Probe tests Pa. casino oversight

Shamsud-din Ali, a politically connected Muslim cleric from Philadelphia who at one time sought to do business with D'Elia. Last month, Ali began a seven-year prison term for his involvement in no-work city contracts.

Sam Staten Sr., business manager of Local 322 of the International Laborers Union in Philadelphia, who attended a business meeting with D'Elia and Ali. Staten held a minor stake in Riverwalk Casino, which lost its bid for a slots license.

Louis Coviello, who is serving a life term for murder. His late father, Joseph, was convicted with DeNaples 29 years ago for overbilling the government for cleanup work after Tropical Storm Agnes.

James Decker, a former Lackawanna County chief clerk, also among those convicted in the Tropical Storm Agnes case.

Thomas Joseph, who owns a property in Mountain Top, Luzerne County, that was searched in 2001 as part of a money-laundering investigation. That probe also touched on D'Elia and DeNaples, an affidavit said, but DeNaples was not charged.

Claude Limoges, a former executive of ALC Environmental Inc., a consulting and training firm with offices in New York and Philadelphia. His links, if any, with DeNaples could not be determined.

Also at the Courthouse

Sal Cognetti, a Scranton defense lawyer and a former assistant U.S. attorney who prosecuted DeNaples' old fraud case. Cognetti later sent the state gaming board a letter on behalf of DeNaples. Cognetti would not say whether he was there to testify or to represent a client.

The Rev. Joseph Sica, a priest and a longtime DeNaples friend who accompanied the businessman during the casino hearings.