Background
Named after his grandfather, Pedro Gonzalo de Armas, Pino was born one of five boys in Miami, Florida and is of Cuban descent.
Named after his grandfather, Pedro Gonzalo de Armas, Pino was born one of five boys in Miami, Florida and is of Cuban descent.
He attended Rockway Middle School and graduated from Miami Coral Park High School in 1992, and from Florida International University in 1996 where he was a member of Sigma Phi Epsilon fraternity. He also attended New York University"s Graduate Acting Program at the Tisch School of the Arts, graduating in 2000.
In 2002, he appeared in London"s West End in the theatre play called Up for Grabs with Madonna. In May 2003, Pino played Desi Arnaz in a Columbia Broadcasting System special on the life of Lucille Ball, Lucy. Pino is known for his critically acclaimed performance as Mexican druglord and serial rapist, Armadillo Quintero, on Forex"s The Shield.
He has also appeared in The Lost City and Flicka which featured Tim McGraw.
Pino also starred in the hit Columbia Broadcasting System series Cold Case as Detective Scotty Valens. In 2011, Pino joined the cast of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit for its thirteenth season along with Chase actress Kelli Giddish coinciding with the departing Christopher Meloni.
Pino"s role on SVU was New York City Police Department Detective Nick Amaro, a detective transferring from the narcotics squad to the Special Victims Unit. Pino has also written two episodes of Cold Case: "Stealing Home" and "Metamorphosis".
Starting in 2005, he has been in six Columbia Broadcasting System Cares public service announcements, with other stars of Columbia Broadcasting System original programs.
He has made single appearances on The Sharon Osbourne Show in 2004, The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson in 2005, The Drop in 2005, Entertainment Tonight in 2008, and The Ellen DeGeneres Show in 2011. In 2016, he played Alex Vargas in Scandal.
