Prosecutors announced on Thursday that a Whitestone woman will spend the next 7 years in jail for conspiracy to import cocaine through their family business in Corona.
Eleanora Gigliotti, 56, of Whitestone, will serve 7 years in jail for her involvement in trafficking drugs with her husband and son through their family restaurant, Cucino Amodo Mio, located at 51-01 108th St. in Corona.
Eleanora admitted to her participation in the family’s drug-trafficking in January of this year, pleading guilty to conspiring to import cocaine.
On April 18, Gregorio Gigliotti, 61, was ordered to serve 18 years in prison after he and his son, Angelo Gigliotti were found guilty of participating in a long-running cocaine importation scheme in July. Angelo is scheduled to be sentenced next month and faces up to 20 years in prison.
The defendants’ arrests arose out of a long-term investigation conducted by United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and the FBI. According to the U.S. Attorney’s office, the defendants started using the restaurant and Fresh Farm Export Corp., a produce importation company, as a covered for the drug smuggling operation.
Through the course of the investigation, law enforcement agents intercepted 55 kilograms of cocaine that were hidden inside cardboard boxes that had cassava in them that were sent through Costa Rica between October and December 2014.
The Gigliottis were initially arrested on March 11, 2015. Federal officers searched the family restaurant and recovered seven loaded guns, ammunition magazines, loose ammunition, two handgun holsters, brass knuckles, over $100,000 in cash and a handwritten ledger that showed the movement of over $350,000.
