Mobster once charged in airport heist gets prison in arson

NEW YORK – A legendary airport robbery has come back to haunt an 82-year-old mobster, who’s been sentenced to eight years in prison for an unrelated road rage arson by a New York judge who cited the heist.

Vincent Asaro reacted to his sentencing Thursday with disgust, calling it a “death sentence.” The sentence was more than double what federal guidelines set out as punishment for the 2012 car torching.

Brooklyn federal Judge Allyne (eh-LEEN’) Ross says the public needs to be protected from Asaro, a longtime member of the Bonanno crime family.

The judge says she’s mindful of Asaro’s 2015 acquittal in the infamous 1978 heist at the Lufthansa cargo terminal at John F. Kennedy International Airport, a robbery retold in the hit film “Goodfellas.” But she also cites evidence Asaro had jewelry from the heist and admitted his role.