by Linda Lloyd, Philadelphia Inquirer
Montgomery County bookmaker Joseph “Joe Vito” Mastronardo Jr., known as the “gentleman gambler,” died in federal prison Monday in Massachusetts, where he had been sentenced to 20 months for his role as the mastermind of an international multimillion-dollar sports-betting ring.
Mastronardo, the son-in-law of the late Philadelphia Mayor Frank Rizzo, was sentenced in February to the Federal Medical Center Devens in Ayer, Mass., although his attorney had sought home confinement, visiting his client’s serious health issues including throat cancer, bouts of pneumonia, and a recent stroke.
Dennis J. Cogan, Mastronardo’s attorney over the years, confirmed that Mastronardo, 65, died at 2 p.m. Monday of complications from his medical problems.
“I represented him many times over the years. He was a very complex man He had a really good heart,” Cogan said. “He was the kind of guy who, if you could not pay a gambling debt, he would forgive the debt. The only repercussion was, he’d say “You can’t bet with e anymore.” You could never get that deal from a casino.
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