The richest bandits in the world. American gangsters of the 20th century - stories and photographs from a hundred years ago

In the world, the state has been fighting against criminal clans for a long time, but the mafia is still alive. Currently there are many criminal gangs, each of which has its own boss and inspirer. Crime bosses They often feel unpunished and create real criminal empires, intimidating civilians and government officials. They live by their own laws, violation of which often leads to death. This article presents 10 famous mafiosi who really left a noticeable mark on the history of the mafia.

1. Al Capone

Al Capone was a legend in the underworld of the 30s and 40s. last century and is still considered the most famous mafioso in history. The authoritative Al Capone struck fear into everyone, including the government. This American gangster of Italian origin developed a gambling business, was involved in bootlegging, racketeering, and drugs. It was he who introduced the concept of racketeering.

When the family moved to the United States in search of better life, he was forced to work hard. He worked in a pharmacy and a bowling alley, and even in a candy store. However, Al Capone attracted night look life. At the age of 19, while working in a billiards club, he made a cheeky comment about the wife of criminal Frank Galluccio. After the resulting fight and stabbing, he was left with a scar on his left cheek. The daring Al Capone learned to skillfully handle knives and was invited to the Gang of Five Smoking Barrels. Known for his cruelty in dealing with competitors, he organized the St. Valentine's Day Massacre, when, on his orders, seven tough mafiosi from Bugs Moran's group were shot.
His cunning helped him get out and avoid punishment for the crimes he committed. The only thing he was put in prison for was tax evasion. After leaving prison, where he spent 5 years, his health was undermined. He contracted syphilis from one of the prostitutes and died at the age of 48.

2. Lucky Luciano

Charles Luciano, born in Sicily, moved with his family to America in search of a decent life. Over time, he became a symbol of crime and one of the toughest gangsters in history. Since childhood, street punks have become a comfortable environment for him. He actively distributed drugs and went to prison at the age of 18. During the prohibition of alcohol in the United States, he was a member of the Gang of Four and smuggled alcohol. He was a penniless immigrant, like his friends, and ended up making millions of dollars from crime. Lucky organized a group of bootleggers, the so-called “Big Seven,” and defended it from the authorities.

He later became the leader of Cosa Nostra and controlled all areas of activity in the criminal environment. Maranzano's gangsters tried to find out where he was hiding drugs and to do this they tricked him into taking him to the highway, where they tortured, cut and beat him. Luciano kept the secret. The bloody body without signs of life was thrown onto the side of the road and 8 hours later it was found by a police patrol. The hospital gave him 60 stitches and saved his life. After that they began to call him Lucky. (Lucky).

3. Pablo Escobar

Pablo Escobar - the most famous violent Colombian drug lord. He created a real drug empire and arranged the supply of cocaine around the world on a huge scale. Young Escobar grew up in poor areas of Medellin and began his illegal activities by stealing tombstones and reselling them with erased inscriptions to resellers. In addition, he sought to earn easy money by selling drugs and cigarettes, as well as counterfeiting lottery tickets. Later, theft of expensive cars, racketeering, robberies and kidnappings were added to the scope of criminal activity.

At the age of 22, Escobar had already become a famous authority in poor neighborhoods. The poor supported him as he built them cheap housing. After becoming the head of a drug cartel, he earned billions. In 1989, his fortune was more than 15 billion. During his criminal activities, he was involved in the murders of more than a thousand police officers, journalists, several hundred judges and prosecutors, and various officials.

4. John Gotti

John Gotti was a household name in New York. He was called the “Teflon Don,” because all the accusations miraculously flew away from him, leaving him unsullied. He was a very resourceful mafioso who worked his way from the bottom to the very top of the Gambino family. His flamboyant and elegant style also earned him the nickname "The Elegant Don". While managing the family, he was involved in typical criminal matters: racketeering, theft, car theft, murder. Right hand The boss in all crimes was always his friend Salvatore Gravano. As a result, this became a fatal mistake for John Gotti. In 1992, Salvatore began cooperating with the FBI, testified against Gotti, and sent him to prison for life. In 2002, John Gotti died in prison from throat cancer.

