Teamster Pleads Guilty to Conspiracy

A local Teamsters Union organizer pleaded guilty Monday to a misdemeanor conspiracy charge of accepting money from a man posing as a Hollywood producer seeking approval to make a non-union movie.

Russell J. Masetta, an official with Teamsters Local 848 in El Monte, admitted conspiring with a reputed Mafia captain to accept about $1,000 from the film producer, who turned out to be an undercover FBI agent.

Masetta received about $200 before backing out of the deal, under which he purportedly would have pledged that the Teamsters would not have attempted to organize workers on the non-existent production, according to Richard A. Stavin, special attorney for the Justice Department’s organized crime strike force in Los Angeles.

Masetta is the son-in-law of Peter J. Milano, identified by law enforcement officials as the head of the Los Angeles Mafia family until his conviction earlier this year on a racketeering charge. But Masetta, who was charged in the present case with reputed Mafia captain Luigi Gelfuso Jr., has denied any ties to organized crime.

The plea agreement, tentatively accepted by U.S. District Judge William D. Keller, allows Masetta to withdraw his plea if he is sentenced to serve any jail time in addition to a period of probation. The government is recommending a maximum six-month sentence.

Defense lawyer Mark Beck said he is confident that the judge will not impose jail time because of Masetta’s record as “a family man” and his lack of any prior convictions.

Masetta was originally indicted on a felony extortion conspiracy charge alleging that he and Gelfuso conspired to obtain $25,000 from the purported film producer. But defense lawyers say a misdemeanor plea was agreed to after the government’s key witness died of cancer.