John "Sonny" Franzese, 95, a former underboss of the Colombo crime family, was told on Wednesday that he must serve an eight-year prison sentence handed down last January in connection with his previous racketeering conspiracy conviction that occurred years earlier.
Factoring in time served and credit for good behavior, Franzese would be released a little short of his 100th birthday.
According to the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, which upheld his sentence, the previous conviction resulted from a fair trial and the prison term was proper.
During his extensive organized crime career, Franzese had bragged of killing 60 people over the years, according to an FBI agent who testified at the trial, and he once discussed having his own son killed upon learning of his son's cooperation with the government in its case against him.
Though having once been indicted on a murder charge while serving one of many prison terms, he was never convicted.
The current racketeering conspiracy conviction, for which he was arrested in 2008, stems from his involvement in the extortion of New York City strip clubs and a pizzeria on Long Island while with the Colombo crime family. He was later freed on $1 million bail.
Franzese has spent a significant portion of his life in and out of prison for a multitude of crimes, including parole violations, stealing fur coats, and his participation in a series of Los Angeles home invasions in which the culprits impersonated police officers.
In addition to his crime associations, Franzese was also a former regular at the Copacabana nightclub. According to The Associated Press, Franzese was often seen there with singers such as Frank Sinatra and Sammy Davis Jr. He also apparently had a stake in the classic porn film "Deep Throat."
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