Alleged Montreal Mafia boss Leonardo Rizzuto no longer allowed to practice law

Leonardo Rizzuto, 56, arrested at his home in Laval, Que., as part of a series of police raids on organized crime members on Thursday, June 12, 2025. (Source: Patrick Sanfaçon/La Presse)

The alleged head of the Montreal Mafia, now behind bars on a murder charge, has had his lawyer’s licence suspended.

Leonardo Rizzuto, 56, the youngest son of the late reputed Mafia boss Vito Rizzuto, was arrested along with 10 other suspects in a massive Montreal police operation on June 12 targeting organized crime groups in Quebec. He was charged with first-degree murder in the 2011 death of Lorenzo Lopresti and conspiracy to commit murder against several other men between 2011 and 2019.

In a statement issued Wednesday, the Bar of Quebec (Barreau du Québec) said its disciplinary council has ordered the immediate provisional suspension of Rizzuto’s right to practice law and the right to use the title reserved for members of the bar.

“Depending on the outcome of the criminal case, the Bar will provide updates on developments relating to his right to practice,” the statement reads.

Records show that Rizzuto obtained his licence to practice law in Quebec in 1999.

Following his arrest at his home in Laval, he remains in jail as the criminal proceedings continue.

The raids in June resulted in the arrests of several people with alleged ties to the Italian Mafia, Hells Angels, and criminal street gangs who are accused of being involved in several murders in Montreal and around Quebec over a decade.

Rizzuto survived an assassination attempt in 2023, when his Mercedes was shot at while he was driving on a Laval highway.