Maier
Suchowljansky (Meyer Lansky), the son of Jewish
parents, was
born in Grodno, Russia (now in Poland)
on 4th July, 1902. The family moved to the United
States in 1911 and the settled in New
York. After leaving school he became an apprentice toolmaker.
In
1920 Lansky met Bugsy Siegel and Lucky
Luciano.
The three young men became involved in crime and by the 1920s Lansky
had his own gang and was involved in bootlegging and the protection
racket.
Lansky also worked for New York's leading crime boss, Joe
Masseria. In 1931 Lansky joined with other gang members, Lucky
Luciano, Bugsy Siegel and Albert
Anastasia, in the killing of Masseria.
In 1936 Lansky established gambling operations in Florida, New Orleans
and Cuba. He was also the major investor in the Flamingo Hotel and
Casino started by Bugsy Siegel in Las
Vagas. He arranged Siegel's execution in June, 1947 when he became
convinced that his partner was fiddling the books.
By the 1960s Lansky was involved in drug smuggling, pornography, prostitution
and extortion. He had also invested heavily in legal businesses such
as hotels and golf-courses. It was estimated at the time that his
total holdings were worth $300,000,000.
In 1970 plans were made to arrest Lansky on suspicion of income-tax
evasion. When Lansky heard the news he fled to Israel. He was eventually
arrested and returned to the United States but
in 1973 he was acquitted of income-tax evasion. Other charges were
abandoned because of Lansky's poor health. Meyer Lansky died of lung
cancer in Miami Beach, Florida, on 15th May, 1983. It has been estimated
that when he died Lansky was worth over $400 million.
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