Cincotta and Gattineri Legal Troubles Go Way Back

Edward A. Cincotta, 53, of Winchester, and John Pizero, 45, of Lynnfield, were both sentenced to 18-month federal prison terms by U.S. District Court Judge Arthur Garrett, Jr. on February 3, 1981. The two Massachusetts fuel oil dealers were operators of Mystic Fuel Co. of Stoneham and were convicted of defrauding the United States government of thousands of gallons of heating oil. Both men were also fined $12,000 as part of their sentences and Mystic Fuel Co. was fined $24,000.

Mystic Fuel Co. defrauded the United States Department of Defense, inducing it to pay for oil that Mystic Fuel Co. would sell in its own name to its own clients. The evidence suggested that during the fiscal year 1978 (September 1, 1977, through August 31, 1978) Mystic Fuel Co. had a delivery contract giving it a commission for delivering “number four oil” (a moderately heavy oil, generally used to heat small industrial buildings, schools, and medium-sized apartment buildings) from the Union Petroleum Corporation (Union) to Fort Devens in Ayer, Massachusetts.

The evidence suggested further that on numerous occasions Mystic Fuel Co. picked up a shipment of oil at Union, representing that the oil was for delivery to Fort Devens. Then, Mystic Fuel Co. would sell the shipment to its own consumer clients.

Finally, it would tell the Fort Devens authorities that it had in fact delivered the shipment to Fort Devens, inducing the Department of Defense to pay Union for the shipment. The net result was that Fort Devens paid for shipments it never received, and Mystic Fuel Co. was able to sell oil that it had never paid for.

After a two-week trial, the jury deliberated for ten hours and then found all the defendants guilty of (1) conspiring to defraud the United States in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 371, of (2) wilfully causing seven specific false claims to be made against the United States, in violation of 18 U.S.C. §§ 2, 287, and of (3) knowingly and wilfully making and using seven specific false documents in relation to a matter within the jurisdiction of a United States department, in violation of 18 U.S.C. §§ 2, 1001.

Edward Cincotta’s daughter is Lisa Cincotta Gattineri and his granddaughter, Michelle Gattineri, is married to Massachusetts Congressman Jake Auchincloss. Michelle Gattineri currently works in finance for Bain Capital. Before starting a career in politics, Auchincloss worked in the insurance industry for Liberty Mutual. Bain Capital, along with several dozen Liberty Mutual executives contributed significantly to Auchincloss’s campaign.

Michelle Gattineri’s father, and Edward Cincotta’s son-in-law Anthony Gattineri, works in the real estate industry and was also a significant contributor to Auchincloss’s campaign.

Back in 2014, Anthony Gattineri was indicted on charges related to the role he played in concealing the ownership interest of convicted felon and known Mafia associate, Charles Lightbody, in a piece of land located in Everett, MA on which Wynn Resorts had proposed building a casino while waiting for the approval of the proposed sale from the Massachusetts Gaming Commission. 

Anthony Gattineri ended up being acquitted by a jury trial.

Anthony Gattineri and his company, Boston Clear Water, filed a federal civil rights lawsuit in July 2020 with the U.S. District Court in Massachusetts alleging among other claims that the the Town of Lynnfield had “conspired to discriminate against (the) plaintiffs, based upon Gattineri’s ethnicity and religion.”

Anthony Gattineri is currently suing Wynn for $40 million.