Famed Jeweler Helped Cover Up Murder of Stamford Native: Lawsuit

UPPER EAST SIDE, NY — A lawsuit filed in Manhattan Supreme Court claims that celebrity jeweler Jeffrey Rackover "played an intricate role" in the cover up the brutal murder of Stamford native Joseph Comunale, 26, who was stabbed to death in an Upper East Side apartment Rackover was helping pay for.

The 57-year-old Rackover — who's clients include Oprah Winfrey and First Couple Donald and Melania Trump — "intentionally and knowingly (provided) the means to conceal Joey’s murder," according to the lawsuit filed Sunday in Manhattan Supreme Court.

Rackover's surrogate son James Rackover, 25, and his friend Lawrence Dilione, 28, were indicted on second-degree murder charges in May, according to the Manhattan District Attorney's office.

The civil lawsuit, filed on behalf of Joseph Comunale's father and Stamford resident Pat by lawyer Robert Abrams, alleges that Jeffrey and James Rackover lived together for two years prior to 2015 and were engaged in a sexual, drug-fueled relationship. In 2015, Jeffrey allowed James to take the last name Rackover and arranged to rent James his own apartment in the posh Grand Sutton tower — located on located on East 59th Street near First Avenue.

"During their tenure as roommates, (Jeffrey) Rackover experienced sexual pleasure from (James) Rackover and, in return, (James) Rackover received drugs, money, a luxurious lifestyle and other benefits from (Jeffrey) Rackover," the lawsuit claims.

Related:

• Obituary: Joseph Comunale, 26, of Stamford
• Stamford Mourns Loss of Joseph Comunale
• Murder Charges Levied in Stamford Man's Killing

The lawsuit claims that Rackover provided his surrogate son with paper towels and cleaning supplies, and referred to a statement made by mayoral candidate Bo Dietl on behalf of Rackover as evidence that he was aware of the murder. Dietl, acting as the jewelers spokesman, said that Rackover entered his surrogate son's apartment to walk his dog the day after Comunale's murder "and that he had not noticed anything wrong – this, notwithstanding the fact that Joey’s decomposing body was in the apartment at that time," according to the lawsuit.

Joseph Comunale's body was dug from a shallow grave in a remote, wooded area of Oceanport, New Jersey, on November 16, 2016. He was reported missing days before he was found, suffered at least 15 stab wounds, a broken pelvis and evidence indicated that someone attempted to burn his body, according to police and the DA's office. A large duffel bag was discovered near the burial site, prosecutors said.

"The brutality of this horrific murder was compounded by the defendants’ efforts to dispose of the victim’s body in an attempt to evade prosecution," Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance said in a statement. "We will prosecute this case to the full extent of the law to achieve justice for Joseph and the Comunale family."

Soon after Comunale's body was found, investigators determined that he was last seen alive partying in an Upper East Side apartment owned by James Rackover. Dilione met Comunale while out partying the night of Saturday, Nov. 12 and brought him and three other women to a 4 a.m. party at Rackover's condo in the Grand Sutton tower.

According to the DA's office, Dilione admitted to police that he and another man took Comunale's body to New Jersey.

"We took Joey's body to Oceanport, N.J. and we buried it in a vacant lot," Dilione told investigators.

Investigators later found evidence of Comunale's murder in the younger Rackover's Sutton Place apartment and in a 2015 Mercedes Benz licensed to the elder Rackover that was seen traveling from the Upper East Side into New Jersey via the Holland Tunnel the night after Comunale disappeared, according to a criminal complaint.

A third man, Max Gemma, 29, will face charges for hindering prosecution and tampering with evidence, but was not charged with murder, prosecutors said.

Story by By Brendan Krisel (Patch National Staff)

Photo by Mike Coppola/Getty Images Entertainment/Getty Images