General Chicago Outfit Info Dumping Ground

[PolackTony]

@Villain and @Confederate, I noted on the chart you two did a couple of years ago for Chicago in the Giancana era you have a Pablo Rivera listed as a lieutenant under the Northside organization. I have not been able to find anything on this figure. Given the surname Rivera and the fact that he was on the Northside he would almost certainly have been Puerto Rican (during past decades most Puerto Ricans were on the the N/NW sides while most Mexicans were on the S/SW). Any further info on this guy? I've assumed that the Northside faction had links to what used to be a large PR community in Old Town, Lincoln Park, and Lakeview given their control over the "bolita" racket. I'd suspect also they would've had some links to important PR gangs in the area back then such as the Young Lords, Latin Kings, and Latin Eagles as well.

OK, I did find some archived articles that note Rivera was busted along with Eto and Yoshii for their bolita operation. It's interesting also that along woth some clearly Puerto Rican associates (e.g.a guy named Irizarry), others involved based on their addresses and surnames were almost certainly Mexicans. The article also notes that Eto and Yoshii were receiving their orders from both Prio and Fifi Buccieri, so this was a North and Westside partnership. This makes sense, as the Mexican guys involved woild likely have been running the numbers operation in the Little Village/Pilsen Mexican communities which would've come under the Westside territory, while Rivera and Irizarry and other PR guys would've been running the Lincoln Park/Lakeview area operation.

So this was an Italian/Japanese/Puerto Rican/Mexican operation, linking two Outfit "families" in the name of the love of money. A very Chicago story lol.

From what I can tell later in the 70s Rivera was operating a lounge on North Ave near Talman in Humboldt Park. I knew this lounge well, as it was still operating decades later in the 90s and was connected to both the MLDs (major narcotics trafficking street gang) and older Puerto Rican gangsters with ties directly to Puerto Rico. It would be very interesting to confirm if Rivera's ties to the Outfit continued after the Eto/Yoshii bolita bust.

Everything you said is spot on and also thanks for the additional info.

Eto's the Golden 8 Ball Pool and Billiard Hall, the Subway Pool Room, Mike’s Rainbow Restaurant and Merlo’s Real Estate and Insurance Co. were the main places that have been used as money drops and meeting places for the North Side faction. They also had a African-American in their ranks known as James Kid Riviera Williams, and according to FBI reports Williams was seen having meetings with Eto and Prio. Williams was one of the killers on the Ald Ben Lewis hit.

Also in 1962 Eto and another Rush Street associate and club owner Aaron “Obie” Oberlander traveled to San Juan, Puerto Rico to establish multimillion dollar hotel for gambling operations and to be utilized by Ross Prio and others. By the early 70s they lost the Bolita racket since Eto wasn’t able to bring it back mainly because the second generation of Latin-Americans refused to work for the Mob.

Also, thanks for mentioning Kid Riviera, another interesting figure. He was said to be the enforcer for Weside policy boss Shaky Anderson, and presumed Outfit muscle (as you noted on the Alderman Lewis hit and others) linked to Gus Alex, Ralph Pierce, and Marshall Caifano.

[Villain]

@Villain and @Confederate, I noted on the chart you two did a couple of years ago for Chicago in the Giancana era you have a Pablo Rivera listed as a lieutenant under the Northside organization. I have not been able to find anything on this figure. Given the surname Rivera and the fact that he was on the Northside he would almost certainly have been Puerto Rican (during past decades most Puerto Ricans were on the the N/NW sides while most Mexicans were on the S/SW). Any further info on this guy? I've assumed that the Northside faction had links to what used to be a large PR community in Old Town, Lincoln Park, and Lakeview given their control over the "bolita" racket. I'd suspect also they would've had some links to important PR gangs in the area back then such as the Young Lords, Latin Kings, and Latin Eagles as well.

OK, I did find some archived articles that note Rivera was busted along with Eto and Yoshii for their bolita operation. It's interesting also that along woth some clearly Puerto Rican associates (e.g.a guy named Irizarry), others involved based on their addresses and surnames were almost certainly Mexicans. The article also notes that Eto and Yoshii were receiving their orders from both Prio and Fifi Buccieri, so this was a North and Westside partnership. This makes sense, as the Mexican guys involved woild likely have been running the numbers operation in the Little Village/Pilsen Mexican communities which would've come under the Westside territory, while Rivera and Irizarry and other PR guys would've been running the Lincoln Park/Lakeview area operation.

So this was an Italian/Japanese/Puerto Rican/Mexican operation, linking two Outfit "families" in the name of the love of money. A very Chicago story lol.

From what I can tell later in the 70s Rivera was operating a lounge on North Ave near Talman in Humboldt Park. I knew this lounge well, as it was still operating decades later in the 90s and was connected to both the MLDs (major narcotics trafficking street gang) and older Puerto Rican gangsters with ties directly to Puerto Rico. It would be very interesting to confirm if Rivera's ties to the Outfit continued after the Eto/Yoshii bolita bust.

Everything you said is spot on and also thanks for the additional info.

Eto's the Golden 8 Ball Pool and Billiard Hall, the Subway Pool Room, Mike’s Rainbow Restaurant and Merlo’s Real Estate and Insurance Co. were the main places that have been used as money drops and meeting places for the North Side faction. They also had a African-American in their ranks known as James Kid Riviera Williams, and according to FBI reports Williams was seen having meetings with Eto and Prio. Williams was one of the killers on the Ald Ben Lewis hit.

Also in 1962 Eto and another Rush Street associate and club owner Aaron “Obie” Oberlander traveled to San Juan, Puerto Rico to establish multimillion dollar hotel for gambling operations and to be utilized by Ross Prio and others. By the early 70s they lost the Bolita racket since Eto wasn’t able to bring it back mainly because the second generation of Latin-Americans refused to work for the Mob.

Also, thanks for mentioning Kid Riviera, another interesting figure. He was said to be the enforcer for Weside policy boss Shaky Anderson, and presumed Outfit muscle (as you noted on the Alderman Lewis hit and others) linked to Gus Alex, Ralph Pierce, and Marshall Caifano.

If you havent read this, pls do....a small piece from my narcotics article...

Now, the prime Outfit member who possibly oversaw the racket back in Chicago was one of Prio’s main operators known as Ken Eto. There are no government documents for this claim, except for one newspaper article from the Chicago Tribune which connects Eto to the narcotics trade. I believe that the main reason for that was the fact that this guy was a Japanese gangster who by that time was one of the most lucrative individuals in the whole criminal organization, mostly because of his Bolita operations and close connections to the Latin community. So the product was spread, again with the help of several crews which belonged to different territories.

For example one of those was the infamous African-American duo which included James “Kid Riviera” Williams and Thomas “Shaky Tom” Anderson. These two fellas were the prime operators in the policy business and also in the crap games operations, under the auspices of the Chicago Outfit. They did not belong to any particular crew but they worked with almost every top criminal from around the city such as Prio, Eto, Gus Alex, Frank Caruso, Lenny Patrick, the English brothers and Ralph Pierce. In fact, Anderson was connected to the Outfit since the late 1940’s, when he used to work as a bookkeeper and the thing was that he held a university degree in accounting. According to some reports, Anderson received his accounting training at Fisk University in Nashville, Tennessee, for which he was nicknamed by some of his “street colleagues” as “Tennessee”. As for Williams, he was one 300-pound African-American Mob enforcer who never finished 4th grade and even though he was charted as associate of the West Side faction, this scary fella also had connections all around Chicago, mostly on the South and North Side, like for example being pictured on several meetings both with Eto and Prio.

