Recanted Testimony Out of Fear, Mob Hit Man Says

An admitted Mafia hit man, who pleaded guilty Friday to obstruction of justice, said he had falsely recanted his testimony about a mob leader in the “Pizza Connection” drug trial because of threats to his family.

Luigi Ronsisvalle said he knew a sworn affidavit retracting his previous testimony was a lie, but he signed it “because my family was in danger.”

Ronsisvalle, who has admitted committing 13 contract murders, entered his guilty plea in a heavily guarded courtroom in Manhattan.

Fears for Wife, Children

His lawyer, Henry Putzel III, said Ronsisvalle knowingly signed a false statement recanting his testimony against convicted Bonnano crime family leader Salvatore Catalano because of “serious and extraordinarily real threats” on the lives of his wife and children.

Ronsisvalle, 47, faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine on the obstruction charge. He entered the plea as part of an agreement to cooperate with prosecutors, Putzel told U.S. District Judge David Edelstein.

Edelstein released Ronsisvalle to the custody of federal marshals under conditions that were not made public. When he testified against Catalano last year, Ronsisvalle was enrolled in the federal witness protection program.

Appears Before Grand Jury

A lawyer for Catalano, Ivan S. Fisher, on Monday had sought a new trial for Catalano based on the recanted testimony. Fisher was called before a grand jury Friday morning and said after a brief appearance that he had given it tapes of his conversations with Ronsisvalle at his recantation.

Another lawyer for Catalano, Mario Malerba, on Thursday withdrew the retrial motion, saying it was premature. He charged that Fisher had not been authorized to make the motion.

Ronsisvalle’s testimony last year helped convict Catalano, a Queens bakery owner, of participating in a massive heroin importing operation, dubbed the “Pizza Connection” because it allegedly used pizza parlors as fronts.