Anthony Villani, a captain in the Lucchese organized crime family, has been sentenced to 21 months in federal prison for his involvement in money laundering, racketeering, and an illegal gambling business known as Rhino Sports.
In addition to serving time, US District Judge Kiyo A. Matsumoto in Brooklyn ordered Villani to forfeit $4 million from the winnings.
According to federal prosecutors, Villani ran Rhino Sports from at least 2004 until December 2020 using offshore servers in Costa Rica. In that time, the illicit operation generated over $35 million in profits. Villani personally pocketed about $15 million.
Rhino Sports primarily operated in the New York City area. It relied on an extensive network of illegal bookmakers, which handled between 400 and 1,300 bets weekly. The bookmakers included members and associates of the Luchese crime family and other La Cosa Nostra families.
Among them were co-defendants James Coumoutsos (known as “Quick”) and Michael Praino (known as “Platinum”). Meanwhile, Louis Tucci Jr. and Dennis Filizzola directly reported to Villani and collected cash from other bookmakers.
The four co-defendants previously pleaded guilty and await sentencing. Each has agreed to pay $1 million in forfeiture.
According to prosecutors, Villani and his associates concealed the illicit proceeds by purchasing US Postal Service money orders under false names. The money orders were payable to one of Villani’s property companies.
Villani also extorted an individual, identified in court documents as John Doe. Between October 2019 and October 2020, Villani repeatedly threatened Doe regarding $300,000 that the unidentified individual stole from Rhino Sports.
The Lucchese captain issued multiple threats, including on April 27, 2020:
“I’m not going to repeat myself… We’re just going to have a problem if I find out. I don’t want to threaten you with my friends or anything… you put me in a f—–g hole with this guy?”
Villani’s threats escalated, and on October 10, 2020, he said:
“Listen, get the f—–g money. I’m telling you right now, you don’t get this money, f—–g run away. Go get this f—–g money.”
Based on the threats, John Doe genuinely feared that Villani or other Lucchese crime family members would physically harm or even kill him if he did not repay the money.
The Villani case underscores a broader and growing threat of illegal gambling operations in the US. According to a report by the Campaign for Gairer Gambling, offshore operators generate 74% of gross gambling revenue in the US.
According to the report, there are about 95 legal online gambling platforms in the US. At the same time, the number of offshore platforms is 917, nearly 10 times more.
The reach and influence of illegal bookmakers have also been highlighted in recent high-profile enforcement actions involving major Las Vegas casinos.
In March, Resorts World Las Vegas received a $10.5 million fine (the second-largest in Nevada’s history) for engaging with illicit bookmakers, including Damien LeForbes and Mathew Bowyer.
Bowyer, who ran an illegal operation with over 700 clients, used the illicit funds from his operations to gamble at Resorts World. He lost over $8 million, including $1.2 million in two months.
Bowyer’s gambling also contributed to MGM Resorts’ $8.5 million fine in April. He gambled over 300 times at MGM properties. Meanwhile, another illegal bookie, Wayne Nix, lost nearly $5 million at MGM properties.
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