Updated news on the Gambino, Genovese, Bonanno, Lucchese and Colombo Organized Crime Families of New York City.

Saturday, May 7, 2011

Reputed Montreal mobster sent to jail


A man considered by police to be an influential member of a Mafia clan has been sentenced to a three-year prison term for walking around with a pistol during a turbulent time in the city's underworld.
Nicola Di Marco, 41, of St. Léonard, was arrested last summer, when several people tied to the Rizzuto organization were on alert following the kidnapping of Paolo Renda in May and the killing of Agostino Cuntrera in June.
Both men were considered to be leaders in the Rizzuto clan and, according to police, a possible internal conflict within the Mafia might have been behind the killing of Cuntrera and the disappearance of Renda, who is still missing.
After Cuntrera's death, Montreal police followed up on information provided to them about people associated with the Mob who were suspected of carrying firearms illegally.
Within that context, Di Marco was arrested on July 14 as he left a tanning salon on Jean Talon St. in St. Léonard.
An informant told the Montreal police that Di Marco regularly walked around with a firearm hidden in a duffel bag, according to a decision by Quebec Court Judge Jean-François Buffoni, which had been placed under a publication ban that was lifted on Thursday.
Di Marco was arrested as he exited the salon carrying a duffel bag that matched the informant's description. Nothing illegal was found inside, but the police then searched his Corvette. A 9-mm pistol was found under a carpet, along with a loading clip and ammunition.
Di Marco contested the legality of the search, alleging it was a violation of his rights, but lost.
While hearing arguments on that motion, Buffoni was told that Montreal police believe Di Marco is "an influential member of one of the clans" involved in the conflict.
In December, he pleaded guilty to possessing a prohibited firearm as well as six other related offences.
On Thursday, at the Montreal courthouse, Buffoni agreed with a joint recommendation, made by defence lawyer Gary Martin and prosecutor Thierry Nadon, that Di Marco serve the minimum three-year prison term for illegally possessing the pistol.
The reputed mobster appeared calm as he surrendered himself to a special constable who ushered him into a prisoner's dock in the courtroom following Buffoni's sentence.
Di Marco's legal troubles are not over. On June 20, he is expected to be sentenced in a case related to Project Colisée, the lengthy investigation into the Mafia in Montreal and its associates.
Di Marco has admitted to taking part in running a casino inside a building on Jean Talon St. E. in St. Léonard.


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