Busted “Sopranos” teen star Robert Iler shifted into “spin city” mode yesterday by issuing a gushing apology and enlisting the top gun from HBO’s mob hit for his cause.
Iler, 16, on hiatus from “The Sopranos,” is charged with mugging two teens for $40, as well as possession of marijuana and a water pipe.
Iler, who plays A.J., the pot-smoking, trouble-making son of make-believe Jersey mob don Tony Soprano, faces up to 15 years in prison for robbery if convicted.
The Manhattan actor was sprung Wednesday night on $2,500 bail the day after his bust with three pals in John Jay Park on the Upper East Side.
Although sources said the teen star was more wiseguy than contrite while in custody, Iler’s statement – issued through public-relations guru Dan Klores – sounded otherwise.
“I feel terribly embarrassed,” Iler’s statement said. “I never, ever would or did rob anybody in my life.
“I know that the events of the past 36 hours have been extremely difficult for my family and friends, and for that I am deeply apologetic.”
HBO also released a statement from David Chase, the creator and executive producer of “The Sopranos,” who called Iler “a really great kid.”
“I’d be proud to have him as my son,” Chase’s statement said. “As it is, he’s a friend and a colleague. If he says he didn’t rob anybody, then he didn’t. It’s as simple as that for me.”
Iler’s manager, Jeff Mitchell, also jumped to his defense, calling the incident “a mix-up, a crazy mix-up.”
“He didn’t do anything – he’s freaked out,” Mitchell said, also denying Iler was acting smart-alecky in custody.
“He is not a wiseguy,” Mitchell said. “It was the cops who were yukking it up.”
HBO said it won’t whack the kid star from his big part.
“We look forward to Robert joining us when ‘The Sopranos’ resumes production in the fall,” the company said in a statement.
Meanwhile, the oldest defendant in the bust, Michael Cournede, 19, of Queens, remained in custody in lieu of $2,500 bail. He’s charged with robbery and possession of a criminal weapon – a boxcutter he allegedly had but didn’t use in the robbery, authorities said.
A 20-year-old who described himself as Cournede’s “best friend,” but who refused to give his name, suggested it was unfair Iler was out, and Cournede, a California native, was not.
“He’s out and that’s all that matters,” the best friend said sarcastically of Iler.
He also claimed Iler had been friends with Cournede since April, although Iler’s lawyer, Steven Mintz, said the pair knew each other only for about two weeks.