5. Carlo Gambino

Gambino is a Sicilian gangster who led one of the most powerful crime families in America and led it until his death. As a teenager, he began stealing and extorting. Later he switched to bootlegging. When he became boss of the Gambino family, he made it the richest and most powerful family by controlling such lucrative facilities as the state port and airport. During its heyday, the Gambino criminal group consisted of more than 40 teams and controlled major American cities (New York, Miami, Chicago, Los Angeles and others). Gambino did not welcome drug trafficking by members of his group, as he considered it a dangerous business that attracted a lot of attention.

6. Meir Lansky

Meir Lansky is a Jew born in Belarus. At the age of 9 he moved with his family to New York. Since childhood, he became friends with Charles “Lucky” Luciano, which predetermined his fate. For decades, Meir Lansky was one of America's most important crime bosses. During Prohibition in America, he was involved in the illegal transportation and sale of alcoholic drinks. Later, the National Crime Syndicate was created and a network of underground bars and bookmakers was opened. For many years, Meir Lansky developed a gambling empire in the United States. In the end, tired of constant police surveillance, he leaves for Israel on a visa for 2 years. The FBI demanded his extradition. After his visa expires, he wants to move to another state, but no one accepts him. He returns to the United States, where he awaits trial. The charges were dropped, but the passport was revoked. In recent years he lived in Miami and died in a hospital from cancer.

7. Joseph Bonanno

This mafioso occupied special place V criminal world America. At the age of 15, the Sicilian boy was left an orphan. He moved to the United States illegally, where he quickly joined criminal circles. He created the influential Bonanno crime family and ruled it for 30 years. Over time, they began to call him “Banana Joe.” Having achieved the status of the richest mafioso in history, he voluntarily retired. He wanted to live the rest of his life quietly in his personal luxurious mansion. For a while he was forgotten by everyone. But the release of the autobiography was an unprecedented act for the mafia and once again attracted attention to him. He was even sent to prison for a year. Joseph Bonanno died at the age of 97, surrounded by relatives.

8. Alberto Anastasia

Albert Anastasia was called the head of the Gambino, one of the 5 mafia clans. He was nicknamed the Chief Executioner because his group, Murder, Inc., was responsible for over 600 deaths. He never went to prison for any of them. When a case was opened against him, it was unclear where the main prosecution witnesses disappeared to. Alberto Anastasia liked to get rid of witnesses. He called Lucky Luciano his teacher and was devoted to him. Anastasia carried out assassinations of the leaders of other criminal groups on Lucky's order. However, in 1957, Albert Anastasia himself was killed in a hairdressing salon on the order of his competitors.

9. Vincent Gigante

Vincent Gigante - a well-known mafioso authority who controlled crime in New York and other major cities America. He dropped out of school in 9th grade and switched to boxing. He became involved in a criminal gang at the age of 17. Since then, his rise in the criminal world began. At first he became godfather, and then consolere (adviser). Since 1981, he became the leader of the Genovese family. Vincent earned the nickname "Boss Crazy" and "Pajama King" for his erratic behavior and walking around New York City in a bathrobe. It was a simulation of a mental disorder.
For 40 years he avoided prison by posing as a madman. In 1997, he was nevertheless sentenced to 12 years. Even while in prison, he continued to give instructions to gang members through his son Vincent Esposito. In 2005, the mafioso died in prison from heart problems.

10. Heriberto Lazcano

For a long time, Heriberto Lazcano was on the list of wanted and most dangerous criminals in Mexico. From the age of 17 he served in the Mexican army and special squad to combat drug cartels. A couple of years later he went over to the side of drug gangsters when he was recruited by the Gulf cartel. After a while, he became the leader of one of the largest and most respected drug cartels - Los Zetas. Due to its boundless cruelty against competitors, bloody murders against officials public figures, police and civilians (including women and children) received the nickname Executioner. More than 47 thousand people died as a result of the massacres. When Heriberto Lazcano was killed in 2012, all of Mexico breathed a sigh of relief.

