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Thirteen Indicted on Racketeering Charges

BOSTON, Massachusetts – (PRESS RELEASE) -- A Superseding Indictment was unsealed today charging Arthur Gianelli, eleven others and a Costa Rican corporation with racketeering and related offenses.

United States Attorney Michael J. Sullivan; Essex County District Attorney Jonathan W. Blodgett; Colonel Thomas G. Robbins, Superintendent of the Massachusetts State Police; Joseph A. Galasso, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation; William J. Hoover, Special Agent in Charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and Kenneth W. Kaiser, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, announced the unsealing of a 395-count Superseding Indictment charging twelve individuals and one corporation with Racketeering, Money Laundering, Operating Illegal Gambling Businesses, Use of Wire Communication Facilities, Extortion, Arson, and Interstate Travel in Aid of Racketeering.

Named in the Superseding Indictment are:

1) ARTHUR GIANELLI, age 47, of 420 Main Street, Lynnfield, MA;

2) JOSEPH YERARDI, JR, age 51, of 43 Upham Street, West Newton, MA;

3) DENNIS ALBERTELLI, age 52, of 151 Hudson Road, Stow, MA;

4) SALVATORE RAMASCI A/K/A "LEFTY," age 48, of 48 Pleasant Street, Stoneham, MA;

5) RANDY ALBERTELLI, age 26, of 151 Hudson Road, Stow, MA;

6) GISELE ALBERTELLI, age 57, of 151 Hudson Road, Stow, MA;

7) RAFIA FEGHI A/K/A RAFIA YERARDI, age 55, of 405b Dedham Street, Newton, MA;

8) TONY DANIELS A/K/A "SONNY," age 53, of 14 Pine Tree Drive, Saugus, MA;

9) FRANK IACABONI, age 60, of 640 Union Street, Leominster, MA;

10) DEEB HOMSI, age 44, of 17 Marion Road, Arlington, MA;

11) TODD WESTERMAN, age 41, of San Jose, Costa Rica;

12) ENEYDA GONZALEZ RODRIGUEZ, a Venezuelan national who resides in San Jose, Costa Rica; and

13) WESHTOD CONSULTANTS A/K/A WESHTOD CONSULTORES S.A., a Costa Rican corporation.

Today's charges and defendants were added to a pre-existing Indictment returned in January of this year that charged GIANELLI, DENNIS ALBERTELLI, IACABONI and HOMSI with arson and other offenses related to their alleged attempt to extort the owners of The Canine Entertainment Corporation which operated The Big Dog Sports Grille in Lynnfield, Massachusetts. Two other individuals, Sean Slater, age 47, of 10 Ocean Parkway, Brooklyn, New York and Michael McCormack, age 42, of 207 Crosby Street, Arlington, Massachusetts were indicted in April 2004 in connection with the arson. McCormack pled guilty to the arson charges on April 4, 2005 and agreed to cooperate with the U.S. Attorney's Office. Charges against Slater are still pending.

The Superseding Indictment incorporates the previous charges and also alleges that GIANELLI led a racketeering enterprise that engaged in illegal gambling activities, money laundering, extortion, and other related criminal activities. Particularly, the Superseding Indictment alleges that the enterprise engaged in illegal gambling activities on behalf of convicted racketeer JOSEPH YERARDI, JR. who had been incarcerated since 1995 and was recently released from federal prison. Some of the proceeds of the enterprise's illegal activities were funneled to YERARDI while he was in prison and to YERARDI's wife RAFIA FEGHI a/k/a RAFIA YERARDI. The Superseding Indictment also alleges that the defendants engaged in numerous money laundering schemes including the investment of the enterprise's illicit proceeds in several legitimate businesses.

One of the features of the Superseding Indictment is the inclusion of allegations that the enterprise used an offshore gambling office in San Jose, Costa Rica. It is alleged that customers of the enterprise's sports betting business were able to place bets over the Internet and through the use of a toll-free telephone number. The operator of this offshore gambling office, an expatriate American WESTERMAN who owns WESHTOD CONSULTANTS A/K/A WESHTOD CONSULTORES S.A., was arrested yesterday coming through U.S. Customs at Miami International Airport.

Among other charges in the Superseding Indictment are allegations that GIANELLI attempted to gain control of two other Massachusetts businesses through extortion. These businesses were McCarthy's Bar and Grille located at 903 Boylston Street in Boston, and Clarke's Turn of the Century Saloon located in Faneuil Hall.

Defendants YERARDI, JR., FEGHI, RANDY ALBERTELLI, GISELE ALBERTELLI, RAMASCI, and DANIELS were arrested today and will appear in court this afternoon before Chief U.S. Magistrate Judge Charles B. Swartwood, III. If convicted, each of the defendants faces a maximum sentence of 20 years' incarceration on each of the racketeering, extortion, money laundering, and Travel Act charges; and 5 years' incarceration on each of the gambling and conspiracy charges. The arson charges carry a minimum mandatory sentence of 5 years and a maximum of 20 years' incarceration. Additionally, each count also carries a 3 year term of supervised release and fines up to $250,000. Furthermore, numerous assets of the defendants are alleged to be subject to forfeiture to the United States.

The case is being investigated by the Massachusetts State Police, the U.S. Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Federal Bureau of Investigation with assistance from Essex County District Attorney Blodgett's Office. It is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Fred M. Wyshak, Jr. and Michael L. Tabak in Sullivan's Organized Crime Strike Force Unit.

The details in the Superseding Indictment are allegations. The defendants are presumed to be innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

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