Alleged crime boss may be banned from casinos

Tuesday, Aug. 27, 2002 | 11:06 a.m.

ATLANTIC CITY -- New Jersey casino regulators filed a petition Monday seeking to ban the Philadelphia mob's reputed boss from entering any casinos here.

The state Division of Gaming Enforcement wants to add Joseph Ligambi, 63, to the "Exclusion List," which contains the names of 154 mobsters, card cheats and others deemed undesirable.

Ligambi, the heir apparent to the top job since the imprisonment of Joseph "Skinny Joey" Merlino, was seen at Caesars Atlantic City Hotel Casino on March 1, 2001, according to a petition filed by Assistant Attorney General George Rover.

"This petition is part of our continuing initiative to keep unsavory individuals out of New Jersey's casino hotels," said Thomas Auriemma, the acting director of the Division of Gaming Enforcement.

Ligambi was sentenced to life in prison in 1989 for the 1985 murder of Frank D'Alfonso, but the conviction was overturned three years later and he was released in 1997.

The exclusion list contains people whose presence "would be inimical to the interests of" casino gambling in New Jersey, and is based on association with organized crime or on prior convictions for serious offenses, according to the DGE.

The state Casino Control Commission will vote on whether to put Ligambi's name on the list. He has 30 days to challenge the petition.