Ruling says relatives of mobsters should be allowed to do concrete work for NJ casinos

NJ regulator: Allow mob kin to work for casinos

ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. — For 22 years, Joseph N. Merlino and his mother, Phyllis, have sought permission for their concrete-reinforcing company to work in the Atlantic City casino industry.

And for 22 years, state regulators have shot them down, for two main reasons: Joseph Merlino’s late father was mobster Lawrence “Yogi” Merlino and his cousin is Joseph “Skinny Joey” Merlino, a former mob boss who’s now imprisoned.

The younger Merlino insists he, his mother and their company, Bayshore Rebar, are clean and should not be penalized for the sins of their relatives.

On Wednesday, they got the answer they’ve been seeking for more than two decades when a New Jersey Casino Control Commission hearing officer recommended that Bayshore Rebar receive a license to do work for casinos. The full five-member commission must vote on the decision within 45 days.

The decision found no evidence that the Merlinos associate with known or suspected members of the Philadelphia/South Jersey mob, contrary to what the state Division of Gaming Enforcement has alleged.

Joseph and Phyllis Merlino say they have disassociated themselves from “that side of the family.” During a break in commission hearings last summer, Joseph Merlino expressed frustration that “there’s no court to go to, to divorce yourself from a family.”

The gaming enforcement division recommended against granting the license. It never alleged Joseph N. Merlino or his mother were mobsters, but it did argue the Merlinos associate with people suspected of being members or associates of organized crime — an assertion both Merlinos vehemently deny.

It submitted evidence of phone records showing calls between the Merlinos and “Skinny Joey” Merlino, as well as others suspected of belonging to the mob.

Casino Control Commissioner William Sommeling, who acted as hearing officer and wrote Wednesday’s decision, said he believed the Merlinos were sincere when they said they had cut ties to criminal elements within their family since 2001.

“It would be far-fetched to expect anyone to simply terminate their blood-family relationships without complication,” he wrote.

Also, while phone records document such calls, there is no record of what was discussed nor any proof that anything illegal was going on, Sommeling wrote.

The Merlinos were credible witnesses, he added.

“Their testimony and the evidence they presented was candid, believable and persuasive,” he wrote.

Sommeling noted that the two Merlinos had met with reputed mob figures including “Skinny Joey” at social events 11 or more years ago, and said he believes they will follow through on their pledge not to associate with anyone who could jeopardize their new license.

The Merlinos did not return messages seeking comment Wednesday. Peter Aseltine, a spokesman for the state Attorney General’s office, said the office’s Gaming Enforcement Division plans to challenge the ruling before the full Casino Control Commission in hopes of overturning it.

The Merlinos’ Pleasantville-based company installs rebar, the steel reinforcing rods that strengthen concrete. It has done work for sensitive installations including the Salem and Limerick nuclear power plants in New Jersey and Pennsylvania, a parking garage for a building adjoining the Statehouse in Trenton, several prisons and a New Jersey State Police building outside Trenton.

Yet to casinos, Bayshore has remained radioactive. Joseph N. Merlino said Bayshore was about to be hired as a subcontractor on the Sands Bethlehem casino in Pennsylvania in 2008, but was rejected when casino officials saw the firm’s name on the list.

Bayshore had tried twice to get permission to work in the Atlantic City casino industry, having been rejected in 1988 and 1996 over suspected mob ties.

Lawrence Merlino was convicted of racketeering in 1988 and began cooperating with the government in its investigation into organized crime. He died while in the witness protection program in November 2001.

Joseph “Skinny Joey” Merlino, who once ran the Philadelphia/South Jersey mob, is due to be released from prison on Sept. 7, 2011, following a conviction and 14-year sentence for extortion and illegal gambling.