Gotti Grandson Is Going to Prison

John Gotti's grandson is headed back into a familiar family setting: federal custody. Carmine Agnello, 39, who once appeared on the reality show Growing Up Gotti, was sentenced Monday on Long Island to 15 months in prison for fraudulently securing nearly $1 million in COVID relief loans for his Smithtown auto recycling business. Prosecutors say he siphoned off roughly $420,000 into a cryptocurrency venture, calling it "blatant theft of taxpayer dollars," reports CBS News. Agnello, who faced up to three years, was also ordered to pay $1.268 million in restitution, serve two years of supervised release, and complete 100 hours of community service.

His attorney argued in court filings that Agnello's crypto spending was less about greed than an addiction to trading, and said after the hearing that his client's "warped sense of reality" stemmed from an abnormal upbringing. Agnello spoke briefly in court, reports the New York Times, calling his actions "wrong, selfish, and criminal," and adding that he never intended to "find myself in prison." Outside court, John "Junior" Gotti called the outcome "a heartbreak," noting that about 15 members of the extended Gotti family have done prison time. Agnello's mother, Victoria Gotti, had urged the judge for leniency, writing that her son "would never do anything he knew was wrong."