Mobster 'Vinny Unions' Gets 4-Year Sentence For Extorting Queens Union

QUEENS, NY — A Colombo mobster nicknamed "Vinny Unions" will spend years in federal prison for extorting — surprise, surprise — a union in Queens, prosecutors said.

Vincent Ricciardo, 77, received a 51-month prison sentence Wednesday after he pleaded to his role in a sprawling mob plot to control and squeeze money from the local union.

Ricciardo at one point graphically detailed during a recorded phone call how a high-ranking union official was under his thumb.

"I would f------ shoot him right in front of his wife and kids, call the police, f--- it, let me go, how long you think I’m gonna last anyway?" he said, according to federal prosecutors.

The sentence is the 10th for a defendant in a federal case against Colombo crime family mobsters who prosecutors said had extorted a union official to give over part of his salary.

The mobsters also pressured union officials to select health benefits linked to the Colombo crime family, with an eye to siphon away more than $10,000 a month to themselves, authorities said.

But a federal investigation uncovered the scheme and led to charges against 14 people, including Theodore Persico, Jr., the Colombos' heir apparent next crime boss, authorities said.

Persico pleaded guilty to racketeering and received a 5-year sentence, along with $281,000 in restitution, prosecutors said.

Ricciardo, who also pleaded guilty, also faces $281,000 in restitution, in addition to $350,000 in forfeiture, authorities said.

"This prosecution represents our continued commitment to combatting organized
crime and prosecuting the individuals who seek to enrich themselves at the expense of
hardworking union members and their employers," said U.S. Attorney Breon Peace, in a statement.