Gambling raids may net $1M

COHOES - When the dust settles after a months-long joint investigation that led to six coordinated raids Friday, authorities expect to have seized more than $1 million and filed dozens of felony charges against a string of nine or more suspects including the alleged ringleader and several assistants, a loan shark, a U.S. Postal Service employee and several municipal employees. Already $200,000 in cash, several illegal gambling machines, records detailing hundreds of bets and three firearms - a small revolver, small semi-automatic pistol and single-barrel sawed-off shotgun - were seized, and about $450,000 in out-of-state assets was frozen pending seizure. Police say the tally of seized assets may reach $850,000. Members of the Albany County Sheriff's Department unveiled details of Friday's raids on what was described as a gambling and loan-sharking ring during a news conference at the department's office on Remsen Street Tuesday. Sheriff James L. Campbell described the seizure as the largest of its type in the county's history. The three-month investigation was a joint effort of Albany, Watervliet and Guilderland police as well as State Police and deputies. Charged during a series of 6 a.m. raids Friday were: ä Peter J. Stanish, 45, of Guilderland. The alleged "kingpin" bookkeeper was taken into custody at his 129 Kennewyck Circle home and charged with one count of first-degree promotion of gambling, a felony. Seven further felony charges will be filed today. His business, Stanish Amusements, at 619 North Pearl St. in Albany, was also raided. ä Carmine Berghela Sr., 69, of Albany. The retired laborer and owner of the Miami Heat bar on Delaware Avenue was charged with second-degree criminal usury, a felony. Police allege Berghela ran a loansharking business on the side, lending money at steep interest rates to bettors who owed Stanish money. ä Raymond Martel, 47, of Albany. After authorities raided his 560 First St. home, Martel, a security guard for the city's Water Department, was charged with two counts of second-degree promotion of betting, a misdemeanor. ä Richard Polero, 55, of Watervliet. Taken into custody during a raid of his 311 23rd St. home, Polero, who works as a claims approver for GHI, was charged with eight counts of first-degree promotion of gambling, a felony. ä Jeffrey J. Grugan, 26, of Albany. After his Seminole Avenue home was raided, Grugan, a bartender, was charged with first-degree possession of gambling records, a felony. ä Thomas J. Fennell, 45, of Waterford. The truck driver employed by the city of Troy was charged with seven counts of second-degree promotion of gambling, a misdemeanor, after his home was raided. Later charged was Stanish's alleged business partner in the 619 North Pearl St. establishment, Joseph R. Calabrese, 54, of Albany. He was charged with second-degree promotion of gambling, a misdemeanor. Patrick Vaccariello, a 41-year-old bartender from Watervliet, was also charged with the same offense. Gary Krill, 53, of Troy, an employee of the U.S. Postal Service working out of the station on Broadway in Albany, was also involved in the alleged criminal enterprise, authorities said. He was charged with official misconduct, a misdemeanor. After police began watching the mail of Calabrese and Stanish, Krill allegedly warned them of the scrutiny. Why he did so is unclear. Authorities believe he may have owed the men money for a gambling debt. All were arraigned before State Supreme Court Justice Joseph C. Teresi and released on their own recognizance. Friday was chosen for the raid because that was the pay-out day when the most evidence could be seized, Campbell said during Tuesday's news conference. Money was found in safes, hidden in clothing and wrapped like gifts in wrapping paper, Campbell said. The seized funds will be divided among the agencies that participated in the investigation. Sheriff's Department Inspector John Burke said the recovery of firearms also made the case unusual - this was the only one of five gambling stings, the most recent of which was about one year ago, during which weapons were recovered, he said. Stanish had three of the suspects answering phones to take bets, Burke said, adding that the operation may have stretched to Springfield, Mass., and western New York. Bets were taken on professional football, baseball and basketball as well as college football games, Burke said. The ring also made use of rigged electronic gaming machines that accepted big bills and paid out little compared to what was put in, Burke said. "He was doing 25, close to 30, 40 thousand dollars a week," Burke told reporters. Stanish told authorities he had been a bookie for 18 years, the inspector said, adding his name had come up during prior gambling investigations but no charges had ever been made against Stanish. While placing a bet is not illegal, profiting from placed bets without a license is, Burke explained. As authorities described the ring, it became clear the playing field wasn't exactly level. After placing a bet, usually in code, the bettor collected his or her winnings at the end of the week or was obliged to pay the bookie the lost amount plus a 10 percent surcharge. Those whose debts remained unpaid after several weeks were sent to a loan shark, who made the loan but charged a compounded monthly interest rate of 3 percent. A debt unpaid by the end of one year would be subject to a 72 percent monthly interest rate, authorities said. Berghela made at least two loans in this manner during the investigation, Burke said. The number of bettors is said to run into the hundreds and the amount of some bets into the thousands. Transactions were recorded on a series of betting slips and several ledgers on display at Tuesday's news conference along with a computer, money-counting machine, the firearms and bags of cash. The next step is unclear according to Burke - there still remains a great deal of investigation to be done on what authorities have already seized, and they expect illegal gambling machines that police know are out there will disappear once the information they released Tuesday becomes public knowledge. It was not immediately clear whether Stanish or other suspects obtained lawyers after they posted bail, or if they would plead to a lesser charge rather than face trial, Burke said. ©The Record 2004