1908 in organized crime
Encyclopedia
Events
- A gang war breaks out between Paul KellyPaul Kelly (criminal)Paul Kelly was an Italian immigrant who founded the Five Points Gang in New York City after starting some brothels with prize monies earned in boxing...
's Five Points GangFive Points GangFive Points Gang was a 19th-century and early 20th-century criminal organization, primarily of Italian-American origins, based in the Sixth Ward of Manhattan, New York City. Since the early 19th century, the area was first known for gangs of Irish immigrants...
and "Kid Twist" Max ZwerbachMax ZwerbachMax "Kid Twist" Zweifach occasionally referred to as Zwerbach was an American gangster who, during the turn of the century, belonged to the Eastman Gang and later succeeded the New York gang leader following his arrest in 1904.-Biography:Born Maxwell Zweifach in Austria on March 14, 1884, to...
's Eastman GangEastman GangThe Eastman Gang was the last of New York's street gangs which dominated the city's underworld during the late 1890s until early 1910s. Along with the Five Points Gang under Paul Kelly, the Eastmans succeeded the long dominant Whyos as the first non-Irish street gang to gain prominence in the...
. - By the end of the year Johnny Torrio's two dozen BrooklynBrooklynBrooklyn is the most populous of New York City's five boroughs, with nearly 2.6 million residents, and the second-largest in area. Since 1896, Brooklyn has had the same boundaries as Kings County, which is now the most populous county in New York State and the second-most densely populated...
brothels earn over $5,000 a week. - Frankie YaleFrankie YaleFrancesco Ioele , better known as Frankie Uale or Frankie Yale, was a Brooklyn gangster and original employer of Al Capone before the latter moved to Chicago...
is allowed to join Johnny TorrioJohnny TorrioJohn "Papa Johnny" Torrio , also known as "The Fox", was an Italian-American mobster who helped build the criminal empire known as the Chicago Outfit in the 1920s that was later inherited by his protege, Al Capone...
's Black HandBlack HandUnification or Death , unofficially known as the Black Hand , was a secret military society formed by members of the Serbian army in the Kingdom of Serbia, which was founded on September 6, 1901. It was intent on uniting all of the territories containing significant Serb populations annexed by...
organization in New YorkNew YorkNew York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
. - Hymie WeissHymie WeissHymie Weiss was a Polish-American mob boss who became a leader of the Prohibition-era North Side Gang and a bitter rival of Al Capone.-Early years:...
is first arrested for burglaryBurglaryBurglary is a crime, the essence of which is illicit entry into a building for the purposes of committing an offense. Usually that offense will be theft, but most jurisdictions specify others which fall within the ambit of burglary...
. It is this incident that, while caught robbing a perfume store, he is dubbed the "Perfume Burglar" by Chicago reporters. - Joseph Petrosino arrests Neopolitan camorristaCamorraThe Camorra is a Mafia-type criminal organization, or secret society, originating in the region of Campania and its capital Naples in Italy. It is one of the oldest and largest criminal organizations in Italy, dating to the 18th century.-Background:...
Enrico Costabili where he is later deported to Italy. - Sicilian mafiosi Raffaele Palizzolo, wanted for murder, escapes Sicily and arrives in New York. He later leaves the city before Joseph Petrosino can arrest him.
- Salvatore SabellaSalvatore SabellaSalvatore Sabella was the Sicilian Mafia boss of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania during the 1920s. Sabella built the future Bruno crime family and trained its leaders.-Early life:...
is sentenced to three years imprisonment for the murder of a local butcher, of which he was an apprentice, in 19051905 in organized crimeSee also:1904 in organized crime,other events of 1905,1906 in organized crime and thelist of 'years in organized crime'.-----Events:*Richie Fitzpatrick is killed by "Kid Twist" Max Zwerbach during peace negotiations between the two rival factions of the Eastman Gang...
. - April 25 - Frank CostelloFrank CostelloFrank Costello was an Italian New York City gangster who rose to the top of America's underworld, controlled a vast gambling empire across the United States and enjoyed political influence.Nicknamed the "Prime Minister of the Underworld", he became one of the most powerful and influential Mafia...
is arrested for assaultAssaultIn law, assault is a crime causing a victim to fear violence. The term is often confused with battery, which involves physical contact. The specific meaning of assault varies between countries, but can refer to an act that causes another to apprehend immediate and personal violence, or in the more...
and robberyRobberyRobbery is the crime of taking or attempting to take something of value by force or threat of force or by putting the victim in fear. At common law, robbery is defined as taking the property of another, with the intent to permanently deprive the person of that property, by means of force or fear....
but is released. - May 14 - Eastman GangEastman GangThe Eastman Gang was the last of New York's street gangs which dominated the city's underworld during the late 1890s until early 1910s. Along with the Five Points Gang under Paul Kelly, the Eastmans succeeded the long dominant Whyos as the first non-Irish street gang to gain prominence in the...
leader Max ZwerbachMax ZwerbachMax "Kid Twist" Zweifach occasionally referred to as Zwerbach was an American gangster who, during the turn of the century, belonged to the Eastman Gang and later succeeded the New York gang leader following his arrest in 1904.-Biography:Born Maxwell Zweifach in Austria on March 14, 1884, to...
and lieutenant Vach LewisVach LewisVach "Cyclone Louie" Lewis was an early New York gangster and member of the Eastman Gang under Max "Kid Twist" Zwerbach.-Biography:...
are killed in an ambush by members of the Five Points GangFive Points GangFive Points Gang was a 19th-century and early 20th-century criminal organization, primarily of Italian-American origins, based in the Sixth Ward of Manhattan, New York City. Since the early 19th century, the area was first known for gangs of Irish immigrants...