So the gangster duo was considered highly lucrative and of high importance by the Outfit’s administration and that is why they were kept out of the dope racket, until now since they controlled hundreds of runners for their illegal operations. According to one confidential informant, he heard a story from one former dope pusher, who used to work for a guy nicknamed “Tennessee”, who in turn operated a grocery store on Chicago’s South Side from where the product was usually sold.

Now, as I previously stated that “Tennessee” was Anderson’s nickname and he also owned a grocery store in that same area, so in other words, the informant unknowingly received information on Anderson’s secret dope dealings. The thing was that the informant also gave another quite interesting and almost unbelievable info regarding Anderson’s activities in the dope business and the murder of Alderman Benjamin Lewis. So again according to the informant, Anderson and Alderman Lewis, who back in 1958 became the first black alderman to represent the 24th Ward, together were involved in narcotics dealings, mainly heroin, and frequently exchanged loans or investment money to purchase big amounts of the product.

Now, to have an Alderman as financier in dope dealings was a huge thing and if the story is true, then Anderson managed to make something quite rare in the world of dope peddling. The problem was that when you’re dealing with high profile criminals, somewhere along the way you’ll be forced to become dependable by these individuals, and that’s what happened to Lewis. Story goes that he became in high debt of Anderson by loaning a large sum of cash. I assume that the alleged cash came from the Outfit, since Anderson was guy who made somewhere between 5 and 10 grand a week and story goes that he was a heavy spender. And so in the old days if you took cash from the Outfit, it was naturally expected from you to return the money, no matter who you were.

One thing led to another, and so back in 1963, Lewis was found shot in the back of his head three times, while being handcuffed to a chair in his office. Anderson and Williams were quickly questioned because they reportedly had threatened Lewis’ life shortly before the murder. The cops also interrogated hundreds of other suspects who had had connections with Lewis's personal life, his failing business ventures, and his political career, including the English brothers and Lenny Patrick since it was their territory but the problem was that every lead petered out. The police file remained to be about three feet thick, and so the case remains unsolved.

Story goes that after the assassination of Alderman Lewis, the gangster duo completely took over the policy and narcotics operations in the 24th Ward. I say completely because at the same time Lenny Patrick, who was the real crime boss of that area, transferred most of his operations around the North suburbs and on top of that, most of the bookmaking operations of the English brothers were also closed down. So as I previously stated that the whole territory was in Anderson’s hands, who in turn gave the full authority to Williams to operate in the same area as his enforcer.

So from this point on, Williams controlled an army of crap game operators, and also had a bunch of apartments where most of the games occurred. At the front of every building, they had a look-out equipped with a walkie-talkie radio, with the other half of the two-way radio set in the apartment above. The apartments were usually equipped with well-stocked bars, with a bartender and bar maids, who furnished relaxation for those who became tense while handling the dice. The thing was that besides gamblers, these gambling establishments were very often visited by narcotics users and addicts since many of the operators or bartenders were in fact runners for Williams in his dope peddling business. Williams also had a sort of a “commission” of enforcers and operators such as Vernon Bailey who operated on the West Side, Sammy Bell on the South Side and Sandy Wilborn on the North.

[PolackTony]

@Villain and @Confederate, I noted on the chart you two did a couple of years ago for Chicago in the Giancana era you have a Pablo Rivera listed as a lieutenant under the Northside organization. I have not been able to find anything on this figure. Given the surname Rivera and the fact that he was on the Northside he would almost certainly have been Puerto Rican (during past decades most Puerto Ricans were on the the N/NW sides while most Mexicans were on the S/SW). Any further info on this guy? I've assumed that the Northside faction had links to what used to be a large PR community in Old Town, Lincoln Park, and Lakeview given their control over the "bolita" racket. I'd suspect also they would've had some links to important PR gangs in the area back then such as the Young Lords, Latin Kings, and Latin Eagles as well.

OK, I did find some archived articles that note Rivera was busted along with Eto and Yoshii for their bolita operation. It's interesting also that along woth some clearly Puerto Rican associates (e.g.a guy named Irizarry), others involved based on their addresses and surnames were almost certainly Mexicans. The article also notes that Eto and Yoshii were receiving their orders from both Prio and Fifi Buccieri, so this was a North and Westside partnership. This makes sense, as the Mexican guys involved woild likely have been running the numbers operation in the Little Village/Pilsen Mexican communities which would've come under the Westside territory, while Rivera and Irizarry and other PR guys would've been running the Lincoln Park/Lakeview area operation.

So this was an Italian/Japanese/Puerto Rican/Mexican operation, linking two Outfit "families" in the name of the love of money. A very Chicago story lol.

From what I can tell later in the 70s Rivera was operating a lounge on North Ave near Talman in Humboldt Park. I knew this lounge well, as it was still operating decades later in the 90s and was connected to both the MLDs (major narcotics trafficking street gang) and older Puerto Rican gangsters with ties directly to Puerto Rico. It would be very interesting to confirm if Rivera's ties to the Outfit continued after the Eto/Yoshii bolita bust.

Everything you said is spot on and also thanks for the additional info.

Eto's the Golden 8 Ball Pool and Billiard Hall, the Subway Pool Room, Mike’s Rainbow Restaurant and Merlo’s Real Estate and Insurance Co. were the main places that have been used as money drops and meeting places for the North Side faction. They also had a African-American in their ranks known as James Kid Riviera Williams, and according to FBI reports Williams was seen having meetings with Eto and Prio. Williams was one of the killers on the Ald Ben Lewis hit.

Also in 1962 Eto and another Rush Street associate and club owner Aaron “Obie” Oberlander traveled to San Juan, Puerto Rico to establish multimillion dollar hotel for gambling operations and to be utilized by Ross Prio and others. By the early 70s they lost the Bolita racket since Eto wasn’t able to bring it back mainly because the second generation of Latin-Americans refused to work for the Mob.

Also, thanks for mentioning Kid Riviera, another interesting figure. He was said to be the enforcer for Weside policy boss Shaky Anderson, and presumed Outfit muscle (as you noted on the Alderman Lewis hit and others) linked to Gus Alex, Ralph Pierce, and Marshall Caifano.

If you havent read this, pls do....a small piece from my narcotics article...

Now, the prime Outfit member who possibly oversaw the racket back in Chicago was one of Prio’s main operators known as Ken Eto. There are no government documents for this claim, except for one newspaper article from the Chicago Tribune which connects Eto to the narcotics trade. I believe that the main reason for that was the fact that this guy was a Japanese gangster who by that time was one of the most lucrative individuals in the whole criminal organization, mostly because of his Bolita operations and close connections to the Latin community. So the product was spread, again with the help of several crews which belonged to different territories.

For example one of those was the infamous African-American duo which included James “Kid Riviera” Williams and Thomas “Shaky Tom” Anderson. These two fellas were the prime operators in the policy business and also in the crap games operations, under the auspices of the Chicago Outfit. They did not belong to any particular crew but they worked with almost every top criminal from around the city such as Prio, Eto, Gus Alex, Frank Caruso, Lenny Patrick, the English brothers and Ralph Pierce. In fact, Anderson was connected to the Outfit since the late 1940’s, when he used to work as a bookkeeper and the thing was that he held a university degree in accounting. According to some reports, Anderson received his accounting training at Fisk University in Nashville, Tennessee, for which he was nicknamed by some of his “street colleagues” as “Tennessee”. As for Williams, he was one 300-pound African-American Mob enforcer who never finished 4th grade and even though he was charted as associate of the West Side faction, this scary fella also had connections all around Chicago, mostly on the South and North Side, like for example being pictured on several meetings both with Eto and Prio.

