Louis Cohen
Encyclopedia
Louis Cohen was a New York mobster who murdered labor racketeer "Kid Dropper" Nathan Kaplan
and was an associate of labor racketeer Louis "Lepke" Buchalter
. He became an informant during the late 1930s, and was killed along with Isadore Friedman
shortly before they were to testify against Buchalter.
when he was hired by lieutenants Louis Buchalter, Jacob "Gurrah" Shapiro
and Jack "Legs" Diamond to murder rival mobster Nathan Kaplan. He later killed him while under police escort outside the Essex Market Court House in lower Manhattan on August 28, 1923. Immediately arrested by police, he was subsequently convicted of Dropper’s murder and sentenced to 20-25 years imprisonment at Sing Sing Prison. Released on parole in 1937, he began talking to investigators within two years on the streets and eventually agreed to testify against Buchalter. However, he was gunned down on January 28, 1939, shortly before his scheduled testimony.
Nathan Kaplan
"Kid Dropper" Nathan Caplin or Kaplan , also known as Jack the Dropper, was an American gangster controlling labor racketeering and extortion in New York City during the post-World War I period into the early years of Prohibition in the early 1920s.-Biography:One of seven children, Kaplan was born...
and was an associate of labor racketeer Louis "Lepke" Buchalter
Louis Buchalter
Louis "Lepke" Buchalter was a Jewish American mobster and head of the Mafia hit squad Murder, Inc. during the 1930s. After Dutch Schultz' request of the Mafia Commission for permission to kill his enemy, U.S. Attorney Thomas Dewey, the Commission decided to kill Schultz in order to prevent the hit...
. He became an informant during the late 1930s, and was killed along with Isadore Friedman
Isadore Friedman
Isadore or Irving Friedman , also known under the alias Danny Field, was a New York mobster and an associate of labor racketeer Louis "Lepke" Buchalter. He later agreed to testify against Buchalter on behalf of District Attorney Thomas E...
shortly before they were to testify against Buchalter.
Biography
Born Louis Kerzner, Cohen was a minor criminal in the employ of racketeer Jacob "Little Augie" OrgenJacob Orgen
Jacob "Little Augie" Orgen was a New York gangster involved in bootlegging and labor racketeering during Prohibition.-Biography:...
when he was hired by lieutenants Louis Buchalter, Jacob "Gurrah" Shapiro
Jacob Shapiro
Jacob "Gurrah" Shapiro was a New York mobster who, with his partner Louis "Lepke" Buchalter, controlled industrial labor racketeering in New York for two decades and established the Murder, Inc. organization.-Early years:...
and Jack "Legs" Diamond to murder rival mobster Nathan Kaplan. He later killed him while under police escort outside the Essex Market Court House in lower Manhattan on August 28, 1923. Immediately arrested by police, he was subsequently convicted of Dropper’s murder and sentenced to 20-25 years imprisonment at Sing Sing Prison. Released on parole in 1937, he began talking to investigators within two years on the streets and eventually agreed to testify against Buchalter. However, he was gunned down on January 28, 1939, shortly before his scheduled testimony.
Further reading
- Chiocca, Olindo Romeo. Mobsters and Thugs: Quotes from the Underworld. Toronto: Guernica EditionsGuernica EditionsGuernica Editions is a Canadian independent publisher established in Montreal, Quebec, in 1978, specializing in Canadian literature, poetry and nonfiction...
, 2000. ISBN 1-55071-104-0