The owner of a sweepstakes gaming-machine company has been indicted on federal charges alleging he participated in a scheme to rough up and extort a victim over repayment of a $10,000 loan five years ago.

       Gene “Gino” Cassano, 52, of Norridge, was charged in an indictment made public Thursday with conspiring to use violence and threats to collect payments from the victim — identified only as Victim A — in July and August 2016.

       The bare-bones, two-page indictment also alleged that as part of the scheme, Cassano’s associate, Gioacchino “Jack” Galione, 44, punched the victim in the face on Aug. 1, 2016, during a confrontation in west suburban Addison.

       The indictment does not state what the $10,000 loan was for or whether the money was paid back. The charge carries a maximum of 20 years in prison if convicted.

       Cassano pleaded not guilty during a rare in-person arraignment Friday at the Dirksen U.S. Courthouse. He was released on a $50,000 bond secured by a $20,000 check Cassano handed to a pretrial officer during the hearing.

       As a condition of his bond, Cassano must avoid contact with both the alleged victim and his co-defendant in the case. He also surrendered his passport, his concealed carry license and at least one firearm.

       Galione, of Addison, had previously pleaded not guilty and was released on an unsecured bond to the custody of a relative, records show.

       Reached by phone on Thursday, Cassano’s attorney Joseph Urgo, had no comment. Galione’s attorney, Patrick Eamon Boyle, also declined to comment Thursday.

       Cassano’s family has operated a variety of businesses over the years, including restaurants in Chicago and the suburbs and a well-known grocery chain, records show.

       Currently, Cassano is the president of Games Gone Wild, a company based in his Norridge home that leases sweepstakes machines to area businesses, records show.

       Sometimes called “gray machines,” sweepstakes machines allow customers to put in money, receive a coupon to redeem for merchandise online and then play electronic games like slot machines.

       Since the machines can be played for free, they are not considered gambling devices. Critics, however, contend the unregulated devices, which operate in cities like Chicago that have banned video gambling, are designed to skirt the law and have been known to have links to organized crime.

       Cassano answered the phone number listed for Games Gone Wild Thursday but referred all questions to his lawyer.

       On its website, Games Gone Wild touts sweepstakes machines as a “100 percent legal” way for businesses such as bars, restaurants, hookah lounges and laundromats to bring in as much as $45,000 a year in extra income.

       “Electronic product promotion kiosks have no restrictions at all,” the site states. “NO LIQUOR LICENSE REQUIRED!”

       The machines figure prominently in an ongoing federal corruption probe that led to indictments against then-State Rep. Luis Arroyo, D-Chicago, and James T. Weiss, the son-in-law of former Cook County Assessor Joseph Berrios.

       According to those charges, Weiss paid bribes to Arroyo beginning in November 2018 in exchange for Arroyo’s promotion of legislation beneficial to Weiss’ company, Collage LLC, which specialized in the sweepstakes machines.

       jmeisner@chicagotribune.com

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