1981 murder witnesses say they kept silent for fear of mob

Naperville man recently arrested in slaying

Fear of their employer and his reputed ties to Chicago's crime syndicate prompted at least six people to remain silent about the 1981 daylight murder of a fellow worker, a crime in which a Naperville man now stands charged.

Bond was set Thursday at $500,000 in Cook County Circuit Court in Chicago for Michael J. Cosmano, 56, of 4636 Mather Court in the Harmony Grove area of Naperville's far southwest side.

Cosmano was charged Wednesday in the June 12, 1981, murder of Milton Rodriguez, 29, on Chicago's northwest side. Rodriguez worked for Cosmano, who owns several Chicago-area pizzerias.

Testimony in court Thursday showed Rodriguez was sitting on a wall behind Bella's Pizza Parlor when Cosmano allegedly shot him at point-blank range. The impact of the bullet caused Rodriguez to topple from the wall.

Rodriguez was a pizza delivery man who reportedly was unhappy with the wages Cosmano paid him and his fellow employees. Rodriguez was reportedly trying to organize the workers in protest of their situation.

Police said there were more than a half-dozen witnesses to the killing, but all kept their silence for more than 26 years. "They were in fear for their lives," Chicago police Cmdr. Edward O'Donnell said.

Prosecutors said those fears stemmed from rumors among employees that Cosmano was connected to the Chicago mob, speculation that was dismissed by defense attorney Anthony Onesto.

"I even resent the question," Onesto said Thursday. "Every time an Italian-American is arrested, there's an inference to organized crime.

"Some people are afraid of the boogey man. Does that mean there's a boogey man?"

Police said it felt good to be able to tell Rodriguez's family they might finally expect justice in the case.

"Anytime a killer goes free for 27 years, there is a sense of satisfaction when you finally get him charged," Sgt. Carlos Velez said.

Cosmano, a father of six, was arrested in November 1990 by Lombard police on a misdemeanor charge of battery, according to records on file in DuPage County Circuit Court in Wheaton. A judge in March 1991 sentenced him to court supervision in that case.

A Naperville police spokesman said Thursday his department had no record of disturbances at the Cosmano home or of police ever being sent there in the past.

A woman who answered the front door Thursday afternoon at Cosmano's home declined to comment on the matter. Five neighbors also declined to comment on the Cosmano family or Cosmano's arrest.

Sun staff writer Bill Bird contributed to this report.