PHILADELPHIA — The ex-husband of a former Bravo "Real Housewives of New Jersey" reality TV star was sentenced Tuesday to seven years in prison for his role in the assault of his ex-wife’s current husband.

Thomas Manzo of Bergen County was found guilty in June of hiring and assisting a soldier in the Lucchese crime family to assault David Cantin, Dina Cantin’s then-boyfriend.

Manzo, 59, who owns The Brownstone banquet hall in Paterson, reportedly gifted suspected mob member John Perna a free wedding reception at his venue in exchange for carrying out the 2015 assault in which he beat David Cantin with a slapjack. Perna pleaded guilty to a charge of committing a violent crime in aid of racketeering activity and was sentenced to 30 months in prison. He was released last year.

“Whether you’re actually in the Mafia or not, hiring the mob to assault someone because of your marital problems is abhorrent,” U.S. Attorney for New Jersey Philip R. Sellinger said in a statement. “Covering up the role you played only makes it worse. The jury’s verdict, and today’s sentence, make clear that this office will spare no resources to hold accountable anyone who commits such crimes.”

Here’s what to know.

Who is Dina Cantin?

Dina Cantin (formerly Dina Manzo) is a TV personality best known for her time on the hit Bravo series, "The Real Housewives of New Jersey." She was part of the show’s inaugural cast from 2009 through 2010 and returned in 2014 before moving to California. She briefly hosted an HGTV show in 2011 called Dina’s Party that lasted two seasons.

She grew up in Wayne, New Jersey, and made her TV debut when her lavish wedding to Manzo was featured on an episode of VH1′s "My Fabulous Wedding" in 2007.

The couple separated in 2012 over Manzo’s alleged infidelity. They divorced in 2016. Dina and David Cantin, an entrepreneur originally from Freehold Township, wed in 2017.

What did Thomas Manzo do?

Prosecutors say Manzo hired Perna to attack David Cantin in 2015, when David was Dina Cantin’s boyfriend.

The original indictment said Manzo was “upset” that Cantin “had an ongoing relationship with” his ex-wife and planned “a violent assault” that would “leave a permanent facial scar.”

The attack took place at a strip mall in Passaic County where Perna and an accomplice attacked Cantin in the parking lot, the indictment said.

A month after the assault, Perna would get married at Manzo’s venue in a lavish wedding attended by more than 300 guests, including members of the Lucchese crime family, People reported.

Manzo was also accused of acting as an accomplice and charged with planning a home invasion on the Cantins a month before their wedding in 2017.

The home invasion left the couple wounded, with personal belongings — including Dina Cantin’s $60,000 engagement ring — stolen, People reported. It would be the catalyst for the couple’s relocation to California.

What was Thomas Manzo sentenced to?

Manzo was sentenced to seven years in prison after having been convicted in June on one count of committing a violent crime in aid of racketeering, one count of conspiracy to commit a violent crime in aid of racketeering, and one count of falsifying and concealing documents related to a federal investigation.

Manzo was also sentenced to three years of supervised release and ordered to be taken into custody immediately.

What have David and Dina Cantin said in response?

Dina Cantin hasn’t made a direct statement, but posted a graphic quote from writer Bianca Sparacino on her Instagram stories that says: “Because at the end of the day, the right people fight for you. The right people show up. The right people care, not only when life is convenient, but when it is difficult and messy and it aches all over.”

In June when Manzo was found guilty, she released the following statement: “I call my power back to me. I call my energy back to me. I call my magic back to me. I am cleansed and disconnected from anything that may drain me. I am shielded from any energy that does not serve me. I am safe. I am protected. I am whole. And so it is.”

Her husband hasn’t commented.

©2024 The Philadelphia Inquirer. Visit inquirer.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.