A New Jersey councilman who once worked as a Gambino crime family hitman is now accused of returning to old-school intimidation tactics, including allegedly threatening to smash a man in the head with a baseball bat.
The pre-dawn raid landed at John Alite’s Englishtown home last Friday, bringing armed officers to the doorstep of a borough councilman with a notorious Gambino past.
Doorbell video showed tactical officers filing through the sleepy neighborhood shortly after 5 a.m.
The dramatic arrest put the former mafia figure back under criminal scrutiny years after he became a cooperating witness and tried to remake himself in public life.
New Jersey officials charged Alite with multiple counts tied to an alleged loan-sharking and extortion scheme.
Alite has been “charged with multiple counts of theft by extortion (second degree), corporate misconduct (second degree), usury (second degree), and terroristic threats,” according to the New Jersey Attorney General’s Office.
Stephen Locrotondo, 67, of Bridgewater, was also taken into custody, with prosecutors tying him to usury and conspiracy counts.
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Authorities say the alleged operation paired high-interest loans with threats meant to force repayment in cash and property.
“Mr. Alite was accused of granting loans with rates exceeding 50 percent annually before shaking victims down for money and property by threatening them with violence, according to court documents,” the New York Times reported.
“Mr. Alite used his company, Straightened-Out Entertainment, to promote the scheme and made at least $75,000, prosecutors said.”
NJ.com reported that Alite “specifically threatened to take a baseball bat to the head of one person.”
Investigators said a search of Alite’s home turned up an arsenal of weapons that prosecutors believe matters to the case.
According to the Times, authorities recovered “two slapjacks, metal knuckles, an expandable baton, six baseball bats and approximately two dozen switchblade knives and other types of knives.”
NJ.com, citing police reports, said investigators linked the seized weapons to alleged collection threats, including one involving a baseball bat and another grisly reference to gutting people like fish.
The allegations land heavily because of Alite’s violent past. CBS News reported in 2015 that Alite said he killed as many as 15 people during his mob years.
“He also says he shot 30 to 40 people and beat more than one hundred others with pipes and baseball bats,” CBS News reported at the time.
His old case ended with a 10-year sentence in 2011, though cooperation helped him leave prison after roughly a year.
Attorney General Jennifer Davenport credited investigators for the new arrests.
“These arrests are the result of rigorous investigative work and the strong cooperation between the Division of Criminal Justice and New Jersey State Police, who work tirelessly every day in the pursuit of justice,” Davenport said.
She said the alleged conduct violated basic standards for lawful business.
“Our office is dedicated to ensuring that all businesses conduct themselves fairly and lawfully. The conduct alleged in this case was anything but, and we will work to hold those who cheat and steal accountable.”
The arrest stunned at least one local official who knew Alite from the borough council.
“I absolutely have no idea what that’s about, so I can’t comment. I can tell you I’m surprised because he’s been an excellent citizen and councilman,” Councilwoman Janet Leonardis told NJ.com.
Alite’s attorney, Douglas Anton, argued that his client had left his criminal past behind and would ultimately beat the case.
“John has lived a law-abiding life since leaving behind ‘that’ life almost two decades ago,” Anton told The New York Post.
“John is outspoken politically and fights tirelessly for what he believes in. This sometimes draws the attention of differing viewpoints which, in modern times, could lead to people in power taking positions that may not be genuine.”
No court date has been set. The Alite case is not the only recent legal trouble tied to the Gambino orbit.
The latest Gambino-linked headache in Manhattan centers on Thomas “Tommy” Dono and a high-end Chanel heist on East 57th Street.
Court records put the take at 300 Chanel items worth $1,776,700 after a three-hour burglary that began late July 13, 2024.
Dono allegedly stayed outside in a white minivan as the crew worked through the store, according to court records.
The loot allegedly left the building in oversized laundry and trash bags through a rear fire escape.
Some crew members were allegedly dressed “as construction workers” and entered the store through a stockroom ceiling hatch.
From there, prosecutors say, the bags were routed through a construction site and into a white Sprinter van.
The minivan left first, with the Sprinter carrying the haul behind it, prosecutors allege. None of the items has been recovered.
Dono pleaded not guilty May 19 and left court on $300,000 bond, after prosecutors sought twice that amount.
Investigators reportedly identified him early because of a distinctive physical feature.
“Given his unique physical characteristics,” court records state, he was “identified relatively early.”
Sources linked that identifier to the loss of his left arm at the shoulder after a years-old car crash.
Another name from the Gotti family tree also returned to court this month.
Carmine Gotti Agnello’s latest arrest came days before the 39-year-old grandson of John Gotti was supposed to report for a COVID-relief fraud sentence.
The complaint says the fight began inside Agnello’s East Norwich home late Tuesday, after he accused his girlfriend of cheating.
Police said the confrontation moved outside after he shoved her hard enough that she ran from the house.
Agnello then allegedly “slapped the victim on the left cheek, punched the victim with a closed fist on the victim’s left side of her face, and the defendant put both hands around the victim’s neck,” the complaint said.
Authorities also allege he kicked her repeatedly and destroyed her $2,000 phone.
A Nassau County judge released him without bail after arraignment on assault, criminal mischief and obstruction-of-breathing counts.
The domestic-violence case landed on top of his April guilty plea in a $1.1 million pandemic-relief fraud case involving cryptocurrency investments.
He received 15 months instead of a possible three-year sentence, but online records now show the reporting date has been delayed.
