DeLuca Pleads Guilty in Boston Club Owner’s ’93 Murder Case

BOSTON – In a dramatic turn of events, Robert P. DeLuca, a former New England La Cosa Nostra (NELCN) caporegime, has pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court to obstructing a federal investigation into the 1993 murder of Boston nightclub owner Stephen DiSarro.

DeLuca, now 70 years old, entered his plea on one count of obstruction of justice and two counts of making false statements. Sentencing is scheduled for February 1, 2017. The former mobster was arrested in Florida in June 2016 and subsequently indicted.

The guilty plea centers around DeLuca’s lies to federal prosecutors and investigators about the disappearance of DiSarro, who operated The Channel in South Boston. Authorities uncovered DiSarro’s remains in Providence, R.I., in March 2016. According to court documents, DiSarro vanished in May 1993 amidst a federal grand jury investigation into then LCN boss Frank Salemme and his son’s involvement with The Channel.

DeLuca also pleaded guilty to lying about his knowledge of other organized crime murders. Despite a cooperation agreement with federal authorities following his 2011 racketeering arrest, DeLuca continued to fabricate stories about DiSarro’s disappearance and other LCN-perpetrated murders.

In addition, DeLuca has agreed to plead guilty in Rhode Island Superior Court to conspiracy to commit the 1992 murder of Kevin Hanrahan. The obstruction of justice statute carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison, three years of supervised release, and a fine of $250,000. For false statements, the penalty is up to five years in prison, three years of supervised release, and the same monetary fine.

The investigation was a joint effort by the United States Attorneys for the Districts of Massachusetts and Rhode Island, the Rhode Island Attorney General, and the FBI Boston Field Division. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Fred M. Wyshak, Jr., and William Ferland are leading the prosecution.

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