CENTRAL ISLIP, N.Y. — A federal judge in Central Islip, N.Y., sentenced Carmine Agnello to 15 months in prison for wire fraud connected to his misuse of $1.1 million in federal COVID-19 relief loans. Agnello, 40, must also repay the $1.1 million, perform 100 hours of community service and undergo mental health treatment for issues including gambling addiction.

Agnello pleaded guilty in September 2024 to a single count of wire fraud. Federal prosecutors said he fraudulently applied for and received at least three loans under the Small Business Administration's COVID-19 Economic Injury Disaster Loan program between April 2020 and November 2021, obtaining the funds on behalf of his company, Crown Auto Parts & Recycling LLC. The company had ceased operations before he applied for and received the bulk of the loan funds.

On his loan applications, Agnello stated he did not have a criminal record and provided false information about his business's number of employees and intended use of the funds. He used the loan proceeds for other purposes, including a $420,000 investment in a cryptocurrency business. He was convicted in 2009 of disorderly conduct for possessing a banned gravity knife and in 2018 of a misdemeanor for operating an unregistered salvage operation.

"During the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, the defendant shamefully lined his own pockets with government and taxpayers' dollars," U.S. Attorney Joseph Nocella Jr. said.

Prosecutors had asked for a sentence of 33 to 41 months. The sentencing hearing was rescheduled in March 2026. Agnello will begin his prison sentence on July 20, 2026, and will remain under court supervision for two years after his release.

"I carry a great deal of guilt and shame for my actions," Agnello told the judge. He said he planned to donate a kidney to his mother, Victoria Gotti, and sought to avoid prison as a reward for the kidney donation. The donation has not happened.

Agnello starred as a teenager with his mother and two brothers on the A&E series "Growing Up Gotti." He co-owned several junkyards with his brothers and runs an online automotive parts retailer. His lawyer, Steven Metcalf, wrote that Agnello resisted being defined by the show and has strived to make his own stamp through his interests in body building, music and cars.