He's now the leader of the Colombo crime family, federal authorities say — and his decision to hold court at a family Christmas party in Brooklyn could land him back in prison.
Theodore “Skinny Teddy” Persico Jr., the nephew of famous Colombo boss Carmine “The Snake” Persico,” has officially taken the title once held by his late uncle, according to federal prosecutors.
And, he admitted in court Thursday, he violated the terms of his probation when he met and talked with three Colombo members at the Ponte Vecchio restaurant in Bay Ridge on Dec. 1.
Persico, 62, was the crime family's heir apparent in 2023 when he was sentenced to five years in prison for a union extortion plot. The same scheme had helped federal authorities bring down the clan's leadership two years earlier.
Part of his punishment was avoiding family associations. At the time, his lawyer told Judge Hector Gonzalez that he had “no desire to be a boss,” The Messenger reported.
But Assistant U.S. Attorney Devon Lash said during a hearing Thursday in Brooklyn Federal Court that Persico not only failed to move to New Jersey and leave the Colombos behind, but that he was actually running the show.
“Not only did he not do it, but he took on the leadership role that he claims to have distanced himself from,” Lash told Gonzalez on Thursday.
The alleged boss pleaded guilty to two violations, admitting to meeting a Colombo member outside NYU Langone Hospital on August 29 and speaking to three other members in Porto Vecchio on December 1. Both meetings were filmed.
He told the judge his wife, Nicole, was having surgery at the hospital when “my friend came to support me, and I shouldn't have been there with him.”
This “friend” was on a no-go list from one of his previous cases, and Persico said that even though he didn't get the latest list of people to avoid, he “foolishly assumed he might not be on it.”
During the second meeting, Persico explained that he was having dinner with his cousin when he saw “two gentlemen who had known each other for a long time.”
“I went out of my way to talk to them and wish them a Merry Christmas,” he said.
Persico faces a maximum of two years in prison when he is sentenced Feb. 11, but if the judge sticks to federal guidelines, he can expect five to 11 months.
“He expects some incarceration in this case as a learning experience,” said his attorney, Joseph Corozzo Jr.. “It is a learning experience, as each of Mr. Persico's cases has been a learning experience.”
Lash cast both meetings in a more nefarious light, describing how he left his phone behind while he used his wife's medical appointment as a cover to meet with another gangster.
He realized he was being filmed at the restaurant and pretended to ignore the three Colombo members, Lash said, but later, as he walked toward the back of the restaurant, “he saw hugging and kissing the men he was pretending to ignore,” Lash said.
Unbeknownst to her, that part of the restaurant was also filmed, she said.
She also said the way the men approached her made it clear they were showing deference to the head of the family.
“He's had countless learning experiences,” Lash said, noting that he never successfully completed a period of supervised release and committed technical violations just before committing each new crime in his past cases. “He knows the lessons of associating with forbidden people.”
Persico has a long career in crime dating back to 1981, when he was 17 and was arrested for attempted grand theft in Staten Island. He then spent 17 years behind bars on drug charges until his release in 2004, and while on leave for his grandmother's wake in 1993, he ordered members of his team to kill Joseph Scopo, a member of a rival Colombo faction.
That earned him an additional 12 years, and he told his sentencing judge in 2014: “I assure you I will do my best to not be here anymore.” »
He was released on probation in May 2020, but quickly broke that commitment, eating with his fellow Colombo gangsters at the legendary Brennan and Carr restaurant in November to discuss the future of the crime family and their proposed union restructuring.
Gonzalez ordered his release on home confinement and $1 million bail, secured by his mother's nearly $1 million home in Bensonhurst, and his and his wife's $1.25 million home in the upscale Todt Hill neighborhood on Staten Island.
Lash said the government would take steps to take back both homes if he again violated the conditions of his release.
The judge alluded to his past remarks at Persico's latest sentencing, saying, “It's a waste of breath on my part if he doesn't do what he's supposed to do.” »
Persico and his wife declined to comment as they left the courtroom Thursday.
Colombo crime family heir apparent promised to steer clear, but feds say he’s running the family
