Albie Manzo, the son of Real Housewives of New Jersey alum Caroline Manzo, is standing by his mother’s side amid her ongoing family drama with her estranged sister Dina Manzo.
In the latest episode of his podcast, Dear Albie, Albie discussed his mother's decision to write a letter in support of Dina's ex-husband Thomas "Tommy" Manzo, a choice that appears to have reignited the longstanding rift between the two sisters.
"This is why I respect my mother so much. She made a choice that she knew going in was going to be extraordinarily unpopular - that could've been easily twisted into something that it isn't - but she made it anyway because she felt it was the right thing to do," Albie said on the podcast.
"Put yourself in my mother's shoes," Albie asked. "Knowing full well this is going to happen, do you know how much you got to believe in what you're doing, knowing this is going to be the blowback? That's why I admire my mother and the courage she had, doing what she did."
Tommy was previously married to Caroline’s estranged sister, Dina, and is now awaiting trial for allegedly orchestrating a violent home invasion attack on his ex-wife and her then-boyfriend, now-husband, Dave Cantin back in 2017.
"My mother wrote a letter based on the character of my uncle as we know him," Albie explained, on his podcast. "The facts as we've seen them, as we know him in his life. It's about one thing: Is he a threat to society? The answer is no. We believe the answer is no. "
He went on to clarify that his mother's letter wasn't a "betrayal" of her sister, saying that the and his entire family hope the person who orchestrated the attack is arrested.
"Whoever's involved in this should go to jail, period," Albie said, adding that he wants Tommy to "have his day in court" and that his uncle "more than anybody wants to see this play out."
"This isn't about family drama. This isn't about 'Who in the family are you more loyal to.' This is a right and wrong situation," Albie said. "You know who's side we're on? The truth. Let the process play out. Whatever it is, let it land, and you go from there."
"If for some reason this whole thing plays out and the facts suggest differently, we will be the most shocked of everybody. We will be the most upset of everybody," Albie said. "I can't fathom a world where that's a real thing, but it's not the guy we know."
Photo Credit: Instagram; Bravo Media/NBCUniversal
