Today years since one of the most notorious and still-unsolved murders in East Brunswick history.
On April 12, 2007, Frank Lagano, a 67-year-old reputed associate of the Lucchese crime family and co-owner of the Seville Diner on Route 18, was found dead in the parking lot of his own business. Two bullets to the head. Execution style. Broad daylight.
It didn’t take long for whispers of a mafia hit to start circulating. But as the years went on, this story only got stranger — and more disturbing.
Who Was Frank Lagano?
Lagano wasn’t just a diner owner. According to multiple reports, including North Jersey Media Group and News 12 New Jersey, Lagano had ties to organized crime and had previously been caught up in “Operation Jersey Boyz,” a massive gambling investigation back in 2004.
That investigation ultimately fell apart. The charges were dropped. Nobody went to jail.
But the real bombshell? Lagano was working as a confidential informant for law enforcement at the time of his death.
Betrayed From the Inside?
Lagano’s family believes this wasn’t just a mob hit.
They claim that Frank’s status as a government informant was deliberately leaked — by law enforcement itself. Specifically, former Bergen County Chief of Detectives Michael Mordaga.
Court records revealed that Lagano and Mordaga weren’t exactly strangers. They allegedly had financial dealings together and even referred cases to one another. Mordaga has denied any wrongdoing or connection to Lagano’s murder.
But the allegations were enough to send shockwaves through the legal community.
No Arrests. No Answers.
To this day — 18 years later — no one has been arrested for Frank Lagano’s murder.
No suspects. No closure. Just a dead man in a diner parking lot and a trail of rumors, corruption allegations, and mob connections that lead nowhere.
It’s a Jersey story if there ever was one. But it’s also a reminder of something more troubling — what happens when people on both sides of the law are playing their own game.
The Details from 2007 News Coverage
Contemporary reporting from The Record (May 11, 2007) and Newsday (October 28, 2007) gives us a deeper look into what was known — and suspected — at the time.
According to The Record, law enforcement immediately treated the murder as a mob hit. Frank Lagano, 67, was getting out of his BMW in the parking lot of the Seville Diner on Route 18 when a lone gunman walked up and shot him once in the head.
Lagano wasn’t just a businessman — he was well known around Tenafly and East Brunswick as a former loan shark with ties to the Lucchese crime family. In fact, the New Jersey State Commission of Investigation had named him in a 1983 report on organized crime.
He was also arrested in 2004 as part of a massive offshore sports betting operation that prosecutors said raked in millions of dollars.
Connections to Other Crime Figures
Newsday reported that federal prosecutors believed David Brooks, a former CEO of DHB Industries, had close ties to Lagano. While there was no suggestion Brooks was involved in Lagano’s murder, prosecutors claimed that Brooks once told witnesses he “had guys” who could handle his enemies — using Lagano as an example of the type of person he knew.
At the time of his death, Lagano was also under indictment on racketeering and gambling charges.
This part of the story really shows you how messy and layered this thing was. Lagano wasn’t just a random diner owner — he was connected, he was dangerous, and apparently, he was worried enough about his own safety that he kept a low profile.
The Seville Diner Has a New Name — But Its History Remains
In 2024, the Seville Diner officially got a new name — it’s now called High Point Diner. The change has sparked plenty of local conversation on Facebook, with East Brunswick residents sharing memories of the old spot and curiosity about what’s to come.
Some are excited for a fresh start. Others still can’t forget what happened in that parking lot 18 years ago.
As one local Facebook user put it:
“April 12, 2007. Tomorrow, 18 years ago, they found John Lagano dead in the parking lot with 2 bullets to the head. Mafia hit.”
No matter how much remodeling happens inside, it’s safe to say the story of Frank Lagano will always be part of the lore of that corner on Route 18.
Sources:
- Newspapers.com Clippings (as seen above)
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North Jersey Media Group
https://www.northjersey.com/story/news/watchdog/2017/12/28/bizarre-mob-tale-continues-no-end-sight/975546001/ -
News 12 New Jersey
https://newjersey.news12.com/nj-diner-owner-found-shot-to-death-in-parking-lot-34879455
