22 THE QUEENS COURIER • JULY 26, 2018 FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM
Flushing man was ‘breaking bad’ as meth ring boss: Feds
BY ROBERT POZARYCKI
rpozarycki@qns.com / @robbpoz
Th e reputed head of a coast-to-coast
meth ring allegedly distributed the
drugs out of illegal gaming parlors in
Flushing, federal prosecutors announced
on Th ursday.
Anthony “Ant” Pineda, 36, of Flushing
was among nine other Queens residents
indicted for their alleged participation
in the meth racket. According to U.S.
Attorney Richard Donoghue, Pineda
imported large quantities of meth from
California to New York for distribution to
large-scale peddlers and individual buyers.
Working with Pineda’s partners who
operated the Flushing gaming houses,
authorities said, the ring members sold
the dangerous drugs to street dealers and
individuals, and used violent tactics to
collect debts owed to Pineda.
In one incident last year, law enforcement
sources said, Pineda allegedly used
a gun to threaten a rival gaming parlor
and claimed to have a “high-voltage cattle
prod” that he could use to collect a debt.
“Distributing on both a large scale and
street level, Pineda and his co-defendants
carelessly endangered our communities,”
FBI Assistant Director-in-Charge
William F. Sweeney Jr. of the New York
fi eld offi ce said. “Th ese individuals operated
on opposite sides of the nation, but
with the help of our fellow law enforcement
agencies, today’s arrests show that
expansiveness never inhibits justice.”
Law enforcement agents arrested
Pineda on July 19 an the apartment where
he was staying. Upon his arrest, authorities
said, Pineda was found to have a
pound of methamphetamine and $27,000
in cash in his possession.
Pineda was charged with conspiracy to
distribute and possess with intent to distribute
methamphetamine, methamphetamine
distribution and money laundering
conspiracy. He faces as little as fi ve
years or as much as a life in prison if convicted
of the charges against him.
Th irteen others — including eight
Queens residents — were previously
arrested and arraigned on four indictments
unsealed in Brooklyn federal court
in June, prosecutors said. Donoghue identifi
ed the Queens suspects as Yunfeng
Gao, 33; Ivan Kaleda, 28; Ting Li, 30; Yuan
Li, 34; Guanghua Shen, 45; Jin Wang, 33;
Joung Hwa Yun, 40; and Lu Zhai.
Each were variously charged with conspiracy
to distribute and possess with
intent to distribute methamphetamine,
and methamphetamine distribution. As
with Pineda, they face between fi ve years
to life imprisonment if found guilty.
“Drug dealers are trying to turn New
York into the next methamphetamine
wasteland,” Donoghue said. “Th e Eastern
District will work tirelessly with our partners
on long-term investigations such as
this to prosecute those who poison our
communities with this highly addictive
and dangerous drug.”
Photo via Shutterstock
Gotti grandson busted for illegally running Jamaica scrapyard
BY ROBERT POZARYCKI
rpozarycki@qns.com / @robbpoz
Another relative of late mobster John
Gotti fi nds himself in trouble with the law
in Queens.
Police picked up Carmine Agnello,
32, of Old Westbury, Long Island, on
charges that he allegedly operated his
Jamaica auto junkyard without a proper
license. Agnello, along with his mother,
Victoria Gotti (daughter of the late
“Tefl on Don“), and two brothers gained
national notoriety on the reality television
show “Growing Up Gotti,” as the New
York Post reported.
He’s not the fi rst Gotti grandson to be
pinched for illegal activity in the “World’s
Borough.” John J. Gotti of Howard Beach
was previously convicted of pushing pills
in Ozone Park and Howard Beach, and
was sentenced earlier this year to federal
prison time for participating in mob-connected
arson and bank robbery cases.
Members of the NYPD Auto Crime
Division executed a search warrant of
Agnello’s scrapyard, LSM Auto Parts and
Recycling located at 155-11 Liberty Ave.,
at about 10 a.m. on July 18 and seized
numerous business records, along with
Agnello.
According to the criminal complaint
provided by the Queens District
Attorney’s offi ce, the NYPD Auto Crimes
Unit and the DMV learned that LSM
Auto Parts and Recycling lacked valid
registration to operate as a vehicle dismantler.
On June 4, authorities said, DMV investigators
learned that Agnello had submitted
an application for LSM Auto Parts
and Recycling for registration to dismantle
Police said that Carmine Agnello (inset) allegedly operated this Queens auto scrapyard without proper DMV licensing.
and scrap vehicles. Th e application,
however, was withdrawn on June 26.
Th e criminal complaint noted that LSM
Auto Parts and Recycling did not have
a valid vehicle dismantler registration in
visits that investigators made between
May 18 and July 18 of this year. Even so,
investigators observed the business running
normally; business records indicated
that 400 vehicles had been scrapped at
the location between Feb. 14 and April 5
of this year.
During questioning, authorities said,
Agnello allegedly stated that he knew that
the business was unregistered, and that
his tow trucks had been regularly bringing
Photo via Google Maps/Inset via Shutterstock
in vehicles to be dismantled.
Agnello was arraigned on July 19 in
Queens Criminal Court on charges of falsifying
business records and violations
of DMV regulations concerning the dismantling
and disposal of junk or salvage
vehicles. He was released without bail, but
must return to court on Sept. 25.
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