US gangsters are known far beyond America. Films are made about them, and there are many legends about their activities. All of them were distinguished by intelligence, cunning and special cruelty.

The era of gangsters began with the adoption of Prohibition in the United States. It was then that street gangs began to appear in America. The innovation sparked underground activity. It was then that one of the most famous gangsters, Al Capone, began to act. He controlled the black market for alcohol. Later, other gangs began to appear that controlled different areas: prostitution, the sale of weapons, drugs. The gangs constantly fought with each other, trying to become the main ones. Here are a few representatives of that legendary and cruel time for the United States.

Storm of the streets Walter Smith. He was engaged in street robberies and contract killings for the mafia. Smith did not like weapons and killed people with his bare hands in dark alleys, turning off their heads. Note in the criminal case: there are pronounced sadistic tendencies, there is no feeling of fear, he can bite, he can only be imprisoned alone.

A thief and swindler named Vera. She pretended to be a kind neighbor and ingratiated herself with the residents, and then robbed the apartments. In addition, together with the mafia, she cleaned out jewelry stores, distracting them during robberies.

The young man in the photo is only twenty years old. However, at such a young age he became a thief of shops and residential buildings. In the criminal case, it is noted that he is prone to escape and panic, dexterous, cunning and especially dangerous.

Mr. Skuckerman, a securities swindler and swindler, worked for the Mafia.

Little Schmidt is a homeless child and a thief. He was a courier for the mafia: he passed notes between brothels and shops. If the police caught him, he immediately ate the notes.

Two bouncers. They extorted money from businessmen and those who owed money to the mafia. They took not only money, but also health, and sometimes life.

Los Angeles gangsters Dalton and Gracie, the elite of the American mafia. They provided protection to the trade unions of factories and factories, and were involved in hippodromes and gambling. Competitors and informers were often killed.

Another dangerous gangster from Los Angeles is Sydney Kelly. Worked for the mafia in other states. Contract killings, drugs, armed attacks, pimping - everything was on his books.

Fitch, nicknamed Smooth, from Chicago, is a car thief. He stole cars for dark mafia affairs, and also stole cars and sold them for parts.

Four famous criminals from Chicago. They were engaged in robbing banks, collectors, and jewelry stores. Not a single witness was left alive.

Seasoned gangsters from Chicago. Covered the gang of the famous gangster John Dillinger. They protected drug dealers and businessmen, engaged in robbery, prostitution, and gambling. The two men on the right are brothers. One day they beat a police informant to death with butcher hooks and hung his body on one of the central streets with a sign: “He talked a lot and all to the wrong people”.

Prostitutes - tipsters who worked for the mafia. They met rich men, had affairs with them, and then passed on all the information to the bandits. At best, it all ended in robbery.

The Farlane brothers, who had a whole gang. They robbed on the roads and in remote areas of the states. Extremely dangerous and cruel.

Mafia accountant from Chicago. He repented of his actions in prison, as the police put a lot of pressure on him. After this, he was immediately found hanged. Most likely by force. On his chest was a sign: “I said everything and fell silent for a century”.

In the middle is the gangster "Bloody Fletcher". His gang committed a huge number of contract killings, and they also kidnapped people, including children of high-ranking officials. There is a note in the criminal case that they need to be put in solitary confinement, otherwise they could kill each other in a dispute.

Smith "Bone Hand" led a gang of Chicago gangsters. Next to him is his assistant Jones. They protected prostitutes, were involved in drugs, gambling, and robbed collectors and rich Americans.

Members of the Mafia who controlled parts of New York. They were responsible for the supply of alcohol and tobacco, as well as the workers' unions. They did not shun murders and raids. Were close with John Gillinger.

