City Policemen, Firefighters Among 14 Arraigned In Gambling Roundup

By: Amanda Farinacci

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More than a dozen people were arrested on Staten Island and arraigned Thursday, including active and retired members of the city's fire and police departments, in connection with an illegal gambling ring.

FBI agents say they arrested 14 people who allegedly operated card games at four gambling parlors scattered around the borough, including two on Victory Boulevard.

Prosecutors say between February 2010 until last month, the defendants sent text messages to gamblers, inviting them to play at the parlors, and netted at least $2,000 a day.

Among those arrested are Richard Palase, 46, an active New York City Police Department detective assigned to Brooklyn, retired NYPD Sergeant Ralph Mastrantonio, 51, and two active Brooklyn firefighters, 41-year-old Gerald Parsons and 35-year-old Michael Bergen.

At their Downtown Manhattan arraignment, the 14 defendants pleaded not guilty to the charges, surrendered their passports and posted $75,000 bond. They also agreed to not speak to each other for the duration of this case.

Bergen's father James, a retired fireman who served 20 years in the FDNY, reached a bail agreement where he agreed to go to therapy for his gambling addiction.

Police Commissioner Ray Kelly and Fire Commissioner Salvatore Cassano said the active
members who are allegedly involved have been suspended without pay for 30 days.

“We suspended the two members pending charges and it’s under investigation. Naturally there’s an investigation going on," said Cassano. "And as we get more information, as things work out, we’ll look at further disciplinary action if it’s warranted."

Attorneys for two defendants who are not city workers said the courtroom was packed with FBI agents and city marshals, and that the case is so high-profile because of the involved city employees.

“In all honesty, if you read the indictment, it’s all allegations of playing poker, or playing cards. That’s the bottom line, nothing else,” said Joe Sorrentino, the lawyer for defendant Jay Parisi.

“My client’s not a city official, but… that’s why there were so many people there,” said Patten Brown, the lawyer for defendant Robert Geoghegan.

This comes on the heels of another recent gambling bust on Staten Island that resulted in the arrests of more than two dozen people, including a city sanitation worker.

Officials do not believe the cases are connected.