Pete Rinaldi is the step-father of Rosie Rinaldi, the victim of a kidnapping for ransom, who uses her abduction to extort for money to avoid a bookie out to kill him for unpaid gambling debts.
History[]
Pete married Rosie's mother, Liz Rinaldi, and assisted her in getting a restraining order on her ex-husband and Rosie's father, Geno Parnell, by exaggerating his criminal record to keep Rosie to themselves. Pete worked in the city Sewer Department, as well as had a secret gambling addiction that ranked up his debts to the millions. His bookie threatened to kill him if not paid back, so Liz lumped at stealing a stash of diamonds she found possessed by her father, legendary thief Frank Hagar, using them to pay the bookie.
Unfortunately, the diamonds were given to Hagar to sell by a safe cracker who stole them, Jake. When Jake found out they were gone, he trashed Hagar's pawn shop, then rused his way into the Rinaldis' apartment to kidnap Rosie while they were out. Pete arrives with Liz at SVU and accuses Parnell with her, especially when she's seen breaking is restraining order to briefly reunite with her.
Since the bookie still wasn't paid in full, Pete and Liz devise a plan for more money to get out of town using his job as an escape. Leaving their own garbled ransom and threat, they arrange a drop with another one of Hagar's stashes in Central Park, having both Liz and a random woman with a parka they paid twenty bucks to walk through a tunnel. The woman comes out, Liz drops into the storm drain in the tunnel and locks it. She reveals the whole plan to Olivia Benson before bolting.
It's later revealed the Rinaldis were arrested by state troopers in Connecticut. When Parnell gets himself arrested again with a fake "stickup" with an unloaded gun, Rosie's put into foster care, with a "favor" of 200 grand from Hagar's main competition, Eddy Mack, who "owed" Parnell for specifics unknown. (SVU: "Snatched")