A reputed mob associate is turning to the White House for some muscle.
Julius R. Nasso, a film producer and former business partner of actor Steven Seagal, has asked President Obama to grant him an official pardon for his conviction on Mafia-linked extortion charges.
In 2003, Nasso was sentenced to serve a year and a day in federal prison after he was convicted of teaming up with the Gambino crime family to shake down Seagal.
Prosecutors said that Nasso turned to Gambino captain Anthony "Sonny" Ciccone to pressure Seagal over money the producer felt he was owed when the action film star supposedly backed out several movie projects.
Seagal took the witness stand in Brooklyn federal court during the trial of Peter Gotti - the brother of the Dapper Don, John Gotti - to recount an "uncomfortable" meeting with Ciccone at the old Gage & Tollner restaurant in downtown Brooklyn.
Authorities at the time described Nasso as a mob associate.
Yesterday Nasso filed more paperwork as part of his pending application with the Justice Department requesting a presidential pardon.
“I am NOT an associate of organized crime,” Nasso protested during his stay in an Ohio federal prison, according to official records.
It is not yet clear whether the White House will act.
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