Lawrence Dilione (Larry)

Lawrence “Larry” Dilione was born on July 27, 1988, and was a resident of Jersey City, New Jersey, before his arrest. Publicly available information about his childhood, family and early life is limited.

Dilione was 28 years old when Joseph Comunale was killed. He was acquainted with James Rackover and Max Gemma, and was present at Rackover’s Manhattan apartment following a night of partying in November 2016.

Dilione's only known murder involvement was the killing of Joseph “Joey” Comunale, 26, on November 13, 2016.

Comunale had gone out in Manhattan the previous evening before joining a group at Rackover’s luxury apartment on East 59th Street. During the early morning hours, violence broke out inside Apartment 4C. Prosecutors alleged that Comunale was repeatedly beaten and stabbed by Dilione and Rackover. Medical evidence later indicated that he had suffered multiple stab wounds.

After Comunale was killed, Dilione and Rackover attempted to conceal the crime. His body was placed in bags, moved from the apartment and transported to Oceanport, New Jersey. The body was burned and buried in a shallow grave, where it was discovered three days later.

The killing occurred during a violent confrontation inside Rackover’s apartment following a night of partying.

Comunale was attacked with significant physical violence and repeatedly stabbed. Rather than immediately reporting his death, Dilione and Rackover participated in an extensive effort to conceal the killing and dispose of his body.

The body was transported by car from Manhattan to New Jersey, where it was burned and buried in a shallow grave.

Comunale was reported missing after he failed to return home following the night out in Manhattan.

Investigators traced his movements to Rackover’s apartment and began examining surveillance footage, physical evidence and the movements of the men who had been present.

Police eventually discovered evidence inside the apartment, including blood on clothing and bedding. Investigators also traced Rackover's vehicle to New Jersey using surveillance and license-plate information. Comunale's body was found in Oceanport on November 16, 2016.

Dilione was arrested and charged alongside Rackover in connection with the murder and subsequent concealment of Comunale's body.

Dilione was originally indicted on second-degree murder and related charges. He was scheduled to face trial separately from Rackover.

On January 8, 2019, however, Dilione entered a guilty plea to first-degree manslaughter as part of a negotiated agreement that allowed him to avoid a possible life sentence.

Dilione was sentenced on February 6, 2019, to 23 years in prison. The day before sentencing, he attempted to withdraw his guilty plea, telling the court that he was innocent, but the judge rejected his request and proceeded with the sentence.

Dilione is serving his sentence at Clinton Correctional Facility in New York. His earliest reported possible release date is January 2037.

The precise sequence of events inside Apartment 4C was disputed because Dilione pleaded guilty rather than standing trial. During Rackover's later murder trial, the defence argued that Dilione was the primary attacker and that Rackover had played a lesser role. Prosecutors instead argued that the two men acted together and were equally responsible for Comunale's death.

James Rackover was ultimately convicted of second-degree murder, concealing a human corpse and tampering with evidence. He received an aggregate sentence of 28⅔ years to life.

Max Gemma, who was also present at the apartment, was not convicted of homicide. He pleaded guilty to hindering prosecution and tampering with physical evidence and received a six-month sentence.

The case was revisited in the Netflix true-crime series Homicide: New York, which featured the investigation into Comunale's death and the three men involved in the aftermath.

Sources:

• New York City Police Department
• Manhattan District Attorney’s Office
• New York State Supreme Court, New York County
• Oceanport Police Department
• New York State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision
• CBS News
• ABC News
• KSL
• Stamford Advocate
• People
• Netflix