Hamilton police say notorious mobster Angelo Musitano was stalked and placed under surveillance for days before he was fatally shot outside his home last year.
“More than one person was involved in the stalking of Angelo Musitano and more than one vehicle was used to accomplish this task,” Det. Sgt. Peter Thom told reporters during a press conference in Hamilton Thursday morning.
Police said they were called to a residence around 4 p.m. on Chesapeake Drive in Waterdown on May 2, 2017.
When officers arrived they located Musitano inside a pickup truck suffering from multiple gunshot wounds. He was taken to hospital and pronounced dead a short time later.
Investigators said the shooting was targeted and that witnesses reported seeing a man with a heavy build wearing a dark toque, black jacket and beige pants leaving the scene in a dark-coloured, four-door sedan.
READ MORE: Vehicle used in shooting of notorious Hamilton mobster Angelo Musitano found: police
A few days following the shooting, police said they located the car the alleged gunman used in the shooting.
The burgundy 2006 Ford Fusion with rusty wheel rims was recovered around 7 p.m. on May 7 in the area of Fenton Drive and Braeheid Avenue in Waterdown.
Hamilton police said it is believed the culprit entered and fled in a second vehicle at this location.
“We know the killer left in the Fusion. We know he abandoned the vehicle in the Braeheid area of Waterdown,” Thom said. “We’re not sure at this point which vehicle he may have taken off in at that point.”
VIDEO: Hamilton police update investigation into murder of crime boss Angelo Musitano. Catherine McDonald reports.
Police said security footage received from neighbours showed a black 2006-2011 two-door Honda Civic in front of Musitano’s home four days prior to the shooting.
Investigators said a red-coloured 2017 Chevrolet Malibu was also seen in front of the home. A fourth vehicle, a grey or blue coloured Infiniti sedan was also observed by a witness in the Braeheid Avenue area interacting with the burgundy Fusion in the days leading up to the murder.
Angelo Musitano was the younger brother of Pat Musitano. In 1997, the Musitano brothers were charged with first-degree murder for ordering the death of Hamilton mob boss Johnny (Pops) Papalia.
Three years later, they were sentenced to 10 years in prison for conspiracy to commit murder in the shooting death of Niagara crime boss Carmen Barillaro.
READ MORE: Notorious mobster Pat Musitano believed to be targeted in Hamilton house shooting
The hitman for both murders, Kenneth Murdock, took a plea deal and named the Musitanos as the men who ordered the killings.
The Musitano brothers were released from prison in 2007.
Pat Musitano’s SUV was set on fire in the driveway of his St. Clair Boulevard home in the fall of 2015.
A month after the shooting death of Angelo Musitano, a home that belonged to Pat Musitano on St. Clair Boulevard in Hamilton was targeted in a drive-by shooting.
Police said in a media release that they acknowledge the gunfire may be connected to the murder of his brother.
Thom said the Musitano family has not been cooperative in the investigation.
“It seems odd to me but traditionally people involved in the mafia don’t normally talk to the police,” Thom said.
“Our victim here, who apparently changed his life around, if he was out of that lifestyle and I would have expected some more cooperation from the family.”
Police are urging anyone with information about the vehicles or suspects in the homicide to come forward.
— With files from Rick Zamperin and Nick Westoll
VIDEO: Police describe car used in surveillance, killing of Angelo Musitano