THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Saturday, September 16, 1995 TAG: 9509160267
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B5 EDITION: NORTH CAROLINA
DATELINE: NORFOLK LENGTH: Short : 31 lines
Two New York men pleaded guilty Friday in federal court to passing counterfeit bills at the Oceanfront last year.
Joseph A. Beraducci, 23, and Antonio DeMaio, 23, of Brooklyn, pleaded guilty to 14 counts of counterfeiting and related charges. The pleadings came after a mistrial was declared because the jury could not come to a unanimous verdict after deliberating two days.
Charges of money laundering were dropped against Beraducci, known as ``Fat Boy,'' and DeMaio, nicknamed ``Nino,'' in return for their guilty pleas.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Mike Smythers said he would have prosecuted the two men again with a new jury if they had not accepted the plea agreements.
The two men were charged with bringing about $2,800 in counterfeit $100 bills to the Oceanfront area on August 13, 1994. They used two teenagers to spend the bills on inexpensive tourist trinkets.
The two men also pleaded guilty to using ``clone phones,'' or cellular phones, which were illegally altered to charge their calls to legitimate accounts. The two ran up cellular phone bills totaling more than $5,000.
They will be sentenced Dec. 18.
KEYWORDS: GUILTY PLEA COUNTERFEIT by CNB