ROSSVILLE — The co-owner of a Staten Island children's boutique was arrested on Monday for fatally stabbing a father in front of his toddler son, police said.
Richard Gambale, 41, co-owner of Lollipop Couture in Tottenville, was arrested near Sixth Avenue and 14th Street in Manhattan on Monday for the Friday stabbing of Anthony Perretti, the NYPD said.
Perretti, 43, of Bay Terrace, got into a dispute with Gambale over money at 73 Industrial Loop at about 2:36 p.m. when Gambale stabbed Perretti multiple times in the back and torso and hit him with a wrench, according to police and court documents.
The victim's 2-year-old son was inside a car nearby.
Perretti was taken to Staten Island University Hospital South where he was pronounced dead, police said.
Friends of Perretti, who went by the nickname Pugs, started an online fundraiser to raise $10,000 to donate to his son's college fund after his death.
Fund for anthony perretti (PUGS) https://t.co/IchAsmZQt8 via @gofundme
— Linda Scarpa (@LINDASCARPA) January 16, 2016Gambale, of Great Kills, was charged with murder and criminal possession of a weapon at his Tuesday arraignment, according to the Staten Island District Attorney's office.
He was held without bail and is due back in court on Friday, the DA said.
Both Gambale and Perretti were known associates to organized crime, with Perretti previously tied to the Bonanno crime family, a law enforcement source said.
Gambale previously served jail time after he was arrested as part of a ecstasy distribution ring and was released from a federal jail in 2003, according to court records and the Federal Bureau of Prisons.
In 1995, Perretti served time for fatally stabbing a bouncer, Shawn P. Donovan, at the Heartbreak Hotel in Hunter, N.Y., with a pocket knife, the New York Daily News reported.
Perretti was released on parole in 2012, according to the Department of Corrections.
