YONKERS: Steven Crea, 73, who lived in the Crestwood neighborhood of Yonkers, was the underboss of the Luchese crime family that ran illegal rackets in Yonkers, Westchester, New York City and Long Island.

Also 18 other Luchese “made men” and associates, including six other Westchester residents, were sentenced for various charges – including murder, attempted murders, numerous assaults, drug trafficking, extortion, loansharking, defrauding a hospital, operating illegal gambling businesses and other endeavors from 2000 to 2017.

The case centered around a claim by prosecutors that Matthew Madonna, the acting boss of the Luchese family, and Steven Crea ordered the killing of Michael Meldish, 62, in 2013

This was because Meldish had disrespected Madonna by failing to collect debts owed to the boss. Meldish himself was suspected in more than a dozen gangland slayings, according to multiple media reports.

According to court testimony, Christopher Londonio, 46, of Hartsdale; and Terrence Caldwell, 62, of Manhattan carried out the hit on a quiet residential street in the Bronx.

U.S. District Judge Cathy Seibel also fined Crea $400,000 and ordered him to forfeit $1 million for his various felonies, in White Plains federal court.

Also sentenced previously were Crea’s son, Steven D. Crea, 48, New Rochelle.

Paul Cassano, 41, from Yonkers, was convicted of conspiracy to commit assault and Joseph Venice, 59, from Yonkers, was racketeering conspiracy.

They both got 18 months in prison.

Steven Crea was inducted into the Lucchese crime family sometime in the 1980s, under the reign of boss Anthony Corallo.

By 1990, family boss Victor Amuso appointed Crea capo, taking over Samuel “Sammy Bones” Castaldi’s crew in the Bronx.[

Steven Crea specialized in labor rackets, and gained power over Carpenter’s Local 608, using it to extort New York City contractors.

Steven Crea also held a no-show job at Inner City Drywall, one of the city’s largest drywall contractors and was involved with Local 282 of the Cement and Concrete Workers Union.

In December 1999, Steven Crea and Joseph Datello talked about bribery and extortion with Sean Richard, the son-in-law of John Riggi, the boss of the DeCavalcante crime family.

It was later revealed in court that Sean Richard was wearing a hidden recording device for the FBI.

On September 6, 2000, Steven Crea and other members of the Lucchese Construction Group were indicted in New York on state enterprise corruption, labor racketeering, extortion, and bid-rigging charges and was sent to prison.

On August 24, 2006, Steven Crea was released from prison with parole restrictions that prohibited him from associating with other mobsters or union officials.

 On November 17, 2009, Steven Crea’s parole restrictions expired.

On May 31, 2017, Steven Crea was indicted and held without bail for racketeering, fraud and murder conspiracy.

Steven Crea is also accused of ordering the attempted murder of a Bonanno crime family associate.

The FBI also accused Steven Crea of giving his approval for one of his underlings driving to New Hampshire in an attempt to find and murder an informant.

Steven Crea was personally charged with mail and wire fraud in connection of his skimming involvement with the construction of a New York City hospital.

On November 15, 2019, Steven Crea, Matthew Madonna, Christopher Londonio and Terrence Caldwell were convicted in White Plains federal court of executing the murder of East Harlem Purple Gang leader Michael Meldish.

This August he received a sentence for life in prison.