Thirteen years for botched mafia hit
This crime report by Daniel Renaud sounds like a treatment for a black mobster comedy.
Carlos Rafael Pena Torrez was sentenced to 13½ years Thursday for a botched hit in 2023 on a person he took to be Francesco Del Balso. Not only was his victim not Del Balso, who was 53 years old, but a man of 78 whom he only succeeded in shooting in the leg.
Pena Torrez has also been sentenced to 16 years for shooting another mistaken target in Ontario the same year, but Renaud doesn’t mention who Pena Torrez thought he was. Although hit by 11 bullets, the victim also survived.
Del Balso was taken out by a more efficient gunman later in 2023. I haven’t seen any news of an arrest. Pena Torrez is likely to be deported back to the Dominican Republic when he finally emerges from a Canadian prison.
Blork 21:34 on 2025-03-06 Permalink
Editorial note: I think you mean a mobster black comedy. A “black mobster comedy” implies a comedy about black mobsters. (Oh, English…)
Ian 22:24 on 2025-03-06 Permalink
Perhaps mobster-themed dark comedy?
Context matters though, I found it pretty clear what was meant 😉
MarcG 11:18 on 2025-03-07 Permalink
I’ll take Underexplored Movie Genres for $500. Hoodfellas, Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Smokers (starring Method Man and Redman), Shaft in Jersey.
Ian 17:41 on 2025-03-07 Permalink
There are many others, but 1973 was a great year for the Blaxsploitation mobster subgenre.
Among otheres:
Black Caesar
Sweet Jesus, Preacherman
Live and Let Die (arguably)
Hell Up in Harlem
Comedy though, the only one I can think of offhand is Harlem Nights…
Robert H 20:23 on 2025-03-07 Permalink
I think Harlem Nights is the one with an angry Della Reese impressively throwing punches at Eddie Murphy. Obviously an auteur classic.
Ian 22:59 on 2025-03-07 Permalink
Yes, precisely. An underrated gem, IMO.