Joe Bruno on the Mob Lucky Gambler is Unlucky at the Wrong Kind of Pot November 15, 2012 If Lee

e Fama plays his cards right; he might keep winning at poker. However, if Fama is truly involved in the wrong kind of pot, his next poker-playing days might be in the slammer. Fama, 44, won thousands of dollars in casino poker tournaments; both in Atlantic City and in Las Vegas. He hit for $22,000 in Atlantic City, but only a measly $666 (the Devils sign and not a good sign) in Las Vegas. However, according to an article in the New York Daily News , Fama, allegedly took a boyfriend of "Mob Wives" star, Carla Facciolo, along on a drug deal in Staten Island. Unfortunately, the person Fama allegedly bought the pot (marijuana) from was an informant wired for sound. According to a high level Drug Enforcement Administration agent, Fama met with his dealer in Staten Island to buy two pounds of pot; hardly an amount of drugs a sane person could claim was for his personal use. When the wired-up stoolie asked who the stranger was that Fama had brought along for the ride, Fama said, "That's the mystery boyfriend, Carla's boyfriend. The pot dealer looked puzzled. Whos Carla? he said. Fama scoffed, From Mob Wives, adding that Facciolo's co-star Renee Graziano was always talking about Carlas boyfriend. (Truthfully, Renee Graziano is always talking period.) The puzzled pot dealer said, I dont watch much TV. (Thank God for that. Mob Wives is truly an abominable television program. I wrote a book - Mob Wives Fuhgeddaboudit! - criticizing the show and its participants and the less said about Mob Wives the better.) A day after the alleged Staten Island pot buy, Fama got pinched by the Feds, and when the New York Daily News contacted the representative of Mob Wives Carla Facciolo, this person said, "Carla's trying to find a boyfriend. She hasn't had a boyfriend in years." Yeah, right. In addition to the drug dealing charges, the Feds claim Fama is a wiseguy in the Gambino crime family, as if the name of the alleged boyfriend of a Mob Wives star involved in a drug deal wouldnt get the Feds enough publicity. Famas lawyer, Fred Sosinsky, denied that Fama is an inducted member of the Gambino crime family, but quite frankly, who gives a bleep. Fama was arrested for allegedly buying a large amount of pot with the intention of selling said pot to make a nice profit for himself. The fact that Fama may or may not be a made-guy in the Gambino crime family is beside the point. However, the Feds get their rocks off and garner much publicity when they throw in terms like Mafia, and Italian crime families when yakking to the press. I wish the government would try the Fama case on its merits, and with the tape of the drug deal in their hands, there seems to be enough evidence to convict Fama without the Gambino crime family smokescreen being heaved in our faces.

BY JOHN MARZULLI / NEW YORK DAILY NEWS THURSDAY, OCTOBER 25, 2012, 9:27 PM CHARLES SYKES/AP A reputed Gambino wiseguy took a boyfriend of "Mob Wives" star Carla Facciolos along on a drug deal in Staten Island, according to court papers. But a spokeswoman for Facciolo says the VH1 star is currently without a boyfriend -- although she is in the market for one. There's more man trouble for the "Mob Wives." A reputed Gambino wiseguy took a boyfriend of "Mob Wives" star Carla Facciolos along on a drug deal in Staten Island, according to court papers. Lee Fama was busted Wednesday after allegedly selling a pound of marijuana to an informant, but Facciolo's purported love interest is referred to in the complaint only as "co-conspirator 1." Fama showed up with an associate on Aug. 17, 2011, but the informant who was secretly recording the conversation didn't recognize the person. "Who's the kid?" he asked Fama, according to the complaint. "That's the mystery boyfriend, Carla's boyfriend," Fama replied. The informant admitted he doesn't watch the show much. "From 'Mob Wives?'" he pressed. Fama acknowledged that was the guy and added Facciolo's co-star Renee Graziano was always yakking about the boyfriend. Last season, the show was rocked by the real-life revelation that Graziano's ex-husband, Hector Pagan, was a rat and secretly taped incriminating conversations with her father, Bonanno capo Anthony TG Graziano and other gangsters. Claudia Mora, a spokeswoman for Facciolo, said the so-called boyfriend might be someone Facciolo dated during the show's first season. "Carla's trying to find a boyfriend," Mora told the Daily News. "She hasn't had a boyfriend in

