BREAKING: L&B Spumoni Gardens Co-Owner Found Fatally Shot Near Dyker Heights Home [Updated]

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A man was fatally shot at 7601 12th Avenue. (Source: Google Maps)

An owner of L&B Spumoni Gardens was fatally shot at 7601 12th Avenue. (Source: Google Maps)

 

A Dyker Heights resident and co-owner of the iconic pizzeria L&B Spumoni Gardens was fatally shot in the vicinity of his home Thursday evening.

Officers responded to a 911 call at 7601 12th Avenue on Thursday, June 30, at approximately 7:02pm, and found 61-year-old Louis Barbati in the backyard with bullet wounds to his torso, according to police.

CBS reports:

Barbati’s body was found slumped near the door of the house, sources said. His wife and two sons were in the home at the time of the shooting, sources said.

The suspect fired multiple shots, sources said. Police described him as a white male in his 30s wearing a black hooded sweat shirt.

EMS responded and pronounced the Barbati dead at the scene. No arrests have been made and the investigation is ongoing.

The beloved Gravesend restaurant Barbati owned — located at 2725 86th Street — was started by his grandfather Ludovico Barbati in 1938, when he learned from a baker how to make pizza in a garage on West 8th Street, according to L&B’s website. Ludovico famously got his start selling spumoni and pizza out of his horse-drawn cart.

L&B was once at the center of an Italian mafia-connected extortion plot. In 2012, reputed Columbo associate and former Barbati son-in-law Frank Guerra was acquitted of a double murder of former underboss Joseph Scopo and Staten Island club owner Michael Devine, as well as the extortion of a former employee of his family’s pizzeria, whom he accused of divulging L&B’s secret pizza sauce recipe.

There hasn’t been a gun death in the quiet, residential neighborhood of Dyker Heights in more than two years, according to crime statistics. In Bensonhurst, two men, ages 48 and 31, were shot outside Living Room Steakhouse and Lounge two weeks ago. Both survived the shooting.

Our sincerest condolences go out to Barbati’s family and friends during this difficult time.

Update [July 1, 12:30pm]: The Barbati family, who spent the morning holed up at the Gravesend eatery, is asking for privacy from fans, friends, and media outlets so that they may grieve the sudden loss. The restaurant opened as usual at 11am Friday morning. Some employees were seen wiping tears away as they set up tables.

Photos of the crime scene are courtesy of Mike Wright.

Photo by Mike Wright

Photo by Mike Wright

Photo by Mike Wright

Photo by Mike Wright

Photo by Mike Wright

Photo by Mike Wright

Editor’s note: This is a breaking news story and may contain inaccuracies. We will keep you posted as we learn more.

  • Emerald5Forever

    I have frequented L&B and am shocked by this news…hope the culprit is found.

  • Sean F

    I knew Louis. Our boys are friends, and we won a baseball championship together. We are very upset that such an amazingly nice guy could be killed in his own yard like this. I really hope the police find his killer. Our prayers are with the Barbati family.

  • jwood1952

    RIP Louis…..

  • American Everyman

    For so many all of my friends used to go their for their square pizza, the best. RIP Louis

  • MafiaLosers

    This plague will continue as long as you involve yourself with filth like this.

    • Kara Bell

      He was an honest man, and he was murdered. He was not “filth” but you are.

  • pug_ster

    Gees, I recognize that house with its tower top and I passed by early this week. Sad that the owner died.

  • disqus_yslslS4ffr

    No gun deaths in two years!!! Impressive.

  • Fearless Fosdick

    This is a loss to Brooklyn and pizza lovers world-over. My sympathies to the family.

  • laney louie

    Respect to the Barbati family who holed up in the eatery, but does that mean I can’t get a slice? I was planning a 4th of July party there and I want to know if they’re open or not.

    • Veal Parmigiana

      We had the same question, actually! Will this affect the operation of the restaurant? I walked past the crime scene yesterday, not knowing more. Someone was talking about L&B, but we didn’t connect the dots until reading the news later. Very sad. RIP.

      • Gary F

        The top cops are calling this a botched robbery attempt, but how could that be? How did the perp know that Barbati had a wad of money on him? Unless he was planning to kidnap Barbati, as was the case in the Menachem Stark case. Maybe this was a mob hit?

        • Veal Parmigiana

          Totally possible.

    • Rachel Silberstein

      It was open to customers this morning. We’ve updated the post!

  • ROSALIE907

    My favorite pizza and, in fact, was going to go there tonight but thought they’d be closed. How sad and shocking. I had a cousin who worked there many years ago and he’s still remembered by them. May Louis RIP and I hope they catch whoever did this. Hope the family can find comfort in the memories they have of him and my sincere condolences to them.