Indiana bookie used movie quotes as violent code, feds say
Indiana gambling investigation: One of 22 defendants deemed a danger to the public
More details are coming out about an alleged gambling ring in Indiana. A look at the threats allegedly made if people didn't pay up.
HAMMOND, Ind. - One of the defendants in the Indiana gambling investigation is being labeled a danger to the community, for quoting a mob movie.
Nearly two dozen defendants represent a cast of characters with emerging roles in the alleged illegal gambling operation the feds call Operation Porterhouse Parlay.
What we know:
Alexander Gagianis allegedly was a bookie but volunteered to become an enforcer, by offering to "paint houses" for the operation, according to a motion filed by the government this week.
The document explains the parlance taken from the 2019 Netflix movie, "The Irishman": "Paint houses" is supposed to be a reference to killing people, and "carpentry" means disposing of the bodies, according to the government.
Investigators say James Gerodemos texted the movie clip to Gagianis.
In the movie, Al Pacino portrays Jimmy Hoffa. On the phone, he says to Robert De Niro, playing a hitman, "I heard you paint houses." De Niro replies, "Yes, I do. I also do my own carpentry."
Gagianis allegedly replied with a laughing emoji.
But the government didn’t find it funny. Prosecutors say Gagianis is a flight risk, a threat to witnesses and to the public.
Many of the 22 defendants are free on bond, able to travel to work, visitthe doctor, or go to court.
Popular restaurant owner Filippo "Gigi" Rovito, fresh from pleading not guilty in federal court, is still charismatic on social media, promoting his Capri Restaurant in suburban Burr Ridge.
Multiple organized crime experts tell FOX Chicago this is not life imitating art. It’s real and the gambling operation, if true, is being operated the same way as any enterprise they have investigated.
Investigators tracked Gagianis' phone and said he had plans to threaten a gambler and his wife.
What's next:
Prosecutors want him detained for those charges. They fear he could flee to Greece and disappear.