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The Lufthansa Heist 1978
The Lufthansa Heist of December 1978 would be known to many mob enthusiasts for a few reasons, mainly because it was immortalized in Martin Scorsese's 1990 classic movie Goodfella's. The Lufthansa heist took place at JFK International Airport on December 11, 1978. An...
Monk Eastman From Public Enemy to National Hero
Edward "Monk" Eastman (1875 – 1920) was a New York gangster and founder of the Eastman Gang, which became one of the most powerful street gangs in New York City. Of course Monk Eastman wasn't Irish, he did live in a time when the Irish, Jews and Italians worked and...
The Happy Hooligan, Knock Out Drops & Shanghaing
During the 1800's and early 1900's there was a practice that was used among some bartenders and saloon keepers, who were criminals themselves would spike drinks with knock-out drops or powders for the purpose of robbing a victim. In Fort Wayne, Indiana was a bartender...
Faction Fighting in New Orleans
Irish society in the 18th century saw a rise in violence known as faction fighting. Faction fighting was a type of recreational violence that was semi-organized pitched battles occurring usually at fairs and religious celebrations. Faction fights had its own set of...
“Wild” Jimmy Haggerty & The Schuylkill Rangers
“Wild Jimmy” Haggerty was a criminal in Philadelphia and later in New York City during the mid 19th century. Jimmy Haggerty was the leader of the Schuylkill Rangers, a street gang which terrorized the South Philadelphia waterfront for over 25 years. The notorious...
The Coll Schultz War Part 2 – The Death of a Mad Dog
With the months of May and June being the bloodiest part of the gang war between the Schultz and Coll gangs which left a trail of dead bodies in its wake, there would be further violence and one of the most infamous shootings was still to come. On July 28th came the...
The Coll Schultz War Part 1
During the 1930's a gang war broke out between two former associates Vincent "Mad Dog" Coll & Dutch Schultz which would leave a trail of bodies and resulting in the death of "Mad Dog" Coll. The Coll brothers Peter and the younger Vincent worked as gunmen and...
The Manhattan Savings Institution Bank Robbery 1878
The Manhattan Savings Institution Bank Robbery. On October 27, 1878 The manager of the Manhattan Savings Institution found the vault empty and nearly $3 million in currency and securities was missing. In real dollars it remains the largest bank robbery in history. The...
Baltimore’s Plug Uglies, Rip Rap’s & Election Violence
During the 1850s, political clubs with names like the Plug Uglies, Rip Raps, American Rattlers, and Blood Tubs formed in Baltimore, Maryland which earned it the nickname Mobtown largely due to the intimidation, riots, and murder. This was mainly due to Irish &...