So the gangster duo was considered highly lucrative and of high importance by the Outfit’s administration and that is why they were kept out of the dope racket, until now since they controlled hundreds of runners for their illegal operations. According to one confidential informant, he heard a story from one former dope pusher, who used to work for a guy nicknamed “Tennessee”, who in turn operated a grocery store on Chicago’s South Side from where the product was usually sold.

Now, as I previously stated that “Tennessee” was Anderson’s nickname and he also owned a grocery store in that same area, so in other words, the informant unknowingly received information on Anderson’s secret dope dealings. The thing was that the informant also gave another quite interesting and almost unbelievable info regarding Anderson’s activities in the dope business and the murder of Alderman Benjamin Lewis. So again according to the informant, Anderson and Alderman Lewis, who back in 1958 became the first black alderman to represent the 24th Ward, together were involved in narcotics dealings, mainly heroin, and frequently exchanged loans or investment money to purchase big amounts of the product.

Now, to have an Alderman as financier in dope dealings was a huge thing and if the story is true, then Anderson managed to make something quite rare in the world of dope peddling. The problem was that when you’re dealing with high profile criminals, somewhere along the way you’ll be forced to become dependable by these individuals, and that’s what happened to Lewis. Story goes that he became in high debt of Anderson by loaning a large sum of cash. I assume that the alleged cash came from the Outfit, since Anderson was guy who made somewhere between 5 and 10 grand a week and story goes that he was a heavy spender. And so in the old days if you took cash from the Outfit, it was naturally expected from you to return the money, no matter who you were.

One thing led to another, and so back in 1963, Lewis was found shot in the back of his head three times, while being handcuffed to a chair in his office. Anderson and Williams were quickly questioned because they reportedly had threatened Lewis’ life shortly before the murder. The cops also interrogated hundreds of other suspects who had had connections with Lewis's personal life, his failing business ventures, and his political career, including the English brothers and Lenny Patrick since it was their territory but the problem was that every lead petered out. The police file remained to be about three feet thick, and so the case remains unsolved.

Story goes that after the assassination of Alderman Lewis, the gangster duo completely took over the policy and narcotics operations in the 24th Ward. I say completely because at the same time Lenny Patrick, who was the real crime boss of that area, transferred most of his operations around the North suburbs and on top of that, most of the bookmaking operations of the English brothers were also closed down. So as I previously stated that the whole territory was in Anderson’s hands, who in turn gave the full authority to Williams to operate in the same area as his enforcer.

So from this point on, Williams controlled an army of crap game operators, and also had a bunch of apartments where most of the games occurred. At the front of every building, they had a look-out equipped with a walkie-talkie radio, with the other half of the two-way radio set in the apartment above. The apartments were usually equipped with well-stocked bars, with a bartender and bar maids, who furnished relaxation for those who became tense while handling the dice. The thing was that besides gamblers, these gambling establishments were very often visited by narcotics users and addicts since many of the operators or bartenders were in fact runners for Williams in his dope peddling business. Williams also had a sort of a “commission” of enforcers and operators such as Vernon Bailey who operated on the West Side, Sammy Bell on the South Side and Sandy Wilborn on the North.

Thanks, this is really excellent. Matches what I've seen from old articles in Shaky Anderson and Kid Riviera and fleshes out their mob connections.

Your other point regarding the decline of the Oufit in the 70s is important. By this time of course Chicago saw the rise and Co solidation of major black and Hispanic "supergangs" with thousands of members across the city. These organizations evolved from their turf fighting origins to become organized crime operations in their own right, taking over narcotics, prostituir and gambling operations in their territories and/or demanding street taxes from operatives. So they displaced Outfit connected gangsters in these communities through sheer force.

One of several factors I think implicated in the decline of the Outfit was the decline in the broader Chicago "crime syndicate". By the 70s, much of the older syndicate operations were decaying and this part of why the Outfit from this period began to resemble other LCN families more, as what remained was increasingly the LCN Mafia core of the old syndicate. A huge part of the the Outfit's historical manpower and earnings came of course from its domination of this wider syndicate, the hold of which over rackets in the city was increasingly falling to the new rising street gangs (as well as the decline of Jewish gangsters etc as a real force).

For this reason I believe, by the 70s and 80s some Oufit guys were making efforts to establish associations with Latino and black gangs, as new criminal allies responsible for street level operations while the Outfit wouldve likely provided services like financial backing, drug connects, police and political protection (e.g. Nicoletti with the Vice Lords, DeVarco and Arnold with the Mickey Cobras, Chuckie English with the Latin Kings).

[Villain]

Thanks, this is really excellent. Matches what I've seen from old articles in Shaky Anderson and Kid Riviera and fleshes out their mob connections.

Your other point regarding the decline of the Oufit in the 70s is important. By this time of course Chicago saw the rise and Co solidation of major black and Hispanic "supergangs" with thousands of members across the city. These organizations evolved from their turf fighting origins to become organized crime operations in their own right, taking over narcotics, prostituir and gambling operations in their territories and/or demanding street taxes from operatives. So they displaced Outfit connected gangsters in these communities through sheer force.

One of several factors I think implicated in the decline of the Outfit was the decline in the broader Chicago "crime syndicate". By the 70s, much of the older syndicate operations were decaying and this part of why the Outfit from this period began to resemble other LCN families more, as what remained was increasingly the LCN Mafia core of the old syndicate. A huge part of the the Outfit's historical manpower and earnings came of course from its domination of this wider syndicate, the hold of which over rackets in the city was increasingly falling to the new rising street gangs (as well as the decline of Jewish gangsters etc as a real force).

For this reason I believe, by the 70s and 80s some Oufit guys were making efforts to establish associations with Latino and black gangs, as new criminal allies responsible for street level operations while the Outfit wouldve likely provided services like financial backing, drug connects, police and political protection (e.g. Nicoletti with the Vice Lords, DeVarco and Arnold with the Mickey Cobras, Chuckie English with the Latin Kings).

In addition, im not sure what happened to Williams in the end although i think he was arrested on gambling and narcotics charges, as for Anderson i think he took all of his cash and went to Mexico.

I agree about some Oufit guys already having connections to many Latino and black gangs during the 70s and 80s, and i think you and i already talked about this meaning if the Outfit took their dope connections and supplies on a much higher lever, it is quite possible that today we were going to look at some type of Italian Cartel.

I also very much agree on what you said regarding the Outfits "evolution" and the remaining CN core. Nicely explained

[SconsinJohnson]

Highwood butcher pleads guilty to running multimillion-dollar sports bookmaking business

By JASON MEISNER
CHICAGO TRIBUNE
AUG 10, 2020 AT 12:14 PM


A North Shore butcher pleaded guilty Monday to running an illegal sports bookmaking operation that raked in millions of dollars from bettors over a four-year period.
Dominic Poeta, 63, who for years has run Poeta’s Italian Food Mart in Highwood, pleaded guilty to one count each of illegal bookmaking and filing a false tax return. Poeta faces up to three years in prison and has agreed to pay nearly $1.4 million in penalties to the IRS.

[PolackTony]

Anything Chicago related will likely have already been discussed, just use the search function...

http://theblackhand.club/forum/viewtop ... ta#p159314

[Patrickgold]

That was quick. He plead guilty in less than a month.

[Villain]

Heres another interesting "bedtime" story from the old days....

Even though the 1970s signaled the decline of the Chicago Outfit, still during those days they had one stable and quite strong hierarchy and also continued to enter many legitimate enterprises, such as the catering business since it was the new thing at the time and became one of the most lucrative legitimate operations.

