of aging men, such as prostate and heart conditions.
But together they represented what the government charged were key members and leaders of the old guard of the Genovese crime family.
Tuesday all four, including reputed Genovese acting boss Dominick "Quiet Dom" Cirillo, pleaded guilty to federal racketeering charges involving extortion conspiracy or other charges.
In a deal worked out with federal prosecutors in Brooklyn, Cirillo, 76, Lawrence "Little Larry" Dentico, 82, Anthony "Tico" Antico, 70, and John "Johnny Sausage" Barbato, 71, entered guilty pleas that disposed of a case pending since the spring.
As a result, the most prison time any of the men face is 51 months, in the case of Dentico, a reputed crime family captain.
Townes set March 13 for sentencing. Cirillo faces a possible 4-year sentence while Antico and Barbato, identified as Genovese members, face a little more than two years.
Investigators charged that Dentico and Cirillo were part of a committee that ran the Genovese family since the 1997 imprisonment of family boss Vincent "The Chin" Gigante.
"These convictions have effectively dismantled the present leadership of the Genovese family," said Brooklyn U.S. Attorney Roslynn Mauskopf in a statement.
While prosecutors portrayed the men as being major mobsters, in court they appeared subdued and resigned to their fate. Dentico, a short, stooped man, could barely be heard as he pleaded guilty to one charge of racketeering. But he said he wasn't admitting he was a member of any mob organization.
Cirillo had faced a rough time in jail since he had dental problems that caused him to have a diet restricted to soft foods such as oatmeal. Defense attorney Lawrence Stern said Cirillo has had some dental work done but said it wasn't the kind of care his client wanted.
After entering their guilty pleas, the men were brought back into holding cells by federal marshals. Dentico blew kisses to a woman friend seated in the courtroom.
"I just think that his age should be taken into consideration," said Angela Minichino of Queens about Dentico's sentencing next year.
-New York Newsday
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Don Cardi
