Carmine Agnello, grandson of the late mob boss John Gotti, is seeking an extension from a Brooklyn judge to delay his prison surrender, citing his mother's illness as the reason he missed a court-ordered deadline to donate a kidney.
Agnello, 39, who was convicted of defrauding the Small Business Administration out of over $1.2 million in COVID-19 relief funds, had agreed to donate a kidney to his mother, Victoria Gotti, in exchange for a postponed surrender date. His original surrender was set for August 10, with a new date of September 18.
However, Agnello's legal team informed Judge Nusrat Choudhury that the surgery could not proceed as planned. According to a letter filed with the court, Victoria Gotti, 63, developed a "serious infection requiring a battery of antibiotics," which made her too ill for the transplant at the scheduled time. Agnello's lawyer stated that his client "stands ready to provide the donation and simply awaits word of a greenlight of surgery."
Prosecutors from the Brooklyn U.S. Attorney's Office have opposed leniency, arguing that Agnello could still donate the kidney while incarcerated. The convicted scammer had pleaded guilty to skimming Economic Injury Disaster Loans intended to aid businesses affected by pandemic shutdowns and was ordered to pay $1.2 million in restitution.
Victoria Gotti, who starred in the reality television show "Growing Up Gotti," had previously written to the judge in support of her son's donation, calling it "the GIFT OF LIFE."
As of Tuesday afternoon, neither the prosecution nor the judge had responded to Agnello's request for a further delay.