‘I’m on the run, my family is marked’: Mob boss killer’s frantic texts moments after gunning down Gambino kingpin Frank Cali outside his Staten Island home are revealed in court
- Anthony Comello, 24, frantically typed out a text message, reading ‘I’m on the run,’ and ‘My family is marked,’ moments after reportedly killing Frank Cali
- He was indicted for Cali’s murder in the second-degree in April, and he appeared in court yesterday requesting to be released from jail on a $1 million bail
- Comello’s attorney, Robert Gottlieb insisted upon his prospective release, the 24-year-old would be placed into the care of his parents
- However since the murder prosecutors say family relations are fraught and volunteers to supervise Comello’s bail will be in short supply
- Comello allegedly drove to Cali’s Staten Island home on March 13 and backed his pickup truck into the mobster’s Cadillac Escalade and shot him 10 times
The man accused of killing Gambino crime boss Francesco Cali outside of his Staten Island home allegedly said he knew his own life was in danger the second he pulled the trigger, a court heard on Thursday.
Prosecutors say Anthony Comello, 24, frantically typed out a text message, reading ‘I’m on the run,’ and ‘My family is marked,’ moments after reportedly administering the tenth and final shot into Cali’s back.
He was indicted for Cali’s murder in the second-degree in April, and he appeared in court yesterday requesting to be released from jail on a $1 million bond.
Attempting to better his client’s standing, Comello’s attorney, Robert Gottlieb insisted that upon his prospective release, Comello would be placed into the care of his parents.
Anthony Comello, 24, frantically typed out a text message, reading ‘I’m on the run,’ and ‘My family is marked,’ moments after reportedly killing Frank Cali (pictured Thursday)
He was indicted for Cali’s murder in the second-degree in April, and he appeared in court yesterday requesting to be released from jail on a $1 million bail
‘The parents are good responsible people,’ Gottlieb said, speaking of Comello’s retired construction worker father, and his mother who worked for Bloomberg for three decades.
‘The family had to guarantee and also support that bond by putting up their life savings and more.’
Judge William Garnett however said that despite the defendant having more than 40 family members living in Staten Island, the threat of what law enforcement call a potential retaliation from the mob means his parents would likely be unable – or unwilling – to supervise him upon his release, for their own safety.
‘The family ties… in my judgement are now non-existent since the shooting,’ Garnett ruled.
In response, Gottlieb unveiled a plan for Comello’s bail terms, where he would wear a GPS tracking device, call the local police precinct daily and have a member of his family watching him 24 hours a day.
But prosecutors say the once close-knit Comello family have been torn apart since Cali’s execution, and volunteers to supervise the 24-year-old will be in short supply.
They said family relations were already fraught prior to Camello’s arrest.
Comello allegedly drove to Cali’s Staten Island home on March 13 and backed his pickup truck into the mobster’s Cadillac Escalade (above) and shot him 10 times
He allegedly pulled out a pistol and shot Cali 10 times before fleeing the scene. Authorities said they found Comello’s fingerprints on the license plate.
Comello’s attorney, Robert Gottlieb insisted upon his prospective release, the 24-year-old would be placed into the care of his parents
Unemployed for some time, in the months leading up to Cali’s death Camello had become an active member of the far-right conspiracy group QAnon, who believes its laws are the only laws and the country should adopt them.
‘Prior to this homicide, your honor, the defendant’s family wanted him out of their home,’ said Assistant District Attorney Carrie Low, according to Staten Island Live. ‘They were encouraging him to get an apartment of his own.’
Now, Low says, the family’s home has been listed for sale as each member of Comello household are hiding in other separate locations through fear of Gambino retribution.
Low also pointed out that none of the defendant’s 40 family members has ever shown up to one of his court hearings.
The District Attorney’s Office remains locked in a bid to establish premeditation in Comello’s case, in order to increase his charge from second-degree murder to first.
Prosecutors say surveillance footage of the execution-style killing shows Comello casing the house and at one point walking right up to the porch.
Prosecutors say the once close-knit Comello family have been torn apart since Cali’s execution, and volunteers to supervise the 24-year-old will be in short supply
It’s also said to show Comello backing his pickup truck into Cali’s SUV in an attempt to lure him from the home, before shooting him ten times.
‘The defendant, after committing these actions, the very next day, at his home is observed removing a [piece of Cali’s truck] off the back of his vehicle and hiding it in his garage,’ Low claimed.
Gottlieb hinted that his client’s ties to QAnon were directly linked to Cali’s murder but he failed to elaborate further.
‘The DA has now mentioned right-wing conspiracy websites, which is at the heart and soul of this case,’ he said.
Speculation has previously suggested that Camello carried out the killing because Cali told his niece to stop dating the accused. However, following Gottlieb’s admission, that theory seems less likely.
Gottlieb has also submitted a request for a psychiatric evaluation of his client, following unusual behavior exhibited by Comello is his last court appearance.
Gottlieb has also submitted a request for a psychiatric evaluation of his client, following unusual behavior exhibited by Comello is his last court appearance
Comello had scribbled ‘MAGA Forever’, a reference to Donald Trump’s ‘Make America Great Again’ slogan, on his hand as well as ‘United We Stand MAGA’ and ‘Patriots In Charge’, seeming to confirm his alleged links to QAnon
For his first court appearance on March 18, Comello had scribbled ‘MAGA Forever’, a reference to Donald Trump’s ‘Make America Great Again’ slogan, on his hand.
He also had scrawled ‘United We Stand MAGA’ and ‘Patriots In Charge’, seeming to confirm his alleged links to QAnon – a discredited far-right conspiracy theory alleging a secret plot by so-called ‘deep state’ operatives against Trump and his supporters.
During the preliminary hearing Gottlieb said Comello’s family attributes his behavior changes to ‘hate spewed throughout the internet’.
‘His family and friends recognized and picked up significant changes in him over the past few months,’ Gottlieb told the New York Post.
‘Something clearly went wrong. It’s not just an attorney saying that, the people who know him – who love him – will be the source of that information.’
‘Something dramatically happened to him that certainly seems to have been affected by the hate that is spewed throughout the internet.’
Comello allegedly drove to Cali’s Staten Island home on March 13 and backed his pickup truck into the mobster’s Cadillac Escalade, knocking off the license plate.
Surveillance footage captured Comello ringing Cali’s doorbell. The two walked outside and Comello picked up the license plate to give it to Cali.
He then allegedly pulled out a pistol and shot Cali 10 times before fleeing the scene. Authorities said they found Comello’s fingerprints on the license plate.
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