Paolo Renda

Paolo Renda (born 10 September 1933) is a member of the Rizzuto crime family based in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, who has not been seen since May 2010.

Biography

Renda was born on 10 September 1933 in Sicily. He emigrated to Canada in 1954 and married Vito Rizzuto's sister Maria. Shortly after the death of Paolo Violi in 1978, an arrest warrant was issued for Renda, who subsequently fled to Venezuela but returned to Montreal when the warrant was dismissed. He then became a consigliere for the Rizzuto family.

Renda was arrested in November 2006 along with dozens of others including Nicola Rizzuto and his son Nicolo, and Rocco Sollecito, as part of Project Colisée. In 2008, Renda pleaded guilty to two counts of possessing profits from organized crime. He was released on parole in February 2010.

Disappearance

On 20 May 2010, Renda went golfing in the morning and then went to a funeral home owned by his family in St. Leonard. He then phoned his wife to say he would be picking up steaks for dinner. After not arriving home by 15:00 ET, Renda's son-in-law decided to search for him by tracing his usual route and found Renda's vehicle parked with its windows down and keys in the ignition, with Renda nowhere to be seen. Renda is believed to have been kidnapped.

Renda's disappearance is believed to be part of a vendetta for the murders of brothers Paolo and Franceso Violi of the Bonanno crime family, who were both murdered in the 1970's. Renda's disappearance occurred a year after Nicola Rizzuto's son Nicolo was murdered, and six months after his disappearance Nicola would be murdered at his home.

Renda's family tried to have Paolo legally pronounced dead in 2013, though a judge turned down the request due to insufficient proof.

See also

• List of people who disappeared mysteriously