05031992 - News Article - Nuzzo gets 11 years in gambling conviction

Nuzzo gets 11 years in gambling conviction
Times Staff Report
May 3, 1992
nwitimes.com/uncategorized/nuzzo-gets-years-in-gambling-conviction/article_5d48c85b-2e06-55ec-9c10-79c92153c62b.html
HAMMOND - Northwest Indiana sports gambling chieftain Sam Nuzzo Jr. was sentenced to 11 years in prison Friday by U.S. District Judge James T. Moody. He was also fined $60,000.

Nuzzo, 46, owner of Hydad's restaurant and lounge, 31 W. 80th Place in Merrillville, was among 15 people, including four members of his family, indicted in 1990 for gambling, racketeering and extortion. The indictment was hailed as the largest organized crime case ever handled by the U.S. attorney's office for the northern district of Indiana.

A Merrillville resident, Nuzzo was imprisoned within months of the indictment after federal prosecutors learned he was continuing his sports betting operation. The time he spent in custody will be subtracted from his sentence.

Nuzzo was convicted by a Hammond federal jury in August, along with five others, of running an illegal gambling business, extortion, racketeering and conspiracy. During the sentencing Friday, Moody ruled Nuzzo was an operator and supervisor of the betting operation.

Shortly before their case was scheduled to go to trial last July, the four other members of Nuzzo's family pleaded guilty to running an illegal gambling business. They include Sam Nuzzo Sr.; his two daughters, Jennifer Kaufman and Sandra Mynes, and his son, Arthur.

Others indicted with the Nuzzo family included the alleged South Side boss of the Chicago "Outfit" crime family, Dominick Palermo and his aide, Nicholas Guzzino.

The charges leveled by a federal grand jury in 1990 resulted from an eight-year investigation by state and federal agencies.

The 31-count indictment involves charges of racketeering, illegal sports betting, high-stakes gambling and extorting protection money - called a "street tax" - from various Lake County businesses.

05021992 - News Article - Nuzzo Jr. receives 11-year sentence

Nuzzo Jr. receives 11-year sentence
Post-Tribune (IN)
May 2, 1992
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HAMMOND - Sam Nuzzo Jr., who ran the largest sports betting operation in Northwest Indiana, was sentenced Friday to 11 years in prison and fined $60,000.

Nuzzo, 46, of Merrillville, was among 15 gamblers and members of the crime syndicate indicted in December 1990 following an eight-year FBI investigation into mob activity in Northwest Indiana. Nuzzo owns Hydad's Lounge, 31 W. 80th Place, Merrillville.

U.S. District Judge James T. Moody sentenced Nuzzo to 71 months under the new federal guidelines and five years under the old formula. The sentences are to run consecutively. Nuzzo, who was convicted of racketeering and illegal gambling, will have to serve almost seven years of the sentence.

The amount of potential time Nuzzo faced under the new guidelines was increased by 20 months Friday when Moody ruled that Nuzzo was considered an operator and supervisor.

05021992 - News Article - Gambler gets 11-year term

Gambler gets 11-year term
Post-Tribune (IN)
May 2, 1992
infoweb.newsbank.com.proxy.portagelibrary.info/resources/doc/nb/news/1084EE8A0BF054C6?p=AWNB
Sam Nuzzo Jr., who ran the largest sports betting operation in Northwest Indiana, was sentenced Friday to 11 years in prison and fined $60,000.

Nuzzo, 46, of Merrillville, was among 15 gamblers and members of the crime syndicate indicted in December 1990 following an eight-year FBI investigation into mob activity in Northwest Indiana. Nuzzo owns Hydad's lounge, 31 W. 80th Place, Merrillville.

U.S. District Judge James T. Moody sentenced Nuzzo to 71 months under the new federal guidelines and five years under the old formula. The sentences are to run consecutively. Nuzzo, who was convicted of racketeering and illegal gambling, will have to serve almost seven years of the sentence.

The amount of potential time Nuzzo faced under the new guidelines was increased by 20 months Friday when Moody ruled that Nuzzo was considered an operator and supervisor.

Nuzzo will be credited with almost one year served. He was imprisoned a few months after being indicted when it was learned he was continuing to operate his sports betting business.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael A. Thill asked for a substantial period of incarceration. FBI Special Agents James Cziperle and Robert Hadrick headed the investigation. Nuzzo declined comment before sentencing. His attorney, Scott L. King, asked for leniency, saying his client wasn't as culpable as the other defendants.

Besides being a high-stakes gambler himself, Nuzzo and some of his family members profited from the lucrative sports betting operation that ran on athletic events, particularly football, basketball and horse racing, according to evidence during his trial.

Several of those who placed bets with Nuzzo testified during the August 1991 trial.

Nuzzo was tried with Dominick "Tootsie" Palermo, 73, the head of the crime syndicate's operations in Northwest Indiana and Chicago's south suburbs, and four others. Palermo will have to serve at least 14 years in prison. Nuzzo paid a "street tax" to Palermo.

Four other members of Nuzzo's family pleaded guilty to being part of the sports betting operation. His brother Arthur Nuzzo and father Sam Nuzzo Sr. are serving 18-month sentences. His sisters, Jennifer Kaufman and Sandra T. Mynes, recently were released from prison after serving one-year terms.