Gotti grandson Carmine Agnello can delay prison surrender if he donates kidney to his mother by Monday, judge rules

A grandson of the late mob boss John Gotti can delay the start of his prison term for fraudulently taking $1.1 million in COVID-19 small business loans if he donates a kidney to his mother by Monday, a federal judge ruled Thursday.

Carmine G. Agnello, 40, was scheduled to donate a kidney to his mother, Victoria Gotti, earlier this week, but the surgery was called off after his mother developed an infection, court papers said.

Agnello’s attorney Robert V. Beltrani had asked the judge to allow Agnello to turn himself in for his 15-month term on Sept. 18 if the surgery went forward on or before Monday. If the transplant doesn’t happen by then, Agnello will begin serving his sentence Monday.

The chance of the transplant occurring by the deadline is unclear. Beltrani, who earlier this week in court papers said he and his client had "high hopes" that the surgery could still go forward, didn’t respond to a message Thursday.

U.S. District Judge Nusrat J. Choudhury said in an order that she had "carefully considered" Agnello’s request. Assistant U.S. Attorney Charles P. Kelly said in a letter to the judge Wednesday that he had "no objection" to the proposed delay.

In addition to the 15-month prison sentence, Agnello was also sentenced in April to 2 years of post-release supervision, to include 100 hours of community service. He was also ordered to submit to a mental health evaluation and counseling, including for his gambling addiction.

In 2024, Agnello pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud for receiving three loans from the Small Business Administration during the pandemic on behalf of Crown Auto Parts & Recycling LLC, a Queens-based business he operated, according to prosecutors. Agnello submitted documentation as part of the loan application process that falsely said he had no criminal record, prosecutors said, when, in fact, he had two prior convictions.

Agnello was arrested and charged in June for allegedly choking his girlfriend in East Norwich. He pleaded not guilty in First District Court in Hempstead on charges of third-degree assault, criminal obstruction of breathing and criminal mischief.

By Nicole Fuller

nicole.fuller@newsday.com@NicoleFuller

Nicole Fuller is Newsday's senior criminal justice reporter. She began working at Newsday in 2012 and previously covered local government.