There is no doubt that gangsters still captivate the general public. We love to absorb crime stories from films, books and TV series. The reason for this is unclear, but the desire to learn everything about criminal activity is strong in most people. Of the many criminals and bandits who have become famous in history, some stand out more than others. They may be set apart by the nature of their actions, or simply by their loud and brash personality.

10 PHOTOS

1. Jacques Merin.

This guy was born in France and worked mainly in this country, but also in America and Canada. He earned the nickname "The Man of a Hundred Faces" due to his skillful camouflage. Thanks to this skill, he avoided the police many times. He operated in various criminal sectors from kidnapping to bank robberies and simple thefts. His fame mainly stems from his long list of crimes and his habit of escaping prison even when caught. Merin was so outraged that he was arrested that he took the judge hostage.

2. James Whitey Bulger.

Bulger was actually a modern-day Robin Hood, who led a protective group in South Boston, USA. The Bulger gang has targeted drug lords and illegal gamblers in an attempt to clean up the city a little. Bulger hunted only criminals and did not touch ordinary people. However, this should not detract from his cruel and ruthless nature. Although he first tried to deal with any situation verbally, he did not hesitate to use extreme violence. The 19 murders for which he was eventually convicted prove this.

3. John Dillinger.

As the leader of the famous "Dillinger Gang", John Dillinger remains one of the most notorious crime figures in American history. He was originally raised in Chicago and was seemingly corrupted by the city. Dillinger was a brash and colorful character who, during his peak years, openly played to the crowd. His gang was responsible for about 25 violent robberies in various US states. Besides his many crimes, Dillinger is also remembered for breaking out of prison with a fake wooden pistol. Even though he was a dangerous person, he became something of a hero ordinary Americans in its prime.

4. Griselda Blanco.

This lady from Miami looks more like an ordinary mother of a schoolboy than a dangerous criminal. But many people know her by her nickname " Godmother cocaine." Blanco grew up in Miami, involved in crime with early age. After all, she was running a multibillion-dollar cocaine trafficking operation in the city. She was eventually sentenced to 10 years in federal prison for her crimes, but that didn't stop her. She continued to manage cocaine smuggling from prison with the help of her associates on the street.

5. Dawood Ibrahim.

This gangster was the brains behind the wild and notorious criminal gang D Company. Overall, this gang was responsible for many bombings in India, including the 1993 series of bombings in Mumbai, which killed many innocent people. Ibrahim was in charge of this large and illegal organization that had tentacles all over India. Currently India's most wanted man, he has also said he has close ties to now-deceased al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden.

6. Pablo Escobar.

This Colombian drug lord will certainly go down in history as one of the criminals we all remember. During his peak years, he was responsible for hundreds of murders and attacks. Accumulating a huge fortune, he removed anyone in his path, be it rivals, police, or innocent people.

7. Al Capone.
8. Lucky Luciano.

There are many infamous American mafia figures that we could look at, but this guy is probably the most well known to everyone. Luciano was a very shrewd businessman. As the head of the respected Genovese family, he distinguished himself in all aspects of organized crime from fraud to murder. Luciano was also the man behind the split of America into five different crime-ruled regions and largely shaped the modern American Mafia at the time. For this reason, many still know him as the father of organized crime in the United States.

9. The Kray Twins.

Definitely the saddest famous gangsters that have ever been in Britain. Their fame even extended to the American Mafia, who initially sought to team up with the twins, it was a sign of respect and the reputation they carried. Never one to shy away from conflict, they were responsible for a number of arson, fraud, attacks and murders at their peak in the 1960s. It all finally came to an end when they each stood trial for murder.

10. Joaquin Guzman.

He is a dangerous and psychotic Mexican drug dealer. As the leader of the country's Sinaloa Cartel, he was one of the most notorious drug traffickers the world has seen. The cartel also had interests in organized crime, and this, combined with their drug dealing, made them quite successful. A very powerful figure in the underworld since the late 2000s. Forbes estimated his personal worth at $1 billion. As you might expect, Guzman himself was a character who could be very unpredictable, ruthless and cruel. You won't make that kind of money and stay on top in this game unless you are a very cold and calculating person.

