Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
Alleged mob boss’ nephew arrested in Fort Lauderdale
Accused of bribing a DEA agent, drug dealing and human trafficking
A top figure in one of the nation’s most notorious crime families was arrested in Broward County after a federal grand jury in Buffalo, N.Y., indicted him on charges of bribing a DEA agent, drug dealing, and human trafficking.
Peter Gerace Jr., 53, of Buffalo told the court Monday that he was checking into a hotel room Sunday when agents from Homeland Security Investigations slapped on the cuffs. Court records and proceedings gave no hint as to why Gerace may have been visiting South Florida.
“I was going to check in,” the bald, heavyset man told Magistrate Judge Alicia Valle. “But they checked me out.”
As reported by the Buffalo news, Gerace is one of a half-dozen men accused by federal prosecutors in the Western District of New York of engaging in illicit activities. Among the other men are a high-school teacher accused of running a marijuana distribution ring and Anthony Gerace, Peter’s brother, who is awaiting sentencing on drugs and weapons charges.
The two Geraces are the nephews of Joseph Todaro Jr, a man who court documents say is capo of the Buffalo mob.
Peter Gerace owns a strip club near Buffalo. In an indictment unsealed Monday, prosecutors allege that the club, called Pharaohs, was at the center of a drug and human trafficking operation that lasted at least a decade.
They also say that Gerace bribed a DEA agent into protecting his establishment. The agent, Joseph Bongiovanni, is alleged to have accepted a quarter of a million dollars in bribes as part of the scheme. Bongiovanni has pleaded not guilty to the charges.
According to reports from the Buffalo News, federal agents raided Pharaohs in 2019.
In total, the indictment, charges Gerace with five separate crimes, including bribery of a federal official, manufacturing and distributing narcotics, human trafficking at least 40 people and conspiracy, according to Assistant U.S. Attorney Brendan Cullinane.
Among the more serious penalties he faces if convicted are a maximum of 15 years in prison for bribing the DEA agent, a maximum of 20 years for the drugs, and a minimum of 15 years for the human trafficking.
At Gerace’s detention hearing Monday, federal prosecutors in New York and Gerace’s defense attorney revealed that they’d struck a deal that would allow the accused mobster to walk free without paying any bond. The judge found the deal unusual. “This was an interesting case, but for the government’s recommendation you’d think detention would be warranted,” Valle said.
As part of the conditions of his release, Gerace is to avoid the strip club that he owns and refrain from contacting his ex-wife, Katrina Nigro, who told the Buffalo News on Monday that she testified to a grand jury against him.
“I’m gonna try to get a nonstop flight out of here,” Gerace told the Judge as she approved his release.