NEW YORK — A Mafia member was sentenced Wednesday to more than four years in prison for his role in a long-running scheme in which he and others extorted money from a New York City labor union, federal prosecutors said.
Vincent Ricciardo, a captain in the Colombo crime family, was also ordered by a Brooklyn judge to pay $350,000 in forfeiture and $280,890 in restitution.
Ricciardo, also known as “Vinny Unions,” pleaded guilty last July to racketeering for his participation in union extortion, as well as money laundering, loan origination, fraud and other mafia schemes.
Lawyers for Ricciardo did not immediately respond to messages seeking comment on Wednesday.
Breon Peace, the U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of New York, said in a statement that the verdict holds Ricciardo “responsible” for his participation in a wide range of mafia crimes.
“This prosecution represents our continued commitment to combating organized crime and prosecuting individuals who seek to enrich themselves at the expense of hardworking union members and their employers,” he said.
The extortion scheme included death threats, counterfeit payments and other hallmarks of mafia-style shakedowns you see in movies.
Prosecutors say it started in 2001, when Ricciardo pressured a top Queens construction union official to hand over part of his salary.
Russo and other leaders in Colombo then devised a plan to force the union to make decisions favorable to the crime family, including arranging contracts for suppliers tied to the family, prosecutors said.
In one recorded conversation, Ricciardo even threatened to kill the union official in front of his family if he did not comply.
“You laugh all you want, buddy, I’m not afraid of going to jail,” he said, according to prosecutors.
Ricciardo is the tenth defendant convicted in connection with the union scheme, according to the peace office. Four others are still awaiting sentencing.