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Rhode Island Woman, Son Sentenced for Organized Crime Extortion
A Johnston, R.I., woman and her son have been sentenced for their roles in an interstate extortion scheme linked to organized crime, authorities said.
Dorothy St. Laurent, 71, and her son Anthony St. Laurent Jr., 44, of Cranston, R.I., were sentenced in U.S. District Court in Providence, R.I., on their participation in the extortion scheme, which violated the Hobbs Act, officials announced. The scheme, which began in at least 1988 and continued through early February 2009, involved extorting ‘protection’ payments from illegal bookmakers operating in and around Taunton, Mass.
According to information presented in court, the defendants conspired with each other and others to extort payments, with Dorothy St. Laurent serving as the primary collection agent of the cash payments and Anthony St. Laurent Jr. threatening violence and engaging in actual violence to ensure continued payment.
U.S. District Court Judge William E. Smith sentenced Anthony St. Laurent Jr. to 78 months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release, including 500 hours of community service each year during the term of supervised release. Dorothy St. Laurent was sentenced to three years of probation, the first six months of which will be served in home confinement, and ordered to perform 500 hours of community service per year during the term of supervised release.
Anthony St. Laurent Sr., Dorothy St. Laurent’s husband and Anthony St. Laurent Jr.’s father, was identified by law enforcement as a member of New England’s La Cosa Nostra organized crime family. The defendants pleaded guilty in August 2010 to interference with commerce by threats or violence, and according to the plea agreement, they extorted more than $800,000 and less than $1.5 million during the course of the scheme.
The case was prosecuted by Trial Attorney Scott Lawson of the Criminal Division’s Organized Crime and Racketeering Section, with the assistance of Assistant U.S. Attorney William J. Ferland of the District of Rhode Island. The investigation was conducted by the FBI, with the assistance of the Rhode Island State Police and the Providence Police Department.
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Key Facts
- State: Rhode Island
- Category: Organized Crime
- Source: DOJ Press Release ↗
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