Four Alleged New England La Cosa Nostra Members and Associates Charged with Racketeering and Other Crimes

Eight Defendants Charged to Date for Alleged Roles in Organized Criminal Enterprise

WASHINGTON – Four alleged members and associates of the New England La Cosa Nostra (LCN), including an alleged Rhode Island leader, have been arrested and charged in a second superseding indictment returned yesterday in federal court in Providence, R.I., with crimes involving racketeering and extortion.

The charges and arrests were announced today by Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division; U.S. Attorney Peter F. Neronha for the District of Rhode Island; John T. Foley, Assistant Special Agent in Charge (ASAC) of the FBI’s Boston Field Office; Colonel Steven G. O’Donnell, Superintendent of the Rhode Island State Police; and Steven M. Pare, Providence Public Safety Commissioner.

“Relying on violence and intimidation to carry out their illegal activities, organized criminal groups often act as though if they operate in the shadows, they will escape punishment,” said Assistant Attorney General Breuer.  “As today’s arrests show, they couldn’t be more wrong.  Our law enforcement operations over the past nine months should make clear that we are zeroing in on La Cosa Nostra and other organized criminal groups, and that we will not rest until our work is done.”

“As Attorney General Holder said in New York last January, battling all forms of organized crime, including La Cosa Nostra, remains a priority for the Department of Justice,” said U.S. Attorney Neronha.  “It remains a priority because history has demonstrated that, unchecked, it extends its tentacles into our citizens’ everyday lives.  Let no one doubt the commitment of law enforcement to keeping this threat off balance and on the run.”

‪ “The methodical nature of this investigation is a credit to the diligence and professionalism of our task force which is composed of the Rhode Island State Police, Providence Police, Internal Revenue Service and the U.S. Attorney’s Office,” said FBI ASAC Foley.  “Since its inception, the task force’s combined decades of investigative experience and knowledge of La Cosa Nostra’s criminal schemes has been a blueprint for the extraordinary success that is readily apparent today.  In simple terms, the FBI’s Task Force has shattered Omerta, the New England LCN’s code of silence, severely disrupting their criminal activity.”

‪Charges were unsealed today against Edward Lato, 64, aka “Eddy”; Alfred Scivola, 70, aka “Chippy”; Raymond R. Jenkins, 47, aka “Scarface”; and Albino Folcarelli, 53, aka “Albie” related to their alleged participation in the New England LCN.  Lato is charged with racketeering conspiracy, two counts of extortion conspiracy and two counts of travel in aid of racketeering.  Scivola is charged with racketeering conspiracy and extortion conspiracy.  Folcarelli is charged with extortion conspiracy, and Jenkins is charged with extortion conspiracy and extortion. 

‪Lato, Scivola, Jenkins and Folcarelli were arrested yesterday and today, and made initial appearances in U.S. District Court in Providence today.  At the government’s request, all four defendants were detained by U.S. Magistrate Judge David L. Martin.

‪Previously charged were longtime New England LCN boss Luigi Manocchio and associates Thomas Iafrate, Richard Bonafiglia and Theodore Cardillo.  The second superseding indictment contains new allegations regarding Manocchio’s alleged involvement in the extortion of additional businesses and efforts to conceal his unexplained wealth.  Iafrate pleaded guilty in July 2011 to racketeering conspiracy.  ‪The department announced charges against 127 individuals, including 91 alleged leaders, members and associates – including Manocchio and Iafrate – of LCN families in four districts on Jan. 20, 2011, as part of a coordinated enforcement action against the LCN.

The second superseding indictment alleges that since the mid-1980s, the defendants and other New England LCN members and associates used threatened or implied force, violence and fear, to extort monthly cash payments from the owners and operators of the Cadillac Lounge, the Satin Doll, the Foxy Lady, Desire and other adult entertainment businesses in Providence and elsewhere.

‪According to court documents, the New England LCN family operates in Providence, among other places, and routinely engages in violence and threatens violence to promote a climate of fear, preserve its power, and enrich its members and associates through extortion.  The New England LCN has a hierarchical structure, with an administration comprised of a boss, underboss and capos at the top overseeing crews of criminals, including members and associates who commit crimes and serve to insulate the leadership of the enterprise from criminal exposure.

‪The second superseding indictment alleges that as a capo, Lato was responsible for the Rhode Island New England LCN members and their activities.  The indictment also alleges that he received monthly protection payments, in cash, from the owners and operators of certain adult entertainment businesses in Providence, including the Satin Doll and the Cadillac Lounge.  At various times, the monthly payments from each of the clubs ranged from $2,000 to $6,000.  According to the indictment, after Iafrate and Manocchio were arrested in January 2011, Lato met with another individual in February 2011 to discuss the continuation of the extortion of the Cadillac Lounge, as well as the extortion of other adult entertainment clubs.

According to the indictment, Scivola received a portion of the various extortion payments made to the New England LCN by certain adult entertainment businesses, and he assisted Lato and others in carrying out the extortion scheme.  The indictment also alleges that Jenkins and Folcarelli were associates of the New England LCN and that, together with Lato, they extorted $25,000 from an individual by using implied threats of violence, including a visit to the individual’s place of employment.

Each charge of racketeering conspiracy, extortion conspiracy and extortion carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.  The charge of travel in aid of racketeering carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine.  The charges announced today are merely allegations, and defendants are presumed innocent unless proven guilty in a court of law.

The case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorney Sam Nazzaro of the Criminal Division’s Organized Crime and Gang Section and by Assistant U.S. Attorney William Ferland for the District of Rhode Island.  The case is being investigated by the FBI, Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation, the Rhode Island State Police and the Providence Police Department.