EXCLUSIVE: Genovese mobster Anthony Romanello is seen heading to court after being accused of punching restaurateur in attempt to collect $86,000 gambling debt

Anthony Romanello, a mobster from the Genovese crime family, was seen heading to court after being seen on surveillance footage punching a restaurateur in an attempt to collect an $86,000 gambling debt.

Romanello, 86, is accused of stabbing Shuqeri “Bruno” Selimaj and assaulting him at the Lincoln Square Steak restaurant in Manhattan in 2017.

Cameras from DailyMail.com caught Romanello entering Brooklyn Federal Court on Wednesday with his wife wearing a blue windbreaker.

Joseph Chelso, a Genovese crime family soldier who was reportedly part of the attack, was also seen walking into the courthouse.

Last week, jurors were shown the clip during an ongoing trial in Brooklyn against Romanello, also known as “Rom,” an alleged capo in the Genovese family.

The video shows the two men engaged in what appears to be a heated argument before Romanello lands a right-handed punch to Selimaj's jaw.
Selimaj can be seen raising his hands as he pulls away from Romanello and another man, who is holding the New York Post identified as Irish bookmaker Mike Regan.

Others in the restaurant try to break up the trio before Regan and Romanello leave the establishment.

According to the Post, Selimaj recalled Wednesday, “Rom kept saying, 'I'd like to punch you'… I said, 'You don't have the guts to hit me. A few seconds later he punched me.'

Selimaj also testified that he then informed the two men that they had been recorded on his restaurant's security camera, with Romanello telling Regan, “Let's get out of here.”

Romanello's attorney Jerry McMahon told the jury that the punch had nothing to do with an extortion scheme, and that Romanello had defended his honor.

McMahon told the court that Selimaj had insulted him, saying he was a “washed up Italian” who “had no balls” and “was nothing.”

The Post also reported that McMahon had said prosecutors wanted to portray Romanello as someone who had delivered a punch similar to that of 1950s boxer Rocky Marciano.

McMahon then said, “People who have watched the video will say my client 'hits like a girl.'

Prosecutors have alleged that mafiosos visited Selimaj three times in an attempt to threaten him into paying off a relative's debt.

Selimaj had appeared as the first witness in the case, claiming that he had offered to pay his cousin's $6,000 debt, but not his cousin's $80,000 debt.

That decision is said to have infuriated Romanello, causing him to appear at the restaurant.

Selimaj reported the incident to police, but he recanted the next day after his brother passed him a message allegedly given by Genovese soldier Joseph Celso, he told the court.

Celso is standing trial along with Romanello on charges of racketeering and another charge of obstruction of justice over the alleged threat against Selimaj.

Prosecutors say Celso and Romanello were involved in an extortion scheme by alleged Genovese associate Luan Bexheti.

Celso's lawyer Gerrard Marone told the court on Wednesday that his client had nothing to do with the case.

He said: 'He didn't threaten anyone and certainly didn't hit anyone. My client is not involved in the drama.'

Selimaj testified that he knew the two's visits were a means to intimidate him, and that he ultimately paid the debt as a result.

He said: 'I was afraid that this mafia man would hurt me, [hurt] my nephew.'

The Post also reported that Brooklyn federal prosecutor Rebecca Schuman told the jury in her opening statement: “Bruno knew that crossing Romanello could have real consequences: violent consequences.”

Romanello faces up to 40 years in prison if found guilty, while Celso faces up to 60 years in prison if found guilty.

In 1993, Celso was acquitted of the murder of 18-year-old Manuel Maya, a Dominican student who was chased seventeen blocks by a group of white men before being beaten to death with a baseball bat and a fire extinguisher after the teenager was spotted spray-painting used to be. graffiti in a park.

Celso was identified as a member of the group, but he was acquitted after the witness who testified against him left the country and refused to return.

Romanello dodged a gun charge in 2012 when the witness who testified against him before the trial suffered a heart attack.