Wiseguys

Godfather · Posted: Thu May 04, 2006 8:03 pm Post subject: Al "Scarface" Capone

Alphonse Gabriel Capone (January 17, 1899 – January 25, 1947), popularly known as Alfonso "Scarface" Capone, was an infamous American gangster in the 1920s and 1930s, although his business card reportedly described him as a used furniture dealer. A Neapolitan born in New York City to Gabriele and Teresina Capone, he began his career in Brooklyn before moving to Chicago and becoming Chicago's most notorious crime figure. By the end of the 1920s, the Federal Bureau of Investigation had placed Capone on its "Most Wanted" list. Capone's downfall occurred in 1931 when he was indicted and convicted by the federal government for income tax evasion.

FBI mugshot of Capone, 1931

Rick Mattix · street thug **Offline** Joined: 27 Sep 2006 Posts: 32

Capone was never on the FBI's "Most Wanted" list. He was never a federal fugitive. The Bureau of Investigation (whose only involvement in the Capone case was investigating a charge of contempt of federal court) did not become the FBI until 1935 and their "Most Wanted" list was not created until 1950.

It was the Treasury Department's Intelligence Unit of Internal Revenue (today's IRS) who got Capone on the income tax rap.

Also, that is a Chicago police mugshot of Capone, not FBI.

Godfather · Posted: Thu Mar 15, 2007 8:25 am Post subject:

http://www.fbi.gov/fbihistory.htm
The FBI was indeed around at the time. Their own site has their beginnings from 1908-1910. Specifically, July 26, 1908. It was known by a few different names, such as DOI, etc., but was named FBI officially at the beginning of 1936. It was and still is, however still the same department, just with a different name.
Mr. Mattix is correct that the FBI's most wanted list was not created officially until March 14, 1950. As for the mug shot, who can say. I must admit that when I searched for the mug shot, I cut and pasted it, incorrect caption and all. I apologise for the errors.

Rick Mattix · street thug **Offline** Joined: 27 Sep 2006 Posts: 32

I did not say the FBI wasn't around at that time, just that Capone was never a federal fugitive, which he wasn't. The Bureau does indeed date to 1908, although it wasn't called the FBI until 1935. It was the Bureau of Investigation from 1908 until 1932, when it became the U.S. Bureau of Investigation. In 1933, it was merged with the Prohibition Bureau to become the Division of Investigation, a name it retained after Repeal, when the former Prohibition agents (whom J. Edgar Hoover had kept separate from his own squeaky clean Bureau within the Division) were returned to the Treasury Department. The organization received its present name, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, or FBI, on July 1, 1935, nearly a year after making their "gangbusting" reputation by killing John Dillinger (the only-ever officially designated U.S. Public Enemy Number One).

The Bureau of Investigation did have some minimal involvement in the Capone case. They questioned members of the Capone gang in 1925, while searching for Martin James Durkin, a Chicago car thief who had killed Special Agent Edwin Shanahan, the first G-man to die in the line of duty. In 1929, they investigated Capone for obstruction of justice (contempt of federal court; he had falsely pleaded illness to avoid traveling to Chicago from Miami to testify in a bootlegging case). This eventually got Capone a 6-month jail sentence, which was served concurrently with the income tax sentence resulting from the investigation of Elmer Irey and Internal Revenue's Intelligence Unit. This was about the extent of the future-FBI's involvement in the Capone case, tho they did maintain some cursory surveillance of the Chicago underworld in the Thirties, mainly to aid in investigations of freelance outlaws like Dillinger or crimes such as the Kansas City Massacre and various kidnapping cases.

Godfather · Posted: Mon Mar 19, 2007 12:31 am Post subject:

Well, you're right, but you're wrong. You're right in that The Bureau was asked to investigate his failure to appear before a Grand Jury in 1929 by the U.S. Attorney's office. His failure to appear was under false pretenses, not a case of pneumonia, as he claimed. BUT: Technically, this makes him a fugitive, he was a wanted man for this charge, and he was arrested for contempt of court, (for producing a false affidavit claiming his illness) but he posted $5,000 bond and was released. Later, he was found guilty of this and sentenced to 6 months in Cook County.

Rick Mattix · street thug **Offline** Joined: 27 Sep 2006 Posts: 32

Yeah, I'll concede that technicality, although that's about all it amounts to, as there was no Interstate Flight to Avoid Prosecution law at the time. In actuality, of course, a U.S. Marshal could have arrested Capone in Florida in 1929 if he'd really been "wanted" -- in the sense of having his picture on the Post Office wall. Of course, once he came back to Chicago they had to arrest him.

Godfather · Posted: Thu Mar 22, 2007 9:52 pm Post subject:

Right. And now I have to concede, although it's probably obvious, that my info for the original post was taken from a quick internet search without much background research on my part. Just trying to justify my stupidity.

Rick Mattix · street thug **Offline** Joined: 27 Sep 2006 Posts: 32

Not at all. No need to justify anything there. It launched a discussion and that's what it's all about. We all have different areas of expertise in the organized crime field and all of us are enriched by talking about them. I may know Capone but I'd be totally lost on many other topics. We're all learners in many departments here, myself included.