(KNX 1070) -- A man who allegedly murdered a boss in the Gambino crime family appeared in court Monday, with a "MAGA forever" and "United We Stand," scrawled on his hand.
New York Police detectives arrested Anthony Comello, 24 was Saturday following the shooting death of Francesco "Franky Boy" Cali,53, a native of Sicily, in his Staten Island home on March 13.
Suspect in #Gambino crime boss murder flashes pro-Trump #MAGA slogans on his hand during 1st court hearing in NJ. Anthony Comello heading to Staten Island now. Police say he shot #FrankCali 10 times. Watch #PIX11 Facebook Live 7 PM. @PIX11News pic.twitter.com/vbBi3dUkpS
— Mary Murphy (@MurphyPIX) March 18, 2019Although investigators initially believed the killing was connected to Cali's mafia ties, following multiple conversations with detectives, sources now believe it was because Comello was dating Cali's niece and he wasn't happy about it and wanted it to end.
The shooting was captured on surveillance video, showing the suspect driving up to Cali's home in a blue pickup truck, stop, then erratically reverse course, and crash into Cali's parked Cadillac SUV. Cali stops his car to examine the damage, the two men speak, and Cali puts his license plate, which fell off during the impact, back into his vehicle. Cali turns to walk away when the suspect pulls out a 9mm and fired at least six shots into him, police officials said. "Because of serious threats, he {Comello} has been placed in protective custody, where he will remain while this case is pending," Robert C. Gottlieb of the New York law firm Gottlieb and Janey said in a prepared statement.
"As I previously stated, Mr. Comello's family and friends simply cannot believe what they have been told,'' Gottlieb said in the statement. "There is something very wrong here, and we will get to the truth about what happened as quickly as possible."
Forensic teams recovered fingerprints from Cali's SUV, according to ABC News.
