Police plan to pack a Bronx courtroom today for the start of the trial of “Sopranos” actor Lillo Brancato’s alleged cohort in the 2005 shooting death of an off-duty cop.
Officer Daniel Enchautegui was gunned down as he tried to stop Brancato and his ex-girlfriend’s father, Steven Armento, from allegedly breaking into a neighbor’s apartment.
“Every police officer can put himself in the position that officer was in. When a neighbor’s in trouble, we have an obligation to help,” said Patrick Lynch, head of the Patrolman’s Benevolent Association.
Enchautegui, 28, heard a window breaking in the building next door to his Arnow Place house in Pelham Bay during the early-morning hours of Dec. 10, 2005. He called for backup, donned his shield and went out to investigate.
He came across Brancato and Armento. The cop fired his .25-caliber handgun, hitting both men numerous times. He succumbed to one gunshot wound to the heart from Armento’s.357 revolver.
Prosecutors claim Armento, 51, opened fire when Enchautegui announced he was a cop. But the defense insists Enchautegui started shooting without identifying himself, prompting Armento to return fire.
Armentofaces life behind bars without the possibility of parole if convicted of first-degree murder.
Brancato, 36, who was unarmed, will be tried after Armento.