Al capone

The 1920s were a period of social changes and technological advances in the U.S., which also included the Depression of '29 and a certain sexual liberalism. Jazz and the Charleston flooded the streets with their unique rhythm. It was an era when women flaunted knee-length miniskirts and short hair, and Coco Chanel stood out. It was also the time of women's suffrage and the enactment of Prohibition.

In the state of Chicago, Prohibition had triggered activities related to alcohol smuggling, which consequently led to wars, killings, and score-settling among smuggler gangs that filled the streets with blood, turning the state into the capital of organized crime. Al Capone was born in New York in 1899, the descendant of Italian parents who had migrated to the United States. At an early age, he joined and was accepted as a member of Johnny Torrio’s (“Papa Johnny”) gang, the greatest mafia leader of that time, who had established a powerful alcohol smuggling empire that brought liquor from Canada across Lake Michigan at night. Years later, Torrio would leave his empire in the hands of his right-hand man: Alphonse Capone.

Nicknamed “Scarface” due to a scar on the left side of his face, caused by a knife (ironically inflicted by his future brother-in-law), he is often described as someone who strutted through the streets of Chicago with a cigar in hand and a flashy pinky ring, wearing expensive suits and diamonds, cufflinks, and belt buckles of the same quality, always surrounded by his security (“gorillas” as journalists called them), certainly not discreet.

On February 14, 1929, known as the “St. Valentine’s Day Massacre,” an attack was planned and orchestrated by Al Capone against the men of his rival “Bugs” Moran. A Capone spy planted the idea to Moran that liquor shipments would arrive to Capone, and Moran took the bait; Moran’s men were mercilessly gunned down by Capone’s heavily armed men with Thompson submachine guns, Capone’s favorite weapon.

This mobster was attributed with more than 200 deaths, none of which agent Eliot Ness and his team, “The Untouchables,” could link to Capone, including the death of a young prosecutor, Billy McSwiggin, who had commented on putting Scarface behind bars and was mysteriously gunned down shortly after.

Capone’s career was largely greater than that of his mentor (Papa Johnny) as he controlled hundreds of brothels, bars, and gambling houses that even hosted politicians and police officers of all ranks. Although Capone was targeted for many crimes, none could be proven or linked to him until the Supreme Court established taxes on income from alcohol sales and illegal activities in general. This stopped Scarface, as they managed to link gambling receipts and tax evasion to him, resulting in an 11-year prison sentence on October 17, 1931, most of which he served on Alcatraz Island in San Francisco.

After 7 years, in 1939 he was released, but did not last long as an illness (syphilis) afflicted him, and on January 21, 1947, it ended his life at his home in Palm Island, Miami, putting an end to the famous mobster and, with him, the others, as the new law led to the capture of most gangsters of the era for the same reasons.

Bibliography

Cohen, F. (2021). Al Capone. Public Enemy No. 1. Muy especial (Muy interesante), 95.

Investigation, F. B. (n.d.). FBI: Famous cases & criminals. Retrieved July 27, 2021, from https://www.fbi.gov/history/famous-cases/al-capone

Llorente, A. (January 27, 2018). BBC Mundo. Retrieved July 27, 2021, from An exemplary husband: The secrets of Al Capone’s private life, the most famous mobster in history: https://www.bbc.com/mundo/noticias-42561123

#Criminology #AlCapone #Intouchables