Photo: Anja Karadeglija
	The NDG house where Tony Magi, who has been linked to the Montreal mafia, lives with his wife, Rita Biasini. On Feb. 18, a gunman shot at Biasini while she was stopped at the intersection of nearby Beaconsfield Ave. and Somerled Ave..

After the wife of a man who is alleged to have ties to the mafia was shot at near her NDG home on Feb. 18, some neighbours are concerned for their safety. The woman was not hurt and drove to a police station directly after the attack.

Though police did not disclose the identity of the victim, media reports identified her as Rita Biasini, the wife of Tony Magi, who has been linked to the Rizzuto family.

“There are guards all around and increased police surveillance since the shooting, so it’s a worrisome time,” said one man who lives near the couple. He said that area residents were worried about a follow-up to the attack.
The shooting occurred at 8:40 a.m. on the corner of Beaconsfield Ave. and Somerled Ave. Biasini was driving down Beaconsfield and was shot at by a 20-something man when she stopped at the intersection.

Magi is the former business partner of Nick Rizzuto Jr., who was killed outside Magi’s office in 2009. Magi himself survived a shooting attempt on his life in 2008. Those incidents also occurred in NDG.

“We all know who he is, and we’re expecting something to happen. The shooting has nothing to do with the neighbourhood itself,” said another resident. “Now there are people here petrified about their kids going to school.”

However, a woman who has lived near the intersection for decades said that she is not afraid. “I haven’t the slightest idea what it was all about and I don’t care,” she said.

But the woman’s caretaker is worried. “I live nearby, we’re driving, we’re walking on this street, and it’s not safe. We don’t know what might happen,” she said. “I have a granddaughter, she’s 11, and for me, it’s not safe. It’s scary, it really is.”

Though the house is very close to Magi’s, both women said they knew nothing about the couple. “They’re quiet people – we don’t know them, what they look like, just what we’ve seen in the news,” the caretaker said

[ Anja Karadeglija ]