NEW YORK (AP) — John A. “Junior” Gotti has been arrested on charges linking him to three New York murders, a law enforcement official said Tuesday.

Gotti, 44, was arrested by the FBI at his Long Island home. Federal authorities in Tampa, Fla., are expected to announce a racketeering indictment, charging Gotti with murder conspiracy in connection with killings in the late 1980s and early 1990s, according to the official, who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because a formal announcement had not yet been made.

A separate indictment charges five other men with racketeering. It alleges some of them were involved with Gotti in one of the three New York murders, according to the official. It also alleges a fourth killing in New York, not linked to Gotti.

Gotti and two other suspects arrested in New York are expected to appear in Manhattan federal court on Tuesday for a removal hearing. At least one other man has been arrested in Florida.

A call to Gotti’s attorney was not immediately returned.

Gotti is the son of “Dapper Don” John Gotti, the late Gambino family boss.

In 1999, Junior Gotti pleaded guilty to racketeering crimes including bribery, extortion, gambling and fraud. He was sentenced to 77 months in prison and was released in 2005.

Gotti also was tried three times in Manhattan on racketeering charges for an alleged plot to kidnap Guardian Angels founder Curtis Sliwa. The trials in 2005 and 2006 ended in hung juries and mistrials.

Federal prosecutors announced at the time that they were giving up — and Gotti said he had long since retired from his life of crime.

His arrest Tuesday was first reported by WNBC-TV.

 

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