On January 17, 1899, a man was born who is called the father of organized crime - the legendary Alfonso Gabriel Capone, known throughout the world under the abbreviated name Al.

It was thanks to him that the planet heard the phrase “You can achieve more with a kind word and a revolver than with one.” kind words" Whether this is true or not is not for us, law-abiding citizens, to judge, but to this day no one doubts the extraordinary nature of the mafioso leader.

The men's online magazine M PORT selected a dozen more equally famous and tough gangster guys to join his company. Don’t even try to follow their example!

10. Meir Lansky (1902-1983)

Source: wikimedia.org

Coming from Russian Empire, he fully revealed his “talents” in the United States. Known as the "mob accountant". He played one of the main roles in the founding of the American so-called “National Crime Syndicate”. For several decades he was considered one of the most influential people in the United States. It belongs to him catchphrase“We are more than US Steel.”

9. Heriberto Lazcano (born 1974)

Source: cache.daylife.com

Leader of the Mexican criminal group Los Zetas (drug trafficking, contract killings, extortion, weapons smuggling, kidnapping, illegal migration). For their particular cruelty, the group received the nickname Executioners. Suspected of killing at least 72 migrants and kidnapping foreign tourists for ransom.

Source: wikimedia.org

Boss of the Italian-American crime "Genovese family". This group is also called the “Rolls Royce” of organized crime. Vincent Gigante's mafiosi controlled organized crime in New York and other major US cities. “The Chin” himself has repeatedly resorted to faking mental illness to avoid prison. According to FBI experts, he was one of the most elusive leaders of American gangsters.

7. Albert Anastasia (1902-1957)

Source: wikimedia.org

The leader of the mafia "Gambino family", one of the five most influential criminal groups in the United States. He had the nickname “Chief Executioner” - due to the leadership of the criminal organization “Murder Corporation”, which was responsible for at least 700 contract killings.

6. John Gotti (1940-2002)

Source: wikimedia.org

Known under the nickname “Dapper Don” - for his passion for stylish suits and silk ties. Being one of the leaders of the Gambino family, he skillfully evaded pursuit by the police and FBI agents. In 1992 he was arrested and sentenced to life imprisonment. Died in prison in 2002.

5. Joaquin Guzman (born 1957)

Source: wordpress.com

Mexican drug lord, billionaire. Nickname - Shorty. 24th place in the ranking of the most influential people in the world. After the murder of Osama bin Laden became the most wanted criminal in the world. In 2001, he managed to escape from prison using a cart for used laundry.

4. Charles "Lucky" Luciano (1897-1962)

Since the release of the first list richest people world in 1982, Forbes magazine includes drug lords and gangsters - since organized crime is part of the world economy, these incomes need to be counted. For example, according to The Guardian, the Calabrian mafia 'Ndrangheta became richer in 2013 than Deutsche Bank and McDonald's combined - by €53 billion.

Below are the odious figures of the underworld who made millions and billions - Pablo Escobar, "Shorty", Al Capone, Tony Salerno and others.

John Gotti

New York boss of the Gambino clan John Gotti received two nicknames from the press. “Teflon Don” - for being invulnerable to justice for a long time. And also “Don the Dapper” - for expensive custom suits (Brioni for $2000 and hand-painted silk scarves for $400), careful hairstyle, black Mercedes 450 SL and lavish parties.

Growing up in the South Bronx, Gotti joined the Gambino clan in the 1950s, one of the powerful syndicates involved in gambling, extortion, loan sharking and drugs. The US government suspected that on his way to becoming head of the Gambinos, Gotti eliminated his predecessor Paul Castellano in 1985. An FBI agent who worked on the Gotti case said that "he was the first media don, never trying to hide the fact that he was a superboss." And his large lifestyle and external gloss always provided food for articles in the tabloids.

