Photo: Kelly Currie, the recently named acting U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of New York. Courtesy of U.S. Dept. of Justice.
Three members of a Queens family, who own and operate an Italian restaurant in Corona, were charged last week in a six-count superseding indictment for their alleged integral roles in an international narcotics-trafficking operation, according to the U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of New York.
Gregorio and Eleonora Gigliotti, and their son, Angeloi, were each charged with conspiracy to import cocaine, conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute cocaine, importation of cocaine, attempted possession of cocaine, and unlawful use and possession of firearms. The charges stem from the family’s alleged participation in the drug ring between July 1, 2014 and March 11, 2015, according to recently named Acting U.S. Attorney Kelly Currie.
The unsealing of the superseding indictment coincided with the arrest of 13 suspects in Italy last Wednesday on related drug-trafficking charges resulting from the collaboration between the United States and Italian law enforcement agencies. Among those arrested by the Italian authorities was Franco Fazio, a relative of the Gigliottis who will face charges in Italy before the United States seeks his extradition to face the charges contained in the Brooklyn indictment. The Gigliotti Family, who remain in custody in the city, was also charged with narcotics-trafficking offenses by the Italian authorities.
According to the charges, Gregorio, 59, and Eleonora Gigliotti, 54, used their businesses to “facilitate their narcotics-trafficking operation.” In October 2014, investigators intercepted a shipment of a starchy root called cassava that was shipped to the United States from Costa Rica and bound for Farm Fresh Export Corp. in New York, also owned by the Gigliottis. The shipment was found to contain approximately 40 kilograms of cocaine secreted inside cardboard boxes of cassava. Earlier, Eleonora Gigliotti allegedly traveled to Costa Rica with approximately $400,000 in cash that she delivered to the sources of supply. In September 2014, Franco Fazio, 56, allegedly traveled from Italy to New York and then to Costa Rica to deliver another $170,000 in cash to the sources of supply.
In December 2014, law enforcement intercepted a second shipment of cassava bound for Fresh Farms that had also been shipped from Costa Rica and seized approximately 15 kilograms of cocaine secreted within the cardboard boxes of produce. Prior to the arrival of this shipment of cocaine, defendant Franco Fazio allegedly made two additional trips to Costa Rica to meet with the sources of supply.
The Gigliottis were arrested on March 11 in New York. That same day, according to Currie, law enforcement searched the Corona restaurant and Gregorio and Eleonora Gigliotti’s residence in Malba. In the restaurant—Cucino a Modo Mio—they seized seven guns; ammunition magazines; loose ammunition; two handgun holsters; brass knuckles; and more than $100,000 in cash. In the Gigliotti residence, agents recovered a loaded .45-caliber Llama handgun and more than $18,000 in cash.
“This case is a powerful example of the impact of international cooperation in combatting criminal organizations whose activities transcend national borders,” Currie said.
If convicted, the defendants face a potential mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years’ imprisonment.
By Michael V. Cusenza michael@theforumnewsgroup.com