after an argument between Zwerbach and Louis PioggiLouis PioggiLouis "Louie the Lump" Pioggi was a New York criminal and member of the Five Points Gang, known most prominently for the murder of Eastman Gang leader Max "Kid Twist" Zwerbach and Vach "Cyclone Louie" Lewis...
over a Coney IslandConey IslandConey Island is a peninsula and beach on the Atlantic Ocean in southern Brooklyn, New York, United States. The site was formerly an outer barrier island, but became partially connected to the mainland by landfill....
dance hall girl Carrol Terry. - July 23 - Labor racketeer Cornelius SheaCornelius SheaCornelius P. Shea was an American labor leader and organized crime figure. He was the founding president of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, holding the position from 1903 until 1907. He became involved with the Chicago Outfit, and although he was indicted many times, he usually...
is sentenced to six months in prison for abandoning his wife and two young children.
Births
- Anthony Joseph Biase, leader of the OmahaOmaha, NebraskaOmaha is the largest city in the state of Nebraska, United States, and is the county seat of Douglas County. It is located in the Midwestern United States on the Missouri River, about 20 miles north of the mouth of the Platte River...
faction of the National Crime SyndicateNational Crime SyndicateThe National Crime Syndicate was the name given by the press to a loosely-organized multi-ethnic organized crime syndicate. Its origins are uncertain.... - Harry MaioneHarry MaioneHarry "Happy" Maione was a New York mobster who served as a hitman for Murder, Inc. during the 1930s...
"Happy", Murder, Inc.Murder, Inc.Murder, Inc. was the name given by the press to organized crime groups in the 1920s through the 1940s that resulted in hundreds of murders on behalf of the American Mafia and Jewish Mafia groups who together formed the early organized crime groups in New York and...
hitman - Ernest RupoloErnest RupoloErnest "the Hawk" Rupolo was a low-level New York mobster and hitman for the Genovese crime family. Rupolo would later turn informant and testify against family boss Vito Genovese.-The Boccia murder:...
, Genovese crime familyGenovese crime familyThe Genovese crime family , is one of the "Five Families" that dominates organized crime activities in New York City, United States, within the nationwide criminal phenomenon known as the Mafia . The Genovese crime family has been nicknamed the "Ivy League" and "Rolls Royce" of organized crime...
assassin - Angelo Tuminaro, Lucchese crime familyLucchese crime familyThe Lucchese crime family is one of the "Five Families" that dominates organized crime activities in New York City, United States, within the nationwide criminal phenomenon known as the Mafia . The family originated in the early 1920s with Gaetano "Tommy" Reina serving as boss up until his murder...
member and drug trafficker - March 17 - Raymond L.S. PatriarcaRaymond L.S. PatriarcaRaymond Loreda Salvatore Patriarca, Sr. was an Italian-American mobster from Providence, Rhode Island who became the longtime boss of the Patriarca crime family, whose control extended throughout New England for over three decades...
, New EnglandNew EnglandNew England is a region in the northeastern corner of the United States consisting of the six states of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut...
Mafia DonCrime bossA crime boss or boss is a person in charge of a criminal organization. A boss typically has absolute or near-absolute control over his subordinates, is greatly feared by his subordinates for his ruthlessness and willingness to take lives in order to exert his influence, and profits come from the... - May 24 - Sam GiancanaSam GiancanaSalvatore Giancana , better known as Sam Giancana, was a Sicilian-American mobster and boss of the Chicago Outfit from 1957-1966...
[Salvatore Giancana], Chicago Crime Syndicate leader - June 30 - Samuel "Teets" BattagliaSam BattagliaSamuel "Teets" Battaglia was a Chicago mobster and high-level member of the Chicago Outfit criminal organization.-Early career:...
, member of the Chicago OutfitChicago OutfitThe Chicago Outfit, also known as the Chicago Syndicate or Chicago Mob and sometimes shortened to simply the Outfit, is a crime syndicate based in Chicago, Illinois, USA...
Deaths
- May 14 - Max ZwerbachMax ZwerbachMax "Kid Twist" Zweifach occasionally referred to as Zwerbach was an American gangster who, during the turn of the century, belonged to the Eastman Gang and later succeeded the New York gang leader following his arrest in 1904.-Biography:Born Maxwell Zweifach in Austria on March 14, 1884, to...
, Eastman Gang leader - May 14 - Vach LewisVach LewisVach "Cyclone Louie" Lewis was an early New York gangster and member of the Eastman Gang under Max "Kid Twist" Zwerbach.-Biography:...
, Eastman Gang lieutenant
See also
- 1907 in organized crime1907 in organized crimeSee also:1906 in organized crime,other events of 1907,1908 in organized crime and thelist of 'years in organized crime'.-----Events:*A group of leading Italian citizens, prominent businessmen, several ethnic organizations, and the Italian Chamber of Commerce form the White Hand Society, a legal...
, - other events of 1908,
- 1909 in organized crime1909 in organized crimeSee also:1908 in organized crime,other events of 1909,1910 in organized crime and thelist of 'years in organized crime'.-----Events:*Paul Di Christina , leader of the New Orleans Black Hand, is killed by an Italian grocer Pietro Pepitone during an extortion attempt in Pepitone's store...
- list of 'years in organized crime'Timeline of organized crimeThis is a timeline of the history of organized crime.Note: Sources included are Carl Sifakis's The Mafia Encyclopedia, Herbert Asbury's The Gangs of New York and others. Online references also include Thomas P...