An FBI spokesman described it as „like something out of a bad TV crime drama.”
The ex-husband of „Real Housewives of New Jersey” star Tina Contin, formerly Tina Manzo, was convicted by a jury Tuesday of plotting to attack his ex-wife’s then-boyfriend in exchange for a free wedding reception. .
Thomas Manzo, 59, was convicted of three separate crimes, including fraud, following a two-and-a-half-week trial in Newark.
It was discovered in 2015 that Manzo hired John Berna to attack his ex-wife Tina Contin’s then-boyfriend-now-husband.
After the attack on July 18, 2015, Manzo later hosted a lavish wedding reception at his catering hall, The Brownstone, in Paterson, New Jersey, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office in New Jersey.
When law enforcement began investigating the incident, Manzo hid and falsified documents in response to a grand jury subpoena, the jury found.
According to court records, Manzo was „disgruntled” about his ex-wife’s new relationship and wanted the attack to „leave a permanent facial scar.”
„The facts and circumstances of this case read like something out of a bad TV crime drama, but the evidence and testimony presented in court prove that to be true,” FBI Newark Special Agent in Charge Jim Denny said in a statement. „We sincerely hope that the victims of this investigation will be able to move on with their lives and forget Manzo and his criminal mafia bedfellows.”
Sentencing will be announced on October 15.
Manzo faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison on each of three felony counts: one count of committing a felony of violence in aid of fraud, one count of conspiracy to commit a felony of violence in aid of fraud resulting in serious bodily injury, and one count of One count of falsifying and concealing documents related to a federal investigation.
In 2007, Manzo and Contin were married at the same location, and their wedding was featured on the VH1 series „My Big Fat Fabulous Wedding.” Contin starred on „The Real Housewives of New Jersey” from 2009 to 2010, and returned in 2014. The couple separated in 2012 and divorced in 2016. Cantin married her current husband David Cantin in 2017.
The 2015 attack was unrelated to a 2017 robbery in which Contin and his then-fiancé were involved.
In 2021, Berna was sentenced to two years in federal prison for the assault. United States Attorney’s Office for the District of New Jersey. He was also ordered to pay restitution of $17,816.
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