Eighty years ago, Lucky Luciano traded prison for exile
When New York Governor Thomas Dewey commuted the sentence of imprisoned Mafia boss Charles “Lucky” Luciano 80 years ago, it was widely…
Author: James Riter
Manhunt underway for Ryan Wedding, former Olympian turned accused drug kingpin
A Canadian former Olympic snowboarder accused of cocaine trafficking and murder has landed on the FBI’s Ten Most Wanted Fugitives…
Gambino crime family boss Paul Castellano murdered outside Manhattan steakhouse 40 years ago
Forty years ago, a faction of Gambino crime family members orchestrated and executed a brazen coup to permanently remove their…
Irish drug kingpin living in Dubai attracts new attention
Irish drug kingpin Daniel Kinahan is back in the spotlight with a magazine story noting that he is living freely…
Hollywood fixer Willie Bioff killed in automobile blast 70 years ago
Chicago Outfit associate Willie Bioff rose to power as a corrupt union official, extorting millions from Hollywood studios on behalf…
Las Vegas Mob classic ‘Casino’ celebrates 30th anniversary
Three decades after Casino was released in November 1995, screenwriter Nicholas Pileggi says the nearly three-hour film portrays the end of…
FBI indictments link New York mobsters, professional athletes in two cheating schemes
If you thought the traditional Mob was dead, think again. The FBI on Thursday announced sweeping indictments implicating members of…
‘Beer Baron’ Dutch Schultz gunned down 90 years ago
On October 23, 1935, Dutch Schultz was shot in a Newark restaurant along with three of his associates. In the…
Mathew Bowyer, bookie for baseball star Shohei Ohtani’s interpreter, vows to turn his life around
As he prepared to begin serving a federal prison sentence for booking sports bets illegally, Mathew Bowyer pledged never to…
The long con of underworld grifter ‘Count’ Victor Lustig
The sensational exploits of Depression-era con artist Victor Lustig are now underworld legend. But many oft-told tales overlook his surprising…