By JEANE MacINTOSH and KEVIN FASIK
May 22, 2008
A Bronx man found shot dead execution-style in his Cadillac in a New Jersey parking lot had been a longtime driver for the mob and part of a Genovese loan-sharking crew -- but he apparently kept the ties hidden from his family.
"I don't know, but I wouldn't be surprised...after the way he was murdered," said the dead man's son, Ralph Marcucci, a 36-year-old Navy veteran.
"I'm even more naive than Anthony Soprano Jr.," he said. "I'm Anthony Soprano Jr. times Pi [3.14159]."
The body of William Marcucci, 64, was found with a single bullet to the back of the head Tuesday as he sat, still wearing a seatbelt, in his classic green 1999 Cadillac Deville behind a Bennigan's in Saddle River.
Investigators believe he had been killed the previous night.
A "high-ranking law enforcement source" told Jersey's Bergen Record newspaper that Marcucci ran two betting rooms in Manhattan, "dabbled" in loan-sharking and was part of a crew run by alleged Genovese capo Joey "The Eagle" Gatto.
Ralph, who was raised in The Bronx and now lives in Arizona, said his dad was planning to move out West with him after a heart attack two years ago and was selling a classic Cadillac Fleetwood Brougham via eBay for at least "55 large."
"He was going to take that money and move out here with me - and finally be a father to me and a grandfather to my son," said Ralph.
Someone didn't want to see William take the trip.
Investigators believe he was set up, and The Record reported yesterday that William had directions to the parking lot in his possession when his body was found at 3:35 p.m. Tuesday.
William led a quiet life at his home in the Fordham section of The Bronx, but a former neighbor in Bronxdale said the gangland violence was no surprise.
"He was old-time mob - I'm talking old-time," said the longtime pal, who didn't want his name published.
"Maybe that came back to haunt him."
Additional reporting by Hasani Gittens