According to the New York Times, Gotti received between $10 and $12 million in annual income, and the Gambino clan earned more than $500 million a year in the 1980s. Justice did not reach Gotti until 1992, and 10 years later he died in prison.

Shinobu Tsukasa

74-year-old Shinobu Tsukasa leads a yakuza clan called the Yamaguchi-gumi. Fortune listed the Yamaguchi-gumi as one of the five most powerful mafia groups in the world, with annual profits of $6.6 billion. Yamaguchi was founded in the port city of Kobe more than 100 years ago and has 23,400 members. Most of the income comes from drug sales, as well as gambling and extortion.

Shinobu Tsukasa is the sixth leader of the clan in history. In the 1970s he was sentenced to 13 years for murder samurai sword. In 2005 he was jailed for 6 years for possession firearms. In 2015, a split occurred in the Yamaguchi-gumi. According to Tokyo Reporter, most of the group remained with Tsukasa, and 3,000 members formed a new clan led by Kunio Inoue.

Michael Franzese

On Fortune's list of the 50 Most Powerful Mafia Bosses, Michael Franzese was ranked 18th. Franzese, nicknamed “Don Yuppie,” is the son of a bank robber who formed a cartel that was involved in the release of B-movies, the illegal sale of gasoline, scams involving the repair and sale of cars, and fraudulent loans.

Michael Franzese received between $1 and $2 million in income per week. In 1985, the US government charged him with fraud, stripped him of $4.8 million in assets and ordered him to repay $10 million for illegally selling gasoline through shell companies. After eight years in prison and a $15 million settlement, Frances moved to California and decided to capitalize on his criminal past. He has written two books - an autobiography, Blood Covenant, and a business advice book, I'll Make You An Offer You Can't Refuse, as well as sold the rights to a miniseries about his life to CBS. Now the former gangster lives in a $2.7 million house, drives a Porsche, gives interviews to Vanity Fair and gives lectures at universities.

Anthony Salerno

In 1986, Fortune magazine published a list of the "50 Most Powerful Mafia Bosses." Chief Editor explained the appearance of the material by the fact that “organized crime is a powerful economic factor" Anthony "Fat Tony" Salerno also made the list. Led by a gangster, the Genovese clan (300 people) was involved in racketeering and drugs in New York. According to The New York Times, the clan's influence extended to Cleveland, Nevada and Miami, and its interests also included construction, loan sharking and casinos. Since the 1960s, the clan has earned $50 million a year. Between 1981 and 1985, Salerno imposed a two percent Mafia tax in New York on all contractors pouring concrete for buildings costing more than $2 million. Salerno's real wealth may have been $1 billion.

In 1988, the gangster was sentenced to 70 years for racketeering and concealing illegal income of $10 million a year (the declaration indicated only $40,000 a year). Four years later, at the age of 80, he died in prison.

Dawood Ibrahim Kaskar

The income of India's most wanted criminal is estimated by Business Insider at $6.7 billion. Forbes included Kaskar in the lists of the most influential people in the world in 2009, 2010 and 2011 (50th, 63rd and 57th place, respectively). His crime syndicate, D-Company, is blamed for the 1993 and 2008 Mumbai terror attacks and has also been involved in drug and arms smuggling. The US government believes that Dawood Ibrahim Kaskar has ties to al-Qaeda and the Taliban. According to one version, Kaskar is hiding in Pakistan.

Al Capone

Capone is the most famous American gangster. A character named Al Capone appears in 77 Mafia films.

At the time of his death in 1947, his fortune was estimated at $1.3 billion. Capone operated in various criminal spheres - bootlegging, racketeering, murder. In 1929, the American government declared him "Enemy No. 1." Prosecutors repeatedly sentenced Capone to prison, but he was released several months later. As a result, in 1931, Capone was only sentenced for tax evasion - for 11 years. He was to spend most of his sentence in Alcatraz.