The case which I’m about to present you consists many gaps, and the main reason for that were the many murders and unexplained connections for which the mobile catering service in the Chicago area never really reached its peak during those days.

Sources from that period connect some of the Grand Av members like Joey Lombardo with the bosses from the Elmwood Park crew such as Joe Gagliano and Jackie Cerone who in turn was in prison at the time, although we have some information that Lombardo came under the EP crew or to be exact, under one John DeBiase which explains the close connection between the two crews, but thats another story.

In 1970, that same group entered the food catering business with the help of one of their associates known as John Schaffer a.k.a. Juan Atilano, the owner of the restaurant La Hacienda Del Sol, located at 1945 N. Sedgwick St. on the city’s North Side, and he was also part owner of the Thunderbird Catering Co. at 4242 S. Racine Av. on the South Side.

Schaffer had no criminal record and on top of that, he had one professional “team” under his rule which carried out the operation. For example, besides Schaffer, another individual with hidden interests in both establishments, and was also employed as manager, was Jack Clarke, one quite controversial consultant for the Chicago Police Department, undercover agent for the FBI and private investigator, who in turn also had many connections on Chicago’s docks which made him the Mob’s perfect puppet.

In fact, Clarke was one of the worst kinds of criminals since he worked for three different “agencies”, including the police, the feds and the Outfit, and paid, with tons of cash, many high profile informants from within the crime syndicate regarding underworld activities, but above all he worked for himself.

The other half of the “team” was completed by one quiet, unassuming, hardworking and intelligent lady who went by the name of Rita Payonk and she was the group’s main bookkeeper for both establishments and knew all the secrets and schemes, which in fact were tax evasion and forcing other establishments to buy their catering products or trucks.

By now the Thunderbird Catering Co. had almost 100 mobile catering trucks, which in fact became one of the leading companies who were on the rise in making a monopoly around Chicago. In addition, Miss Payonk was in fact Clarke’s friend who in turn brought her into the firm and there’s also one possibility that Schaffer’s Outfit “friendship” really came from Clarke’s personal connections.

Things became complicated in 1971, when the capo for the Elmwood Park crew, Joe Gagliano died of natural causes and reports say that none of the EP crew members inherited that same operation but instead it was Joey Lombardo who was a rising star at the time for the future Grand Av crew.

The main complication occurred in 1973 when Jack Clarke was indicted for tax evasion in a different case and was sentenced to three years in jail, and on top of that, after a while it was disclosed that he also worked for the feds, which made the situation even more dangerous.

So instead of serving three years, Clarke served only 11 months in prison and in 1975 he was called before a grand jury regarding his shady activities, but he took the 5th more than few times.

The main problem was that the front guys such as Schaffer began noticing that they were losing more money instead of the gaining, because most of them were not aware of their own situation since they obviously did not understand the meaning of “front man”.

So right after Clarke’s testimony, on May 6, 1975, somebody planted a pipe bomb under the hood of John Schaffer’s automobile, which after the explosion, luckily for him, he was quite away from the car and left unharmed. Some of the investigators said that it was a possible murder attempt and some said that it might’ve been only a warning since the bomb was professionally planted.

When the investigators questioned Schaffer, in an already known victim style, he answered that he allegedly had no clue on who would’ve tried such a thing and he never had a quarrel with anyone. If Schaffer was telling the whole truth, then the life-threatening situation of his bookkeeper Rita Payonk would’ve never occurred.

On January 18, 1976, two masked men armed with high powered rifles, while riding a car, fired more than a dozen of shots as the poor woman drove home but she ended up wounded slightly in the incident. According to the report, Schaffer was in a position to help his female co-worker but instead, he and Clarke told her that it was a possible mistaken identity and that all of those bullets were meant for someone else.

From that point on the poor woman was forced to ask her colleagues on daily basis to escort her to her car after work, but according to those same sources, during that period Miss Payonk was again visited more than a couple of times by Clarke, who in turn allegedly advised her that the coast was completely clear and there was no reason for her to be further afraid.

So according to her colleagues, on February 6, 1976, she allegedly told them that she wasn’t scared anymore and that all things were good. That same day, 31-year old Rita Payonk was found shot two times at the back of her head and four times in the chest, while being seated and slumped over the wheel of her car in the 1800 block of North Lincoln Avenue. The investigators reported that it was a professional assassination since they found six 38.caliber shell casings on the floor of the victim’s auto but they were not able to determinate if the killer or killers lay and waited inside the car or forced his or their way in.

In the end, the investigators connected Payonk’s murder to the narcotics business, since some of the truck drivers were involved in the scheme, which for me personally doesn’t make any sense. After the slaying of Miss Payonk, the government turned its view over the mobile catering business which in fact was one of the first reasons for its huge failure at the time.

The killings continued with the two high profile slayings of two of Clarke’s former colleagues such as police officer John Lourgos in April, 1977, and also police commander Mark Thanasouras in July that same year. Story goes that both victims were seen on daily basis at the La Hacienda Del Sol and they also associated with owners, truck drivers and employees of the Thunderbird Catering Co.

My other belief is that these guys were possible associates of Clarke or whoever was behind him, like members from the Mob. The best proof for that was the murder of the manager of the Thunderbird Co. and long-time employee, who went by the name of Richard Crofton, which occurred in December that same year. He was shot to death “gangland style” by two assassins with ski masks outside his garage, or in other words, six times in the head, chest and back.

On top of that, during this period the pressure probably caught up with Schaffer since he died of natural causes and his ownership was inherited by his wife. So before the Crofton murder, Miss Theresa Schaffer told the police that she allegedly received a death threat over the phone and from this point on, some of the corrupt investigators were no longer in a position to cover up the whole scandal, since it became obvious that something was obviously happening particularly in the food catering business.

Many of the newspapers began posting statements regarding the mobile catering alleged war or conflict and so in no time, the whole violent and murderous situation suddenly went down. Some speculated that these slayings were obviously orchestrated by Chicago's organized crime syndicate aka the Chicago Outfit, mainly because of the modus operandi in the slayings, which were exactly the same as the ones which were executed by so-called hit teams of the Grand Avenue or Chinatown crews.

Somebody obviously cleared the way for the Thunderbird Co. and also killed anyone who might’ve represented some type of obstacle for the whole operation. You see, by now the catering company became the main player in the industry with almost 150 trucks which made the money flow quite serious since they held their own monopoly within the city of Chicago. The so-called “peace” lasted for nearly 6 years, until “somebody” went on a killing spree for the second time, but from this point on most of the victims belonged to rival companies.

For example, in 1983 one of the leading catering firms was the Best Catering Co. which was owned by Theresa Schaffer, one Louis Papalia and also one shady individual with Outfit connections known as Mike Spiotto. Obviously their company was successful because of Schaffer’s interest but that same year, “someone” thought differently, meaning it was time for the Best Catering to go fully with the Thunderbird.

So one day, in the same style, Spiotto was gunned down by two assassins as he left his girlfriend’s apartment on the city’s South Side. When some of the authorities questioned Spiotto’s family of any possible enemies of theirs but they said that he had no problems in life and that he belonged to some local motorcycle gang, a statement which I again find it quite laughable.

During the same time, two other food catering giants such as the E & D Catering and also the M & S Catering companies were suffering for the same problems, meaning some shady individuals were constantly warning them regarding their supply of food catering trucks around the Chicago area and also tried to extort them. At one instance, there was a suspicious fire at one of their plants, and finally, just one day after the Spiotto slaying, the main shareholder in both companies DeMar Thorton was killed together with his wife Norma in the bathroom of their home on the western suburbs.

