Herbert Blitzstein
Herbert Blitzstein | |
|---|---|
| Cause of death | Murdered |
| Other names | "Fat Herbie" "Fat Hebe" |
| Occupation(s) | Loanshark, bookmaker |
| Criminal status | Deceased |
| Spouse | Married 3 times |
Herbert "Fat Herbie" Blitzstein (November 2, 1934 - January 6, 1997) was a loanshark, bookmaker and top lieutenant to Tony "The Ant" Spilotro and the Chicago Outfit in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Biography
Born in Chicago, Herbie started working the rackets in the late 1950s. He was later convicted of racketeering. When he was released from prison, he moved to Las Vegas to serve as muscle for Spilotro. Tony Spilotro, John Spilotro and Herbie ran the Gold Rush Jewelry Store, a front for the Hole in the Wall Gang, so named because they punched holes through walls and ceilings to grab the loot and run. Blitzstein also worked as a fence for stolen goods at the combination jewelry store and electronics factory. [1]
He was one of the few Hole in the Wall Gang members who was not arrested after the botched July 4 burglary at Bertha's Household Products in 1981. Blitzstein is described by FBI agent William Roemer in his book The Enforcer as one of the mobsters tested by the FBI in the early days of the Top Hoodlum Program. Herbert was a 183-cm, 135-kg (six-foot, three-hundred pound) man who drove a white 1973 Cadillac Eldorado and dressed impeccably. [1]
In 1967, according to FBI affidavits, "Fat Herbie" ordered the murder of associate loan shark and bookmaker Arthur "Boodie" Cowan for holding back a street tax. Although Herbie did not participate in the July 4 robbery, he was indicted with Tony Spilotro on federal racketeering charges. The charges were later dropped for insufficient evidence. [1]
In January 1997, Blitzstein was himself killed gangland style -- three shots to the back of the head -- by Mob members from Buffalo and Los Angeles who planned to take over his street rackets, which included prostitution, insurance fraud and loansharking. Of the seven people arrested in the plot to kill Blitzstein, four pleaded guilty in order to receive reduced sentences. One died in prison awaiting trial, and two went to trial and were acquitted. [1]
In popular culture
Blitzstein, portrayed in the film Casino by Bret McCormick as Bernie Blue, was not murdered by the Las Vegas police during a bungled arrest as portrayed in the film. The shooting depicted in the movie "Casino" was that of another reputed associate of Anthony Spilotro named Frank Bluestein, not Blitzstein as stated above.
References
Further reading
- Farrell, Ronald A. The Black Book and the Mob: The Untold Story of the Control of Nevada's Casinos. Madison: University of Wisconsin Press, 1995. ISBN 0-299-14750-9
- Milhorn, H. Thomas. Crime: Computer Viruses to Twin Towers. Boca Raton, Florida: Universal Publishers, 2005. ISBN 1-58112-489-9
- Roemer, Jr., William F. The Enforcer- Spilotro: The Chicago Mob's Man Over Las Vegas. The Ballantine Publishing Group, 1994. ISBN 0-8041-1310-6
External links
- "Reputed mob figure found dead," by Cathy Scott, Las Vegas Sun, January 7, 1997