Scopo was the former president of Local 6A and an officer of the District Council of Cement and Concrete Workers. Both unions were described by the government as "tools of organized crime”. In 1987 Scopo and his brother Joseph Scopo were forced to give up their positions after the major racketeering trials involving the Colombo family and the Mafia's ruling commission. Both brothers were barred permanently from the unions. In 2006, Scopo was convicted of racketeering and attempted to get out of his sentence by claiming that he had less than two years to live