![\"Justice](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/O43SZ2TPGVCRHD7IPHUJPNBLS4.JPG\")
Justice Mario F. Mattei is scheduled to sentence the defendant March 25 in state Supreme Court, St. George. (Steve White for the Advance\/SILive.com)<\/p>\nSTATEN ISLAND, N.Y. \u2014 A Staten Island woman who helped her former boyfriend carry out a burglary spree three years ago is facing several years in prison, despite claims she was a victim of domestic abuse. <\/p>\n
Tiffany Gallego, 35, of Leona Street in Bulls Head, was found guilty by a jury in May on multiple felony counts, alongside her partner in crime, Anthony Cutaia, 37, of El Camino Loop in Rossville. <\/p>\n
Post-trial, Gallego\u2019s attorneys filed a motion for a reduced sentence based on the state\u2019s Domestic Violence Survivor\u2019s Justice Act. Under the law, the defendant\u2019s actions must be a direct result of the abuse they suffered.<\/p>\n
Prosecutors, in arguing against the motion, said that if there was domestic abuse, it would not have caused Gallego to help carry out home break-ins.<\/p>\n
Justice Mario F. Mattei, after reviewing arguments from both sides on the matter, stated Monday in state Supreme Court, St. George, that he agreed with prosecutors. <\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t think a hearing is warranted or necessary,\u201d said Mattei, referring to the idea of calling witnesses and\/or presenting other evidence. He adjourned the case to March 25 for sentencing. <\/p>\n
At trial, prosecutors said Cutaia and Gallego terrorized residents across multiple neighborhoods, while stealing nearly $100,000 in jewelry, watches and fur coats. The pair also racked up tens of thousands of dollars in property damage. <\/p>\n
Justice Mario F. Mattei is scheduled to sentence the defendant March 25 in state Supreme Court, St. George. (Steve White for the Advance\/SILive.com)<\/p>\n
Gallego is facing 3-and-a-half to 15 years for each of three burglary counts on which she was found guilty. The judge could rule that the sentences run concurrent, rather than back to back, as often is the case. <\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ll let her get her affairs in order; she faces state prison time,\u201d said Mattei. \u201cI know she has a child, so I don\u2019t know what the situation will be like there.\u201d <\/p>\n
Gallego showed up to court with her parents and siblings. Her family appeared somber in an otherwise empty courtroom Monday. She kept her winter coat on throughout the proceedings, which were brief despite the weight of the court\u2019s ruling. <\/p>\n
Heists were boroughwide: D.A. <\/p>\n
Prosecutors said the couple burglarized more than half a dozen homes on Staten Island. <\/p>\n
One heist was carried out on Christmas Day 2022 in West Brighton. It involved a female victim and her daughter, according to court proceedings. Other break-ins tied to the duo were reported in New Dorp Beach, Castleton Corners and elsewhere.<\/p>\n
One incident \u2014 referenced by Mattei previously in handing down Cutaia\u2019s sentence last month \u2014 unfolded at a duplex-style residence in Prince\u2019s Bay. Cutaia staked out the home and waited for a male to leave the apartment. <\/p>\n
When Cutaia pounced, \u201cyou could hear the woman screaming,\u201d said prosecutors in referencing surveillance footage shown at trial.<\/p>\n
The female victim, who declined to testify at trial, wrote a letter to the court ahead of sentencing describing the years of post-traumatic stress and physical ailments she\u2019s had to deal with as a result of the encounter.<\/p>\n
\u201cI started developing fevers, pain and swelling … no doctors could explain it,\u201d the woman wrote, referencing what she said ultimately was determined to be an autoimmune disease that revealed itself due to the stress.<\/p>\n
Co-defendant\u2019s mob lineage<\/p>\n
Cutaia, who was on probation at the time of his latest arrest, comes from mob lineage, the Advance\/SILive.com has previously reported.<\/a><\/p>\n He is the son of reputed Lucchese soldier Salvatore Cutaia, and grandson of Lucchese capo Domenico Cutaia, according to past federal court documents.<\/p>\n