Posted on Wed, Jan. 7, 2009
Reputed South Philadelphia mob figure Anthony Nicodemo pleaded guilty to a conspiracy charge yesterday, admitting his role in a multimillion-dollar illegal sports betting ring run out of the poker room of the Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa in Atlantic City.
Nicodemo, 36, faces up to three years in prison under a plea agreement worked out with state authorities. He is to be sentenced April 9.
The stocky South Philadelphian said little during a hearing before Atlantic County Superior Court Judge Michael Donio.
His lawyer, James Leonard of Atlantic City, declined to comment.
Nicodemo, described as a soldier in the crime family headed by reputed mob boss Joseph Ligambi, "exercised leadership authority" over the betting ring, according to the New Jersey Attorney General's Office, which brought the case.
To date, 14 of 22 defendants have pleaded guilty to gambling-related charges, including the two managers of what authorities alleged was a $60 million betting ring.
Jack Buscemi Jr., 51, of Mullica Hill, and Andrew Micali, 32, of Ventnor, pleaded guilty last month. Each faces a maximum five-year prison sentence and a substantial fine. They also are scheduled for sentencing in April.
In exchange for Nicodemo's guilty plea to a conspiracy charge, authorities agreed to drop racketeering, money laundering and promoting gambling charges that were part of the case against him.
The charges grew out of a 20-month New Jersey State Police investigation dubbed "Operation High Roller." Evidence included informant testimony, wiretaps and surveillance video that, authorities alleged, showed Micali conducting the day-to-day operations of the betting ring from a table at the high-stakes poker lounge in the Borgata.
Nicodemo's ties to the South Philadelphia mob were detailed in a state police affidavit that included information provided by the FBI. Among other things, he was described as a suspect in the unsolved gangland murder of South Philadelphia mobster John "Johnny Gongs" Casasanto in November 2003.
No one has been charged in that homicide, which is part of a federal investigation into the Ligambi organization.
Contact staff writer George Anastasia at 856-779-3846 or ganastasia@phillynews.com.
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