recommendation by Buchwald that the son of late Mafia boss Joe Colombo (right) should do his time at an upstate prison camp in Otisville. He is scheduled to report June 9. 

Indeed, in an unusual finding, Buchwald had advised the BOP that the apple fell far from the tree when it came to Chris Colombo.  

In determining his housing, she said, officials should know that contrary to allegations by the feds in 2004 – and an initial finding by her that Colombo was a danger to the community – “there  was no credible evidence of violence (by him) introduced at trial.” 

During his talk with Gang Land, Colombo, 46, repeated much of what he told Judge Buchwald (left) about his remorse for his extensive bookmaking activities, that he had not intended to mock her or her court, and that he would never return to criminal activity. 

He noted – and is backed up on this by his lawyer and court records – that he offered to plead guilty to bookmaking charges eight years ago when authorities first confronted him with tapes of his activities, but has steadfastly denied any and all allegations of violence. 

“I’ve got a big mouth, and yell a lot, but I never hurt anyone in my life,” he said. 

But try as he could to remain serious about his current situation,

the quick-witted Colombo often digressed, poking fun at himself, and focusing on the bright side. 

“On the show, it’s not illegal to go to a strip joint, to eat Chinese food, to watch a transvestite sing and dance, or get a Reiki therapy session,” he said, noting that while the cameras followed him in many of his usual haunts, he was merely an actor – an overweight, struggling one – following a script. 

“The only thing I ever really do is buy lobster rolls and get the Reiki therapy. And then I have my suits let out because I ate too many lobster rolls,” he said. 

Colombo also offered this great line, one that may come in handy for other subjects of this column: 

“And just because I’ve been written about in Gang Land, doesn’t mean I’m a gangster,” said the prince. “If they did an

article about me in Women’s Wear Daily would I be able to bear children?” 

But as far as House Arrest, the show, is concerned, if Colombo had it to do all over again, he would. He would play himself in a scripted comedy show based on his own limited so-called “house arrest” situation as a defendant in 2004 when he was awaiting trial for racketeering charges including extortion, loansharking and gambling. 

He would speak glowingly of his deceased father’s family values, cavort with naked ladies of the night, and break into a church so he could confess his sins in a whacky HBO pilot the following year in an effort to jumpstart an acting career. 

“I don’t believe I made a mockery of the court system. I feel I exposed a mockery of the system by the federal government,” said Colombo. 

“I think they made a mockery of the system. They misled the judge about me at my bail hearing. If they had their way, I would spend four years incarcerated preparing for trial and

then what? I get sentenced to a year, and they would owe me three years credit for the next frame job?” (CSI Miami star Adam Rodriguez cuffs Chris on LA trip.)

“And if they didn’t stick me under house arrest for no reason, then I couldn’t make the show.” 

At trial, the jury convicted him of bookmaking – his lawyer had conceded his guilt on gambling charges – but acquitted him or hung 11-1 for acquittal on more serious loansharking and extortion charges, counts the government later dropped. 

“My life was turned upside down for eight years, and never once did I ever deny that I was a gambler,” said Colombo. 

And despite Buchwald’s sentencing remarks, Colombo says his prison term was fair, and it was for gambling, not for his TV work. 

“I don’t believe she sentenced me for making ‘House Arrest.’ She said in court it was a gambling case, and there was no evidence of violence. She sentenced me for gambling.” 

Chris Gambale, the independent producer who dreamed up the “House Arrest” show and is currently working on a sequel, disagrees pretty strongly with Colombo when it comes to the prison sentence Judge Buchwald gave the wannabe TV star. 

“I was there,” said Gambale. (right) “I heard what she said, and the way she said it. She gave him time for being in the HBO show. That’s outrageous. She wants to prevent House Arrest II so she puts him in jail? That’s insane.”  

The filmmaker – a longtime friend of Colombo’s – continued.

“Is she a judge or a film critic? Can she give Will Smith six months if he does a bad movie? If that’s the case, she should send John Travolta away for a long time for the job he did in Hairspray.”

Gambale insisted that he wasn’t angry about the year in jail that his buddy will have to serve – just the reason that the judge gave in meting out the sentence. 

Besides, the one-year bit may be good for business. “I’ve got 500 hours of tape,” he said. This “will probably be a good selling point for the sequel, which will follow him into jail and pick up when he gets out. But she should have sentenced him for being a bookmaker, or let him go. Period.”