The strange thing was that none of the investigators ever cleared any of the previous murders, but since the Thorton slaying was high profile, they quickly “found" the murderers and so the police chief at the time declared that the double murder was nothing but a simple drug deal which went wrong and also loudly stated that it was unrelated to any “non-existing” war in the catering business.

The police also stated that they allegedly managed to find $250,000 worth of cocaine in one of Thorton’s antique automobiles and also photographs of the couple with local gang members and organized crime figures. So in no time they made quite a big deal out of it by also arresting and convicting two alleged suspects.

My opinion is that if the couple was really in the dope business than why didn’t somebody from the investigators previously found or arrested at least one suspect dealing drugs for the late Thortons, but instead they found the stash after their murders. If you ask me, somebody could’ve easily placed the drugs there right after the killings and make the take the whole case in a different direction.

If anyone really believed in the police chief’s words, then nobody would’ve left or sold their food catering businesses, but instead that’s what really happened such as the Papalia family who sold and left the business permanently like many others. On top of that, many close friends and associates of the late Thorton couple stated that there was no need for them to sell any kind of drugs since they had all the money in the world from their legit business.

For me personally the only investigator who told the truth was one Patrick Healey from the Chicago Crime Commission who in turn never mentioned any personal finding regarding the narcotics racket, but instead he clearly stated only what have the other investigators told him and allegedly discovered. That’s why in the Healy only stated that there wasn’t much space for democracy in the mobile catering business and that everyone was forced to buy their supplies and food from certain individuals and that was it.

One mobile caterer also stated that all of the investigations came to nothing in the end and that they were like fishing expeditions which fished for some alleged impropriety but none really came up. The other interesting thing was that all of the murders stopped at the same period when the Grand Avenue crew boss Joey Lombardo was indicted and sentenced to prison regarding the extortion attempt of some wealthy construction owner.

In addition, one Grand Avenue crew member and also the Outfit’s main representative in Las Vegas, Nevada; known as Tony Spilotro, in 1983 went to a trial in which he planned to contact the owner of the catering service which fed all 17 grand jurors and also the underworld informant known as Sal Romano, and to convince him to poison the food which all of the previously mentioned individuals ate. In plane words, Spilotro planned to kill the entire Nevada grand jury, including their main witness, and story goes that he worked out the plot but later for unknown reasons he cancelled the operation.

This means that the Grand Avenue boys had their fingers in the previous murders and I’m not making a conclusion or anything but instead I’m only placing out some of the facts and my personal opinions on the previous cases since it’s quite a mystery.

Some say that particular “mystery” was one of the reasons for which the government tried to legally ban the mobile food vending units and companies on several occasions, mainly because this kind of food vending was allegedly destroying the business of the local restaurants, bars or hotels and on top of that, some of the investigators tried to prove that most of caterers were not paying their taxes but by the end of the day they couldn’t make one single case.

The government tried to ban the food truck business all around Chicago, but according to some reports, “coincidentally” their main target was the Grand Avenue area, obviously for the biggest concentration of food trucks in that same territory. Another problem which allegedly occurred and the government was concerned about was the physical violence among truck drivers, mainly for selling spots.

But even with that, by the end of decade most of the top mobsters who were possibly extorting the food catering business were gone and also with most of the competition gone, the Thunderbird firm remained at the top of the industry with Theresa Schaffer as the chief executive.

[Snakes]

Ken Eto was being investigated for narcotics around the time of his shooting. I have thought that perhaps the Outfit finding out about this was another reason why they may have wanted him dead. On the subject of food distribution, Eto was involved in that business for a time and was employed by Taco-Si.

[PolackTony]

Heres another interesting "bedtime" story from the old days....

Even though the 1970s signaled the decline of the Chicago Outfit, still during those days they had one stable and quite strong hierarchy and also continued to enter many legitimate enterprises, such as the catering business since it was the new thing at the time and became one of the most lucrative legitimate operations.

The case which I’m about to present you consists many gaps, and the main reason for that were the many murders and unexplained connections for which the mobile catering service in the Chicago area never really reached its peak during those days.

Sources from that period connect some of the Grand Av members like Joey Lombardo with the bosses from the Elmwood Park crew such as Joe Gagliano and Jackie Cerone who in turn was in prison at the time, although we have some information that Lombardo came under the EP crew or to be exact, under one John DeBiase which explains the close connection between the two crews, but thats another story.

In 1970, that same group entered the food catering business with the help of one of their associates known as John Schaffer a.k.a. Juan Atilano, the owner of the restaurant La Hacienda Del Sol, located at 1945 N. Sedgwick St. on the city’s North Side, and he was also part owner of the Thunderbird Catering Co. at 4242 S. Racine Av. on the South Side.

Schaffer had no criminal record and on top of that, he had one professional “team” under his rule which carried out the operation. For example, besides Schaffer, another individual with hidden interests in both establishments, and was also employed as manager, was Jack Clarke, one quite controversial consultant for the Chicago Police Department, undercover agent for the FBI and private investigator, who in turn also had many connections on Chicago’s docks which made him the Mob’s perfect puppet.

In fact, Clarke was one of the worst kinds of criminals since he worked for three different “agencies”, including the police, the feds and the Outfit, and paid, with tons of cash, many high profile informants from within the crime syndicate regarding underworld activities, but above all he worked for himself.

The other half of the “team” was completed by one quiet, unassuming, hardworking and intelligent lady who went by the name of Rita Payonk and she was the group’s main bookkeeper for both establishments and knew all the secrets and schemes, which in fact were tax evasion and forcing other establishments to buy their catering products or trucks.

By now the Thunderbird Catering Co. had almost 100 mobile catering trucks, which in fact became one of the leading companies who were on the rise in making a monopoly around Chicago. In addition, Miss Payonk was in fact Clarke’s friend who in turn brought her into the firm and there’s also one possibility that Schaffer’s Outfit “friendship” really came from Clarke’s personal connections.

Things became complicated in 1971, when the capo for the Elmwood Park crew, Joe Gagliano died of natural causes and reports say that none of the EP crew members inherited that same operation but instead it was Joey Lombardo who was a rising star at the time for the future Grand Av crew.

The main complication occurred in 1973 when Jack Clarke was indicted for tax evasion in a different case and was sentenced to three years in jail, and on top of that, after a while it was disclosed that he also worked for the feds, which made the situation even more dangerous.

So instead of serving three years, Clarke served only 11 months in prison and in 1975 he was called before a grand jury regarding his shady activities, but he took the 5th more than few times.

The main problem was that the front guys such as Schaffer began noticing that they were losing more money instead of the gaining, because most of them were not aware of their own situation since they obviously did not understand the meaning of “front man”.

So right after Clarke’s testimony, on May 6, 1975, somebody planted a pipe bomb under the hood of John Schaffer’s automobile, which after the explosion, luckily for him, he was quite away from the car and left unharmed. Some of the investigators said that it was a possible murder attempt and some said that it might’ve been only a warning since the bomb was professionally planted.

When the investigators questioned Schaffer, in an already known victim style, he answered that he allegedly had no clue on who would’ve tried such a thing and he never had a quarrel with anyone. If Schaffer was telling the whole truth, then the life-threatening situation of his bookkeeper Rita Payonk would’ve never occurred.

On January 18, 1976, two masked men armed with high powered rifles, while riding a car, fired more than a dozen of shots as the poor woman drove home but she ended up wounded slightly in the incident. According to the report, Schaffer was in a position to help his female co-worker but instead, he and Clarke told her that it was a possible mistaken identity and that all of those bullets were meant for someone else.

