Claim associate of Marrogi crime family, Danny Younan, was fooled into working for fake car dealership
Notorious Marrogi crime family associate Danny Younan was a man of “impeccable character” before he was fooled by Jesse Marrogi into an alleged money laundering scheme, it’s been claimed.
Police & Courts
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The younger brother of jailed underworld boss George Marrogi used suspected drug money to top up his Sportsbet account, a court has heard.
Jesse Marrogi was one of 24 people charged as part of a money-laundering investigation into his older brother’s multimillion-dollar drug empire, which he ran from behind bars.
Among them was Danny Younan, 31, who fronted Melbourne Magistrates’ Court on Tuesday where he pleaded guilty to a single count of dealing with the suspected proceeds of crime for his relatively minor role.
The court heard Younan — a car sales consultant and associate of Jesse Marrogi — was the sole director of J Marrogi Auto & Prestige Pty Ltd which received monthly $10,000 deposits from another member of the syndicate between March 2021 and April 2022.
A total of $140,000 was deposited into two accounts allegedly accessible by Younan, Jesse and Antonietta Mannella, the girlfriend of George Marrogi.
Younan’s lawyer Oliver Smith told the pre-sentence hearing his client quit his job after he was recruited by Jesse to set up a car dealership which he believed was a genuine business opportunity.
But he said no steps were taken to set the business up other than registering a name and opening bank accounts which were allegedly used by Jesse for personal spending including “substantial” transfers into a Sportsbet account.
Mr Smith said Younan did not spend or receive any benefit from the money and he feared reprisal if he tried to extricate himself as he knew of the Marrogi family reputation.
“His involvement is not much more than a name on a bank account,” he said.
Younan, who was born in Iraq but now lives in Meadow Heights, was otherwise of “impeccable character” and involved with his church, he said.
Prosecutor Jessica Mackay accepted Younan had been “used to a degree” but said his role was not entirely passive as he was required to alert Mannella if any of the deposits — named “wages” — did not come through.
While Younan did not see any benefits, Ms Mackay said he believed helping Jesse would translate into future business opportunities.
Magistrate Kieran Gilligan said he would sentence Younan next week.
Mannella already pleaded guilty to a charge of dealing with the proceeds of crime and is awaiting sentence while Jesse is due to face court later this week.
Earlier this year, George Marrogi pleaded guilty to orchestrating his drug-trafficking empire from behind bars through family and associates of his gang, the Notorious Crime Family.
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