Trump, QAnon andDeep State: Lawyer details 'delusional obsession' of mob-boss murder suspect


Man charged with killing mob boss was attempting a ‘deep state’ citizens arrest to protect Trump, lawyer says

Today 1:48 PM
By Irene Spezzamonte | ispezzamonte@siadvance.com

STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. – The man accused of gunning down the boss of the Gambino crime family in March developed a “delusional obsession” with right-wing conspiracy theories and thought he was performing a citizen’s arrest on a member of the “Deep State” while acting with the “protection of President Trump himself,” according to a blockbuster court filing by his lawyer.

Anthony Comello, 24, went to Francesco "Franky Boy’ Cali’s Hilltop Terrace house on March 13 to conduct a citizen’s arrest because he considered the 53-year-old mob boss a man with “significant status in a worldwide criminal cabal bent on the destruction of American values and the American way of life,” but he had no intention of killing him, according to the motion.

Comello backed his vehicle into Cali’s car, and as Comello was inspecting the damage, Cali exited his residence, the two men shook hands and briefly talked, lawyer Robert Gottlieb wrote.

“[Comello] had brought handcuffs with him and planned to restrain Cali. After a heated exchange, Cali made a furtive action with his hand and Comello became afraid for his life,” the motion reads. “He reached into his vehicle, withdrew his gun and shot Cali in self-defense.”

After the fatal shooting, Comello sent a text stating, “I’m on the run, my family is marked,” according to a statement by prosecutors last month in state Supreme Court, St. George.

Comello was used to bringing a firearm with him because he later said he thought “the world is a dangerous place,” the defense motion claims.

Authorities located and arrested Comello in Brick, New Jersey, three days after the crime. He later waived extradition proceedings and returned to Staten Island.

MENTAL HEALTH DEFENSE
The 24-year-old justified his actions based on his perceived involvement in the QAnon group – a right-wing conspiracy-theory organization in which he believed to have a fundamental role:

Protecting Trump, according to the motion.

“Comello’s support for QAnon went beyond mere participation in a radical political organization,” the motion explains. “It evolved into a delusional obsession.”

QAnon follows the postings of an individual or group of individuals who write using the pseudonym “Q,” the filing explains. The group’s mission is to protect Western civilization and American values from an international criminal conspiracy. This global cabal is referred to as “the Deep State.”

The March incident was not the first time Comello tried to conduct a citizen arrest.

In February 2019, he tried to arrest Mayor Bill de Blasio at Gracie Mansion for what Comello believed was election fraud. Shortly after, Comello tried to arrest Maxine Waters and Adam Schiff, both California congressional representatives.

Comello was not arrested in either case, according to his lawyer.

“As part of his delusion, the defendant believed that he had been given secret knowledge about the Deep State, and that Q was communicating directly with him so that the defendant could play a grand role in the conflict to save the American way of life,” the filing maintains. “Because of his self-perceived status in QAnon, Mr. Comello became certain that he was enjoying the protection of President Trump himself, and that he had the president’s full support.”

About four months after Cali’s murder, Comello still does not think killing him was wrong, his lawyer wrote in the motion.

“He believes that he did his patriotic duty to defend both himself as well as the United States from a dangerous criminal and therefore killing Cali was actually morally right under the circumstances,” according to the motion.

LAWYER SAYS HE HAS NOT SEEN ‘CRITICAL’ EVIDENCE

In the motion, Gottlieb is also asking the district attorney’s office to share evidence considered “critical” to the case and that, despite multiple

attempts, the defense team has still not seen.

“They have turned over certain evidence, but critical evidence has been withheld and as we indicate they are refusing to turn over,” Gottlieb told the Advance.

Gottlieb is requesting District Attorney Michael E. McMahon to turn over the evidence found in Comello’s residences, vehicle and property.

“We are simply asking under the discovery rules that we be told what they found,” said Gottlieb.

The district attorney’s office declined to comment on the filing.

Comello is due back in court on Aug. 13.

https://www.nj.com/crime/2019/07/man...wyer-says.html