Lepke Buchalter

A man named Louis lived in New York.

He was a leader of bad men. They worked in many different jobs.

Louis and his friend used fear to get money. They took money from many workers. This was not fair.

Louis also led a group that hurt people. This group was very large. They worked in many places.

The police worked hard to find him. They caught him for his crimes.

Louis had to go to prison. He was a leader who broke the law. It is important to be kind.

Louis Buchalter was a leader of organized crime in New York City.

He was born in 1897 to a Jewish family. In the 1920s, he and a friend used fear to control labor unions. They took money from factory owners and workers. This was called a protection racket.

Louis also led a group of killers. The press called this group Murder, Inc. This group did jobs for many mob bosses. They worked in many cities across the country. In 1935, Louis helped kill a gangster named Dutch Schultz.

Louis eventually faced the law. He was caught for helping to smuggle drugs into the country. Later, he was put on trial for murder.

A jury found him guilty. He tried to appeal his case. The U.S. Supreme Court said his conviction was correct. In 1944, Louis was executed at Sing Sing prison. He was one of the few crime bosses to face this punishment.

Louis Buchalter was a major leader in organized crime during the 1930s.

He was born on February 6, 1897, in Manhattan. His parents moved to New York from the Russian Empire. His mother called him "Lepkeleh," which later became the name "Lepke." He grew up on the Lower East Side. He was an honor roll student at the Rabbi Jacob Joseph School. After his father died in 1909, life changed for his family. He started working with theatrical goods when he was quite young.

As an adult, Buchalter used fear to gain power. He worked with his friend Jacob Shapiro to control labor unions. They focused on the garment industry and bakery trucking. This was called a protection racket. They threatened strikes to demand money from factory owners. They also took money from union bank accounts. By 1935, they had about 250 men working for them. They were making over $1 million a year. Buchalter even owned a fancy nightclub in Manhattan called the Riobamba.

Buchalter also led a group of killers. The press later called this group Murder, Inc. This group worked for the Cosa Nostra mobsters. The mob bosses wanted to stay away from the crimes. They used Buchalter to assign jobs to street gang members. These killers worked in many different cities across the country. In 1935, Buchalter helped kill a gangster named Dutch Schultz. This happened because Schultz wanted to kill a District Attorney. The crime bosses ordered the hit to prevent a police crackdown.

Eventually, the law began to catch up with him.

In 1936, Buchalter and Shapiro were convicted of breaking laws in the fur industry. They disappeared for a while to avoid prison. The government offered a $5,000 reward to find him. Later, a reward of $25,000 was offered. He was finally caught after a long manhunt. He was found in New York City after people thought he was in Europe. He was then charged with smuggling drugs into the country.

His final legal battles were about murder. A man named Abe Reles told the truth about Buchalter's crimes. This helped a jury find Buchalter guilty in 1941. He was sentenced to death for the murder of Joseph Rosen. Buchalter tried to appeal his case many times. The U.S. Supreme Court even looked at his case in 1943. They decided his conviction was correct. On March 4, 1944, he was executed at Sing Sing prison. He was one of only three crime bosses executed for murder.

Louis Buchalter was a prominent figure in American organized crime during the 1930s. Known by the nickname "Lepke," he became a major leader in the criminal underworld of New York City. Buchalter was specifically known for his control over labor unions and his leadership of a specialized group of contract killers. His influence shaped the garment and trucking industries for years. He remains a significant historical figure because he was one of only three National Crime Syndicate bosses to be executed for murder.

Buchalter was born on February 6, 1897, on the Lower East Side of Manhattan. His parents had emigrated from the Russian Empire to New York. His mother, Rose, gave him the Yiddish nickname "Lepkeleh," which eventually became "Lepke." After his father died in 1909, Buchalter began working early in life. He attended the Rabbi Jacob Joseph School and was an honor roll student. However, his teenage years were marked by legal troubles. He was arrested for burglary and assault in 1915. He also served time in the Cheshire Reformatory in Connecticut and Sing Sing prison in New York for larceny and attempted burglary.

After his release from prison in 1922, Buchalter began his rise to criminal power. He partnered with his childhood friend, Jacob "Gurrah" Shapiro. Together, they used force and fear to seize control of labor unions. They focused on the garment industry and bakery trucking sectors. This method is known as a protection racket. They would threaten strikes to demand weekly payments from factory owners. They also took money directly from union bank accounts. By 1935, law enforcement estimated that Buchalter and Shapiro had 250 men working for them. Their operations earned over $1 million per year in modern value.

One of Buchalter's most notable roles was managing a group of contract killers. While the group had no official name at the time, the press later called them "Murder, Inc." This group functioned as a mechanism to protect high-level mob bosses. The Cosa Nostra leaders wanted to stay insulated from the actual crimes. They would use an intermediary, like Albert Anastasia, to send requests to Buchalter. Buchalter would then assign the task to street gang members from Brooklyn. These killers had no direct connection to the major crime families. This separation meant that if they were caught, they could not implicate the top bosses.

In 1935, Buchalter carried out one of his most significant assignments. The National Crime Syndicate ordered the death of a powerful gangster named Dutch Schultz. Schultz had threatened to kill New York District Attorney Thomas Dewey. Other crime leaders, such as Charles "Lucky" Luciano, feared this would cause a massive police crackdown. To prevent this, the Commission ordered Buchalter to eliminate Schultz. On October 23, 1935, Schultz was shot in a tavern in Newark, New Jersey. He died the following day. This event showed how Buchalter operated as an enforcer for the larger criminal confederation.

Buchalter's downfall began with legal challenges regarding his business practices. In 1936, he and Shapiro were convicted of violating federal anti-trust laws in the rabbit fur industry. They disappeared to avoid prison, leading to a massive manhunt. The federal government offered a $5,000 reward for his capture, and later, the city offered $25,000. Despite reports that he was hiding in Poland or Palestine, Buchalter was actually hiding in New York City. He eventually surrendered to FBI Chief J. Edgar Hoover in 1939. He was later convicted of narcotics trafficking for a scheme involving heroin smuggled from China.

His final legal battles centered on murder charges. In 1941, Buchalter was arraigned for the 1936 murder of Joseph Rosen, a candy store owner. A former associate named Abe Reles turned state's evidence and testified against him. Another witness, Albert "Tick-Tock" Tannenbaum, also provided testimony.

The jury found Buchalter guilty of first-degree murder on November 30, 1941. He was sentenced to death. Buchalter appealed his case to the New York Court of Appeals and the U.S. Supreme Court. In 1943, the Supreme Court affirmed his conviction. On March 4, 1944, Buchalter was executed in the electric chair at Sing Sing prison. He was executed alongside his lieutenants, Emanuel Weiss and Louis Capone.