Imprisoned mob boss Nicodemo "Little Nicky" Scarfo ran a criminal organization out of his cell in a maximum-security federal prison, state prosecutors said as they announced the indictment of Scarfo and 37 subordinates.
A series of indictments handed up Thursday by a state grand jury in Trenton charged the group with crimes that include conspiracy, bribery of local officials, drug distribution, illegal gambling and labor racketeering.Most of the defendants, who include members of six reputed crime families, were rounded up in August and released on bail.
State Police Superintendent Col. Justin Dintino compared the Bruno-Scarfo family, which has seen many of its top members convicted in recent years, to the Iraqi army. The family is headquartered in Philadelphia and Atlantic City.
"The Scarfo family has been seriously weakened," he said. "If they are convicted of these charges, they will be further weakened. But they are not dead."