In 1939, Capone was released, but his health was poor - he suffered from syphilis and dementia.

In 2012, Forbes conducted an analysis of Capone's former properties. The Chicago four-bedroom house he bought with his first earnings was valued at $450,000, and the Miami Beach mansion where he died in 1947 was valued at $9.95 million.

Griselda Blanco

Colombian Griselda Blanco Western press called "The Godmother of Cocaine." Blanco was one of key figures in the Miami cocaine trade in the 1970s and 1980s. Even in the male drug business, she had a reputation as a ruthless operator. According to Business Insider, her fortune was approaching $2 billion, however, she was far from the income of Exobar.

A three-time widow whose spouses were rumored to have died at her hands, she named one of her sons Michael Corleone. Its distribution network made tens of millions of dollars and transported about 1,500 kilograms of cocaine a month, according to The Guardian. Before his arrest in 1985 in California, “Godmother” appeared on the list of the most dangerous drug traffickers along with Escobar and the Ochoa brothers. She was charged with 40 to 200 murders in Florida, but the woman managed to avoid the death penalty due to a technical error in court: the officer who testified against her was discredited because he had a sex conversation on the phone with the secretary in the prosecutor’s office, the Guardian wrote. Blanco was imprisoned in federal prison and deported to Colombia in 2004, where she was shot and killed by a motorcycle killer eight years later.

Khun Sa

Khun Sa, the “Opium King,” was estimated by Business Insider to be worth $5 billion. Born Chang Shifu, the son of a Chinese man and a Shan woman, in the 1960s he changed his name to the pseudonym Khun Sa, which means “Prosperous Prince.” During these years, he led the Burmese army engaged in the cultivation of opium in the Golden Triangle South-East Asia, there were 20,000 men there. In the 1970s and 80s, the Sa army controlled the Thai-Burmese border and was responsible for 45% of the pure heroin entering the US, earning it the title of "the best in the business" by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) (The Economist).

The US government placed a $2 million bounty on the head of the “Opium King.” By the 1990s, the DEA was able to destroy Sa’s trading chain; he moved to Yangon and retired. Currently, opium production in the Golden Triangle has fallen to 5% of the global figure (in 1975 it was 70%).

There are reports on whether the drug lord saved billions before his death in 2007. different versions- from “lived in luxury,” but “was content with a modest pension.”

Morris Dalitz

Moritz (Moe) Dalitz was one of such legendary gangsters as Al Capone and Bugzy Siegel. During the Prohibition era, he was involved in bootlegging, and later in the gambling business and real estate. In 1982, Dalitz was on the first list richest Forbes along with artist Yoko Ono, actor Bob Hope and mob accountant Meyer Lansky. Dalitz's fortune was estimated at $110 million, but how much he actually earned remains a question.

Dalitz received a significant share of his wealth from the first Las Vegas casinos. In 1949, he co-founded the Desert Inn and Stardust Hotel casinos. In the 1950s, he took part in the emergence of the Paradise Development Company, which built a university and convention center in Las Vegas. In the 1960s, he invested in the $100 million La Costa Resort complex near San Diego, after which he sued Penthouse magazine for $640 million, which wrote that the construction was financed by the mafia. Unlike many of his colleagues with a criminal past, Dalitz lived to an old age, in last years did charity work.

Rafael Caro Quintero and Amado Carrillo Fuentes

Before the star of the drug lord "Shorty" rose in Mexico, two names thundered there - Rafael Caro Quintero (pictured) and Carrillo Fuentes. The head of the Guadalajara cartel, Rafael Quintero, owned a marijuana plantation called Rancho Bufalo. During a police raid in 1984, about 6,000 tons of marijuana were seized at the ranch, which, according to The Wall Street Journal, cost Quintero between $3.2 and $8 billion. The Guadalajara cartel earned $5 billion a year. There were rumors in the Mexican press that Quintero, following Escobar, offered to pay Mexico's foreign debt in exchange for his freedom. The drug lord was sentenced to 40 years in a Mexican prison in 1989, but was released 28 years later.