From that point on the poor woman was forced to ask her colleagues on daily basis to escort her to her car after work, but according to those same sources, during that period Miss Payonk was again visited more than a couple of times by Clarke, who in turn allegedly advised her that the coast was completely clear and there was no reason for her to be further afraid.

So according to her colleagues, on February 6, 1976, she allegedly told them that she wasn’t scared anymore and that all things were good. That same day, 31-year old Rita Payonk was found shot two times at the back of her head and four times in the chest, while being seated and slumped over the wheel of her car in the 1800 block of North Lincoln Avenue. The investigators reported that it was a professional assassination since they found six 38.caliber shell casings on the floor of the victim’s auto but they were not able to determinate if the killer or killers lay and waited inside the car or forced his or their way in.

In the end, the investigators connected Payonk’s murder to the narcotics business, since some of the truck drivers were involved in the scheme, which for me personally doesn’t make any sense. After the slaying of Miss Payonk, the government turned its view over the mobile catering business which in fact was one of the first reasons for its huge failure at the time.

The killings continued with the two high profile slayings of two of Clarke’s former colleagues such as police officer John Lourgos in April, 1977, and also police commander Mark Thanasouras in July that same year. Story goes that both victims were seen on daily basis at the La Hacienda Del Sol and they also associated with owners, truck drivers and employees of the Thunderbird Catering Co.

My other belief is that these guys were possible associates of Clarke or whoever was behind him, like members from the Mob. The best proof for that was the murder of the manager of the Thunderbird Co. and long-time employee, who went by the name of Richard Crofton, which occurred in December that same year. He was shot to death “gangland style” by two assassins with ski masks outside his garage, or in other words, six times in the head, chest and back.

On top of that, during this period the pressure probably caught up with Schaffer since he died of natural causes and his ownership was inherited by his wife. So before the Crofton murder, Miss Theresa Schaffer told the police that she allegedly received a death threat over the phone and from this point on, some of the corrupt investigators were no longer in a position to cover up the whole scandal, since it became obvious that something was obviously happening particularly in the food catering business.

Many of the newspapers began posting statements regarding the mobile catering alleged war or conflict and so in no time, the whole violent and murderous situation suddenly went down. Some speculated that these slayings were obviously orchestrated by Chicago's organized crime syndicate aka the Chicago Outfit, mainly because of the modus operandi in the slayings, which were exactly the same as the ones which were executed by so-called hit teams of the Grand Avenue or Chinatown crews.

Somebody obviously cleared the way for the Thunderbird Co. and also killed anyone who might’ve represented some type of obstacle for the whole operation. You see, by now the catering company became the main player in the industry with almost 150 trucks which made the money flow quite serious since they held their own monopoly within the city of Chicago. The so-called “peace” lasted for nearly 6 years, until “somebody” went on a killing spree for the second time, but from this point on most of the victims belonged to rival companies.

For example, in 1983 one of the leading catering firms was the Best Catering Co. which was owned by Theresa Schaffer, one Louis Papalia and also one shady individual with Outfit connections known as Mike Spiotto. Obviously their company was successful because of Schaffer’s interest but that same year, “someone” thought differently, meaning it was time for the Best Catering to go fully with the Thunderbird.

So one day, in the same style, Spiotto was gunned down by two assassins as he left his girlfriend’s apartment on the city’s South Side. When some of the authorities questioned Spiotto’s family of any possible enemies of theirs but they said that he had no problems in life and that he belonged to some local motorcycle gang, a statement which I again find it quite laughable.

During the same time, two other food catering giants such as the E & D Catering and also the M & S Catering companies were suffering for the same problems, meaning some shady individuals were constantly warning them regarding their supply of food catering trucks around the Chicago area and also tried to extort them. At one instance, there was a suspicious fire at one of their plants, and finally, just one day after the Spiotto slaying, the main shareholder in both companies DeMar Thorton was killed together with his wife Norma in the bathroom of their home on the western suburbs.

The strange thing was that none of the investigators ever cleared any of the previous murders, but since the Thorton slaying was high profile, they quickly “found" the murderers and so the police chief at the time declared that the double murder was nothing but a simple drug deal which went wrong and also loudly stated that it was unrelated to any “non-existing” war in the catering business.

The police also stated that they allegedly managed to find $250,000 worth of cocaine in one of Thorton’s antique automobiles and also photographs of the couple with local gang members and organized crime figures. So in no time they made quite a big deal out of it by also arresting and convicting two alleged suspects.

My opinion is that if the couple was really in the dope business than why didn’t somebody from the investigators previously found or arrested at least one suspect dealing drugs for the late Thortons, but instead they found the stash after their murders. If you ask me, somebody could’ve easily placed the drugs there right after the killings and make the take the whole case in a different direction.

If anyone really believed in the police chief’s words, then nobody would’ve left or sold their food catering businesses, but instead that’s what really happened such as the Papalia family who sold and left the business permanently like many others. On top of that, many close friends and associates of the late Thorton couple stated that there was no need for them to sell any kind of drugs since they had all the money in the world from their legit business.

For me personally the only investigator who told the truth was one Patrick Healey from the Chicago Crime Commission who in turn never mentioned any personal finding regarding the narcotics racket, but instead he clearly stated only what have the other investigators told him and allegedly discovered. That’s why in the Healy only stated that there wasn’t much space for democracy in the mobile catering business and that everyone was forced to buy their supplies and food from certain individuals and that was it.

One mobile caterer also stated that all of the investigations came to nothing in the end and that they were like fishing expeditions which fished for some alleged impropriety but none really came up. The other interesting thing was that all of the murders stopped at the same period when the Grand Avenue crew boss Joey Lombardo was indicted and sentenced to prison regarding the extortion attempt of some wealthy construction owner.

In addition, one Grand Avenue crew member and also the Outfit’s main representative in Las Vegas, Nevada; known as Tony Spilotro, in 1983 went to a trial in which he planned to contact the owner of the catering service which fed all 17 grand jurors and also the underworld informant known as Sal Romano, and to convince him to poison the food which all of the previously mentioned individuals ate. In plane words, Spilotro planned to kill the entire Nevada grand jury, including their main witness, and story goes that he worked out the plot but later for unknown reasons he cancelled the operation.

This means that the Grand Avenue boys had their fingers in the previous murders and I’m not making a conclusion or anything but instead I’m only placing out some of the facts and my personal opinions on the previous cases since it’s quite a mystery.

Some say that particular “mystery” was one of the reasons for which the government tried to legally ban the mobile food vending units and companies on several occasions, mainly because this kind of food vending was allegedly destroying the business of the local restaurants, bars or hotels and on top of that, some of the investigators tried to prove that most of caterers were not paying their taxes but by the end of the day they couldn’t make one single case.

The government tried to ban the food truck business all around Chicago, but according to some reports, “coincidentally” their main target was the Grand Avenue area, obviously for the biggest concentration of food trucks in that same territory. Another problem which allegedly occurred and the government was concerned about was the physical violence among truck drivers, mainly for selling spots.

But even with that, by the end of decade most of the top mobsters who were possibly extorting the food catering business were gone and also with most of the competition gone, the Thunderbird firm remained at the top of the industry with Theresa Schaffer as the chief executive.

Thanks for this Villain, yet another area in Chicago gripped by the tentacles of the old Outfit. I began working in industrial jobs as a kid in the early 90s in Chicago and recall that Thunderbird were still the main people operating the lunch trucks. I also recall hearing rumors that the lunch truck industry was mobbed up racket and one couldn't just operate a truck without fear of reprisal.

