Is organized crime dead in Detroit?

[mauser]

and no - the television mafia stuff isnt gone either.

[mauser]

From documentation many decades old, the CIA has worked with the Mafia

well, they are basically siblings - born and organized at the same time during the same effort. that whole ugly nazi SS thing after the war....

[Gannon]

I never knew that. Thought the Cosa Nostra was way older than the CIA/OSS.

I would've missed that question if it were on the Gaelic League's Trivia Contest on those fun third Sundays throughout the wintertime. There was a time when the Gannon's ruled, but now we've got some sharp-ass competition. Gotta step up our game this year!

[R8RBOB]

As long as you have the dope game in Detroit, there will be no organized crime. Too many independents. Perhaps if some gang had consolidated the game years ago, the murder rate may have been lower.

[blackmath]

Now that I think of it....I've seen that too. Never really thought much of it though.

That's the old Queensmen clubhouse you're talking about. Recently it's been taken over by another group whose name escapes me at the present time.

Over here in Windsor there is definitely an element of Italian organized crime, but its mostly small time loan sharking, numbers rackets and back room card games for people who can't get into the casino. Windsor has always been a bottleneck for drug smuggling due to its prime location and it will always be the case, but the smugglers [[who are usually out of Toronto and Montreal) stick to their own.

Back in the day it was much more prevailent and severe. Famously Al Capone was involved heavily with rum running, prostitution, bookie joints and drug smuggling in this area. A few years ago I went out to an old derilict horse farm in Essex County that Al owned, and in the distance there was an old run down farm house that used to be a brothel, ran by -- you guessed it, Al Capone.

The days of the Mafia as it was are over. Simply due to the level of surveilance that they are under, the competition from many other groups who aren't easily intimidated by a flashy suit and a nice car, and the reko laws that are in place now.

[canuck]

Here's a thread from a great amateur [[as far as I know) Montreal photographer. At the bottom of the first page of his thread he has shots of Nick Rizzuto's funeral in december 09. The old man in the hat is his grandfather, the don of the family, also named Nick who was shot last month which, unless his Son Vito who is jailed in Colorado survives, will mean the end of their dynasty. Their consiglierie Paolo Renda was abducted and is probably wearing cement shoes, and Agustino Cuntrera of the famed Caruana-Cuntrera family was also executed this summer along with his driver bodyguard. The Rizzutos replaced the Cotroni-Violi reign on the italian underworld by getting rid of the Violi brothers [[3) in the late seventies early 80's who were from the rival calabrian clan. The Violi sons who moved to Hamilton Ontario were not even teens when their fathers died and
there is speculation that they may be coming back with the help of wannabes Sergio Piccirilli and the D'amico brothers of Granby Quebec that are helping to clean the basement so to speak.

At the bottom of the first page are some well done funeral pictures;

http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/show...hlight=mr.john

[Blarf]

Organized crime flourished in America because of the Prohibition on alcohol.
Organized crime, as well as gang activity, continue to thrive because of prohibition of drugs.

Making money off of things people want is actually smart business.

[old guy]

If you have casinos, you have organized crime.

[GPCharles]

Some organized crime activities [[in no particular order)

1. gambling - for those that can't go to a casino i.e. no cash and need to gamble on credit;
2. prostitution;
3. loan sharking;
4. infiltration of legal business - remember Melrose Linen and Home Juice in the 60s and 70s?;
5. drugs - not street distribution, but importation;
6. theft - major targets;
7. union and political bribery;
8. bid rigging;
It goes on and on and on...

[Zacha341]

Hah. Now that's a point... just a softer version of organized crime.

If you have casinos, you have organized crime.

[davewindsor]

That's the old Queensmen clubhouse you're talking about. Recently it's been taken over by another group whose name escapes me at the present time.

Where did the Queensmen move to? Wellington Street?

[Fury13]

The Detroit mob is still around. It's just less visible. They're mighty thick out there in Washington and Shelby townships... one reason why the power structure in Macomb County is so corrupt.

[punky1]

canuck, those photos are great. would love to know what kind of camera and how far away to take the pics. out in full view or hiding somewhere.

[canuck]

Here's a restaurant in Montreal's Little Italy which is a sort of safe house for the mob. The Front entrance is on Jean Talon street, but there is an informal entrance/exit at the back that opens onto a public market. I was there a couple of times and years ago I noticed an item on the menu which confirmed my suspicion. This is a picture of the interior where old guns are displayed on the walls. The place is called Casa Cacciatore or Hunter's House.
A lot of the patrons were spooky. The last time I went, the food wasnt all that good. I also found the menu on the internet with the item in question...

