Two men have pleaded guilty to robbery charges in the 2009 home invasion and deadly shooting of the son of a Queens pizza shop owner in Ozone Park.
Antoine Burroughs, in pleading guilty on Monday to one count of robbery conspiracy and one count of attempted robbery, admitted to shooting and killing 29-year-old Gerardo Antoniello as he was trying to protect his father, Bartolomeo Antoniello, during the home invasion, according to the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York.
His accomplice, Leon Whitfield, also pleaded guilty to the same charges and said that he carried a fake gun during the robbery and that Burroughs fatally shot Antoniello during a struggle.
According to the case, Burroughs and Whitfield were hired by Frank LaCorte, an associate of the Gambino Crime Family to commit the Sept. 9, 2009, robbery. They were targeting any cash the elder Bartolomeo had on hand from his shop, Romeo’s Pizzeria on Cross Bay Boulevard. His son tried to protect his father and was fatally shot in the head.
LaCorte was convicted in Queens County Court for his role in organizing this and several other home invasion robberies, and in June 2012 was sentenced to 50 years to life in prison, officials said.
Whitfield was arrested on March 18, 2014, for his role in the robbery. The same month Burroughs was indicted in the invasion, but was not apprehended until September in the Bronx.
Both men are scheduled to be sentenced on July 29 and face up to 20 years in prison.
RECOMMENDED STORIES
