Surprise ending for actor, two accomplices after feds expose attempted shakedown of Sheepshead Bay pizzeria

A Jersey-based character actor and two co-defendants pleaded guilty to extortion conspiracy Tuesday after their scripted shakedown at a Sheepshead Bay pizzeria was panned by federal investigators.

Leroy Wilson, 47, of Haskell, N.J., was hired to play the armed muscle backing up Douglas Singer, 54, and Marianne Wood, 61, when the trio went to the pizza joint on Coney Island Ave. five months ago for a sitdown with the building owner.

The feds later discovered messages between Singer and Wilson where the actor was given wardrobe directions beforehand for his role as an armed enforcer.

“Is it possible for you to wear a dark suit but no tie?” asked Singer in a message. “Maybe a white shirt? And dark sunglasses? … You will simply have to stand in the background and appear to be muscle.”

Wilson instead opted for an all-black ensemble, including a leather jacket and a fake pistol prop worn in a holster on his hip during the November 2018 meeting at the pizzeria.

Singer bought the pizzeria from the building’s owner in early 2018, agreeing to pay $60,000 for the restaurant, a $15,600 security deposit and a monthly rent of $5,200, officials said.

The business was running as usual until November 2018 when Wood, of Madison, Conn., was joined by Singer, of Brooklyn, and their menacing actor pal Wilson for their meeting with the building owner, authorities charged.

Wood identified herself as Singer’s business partner and produced photos of the owner’s wife and kids along with a demand for the $198,000 cash shakedown on behalf of an unidentified “organization." The building owner instead called the NYPD – with authorities wiring him before a second meeting with the suspects.

Wilson’s acting resume included a bit part in “The Other Guys,” a 2011 comedy with Mark Wahlberg and Will Ferrell, along with a 2013 role in the crime drama “Dead Man Down” starring Terence Howard and Colin Farrell.

https://www.nydailynews.com/new-yor...09-7bj235w4cfex3p26jfnuyntfae-story.html