[canuck]

canuck, those photos are great. would love to know what kind of camera and how far away to take the pics. out in full view or hiding somewhere.

I dont know the photographer but you could ask him about it, he posts often on that forum. He complains on that thread or another about a Nikon he has which is not too good apparently. He is a really good photographer. Has an eye for the surreal and a lot of anger in him. His name is mrjohn.
I think he is self taught but I dont want to get ahead of myself.

[Red Devil]

The Italian mafia is a relic of a bygone era. Los Zetas rule the Americas...for now anyways.

[Patrick]

The Italian mafia is a relic of a bygone era. Los Zetas rule the Americas...for now anyways.

Yea, but Los Zetas is no match for ICE

[canuck]

Yea, but Los Zetas is no match for ICE

Are these the same Z's as in Nyquil, or is it stronger stuff?

[Red Devil]

Yea, but Los Zetas is no match for ICE

Lol why would Los Zetas have to worry about ICE?

[terryh]

Organized crime is always there, the names and ethnicity just change.

Stosh read Black Mafia: Ethnic Succession In Organized Crime.

[terryh]

I collect Detroit Scope magazines from the sixties area and it seems the Combination, or Partnership, as the Detroit mob family is called, was still very active in the city at that time.extorting money and running-extorting illegal gambling I know as late as early nineties there were mob run gambling establishments raided, one being the former Tiger Club on Schaefer several blocks of 8 Mile, and a Race betting slip company on Gratiot just south of 8 Mile.Based on newspaper articles, sports betting with bookmakers [[bookies) is a mob contolled racket, with bookies paying a street tax to mobsters. There was a Michigan to Vegas bookmaking network that was busted back in early nineties, the newspaper article naming an aging Jewish bookie who had been associated with the Purple Gang. This is a fascinating subject!

[hogz]

Is BMF still around in Detroit?

I know the two leaders are in jail, and that they operated out of Atlanta and Los Angeles, but grew up in South West Detroit and kept Detroit connections.

What is [[or was) the extent of BMF business in Detroit?

Thank you to anyone who can answer these questions

[blackmath]

I dont know the photographer but you could ask him about it, he posts often on that forum. He complains on that thread or another about a Nikon he has which is not too good apparently. He is a really good photographer. Has an eye for the surreal and a lot of anger in him. His name is mrjohn.
I think he is self taught but I dont want to get ahead of myself.

That menu says it all to me right there, canuck. The Mafia is too in the open, too public to be anywhere near what it once was. It's almost a shame, because they really were a sort of police force for criminals - along with all their other facets. Ask anyone who was in Vegas from the 40s up until Howard Hughes took over in the late 60s, early 70s - the town was one of the safest cities in all of North America. They really had almost zero street crime. The Mafia kept all the thugs out and did their dirty work outside of the city.

Montreal has some of the most interesting organized crime history in all of North America. It's often looked over in favor of New York, Chicago, Boston and Philly, but their's is just as old and just as turbulent.

Also, to answer another question upthread - I don't know where the Queensmen's clubhouse is nowadays. I was in the old one with a friend who's uncle was a member like 7 years ago, and I couldn't get out of there fast enough. Played pool with a guy who was about twice my size and beat him very badly at pool - which is odd because I'm normally horrific at pool. But he was cool about it and he even bought me a beer...haha.

[Fury13]

...it seems the Combination, or Partnership, as the Detroit mob family is called, was still very active in the city at that time.extorting money and running-extorting illegal gambling...

It's still active and powerful in this area. Detroit's mob is one of a handful of healthy Italian mob organizations in America. This area's mob has also been very successful at not attracting undue publicity. The arrests in 1996 drove the local mob further under the radar... but those guys are out there, believe me.

[lpg]

I worked for a guy in the 70's that had a shop in SW Detroit. He must have borrowed money money from the mob, as every now and then a couple of big dudes in sharkskin suits would show up looking for him. He was usually hiding in the office closet. Later the shop moved to the southern burbs. The owner would leave and tell me to answer the phone. Every now and then a guy with a voice that sounded like he gargled with gravel mixed with broken glass would call and ask for the owner. He sounded like a pug from the Bronx "Deese, Dem, Dose". When I told the owner about the call he would get a funny look on his face and usually leave right away. Much later I asked another friend of the owner who the caller was and he just said "You don't want to meet this guy under any circumstances". Nuff said.