Another thing to note regarding the Grand Ave connection is the use in the hits you recount of hitters in ski masks. Anyone can don a mask of course, but the first thing that comes to mind from that same era for me is the hits on Seifert and Richard Cain.

[PolackTony]

@Villain and @Confederate, I noted on the chart you two did a couple of years ago for Chicago in the Giancana era you have a Pablo Rivera listed as a lieutenant under the Northside organization. I have not been able to find anything on this figure. Given the surname Rivera and the fact that he was on the Northside he would almost certainly have been Puerto Rican (during past decades most Puerto Ricans were on the the N/NW sides while most Mexicans were on the S/SW). Any further info on this guy? I've assumed that the Northside faction had links to what used to be a large PR community in Old Town, Lincoln Park, and Lakeview given their control over the "bolita" racket. I'd suspect also they would've had some links to important PR gangs in the area back then such as the Young Lords, Latin Kings, and Latin Eagles as well.

OK, I did find some archived articles that note Rivera was busted along with Eto and Yoshii for their bolita operation. It's interesting also that along woth some clearly Puerto Rican associates (e.g.a guy named Irizarry), others involved based on their addresses and surnames were almost certainly Mexicans. The article also notes that Eto and Yoshii were receiving their orders from both Prio and Fifi Buccieri, so this was a North and Westside partnership. This makes sense, as the Mexican guys involved woild likely have been running the numbers operation in the Little Village/Pilsen Mexican communities which would've come under the Westside territory, while Rivera and Irizarry and other PR guys would've been running the Lincoln Park/Lakeview area operation.

So this was an Italian/Japanese/Puerto Rican/Mexican operation, linking two Outfit "families" in the name of the love of money. A very Chicago story lol.

From what I can tell later in the 70s Rivera was operating a lounge on North Ave near Talman in Humboldt Park. I knew this lounge well, as it was still operating decades later in the 90s and was connected to both the MLDs (major narcotics trafficking street gang) and older Puerto Rican gangsters with ties directly to Puerto Rico. It would be very interesting to confirm if Rivera's ties to the Outfit continued after the Eto/Yoshii bolita bust.

Everything you said is spot on and also thanks for the additional info.

Eto's the Golden 8 Ball Pool and Billiard Hall, the Subway Pool Room, Mike’s Rainbow Restaurant and Merlo’s Real Estate and Insurance Co. were the main places that have been used as money drops and meeting places for the North Side faction. They also had a African-American in their ranks known as James Kid Riviera Williams, and according to FBI reports Williams was seen having meetings with Eto and Prio. Williams was one of the killers on the Ald Ben Lewis hit.

Also in 1962 Eto and another Rush Street associate and club owner Aaron “Obie” Oberlander traveled to San Juan, Puerto Rico to establish multimillion dollar hotel for gambling operations and to be utilized by Ross Prio and others. By the early 70s they lost the Bolita racket since Eto wasn’t able to bring it back mainly because the second generation of Latin-Americans refused to work for the Mob.

Just as a follow up on Rivera. I already mentioned that he was running a Puerto Rican lounge on North Ave near Talman (Serrano's). In the 70s this lounge was firebombed, and Rivera told the police that a bunch of kids hanging out in the alley at 2am did it. Given his connections and associations to the numbers and drug rackets I doubt the story of course. I'd suspect given his location that he may have been a liaison or connect between the Mob and the Latin Disciples, and I know that you've stated before that you've found some evidence tying this organization to the Outfit around narcotics. There are still some people in Chicago I could ask about this next time I'm there.

I'm general, I'd like to know more about the Eto crew's connections to narcotics and (likely) to street gangs. Is their any evidence that narcotics also played a role in the decision to whack Eto?

[B.]

References to the Chicago family from Fratianno's 1984 Congressional testimony referred to in other threads:

On Commission meetings:

A: No, they don't meet like they used to. See, they meet like one on one. I was with Funzi Tieri where he had to go to Chicago and talk with Joey Aiuppa so, they don't meet all at one time because they are afraid maybe of getting caught Or whatever, you know, exposed.

On non-members being used as "fronts" for investments:

A: Right. See, somebody that owns a place in Las Vegas, that is a little shady, he needs a little help because if somebody bothers him who is he going to get to get him off his back. Let's take Morry Shenker, Anthony Giordano from St. Louis, he was his man. Nobody could go to Shenker and try to do anything to him because he would call Tony. Anthony Giordano would take care of him. There is times they would put up money, they were going to buy a club in North Lake Tahoe, the Crystal Bay. We had a guy who was going to buy it for us and the Chicago family was going to put up the bankroll. We needed at that time two, $300,000. Well, they put up the money like for bankroll, they do, but what I'm saying is, a lot of times they don't have to put up a nickel, because the person that buys it needs protection.

On members stashing money:

Q: Where do you hide it?
A: They found one in New York where they had it in the attic in shoe boxes, a million dollars. One of the bosses in Buffalo. they found, I think five, $600,000. Here. Last three or four years, they found $275,000 in Joe Batters' house. They found $275,000 in Joe Valachi's, under the sofa. This is all the F.B.I. found.

More on non-members used as "fronts":

Q: Mr. Fratianno, when you were active with the La Cosa Nostra, did you have occasion to meet the man by the name of Sidney Korshak?
A: Yes, sir.
Q: Would you tell the Commission what you know about him and what function, if any, he provides for organized crime?
A: He is a Chicago man for 30 years that I know of. He practically runs the Mafia industry. I happen to know this because at one time
we went to him, he runs the Teamsters in Western Conference. I happen to know that Chicago -- when we talked to Sidney Korshak, they called us in. We had a meeting and he told us to let him alone because he's been their man for thirty years. Well, have known this right along, but, he operates all the unions, get a million dollar fee. He pays his taxes on that money and he gives them the cash under the table.
Q: Would Sidney Korshak be the type of person you had in mind when you were telling the Commission about front men that operate for organized crime?
A: He is one of them, yes, sir.
Q: Would you name some others for the Commission, please, specifically those in Vegas?
A: Jimmy Napoli, from New York.
Q: Okay.
A: He was a front man for the Tieri family for years, although in the past seven, eiqht years, they made him a member. Gussie Alex from Chicago.
Q: You mentioned Meyer Lansky a moment ago. How important was Meyer Lansky in terms of handling money or providing front activities?
A: He always had front activity. Gus Greenbaum was one of his front men for years. He was owner of the Flamingo and they eventually killed him. Morry Shenker, more or less a front man for the St. Louis family. There was a lot of them, a lot of them that I don't know.

Frank LaPorte helping arrange a loan for Fratianno:

Q: In the middle of the 60's you were involved in the trucking business and you obtained a substantial loan from a Chicago bank in your endeavor. Was there any mob influence at all exerted in obtaining that loan?
A: Yes, sir.
Q: Could you describe how that occurred?
A: Well, Frank LaPorte got the loan in a Chicago bank. He knew the president. I think it was, don't remember the amount, but I got $150,000. I think he borrowed 250 if I am not mistaken. That was it, just word of mouth.

[Villain]

Thanks for this Villain, yet another area in Chicago gripped by the tentacles of the old Outfit. I began working in industrial jobs as a kid in the early 90s in Chicago and recall that Thunderbird were still the main people operating the lunch trucks. I also recall hearing rumors that the lunch truck industry was mobbed up racket and one couldn't just operate a truck without fear of reprisal.

Another thing to note regarding the Grand Ave connection is the use in the hits you recount of hitters in ski masks. Anyone can don a mask of course, but the first thing that comes to mind from that same era for me is the hits on Seifert and Richard Cain.

