The alleged gangster accused of assaulting the husband of the former “Real Housewives of New Jersey” star, Dina Manzo, is a true family boy, authorities say.
Suspect John Perna is the son of Ralph V. Perna, a longtime boss of the long-standing Lucchese crime family, who was once accused by the feds of running the mafia faction operations in New Jersey.
Authorities were able to see the inner workings of the alleged crime family within a crime during the mass dismantling of an illegal online sports betting operation of more than $ 2 billion in 2010, and it was not pretty.
Ralph V. and two of his sons, John and Joseph “Little Joe” Perna, were convicted in the plan, which reflected the Perna criminal dynasty’s reliance on book creation, an investigator told the Philadelphia Inquirer at the time.
The wiretaps caught the children once they boasted that “Daddy” reached the top.
Federal recordings also revealed how the sons were initiated as Lucchese soldiers at a ceremony at the Joseph’s Toms River home in 2007, in the presence of New York City mob bosses Joseph “Big Joe” DiNapoli and Matthew Madonna. , according to the newspaper.
At one point, Joseph was heard gripping the tape: “I made $ 67,000 in the last 10 days and I don’t have a dollar. . . Not a dollar. . . . He goes to the house and this and that and bills.
He and his brother were also caught plotting assaults against those who failed to pay their debts, the newspaper said.
In 2016, Ralph V. obtained an eight-year prison sentence for his role in the gambling scheme, while his children obtained 10 years each, all part of plea agreements, NJ.com reported at the time.
John was released from state prison in July 2019, and was handcuffed on Tuesday for allegedly assaulting Manzo’s then-boyfriend and now-husband in 2015, a year before he was convicted in the gambling operation.
The feds say John Perna was hired by Manzo’s ex, Tommy Manzo, and in exchange for the assault he received a huge discount for his wedding at Manzo’s Paterson food hall the following month.
Both John Perna and Manzo pleaded not guilty in their arraignment on Tuesday.
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