TAMPA, Fla. - Federal authorities in Tampa have indicted John A. "Junior" Gotti on conspiracy charges linking him to cocaine trafficking and three slayings in New York.
Federal prosecutor Robert O'Neill said the alleged criminal acts involved "the Gambino crime family reaching out to the Tampa Bay area."
O'Neill announced the indictment of the 44-year-old Gotti and five other men at a news conference Tuesday morning.
Gotti -- the son of the late Gambino family crime boss "Dapper Don" John Gotti -- was arrested at his Long Island, N.Y., home and is expected to appear later Tuesday in Manhattan federal court for a removal hearing.
O'Neill said the slayings occurred in 1988, 1990 and 1991. If convicted, Gotti faces life in prison.
Gotti was tried three times in Manhattan on racketeering charges for an alleged plot to kidnap Guardian Angels founder Curtis Sliwa. The trials in 2005 and 2006 ended in hung juries and mistrials, and federal prosecutors announced that they were giving up.
A call to his attorney seeking comment was not immediately returned, the AP reported earlier.
© 2008 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
URL: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/26031266/
Federal prosecutor Robert O'Neill said the alleged criminal acts involved "the Gambino crime family reaching out to the Tampa Bay area."
O'Neill announced the indictment of the 44-year-old Gotti and five other men at a news conference Tuesday morning.
Gotti -- the son of the late Gambino family crime boss "Dapper Don" John Gotti -- was arrested at his Long Island, N.Y., home and is expected to appear later Tuesday in Manhattan federal court for a removal hearing.
O'Neill said the slayings occurred in 1988, 1990 and 1991. If convicted, Gotti faces life in prison.
Gotti was tried three times in Manhattan on racketeering charges for an alleged plot to kidnap Guardian Angels founder Curtis Sliwa. The trials in 2005 and 2006 ended in hung juries and mistrials, and federal prosecutors announced that they were giving up.
A call to his attorney seeking comment was not immediately returned, the AP reported earlier.
© 2008 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
URL: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/26031266/
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