Read Online The Sixth Family by Lee Lamothe - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Lee Lamothe
Ads: Link
were thickest around the Renda Barber Shop, which seemed to be the center of the blaze. The first contingent of firefighters to arrive, however, were confronted by an even more alarming sight: two men burst through the shop’s back door and ran frantically into a field, their clothes ablaze. As the startled firefighters watched, the men dropped to the ground and started rolling in the dirt to extinguish the flames. The firemen rushed to help, but before they could reach them, one of the men jumped to his feet and dashed away in the other direction. The firemen watched as he disappeared into the night, his clothes still smoldering. The other man, apparently in too much pain to keep running, remained on the ground, where firefighters and, soon after, the police found him.
The young man was rushed to hospital where he was treated for serious burns. Police would later identify him as Paolo Renda, 28, of Montreal, owner of the barbershop and known to the other businessmen at the shopping center as a simple barber. Detectives suspected that the mystery man who had fled would be in similar need of medical care, and police officers started visiting nearby hospitals. Hours later, they found a man who had arrived at Montreal’s Santa Cabrini Hospital seeking treatment for severe burns. He fit perfectly the description given to them by the firefighters.
The man identified himself to police as Vito Rizzuto.
Then 22 years old, Vito at first dismissed questions from suspicious investigators by saying he had suffered the burns when the gas tank of his car exploded that night. That explained both the damage to his skin and the unmistakable smell of gasoline, of which he reeked. After police learned that Renda was Vito’s brother-in-law, the weak alibi soon crumbled and, under questioning, Vito eventually admitted that, yes, he had in fact been at the Renda Barber Shop in Boucherville that night. But he insisted he had absolutely nothing to do with starting the fire. Detectives remained dubious.
By morning, back at the fire scene, the last of the flames had been extinguished. The damage was significant. Renda’s Barber Shop was completely destroyed. A neighboring business was largely consumed by the flames and 16 other businesses were damaged by either the smoke or the water from the fire hoses. Damage was calculated at $115,000, a large sum by 1968 standards. Fire investigators quickly determined that the blaze had been deliberately set. They found that the two men had been pouring gasoline on to the floor of the barbershop with the intention of setting it ablaze. While they were pouring, however, the gas ignited prematurely, sending a fireball roaring through the shop and enveloping Vito and Renda. This was not the first time the business had been set on fire; the previous December, a smaller fire was doused before it could destroy the premises.
Police slapped both Vito and Renda with serious criminal charges. More than three years elapsed before the case went to court. Judge Georges Sylvestre heard how the fire at Renda’s Barber Shop had been set by the two men in a bid to fraudulently collect an insurance claim. Renda apparently was ready for a change of career.
He was well-positioned for a move into crime. A native of Cattolica Eraclea, Paolo Renda is the son of Calogero Renda, the man who had made the ill-fated moved to America in 1925 before returning to Sicily to marry into the Manno family. Paolo, who immigrated to Montreal in October, 1958, later solidified his Sixth Family standing by winning the hand of Maria Rizzuto, who was Nick’s only daughter and Vito’s younger sister.
Had the gasoline in Renda’s barbershop not ignited before the men could flee, they might well have gotten away with it. As it was, they were found guilty of a raft of charges: arson, criminal conspiracy, two counts of fraudulently burning property and nine counts of being negligent with fire. Renda, the business owner and beneficiary of
The young man was rushed to hospital where he was treated for serious burns. Police would later identify him as Paolo Renda, 28, of Montreal, owner of the barbershop and known to the other businessmen at the shopping center as a simple barber. Detectives suspected that the mystery man who had fled would be in similar need of medical care, and police officers started visiting nearby hospitals. Hours later, they found a man who had arrived at Montreal’s Santa Cabrini Hospital seeking treatment for severe burns. He fit perfectly the description given to them by the firefighters.
The man identified himself to police as Vito Rizzuto.
Then 22 years old, Vito at first dismissed questions from suspicious investigators by saying he had suffered the burns when the gas tank of his car exploded that night. That explained both the damage to his skin and the unmistakable smell of gasoline, of which he reeked. After police learned that Renda was Vito’s brother-in-law, the weak alibi soon crumbled and, under questioning, Vito eventually admitted that, yes, he had in fact been at the Renda Barber Shop in Boucherville that night. But he insisted he had absolutely nothing to do with starting the fire. Detectives remained dubious.
By morning, back at the fire scene, the last of the flames had been extinguished. The damage was significant. Renda’s Barber Shop was completely destroyed. A neighboring business was largely consumed by the flames and 16 other businesses were damaged by either the smoke or the water from the fire hoses. Damage was calculated at $115,000, a large sum by 1968 standards. Fire investigators quickly determined that the blaze had been deliberately set. They found that the two men had been pouring gasoline on to the floor of the barbershop with the intention of setting it ablaze. While they were pouring, however, the gas ignited prematurely, sending a fireball roaring through the shop and enveloping Vito and Renda. This was not the first time the business had been set on fire; the previous December, a smaller fire was doused before it could destroy the premises.
Police slapped both Vito and Renda with serious criminal charges. More than three years elapsed before the case went to court. Judge Georges Sylvestre heard how the fire at Renda’s Barber Shop had been set by the two men in a bid to fraudulently collect an insurance claim. Renda apparently was ready for a change of career.
He was well-positioned for a move into crime. A native of Cattolica Eraclea, Paolo Renda is the son of Calogero Renda, the man who had made the ill-fated moved to America in 1925 before returning to Sicily to marry into the Manno family. Paolo, who immigrated to Montreal in October, 1958, later solidified his Sixth Family standing by winning the hand of Maria Rizzuto, who was Nick’s only daughter and Vito’s younger sister.
Had the gasoline in Renda’s barbershop not ignited before the men could flee, they might well have gotten away with it. As it was, they were found guilty of a raft of charges: arson, criminal conspiracy, two counts of fraudulently burning property and nine counts of being negligent with fire. Renda, the business owner and beneficiary of
Similar Books