The second Mexican drug lord is Carrillo Fuentes, head of the Juarez cartel. The Washington Post estimated his fortune at $25 billion. It is believed that his wealth allowed him long years avoid justice. Fuentes received the nickname "Lord of the Skies" for his extensive fleet (22 aircraft) for transporting cocaine to the United States. Fuentes died in 1997 during plastic surgery by changes in appearance.

Pablo Escobar

Colombian drug lord Pablo Escobar became the first criminal to appear on the Forbes 100 International Billionaires list in 1987 with an income of $3 billion. He dropped out only after his death in 1993. The Medellin cartel, led by Escobar, had revenues of $7 billion from 1981 to 1986, with the drug lord taking 40% for himself. The cartel received its main wealth from smuggling cocaine into the United States (about 15 tons daily); in the late 1980s it owned 80% of the entire cocaine market in the world. According to Business Insider, Escobar earned $420 million a week; according to other sources, his fortune totaled more than $30 billion.

Each year, the king of cocaine lost about $2.1 billion (10% of revenue) as the money was haphazardly stored in warehouses and abandoned farms, destroyed by mold and rodents. Every month he spent $2,500 on rubber bands to hold bills together. Once Escobar burned $2 million to warm his daughter: the family was then hiding in the mountains, and there was nothing to light a fire with. In 1984, the cartel offered to pay Colombia's national debt in exchange for immunity. The Drug Enforcement Administration placed a reward of $11 million on Escobar's head. In 1991, the drug lord made a deal with the Colombian government to build his own prison, La Catedral (with football field and guards chosen by him), to which the authorities could not approach closer than 5 km.

The life of the drug lord was so colorful that Netflix released the series “Narcos” dedicated to him in 2015.

Brothers Ochoa and Gonzalo Rodriguez Gacha

In 1987, along with Escobar, the co-founders of the Medellin cartel, Jorge Luis Ochoa-Vazquez (with an income of $2 billion) and his brothers Juan David and Fabio, who received 30% of the cartel's revenue, were included in the Forbes list of the richest. The Ochoa brothers remained in Forbes list another 6 years until they surrendered to the authorities.

The drug lord Gonzalo Rodriguez Gacha, who lived at the same time, worked both with the Medellin cartel and independently (for example, transporting cocaine from Bogota to the United States disguised as flower deliveries) was also a billionaire. In 1988, Forbes estimated his fortune at $1.3 billion. Gacha remained on the list for two years until he was shot dead by Colombian police.

Joaquin Guzman Loera

In 2009, Mexican drug lord Joaquín Guzmán Loera, nicknamed “Shorty,” was included in the Forbes list of the richest people on the planet with a fortune of $1 billion. In 2012 and 2013, he ranked 63rd and 67th among the most influential people in the world. Strategic Forecasting Inc. and even estimated his wealth at $12 billion. The Sinaloa Cartel under the leadership of Loehr was responsible for 25% of illegal drug trafficking from Mexico to the United States and received revenue of $3 billion. The New York Times, citing data from the Drug Enforcement Administration, writes that the cartel sold more cocaine than Escobar at the peak of his career.

“Shorty” began his business in the early 1990s, transporting cocaine, including in cans of chili peppers (in 1993, Mexican authorities confiscated such a 7-ton cargo). He was declared "Mexico's most wanted man" with a $7 million reward for his capture: $5 million from the United States and another $2 million from Mexico. He was first arrested in 1993, but escaped from prison in 2001. IN last time Mexican intelligence agencies captured Loera in Sinaloa in January 2016. The drug lord was killed by vanity. He was going to make a biographical film about himself and was conducting a casting. In addition, actor Sean Penn flew to "Shorty" for an interview. It is believed that the authorities were able to track the movements of the criminal thanks to this.