Wednesday, a New York man was convicted of plotting the murder of his father in a scheme to inherit the elder man’s rich real estate company.
A federal jury found Anthony Zottola Sr. and Himen Ross guilty of conspiracy and murder-for-hire in the October 2018 murder of reputed mob associate Sylvester Zottola, 71. The elder Zottola was shot while waiting to pick up a cup of coffee from a Bronx McDonald’s.
According to prosecutors, Anthony Zottola unsuccessfully attempted to have his brother Salvatore Zottola murdered. This shooting during the day was captured on tape.
In October of 2018, Sylvester Zottola, an alleged member of the Bonanno criminal family, was shot and killed at a McDonald’s drive-through. (Source: CBS2)
Zottola and Ross, who, according to prosecutors, are also known as “Ace” and “A Boggie,” face mandatory life sentences following the six-week trial’s guilty decision.
Sylvester Zottola’s murder capped, according to prosecutors, a yearlong series of failed attempts by hired assassins to eliminate him and Salvatore Zottola at the direction of Anthony Zottola.
In late 2017, Sylvester Zottola was threatened by a masked shooter and survived being stabbed and having his throat cut. According to prosecutors, Salvatore Zottola was shot in the head, chest, and hand in front of his apartment, but he survived.
According to the U.S. attorney’s office, Himen Ross, who was convicted on the same charges as Anthony Zottola on Wednesday, followed the elder Zottola to the McDonald’s using a tracking device installed in his car, and then shot him many times.
Five further defendants have pled guilty, including Bushawn Shelton, who, according to authorities, was hired by Anthony Zottola and then recruited Ross to carry out the murder. Alfred Lopez was exonerated of all charges on Wednesday.
Anthony Zottola, 44, of Larchmont, assisted in the management of his father’s multimillion-dollar multifamily rental buildings for his father’s real estate business. Prosecutors stated that the enterprise was financed by unlawful gambling profits tied to the mafia.
“Over the course of more than a year, the elderly victim, Sylvester Zottola, was stalked, beaten, and stabbed without knowing who was behind the attacks,” U.S. Attorney Breon Peace said on Wednesday. “His own son was so intent on controlling the family’s rich real estate business that he hired a band of assassins to kill his father.”