(AP) Authorities have charged 14 reputed members and associates of the Gambino crime family on counts ranging from sex trafficking to murder and racketeering.
The charges were described at a news conference Tuesday afternoon. U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara said it appears to be the first time that a crime family was accused of setting up its own interstate sex trafficking ring.
Bharara said it’s more evidence that organized crime lives on, despite repeated prosecutions.
The charges included an allegation that those who were trafficked included a 15-year-old girl. Authorities said the women were under the age of 20.
The other charges include jury tampering, extortion, assault, narcotics trafficking, wire fraud, loansharking, and illegal gambling