STATEN ISLAND — A retired NYPD officer who married into the mob was sentenced to more than a year in prison for laundering profits from a multimillion-dollar prostitution ring he operated, prosecutors said.
Michael Rizzi, 45, ran the Staten Island-based BJM/Manhattan Stakes and Entertainment, advertising on dozens of websites and charging as much as $2,000 per hour for prostitutes.
Rizzi previously pled guilty to laundering the profits from his prostitution ring between June 2012 and March 2016 and was sentenced to 15 months behind bars Thursday.
BJM advertised its services online and employed "phone bookers" who arranged appointments between prostitutes and customers, prosecutors said. The business also hired drivers who collected cash and receipts from prostitutes.
The investigation found that several customers spent more than $100,000 each, with some paying more than $25,000 in a single night.
The ring collected millions of dollars in payments throughout its operation and had more than $2 million in credit card payments made between October 2012 and March 2016, prosecutors said.
Prosecutors added that BJM replaced the Manhattan-based online prostitution site Pure Platinum Models, which was taken down in 2014 and had its owner, Marc Schulman, convicted for money laundering.
Rizzi, who worked as an NYPD officer from 1992 to 2000, was arrested in May 2016 for running the ring and pled guilty to money laundering in October, prosecutors said.
He's married to Jill Juliano, the daughter of reputed Gambino family member Richard Juliano.
"Michael Rizzi left behind a life of law enforcement for a new career in which he flagrantly disregarded the law and exploited others for his own enrichment," Acting United States Attorney Bridget Rohde said in a statement.
"This Office is committed to dismantling money laundering organizations, including those which promote and capitalize on illegal prostitution."
As part of his sentence, Rizzi had to forfeit 58 websites, $120,247 from merchant accounts and a Florida vacation home he purchased using profits from the business, prosecutors said.
A judge ordered Rizzi to undergo four months of house arrest and three years of supervised release after his prison term.
