A notorious Albanian thug with ties to former club king Chris Paciello and assorted Italian mobsters was sentenced to 10 years in prison for drug raps by a federal judge Wednesday, according to a court filing.
Staten Island crook Afrim Kupa was arrested along with Gambino gangsters Joseph Sclafani and Neil Lombardo in 2011 for their widespread distribution of marijuana and cocaine, prosecutors said.
The decade long sentence comes in addition to a 46-month term imposed on Kupa for a prior Brooklyn bank robbery where he and a crew opened a hole in a bank roof with a blowtorch and made off with hundreds of thousands of dollars.
Known as a prolific thief, Kupa once ran in a crime crew with Paciello and later graduated to frequent bank and jewelry store heists.
Kupa – who was arrested in a plush Staten Island home – will also have to cough up $300,000 in illegal proceeds as part of the sentence.
Sclafani and Lombardo – both longtime hoods – were already sentenced to 180 months and 168 months, respectively, for their role in the drug ring.