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A man accused of running a multi-million dollar sports betting ring in three different states has a history of gambling arrests dating back several years.
Robert D'Alessio, 62, of Little Falls, was arrested Tuesday along with 45 other individuals on charges that ranged from money laundering to conspiracy to gambling promotion. Those arrested included a teacher, swim coach and some New Jersey bar and restaurant owners.
D’Alessio goes by the nickname Elvis for his uncanny resemblance to the late singing icon Elvis Presley (the later day version before overdosing). He also went by the name “Andrew Dice Clay”, named after the vulgar comedian, who himself is a high stakes gambler.
Arrests of D’Alessio for gambling infractions date all the way back to 1986 with a subsequent arrest in 1990. The 1986 charge was reduced to a misdemeanor and the 1990 charge was ultimately dropped.
He was arrested ten years ago on similar charges when police raided the real Bada Bing Club profiled on the hit HBO mob series, “The Sopranos”. At the time the bar was called Satin Dolls.
That latest round of arrests is eerily similar to that of the raid in 2006 whereby some 50 suspects were rounded up from New Jersey, New York and Florida.
"As an example of the size of this illegal enterprise, over $1 million per week in illegal wagers were being placed, and an average of $500,000 per week was being paid out and/or collected by D'Alessio and his co-conspirators," said John Molinelli, who was the Bergen County prosecutor at the time.
D’Alessio served only three months for the 2006 matter but will likely serve a more lengthy sentence as a result of the repeated offense. Details of an arrest this past October were not immediately available.
The latest bust, taking down individuals from the same three states, is said to have taken in tens of millions of dollars per year.
- Jagajeet Chiba, Gambling911.com
