The 14 people arrested Nov. 13 in an illegal sports gambling ring were part of a complex operation led by a prominent member in North Jersey organized crime, court documents show.

Joseph M. "Little Joe" Perna, 56, of Fairfield, a soldier in the Lucchese crime family , acted as the financier of the ring and included several members of his own family in the scheme, according to the New Jersey Attorney General's Office. The group "systematically enticed individuals to place bets," according to an affidavit of probable cause, "and the illicit proceeds were used to operate the enterprise and enrich the enterprise members."

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