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…
Author: James Riter
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…
Alleged former Philadelphia Mafia boss Joey Merlino rebrands himself as restaurant owner
Joey Merlino, a 63-year-old convicted felon and reputed former Philadelphia Mafia boss, has become a social media personality while also…
Grounded in history, ‘Mafia: The Old Country’ is a game you can’t refuse
The Mob movie may be experiencing a lull, evident by the lukewarm receptions to this year’s The Alto Knights and Mob Cops,…
Owen Hanson goes from cartel kingpin to selling frozen protein bars
At one time Owen Hanson, a former University of Southern California national championship football player, was making millions as a…
‘Dr. Death,’ notorious Detroit contract killer, committed first murder 70 years ago
The shooting death of 43-year-old Luther Mixon on July 1, 1955, landed Chester Wheeler Campbell, 24, and two accomplices in…
Lefty Rosenthal’s alleged sports-fixing past recalled in national sports story
In the 1970s, Mickey Bruce, a former University of Oregon football player, was called to Nevada to testify against Mob…
Las Vegas casino pioneer a footnote in Southern California slaying
A high-profile murder in 1950s Southern California at the former home of a Las Vegas casino operator led to the…
Casino boom added four new properties to Las Vegas 70 years ago
Seventy years ago, in April and May of 1955, Las Vegas welcomed four new hotel-casinos in a six-week period. This…
New Mob movies point to continued demand
While some question whether Mob movies have run their course, a recent slate of gangster films indicates public interest remains…