Mob boss' nephew arrested

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WPRI) - The nephew of reputed mob boss Luigi "Baby Shacks" Manocchio appeared in federal court Monday afternoon on racketeering charges.

Authorities arrested Nicholas Manocchio, 55, Monday morning at his Cranston home. The arrest stems from a 2005 FBI raid at the Laborers International Union of North America offices on South Main St. in Providence.

According to an indictment unsealed Monday, prosecutors said Manocchio accepted a bribe worth more than $1,000 while an official with the union.

The indictment also names Harold Tillinghast, a former LIUNA employee and nephew of mobster Gerald "Gerry" Tillinghast, and Gerald Diodati, a construction contractor interested in advancing the interests in two construction companies, Hemphill Construction and Rhode island Demolition.

It claims on several occasions, Manocchio and Tillinghast accepted money and gifts from Diodati or others connected to the construction companies, in exchange for union support of various construction bids.

Manocchio was ordered released on $25,000 unsecured bond and is scheduled to return to court in December for arraignment.

A summons will be issued for Tillinghast, 44, and Diodati, 59, to appear for arraignment. Both men are free on bond following an arrest on a complaint last month.

"Baby Shacks" Manocchio, the boss of the Patriarca crime family, is not facing any charges.