Sports Gambling Ring Busted in Pennsylvania
4 Jun 2006
Relative of late Philadelphia mayor was arrested in a sports gambling ring bust. Two million dollars seized from Joseph Mastronardo's home, suspected leader of the sports gambling ring. The son-in-law of the late Philadelphia Mayor Frank Rizzo has been charged with illegal bookmaking and leading a sports gambling ring. Montgomery County District Attorney Bruce Castor says that detectives had noticed an increase in sports gambling activities in the area due to increased violence and beatings. Their investigations concentrated on the area of the increased violence which in turn led them to discovering the sports gambling ring lead by Joseph Mastronardo Junior.
Mastronardo is married to Joanna Rizzo, the late mayor's daughter. His brother, John Mastronardo, has also been arrested and charged with similar counts related to sport gambling activities. Investigators searched the Mastronardo home where they thought the sports gambling activities had been focused and seized more than two million dollars in cash. It is not known whether further locations were searched as part of the sports gambling bust.
Castor further explained that the brothers were expected to plead guilty to the charges of running a sports gambling ring and to illegal bookmaking activities, but would not participate in a plea bargain. If found guilty of operating a sports gambling ring, they could face up to ten years in prison. Joseph Mastronardo had been convicted in 1990 on federal gambling charges and is believed to have once run a gambling operation that grossed $50m a year.
$50