years." Defense lawyer Fred Sosinsky denied the allegation in the complaint that Fama claims he is an inducted member of the Gambino crime family.
BY JOHN MARZULLI / NEW YORK DAILY NEWS THURSDAY, OCTOBER 25, 2012, 9:27 PM CHARLES SYKES/AP A reputed Gambino wiseguy took a boyfriend of "Mob Wives" star Carla Facciolos along on a drug deal in Staten Island, according to court papers. But a spokeswoman for Facciolo says the VH1 star is currently without a boyfriend -- although she is in the market for one. There's more man trouble for the "Mob Wives." A reputed Gambino wiseguy took a boyfriend of "Mob Wives" star Carla Facciolos along on a drug deal in Staten Island, according to court papers.

"That's the mystery boyfriend, Carla's boyfriend," Fama replied. Lee Fama was busted Wednesday after allegedly selling a pound of marijuana to an informant, but Facciolo's purported love interest is referred to in the complaint only as "co-conspirator 1." Fama showed up with an associate on Aug. 17, 2011, but the informant who was secretly recording the conversation didn't recognize the person. "Who's the kid?" he asked Fama, according to the complaint.

The informant admitted he doesn't watch the show much. "From 'Mob Wives?'" he pressed. Fama acknowledged that was the guy and added Facciolo's co-star Renee Graziano was always yakking about the boyfriend. Last season, the show was rocked by the real-life revelation that Graziano's ex-husband, Hector Pagan, was a rat and secretly taped incriminating conversations with her father, Bonanno capo Anthony TG Graziano and other gangsters. Claudia Mora, a spokeswoman for Facciolo, said the so-called boyfriend might be someone Facciolo dated during the show's first season.

"Carla's trying to find a boyfriend," Mora told the Daily News. "She hasn't had a boyfriend in years." Defense lawyer Fred Sosinsky denied the allegation in the complaint that Fama claims he is an inducted member of the Gambino crime family.

http://www.nypost.com/p/news/local/tourneys_vegas_gambino_mobster_under_tIu68AqkG5fYQWmCj o1FEI

Jack-'pot'! Gambino mobster under investigation for marijuana trafficking wins big at AC, Las Vegas poker tourneys

By MITCHELL MADDUX Last Updated: 2:48 PM, October 26, 2012 Posted: 2:37 PM, October 26, 2012

A Gambino wiseguy charged with conspiring to distribute marijuana went after a different kind of pot in Atlantic City and Las Vegas, law enforcement sources say. While Drug Enforcement Administration agents probed his alleged buying and selling of several pounds of marijuana, Lee Fama, 44, won thousands in casino poker tournaments. Fama hauled in $22,000 in three poker tourneys at the Borgata in Atlantic City this year, and $666 at a tourney during the summer at Las Vegass Rio hotel, poker Web sites report. Fama, of Bensonhurst, Brooklyn, is not on the list of 266 people excluded from New Jersey casinos. Nor is he on the much shorter list of people excluded from Nevada casinos. Casino exclusion rules differ in the two states. New Jersey can bar a career or professional offender. Nevadas rules are more lenient a spokesman for the Nevada Gaming Control Board said the state probably wouldnt bar a convicted criminal from gambling, but might bar that person from operating or working in a casino. Fama was arrested on the conspiracy charge Tuesday, and is expected to be released on bail later today.

In August 2011, Fama was caught on wiretaps buying two pounds of high quality marijuana from the cooperating witness, says a DEA affidavit. In November, Fama sold another pound of marijuana to the same witness, the affidavit said. His lawyer, Fred Sosinsky, said he's going to fight the drug charges, and denied his client is a made member of the Gambino family. A law-enforcement sources say he is. mmaddux@nypost.com