National Crime Syndicate
National Crime Syndicate ( English "National Criminal Syndicate ") was in the press the name of a US criminal syndicate , which was formed in 1931 by a large part of the leaders of the US Cosa Nostra and Kosher Nostra , in which the so-called American Mafia Commission of the Cosa Nostra was chaired and always remained the dominant group.
The leaders of the Five Families , their associates and members of Mafia clans in other large cities, especially the Chicago Outfit , but also the Kosher Nostra by Meyer Lansky , met to decide on activities and territories. As soon as a new business emerged or another family wanted to expand, the syndicate met to discuss it. This meant that an ambitious family who crossed the border without consultation would declare war on not just one but all other families, just as if an outsider took on the Syndicate. The syndicate used Murder, Inc. , headed by Louis Buchalter , which was founded primarily to safeguard and expand the interests of the syndicate, and to eliminate enemies from newly emerging clans.
history
Between 1930 and 1931 a Mafia war between Joe "The Boss" Masseria (boss of the Genovese family later classified as this ) and Salvatore Maranzano (boss of the Bonanno family later classified as this ) took place in the USA , in which both were killed fought the supremacy of the New York underworld - the so-called War of Castellammare , which was fought predominantly in New York City. The winner was Salvatore Maranzano against Joe Masseria . In principle, however, the two Mustache Petes were played off against each other by the young turks around Lucky Luciano . Maranzano was also killed.
Lucky Luciano, the new boss of the largest of the five families in New York City, the Genovese family, now played the dominant role within the US-American Cosa Nostra.
The idea of a merger had already been considered by Johnny Torrio from Chicago ; Maranzano also planned such a supraregional association, which he wanted to head as Capo di tutti i capi ( Italian : boss of all bosses). Both saw such an alliance limited to Sicilians.
Working with non-Sicilians was suspect among the traditional Mustache Petes. Only the admission of non-Sicilians to the Unione Siciliana had always been a point of contention there. Al Capone , a man with roots in Campania , had ultimately gained control of the Unione and opened it up to Italians who were not from Sicily.
Lucky Luciano had gone beyond this limit through his alliance with his childhood friend Meyer Lansky. The cooperation with the Kosher Nostras had proven itself in the so-called Broadway Mob , among other things . At the so-called Atlantic City Conference of 1929, which according to the authors of the underworld greats Meyer Lansky, Johnny Torrio, Lucky Luciano, Al Capone, Bugsy Siegel , Frank Costello , Joe Adonis , Dutch Schultz , Abner Zwillman , Louis Buchalter , Vincent Mangano , Frank Erickson , Frank Scalice and Albert Anastasia was visited, the interests of the Seven Group already became clear. In 1929, Luciano was almost murdered by his own boss Masseria because of his collaboration with non-Sicilians (Frank Costello) and non-Italians (Meyer Lansky).
As prohibition drew to a close, there was still plenty of lucrative illegal activity going on, leaving room for gangs of all nationalities. This included prostitution , extortion, and gambling . Instead of risking turf wars over it, the National Crime Syndicate should define both a division of territory and a definition of the activities of the individual families and gangs.
In 1931 Meyer Lansky and Doc Stacher organized a meeting of the Kosher Nostra in the Franconia Hotel , which today can be seen as the prelude to the formation of the National Crime Syndicate after the war in Castellammare. The meeting was ended by a New York police raid. All those involved were taken into custody for a short time in order to record extensive data on the suspects and to capture part of the leadership team in police photos. Louis Buchalter, Bugsy Siegel, Harry Rosen , Harry Greenberg and Harry Teitelbaum attended the meeting.
In 1946 Luciano convened the so-called Havana Conference , in which the future of the American Mafia was discussed. It was decided at this conference that Luciano should lead the commission again from now on, that the American Mafia actively get into the drug trade, and lastly the murder of Bugsy Siegel, who allegedly had stolen funds from the construction of the Flamingo Hotel in Las Vegas , was decided.
In 1957, at the Apalachin meeting , the commission decided that two other bosses, Angelo Bruno of the Bruno Family ( Philadelphia Crime Family ) and Joseph Zerilli of the Zerilli Family ( Detroit Partnership ), should get a seat on the commission. Even Jack Dragna , head of Dragna family ( Los Angeles Crime Family ), should have a seat in the National Commission for 25 years. Since Dragna's death in 1956, the Dragna family in Los Angeles has been represented by the Chicago outfit.
Important meetings
- 1929: Atlantic City Conference: May 1929 - Discussions about the establishment of a Mafia Commission ; Post Prohibition Plans.
- 1931: Franconia Hotel: Pre-meeting of Kosher Nostra - ended by local police action
- 1946: Havana Conference: December 1946 in Havana , Cuba - casino deals with the Cuban dictator; Resolution of the assassination of Bugsy Siegel ; Syndicate Drug Trafficking Plans
- 1957: Apalachin meeting : November 14, 1957 - ended by local police action
Films and documentaries
- 1972: The Valachi Papers ; the Apalachin meeting is mentioned in this film.
- 1974: The Godfather - Part II ; the scene in which Michael Corleone travels to Havana to attend a meeting with several other bosses is based on the Havana Conference of 1946.
- 1990: Good Fellas - Three decades in the Mafia ; the Apalachin meeting is mentioned in this film.
- 1991: Bugsy ; In one scene the Havana conference was filmed when the mobsters in the Hotel Nacional de Cuba are discussing the Siegel situation.
- 1991: The Real Bosses - A Diabolical Empire ; Film about the Castellammare War, the founding of the Five Families and the National Crime Syndicate, or the American Mafia Commission
- 1999: Lansky ; The Havana Conference of 1946 was filmed when Meyer Lansky and other bullies discussed the supposedly stolen money from the Flamingo budget and voted on Siegel's death.
- 1999: Just a matter of nerves ; the Apalachin meeting serves as the opening scene in the film.
- 2013: Malavita - The Family ; the Apalachin meeting is mentioned in this film.
- 2014: Boardwalk Empire ; in the final season of this series, the founding of the National Crime Syndicate is portrayed.
Individual evidence
- ↑ Russo, Gus. The Outfit: The Role of Chicago's Underworld in the Shaping of Modern America pg. 32-33, 41 221
- ↑ Killer Ring Broken; 21 Murders Solved laborers.org (1998)
- ↑ a b Capcei, Jerry. The complete idiot's guide to the Mafia The Mafia's Commission (pg. 31-46)
- ^ Carl Sifakis: The Mafia Encyclopedia. Checkmark Books, 2nd edition 1999.
- ^ A b Havana Conference (Dec. 1946) lacndb.com
- ↑ The Meet (English)