AP Features, May 25th, 2007
Albert "The Old Man" Facchiano, a 97-year-old whose life of crime dates to the days of Lucky Luciano and Bugsy Siegel, was sentenced Friday to six months of house arrest and 18 months of probation on federal racketeering charges.
Afterwards, Facchiano said his days in organized crime were over.
"I'll never get mixed up any more," Facchiano said. "I'm just happy that it's over."
Facchiano, first arrested 75 years ago and also known as "Chinky," pleaded guilty in February to a Florida racketeering conspiracy charge and a New York witness tampering charge, which carried maximum sentences of 30 years behind bars. The two cases were combined in Florida.
Facchiano was among six members of the Florida arm of New York's Genovese crime family to plead guilty, including their admitted Mafia captain, 73-year-old Renaldi Ruggiero. Ruggiero is appealing his 14-year prison sentence.
Prosecutors recommended that Facchiano serve house arrest based on his age and numerous medical problems. There are only a handful of federal prisoners older than 80 in the United States, and the average age of a federal prisoner in Florida is 36, according to the U.S. Sentencing Commission.
Federal sentencing guidelines allow for lesser sentences for people who are "elderly and infirm" and where the costs of putting them behind bars would be much greater than for the average convict. And Facchiano's lawyer said in court papers that "at this time of his life, he certainly does not pose a threat" to anyone.
Facchiano's FBI record includes armed robbery, grand larceny, bookmaking and previous racketeering convictions.
He did eight years in federal prison on a racketeering charge and was released at age 79. This time, Facchiano would be nearly 100 by the time his probation period ends.