You are welcome and yeah I agree regarding the modus operandi

[Villain]

@Villain and @Confederate, I noted on the chart you two did a couple of years ago for Chicago in the Giancana era you have a Pablo Rivera listed as a lieutenant under the Northside organization. I have not been able to find anything on this figure. Given the surname Rivera and the fact that he was on the Northside he would almost certainly have been Puerto Rican (during past decades most Puerto Ricans were on the the N/NW sides while most Mexicans were on the S/SW). Any further info on this guy? I've assumed that the Northside faction had links to what used to be a large PR community in Old Town, Lincoln Park, and Lakeview given their control over the "bolita" racket. I'd suspect also they would've had some links to important PR gangs in the area back then such as the Young Lords, Latin Kings, and Latin Eagles as well.

OK, I did find some archived articles that note Rivera was busted along with Eto and Yoshii for their bolita operation. It's interesting also that along woth some clearly Puerto Rican associates (e.g.a guy named Irizarry), others involved based on their addresses and surnames were almost certainly Mexicans. The article also notes that Eto and Yoshii were receiving their orders from both Prio and Fifi Buccieri, so this was a North and Westside partnership. This makes sense, as the Mexican guys involved woild likely have been running the numbers operation in the Little Village/Pilsen Mexican communities which would've come under the Westside territory, while Rivera and Irizarry and other PR guys would've been running the Lincoln Park/Lakeview area operation.

So this was an Italian/Japanese/Puerto Rican/Mexican operation, linking two Outfit "families" in the name of the love of money. A very Chicago story lol.

From what I can tell later in the 70s Rivera was operating a lounge on North Ave near Talman in Humboldt Park. I knew this lounge well, as it was still operating decades later in the 90s and was connected to both the MLDs (major narcotics trafficking street gang) and older Puerto Rican gangsters with ties directly to Puerto Rico. It would be very interesting to confirm if Rivera's ties to the Outfit continued after the Eto/Yoshii bolita bust.

Everything you said is spot on and also thanks for the additional info.

Eto's the Golden 8 Ball Pool and Billiard Hall, the Subway Pool Room, Mike’s Rainbow Restaurant and Merlo’s Real Estate and Insurance Co. were the main places that have been used as money drops and meeting places for the North Side faction. They also had a African-American in their ranks known as James Kid Riviera Williams, and according to FBI reports Williams was seen having meetings with Eto and Prio. Williams was one of the killers on the Ald Ben Lewis hit.

Also in 1962 Eto and another Rush Street associate and club owner Aaron “Obie” Oberlander traveled to San Juan, Puerto Rico to establish multimillion dollar hotel for gambling operations and to be utilized by Ross Prio and others. By the early 70s they lost the Bolita racket since Eto wasn’t able to bring it back mainly because the second generation of Latin-Americans refused to work for the Mob.

Just as a follow up on Rivera. I already mentioned that he was running a Puerto Rican lounge on North Ave near Talman (Serrano's). In the 70s this lounge was firebombed, and Rivera told the police that a bunch of kids hanging out in the alley at 2am did it. Given his connections and associations to the numbers and drug rackets I doubt the story of course. I'd suspect given his location that he may have been a liaison or connect between the Mob and the Latin Disciples, and I know that you've stated before that you've found some evidence tying this organization to the Outfit around narcotics. There are still some people in Chicago I could ask about this next time I'm there.

I'm general, I'd like to know more about the Eto crew's connections to narcotics and (likely) to street gangs. Is their any evidence that narcotics also played a role in the decision to whack Eto?

Thanks for additional info.

As for Eto, his main dope connection was Sam Sarcinelli and i dont know if any of this had to do with the hit on Eto, although i think that everything is perfectly explained in the court documents and even in that documentary about him

[Patrickgold]

@Villain and @Confederate, I noted on the chart you two did a couple of years ago for Chicago in the Giancana era you have a Pablo Rivera listed as a lieutenant under the Northside organization. I have not been able to find anything on this figure. Given the surname Rivera and the fact that he was on the Northside he would almost certainly have been Puerto Rican (during past decades most Puerto Ricans were on the the N/NW sides while most Mexicans were on the S/SW). Any further info on this guy? I've assumed that the Northside faction had links to what used to be a large PR community in Old Town, Lincoln Park, and Lakeview given their control over the "bolita" racket. I'd suspect also they would've had some links to important PR gangs in the area back then such as the Young Lords, Latin Kings, and Latin Eagles as well.

OK, I did find some archived articles that note Rivera was busted along with Eto and Yoshii for their bolita operation. It's interesting also that along woth some clearly Puerto Rican associates (e.g.a guy named Irizarry), others involved based on their addresses and surnames were almost certainly Mexicans. The article also notes that Eto and Yoshii were receiving their orders from both Prio and Fifi Buccieri, so this was a North and Westside partnership. This makes sense, as the Mexican guys involved woild likely have been running the numbers operation in the Little Village/Pilsen Mexican communities which would've come under the Westside territory, while Rivera and Irizarry and other PR guys would've been running the Lincoln Park/Lakeview area operation.

So this was an Italian/Japanese/Puerto Rican/Mexican operation, linking two Outfit "families" in the name of the love of money. A very Chicago story lol.

From what I can tell later in the 70s Rivera was operating a lounge on North Ave near Talman in Humboldt Park. I knew this lounge well, as it was still operating decades later in the 90s and was connected to both the MLDs (major narcotics trafficking street gang) and older Puerto Rican gangsters with ties directly to Puerto Rico. It would be very interesting to confirm if Rivera's ties to the Outfit continued after the Eto/Yoshii bolita bust.

Everything you said is spot on and also thanks for the additional info.

Eto's the Golden 8 Ball Pool and Billiard Hall, the Subway Pool Room, Mike’s Rainbow Restaurant and Merlo’s Real Estate and Insurance Co. were the main places that have been used as money drops and meeting places for the North Side faction. They also had a African-American in their ranks known as James Kid Riviera Williams, and according to FBI reports Williams was seen having meetings with Eto and Prio. Williams was one of the killers on the Ald Ben Lewis hit.

Also in 1962 Eto and another Rush Street associate and club owner Aaron “Obie” Oberlander traveled to San Juan, Puerto Rico to establish multimillion dollar hotel for gambling operations and to be utilized by Ross Prio and others. By the early 70s they lost the Bolita racket since Eto wasn’t able to bring it back mainly because the second generation of Latin-Americans refused to work for the Mob.

Just as a follow up on Rivera. I already mentioned that he was running a Puerto Rican lounge on North Ave near Talman (Serrano's). In the 70s this lounge was firebombed, and Rivera told the police that a bunch of kids hanging out in the alley at 2am did it. Given his connections and associations to the numbers and drug rackets I doubt the story of course. I'd suspect given his location that he may have been a liaison or connect between the Mob and the Latin Disciples, and I know that you've stated before that you've found some evidence tying this organization to the Outfit around narcotics. There are still some people in Chicago I could ask about this next time I'm there.

I'm general, I'd like to know more about the Eto crew's connections to narcotics and (likely) to street gangs. Is their any evidence that narcotics also played a role in the decision to whack Eto?

Thanks for additional info.

As for Eto, his main dope connection was Sam Sarcinelli and i dont know if any of this had to do with the hit on Eto, although i think that everything is perfectly explained in the court documents and even in that documentary about him

I had no idea that Eto’o crew was involved in narcotics but it makes sense considering who his clientele were. Also, Sam Sarcinelli is still alive and living in the south suburbs. He was an investor at polekatz but I don’t think he is anymore. There was a great book that talked about him and his dope connections in California. It’s called “LA Secret Police: inside the LAPD elite spy network” by Mike Rothmiller