The Department of Justice seal is seen in Washington, D.C. Credit: AP/Jose Luis Magana
Federal prosecutors in the massive Mafia gambling case involving NBA personalities disclosed they are in the midst of "extensive plea negotiations" involving many of the major defendants in the case.
In a recent letter submitted to Brooklyn federal judge Ramon Reyes Jr., Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Gibaldi expressed optimism that the bulk of the giant case could be resolved without a trial.
Among the organized crime figures indicted in the case are Ernest Aiello, of Wantagh, a reputed high-ranking member of the Bonanno crime family; Matthew Daddino, of Franklin Square, identified by the FBI as an inducted member of the Genovese crime family; and Angelo Ruggiero Jr., of Howard Beach, said by investigators to be a Gambino crime family member and the son of the late Angelo Ruggiero, a confidant of deceased Gambino boss John Gotti.
"The government continues to engage in extensive plea negotiations with numerous of the remaining defendants and is reasonably optimistic that those conversations with lead to pretrial resolutions," Gibaldi said in his filing to the court. "In particular, the government is in discussions concerning a possible disposition concerning fifteen of the remaining defendants in this case."
Gibaldi also revealed that six of the original 31 defendants have already pleaded guilty in the case, including former NBA player Damon Jones, who at various times was with the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Miami Heat.
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Damon Jones leaves federal court in Brooklyn on Nov. 24. Credit: Jeff Bachner
Court records show Jones pleaded guilty to a single count of fraud conspiracy on April 28 and is due to be sentenced in January 2027. He faces up to a 30-year maximum prison sentence but is unlikely to receive anything near that.
Jones was among a group of people charged last October with being part of a ring that rigged illegal poker games in New York City and Long Island that involved a number of reputed Mafia figures from the metropolitan area. The games, which allegedly used special card-counting electronic devices, are said to have netted over $7 million in ill-gotten gains. Also charged was Chauncey Billups, the head coach of the Portland Trail Blazers and former NBA player for several teams, including the Knicks. Billups was placed on leave from his job and has pleaded not guilty.
In his recent filing with the court, Gibaldi reiterated that the amount of pretrial discovery in the case has been massive.
"In addition to previously produced materials, the government has now also produced: (1) cell-site location data for numerous defendants; (2) additional electronic evidence seized from eight electronic devices and iCloud accounts; (3) approximately 259 hours of audio and video recordings in 1,580 files," the prosecutor said in his court papers.
"The government has separately produced to individual defendants full forensic extractions of electronic devices and iCloud accounts that belong to those individual defendants, and those productions total 2.097 TB of data, as well as corresponding search warrant affidavits to individual defendants," Gibaldi noted.
Court records indicated investigators had searched a coffee shop on Staten Island and focused on a reputed gambling location in East Hampton as part of the probe.
A number of defense attorneys contacted by Newsday, who did not want to be identified because of the ongoing negotiations, said the various defendants were seeking what is known as a "global" plea, which would bring all of their cases together for a disposition without trial. The defendants are waiting to see what specific plea offers the government will make for each of them, the attorneys said.
Because of the ongoing plea negotiations and the prospect that the bulk of the case could be finished in the next two to three months, Gibaldi also asked that Reyes postpone any trial date — currently set for November — to 2027. But according to one of the defense attorneys who attended a brief status conference in the case Thursday, Reyes said he intended to stick to the November date.
Ruggiero and Thomas Gelardo, of Scarsdale, remain in custody without bail. Court records show another defendant, Curtis Meeks, was released on bond but is being held on state charges in Texas.
Ruggiero, through his lead attorney, James Froccaro Jr., has made two motions in recent months to get out on bail. But both efforts were rejected by Reyes.
Anthony M. DeStefano has been a reporter for Newsday since 1986 and covers law enforcement, criminal justice and legal affairs from its New York City offices.
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