William Serrano was 32 when he was killed in Brooklyn, New York, on March 17, 1979. He had traveled to New York with Charles Padnick and two unidentified associates to negotiate a large cocaine transaction with members of the DeMeo Crew, a faction of the Gambino crime family. The meeting became a setup: Serrano and the others were shot, then dismembered, and their remains were disposed of by the crew.

This killing was one episode in a pattern of violent thefts and murders attributed to the DeMeo Crew during the 1970s and 1980s as they sought control of the drug trade. The murders of Serrano and his companions brought heightened law enforcement scrutiny to the crew and the Gambino family.

Did anyone who knew Serrano, Padnick, or their associates ever hear about the planned trip to New York or the people they were meeting?