Joseph Stacher (c. 1902 – 1977) (alias Doc Stacher, Joseph Rosen, Doc Harris el al)
[Joseph Stacher, Appellant, v. United States of America, Appellee, 258 F.2d 112 (9th Cir. 195]
/ref> was a Jewish syndicate leader who helped bring together the Jewish Mafia, Jewish and Italian Mafia
Organized crime in Italy and its criminal organizations have been prevalent in Italy, especially Southern Italy, for centuries and have affected the social and economic life of many Italian regions since at least the 19th century.
There are six ...
into a national organized crime syndicate.
Early life
Joseph Stacher was born Gdale Oistaczer (commonly pronounced ''Gedalia)'' in Letichev
Letychiv ( uk, Летичів; pl, Latyczów; russian: Летичев) is a town in the eastern part of Khmelnytskyi Oblast (province) of western Ukraine. 51 km from Khmelnytskyi and 33 km from the railway station in Derazhnia. It was ...
, Russia
Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eight ...
around 1902. He emigrated with his family to the United States in 1912. As a teenager living in Newark, New Jersey, he became friends with Meyer Lansky
Meyer Lansky (born Maier Suchowljansky; July 4, 1902 – January 15, 1983), known as the "Mob's Accountant", was an American organized crime figure who, along with his associate Lucky Luciano, Charles "Lucky" Luciano, was instrumental in the deve ...
and Abner Zwillman
Abner "Longie" Zwillman (July 27, 1904 – February 26, 1959) was a Jewish-American mobster who was based primarily in North Jersey. He was a long time friend and associate of mobsters Lucky Luciano and Meyer Lansky. Zwillman's criminal organ ...
. He attained United States citizenship in May 1930, but his naturalization was later revoked.
Career
By the 1920s Stacher was running much of Zwillman's gambling operations. In 1931, Stacher helped Meyer Lansky
Meyer Lansky (born Maier Suchowljansky; July 4, 1902 – January 15, 1983), known as the "Mob's Accountant", was an American organized crime figure who, along with his associate Lucky Luciano, Charles "Lucky" Luciano, was instrumental in the deve ...
organize a conference of Jewish organized crime leaders at the Franconia Hotel, which later would see the alleged merging of the Jewish and Italian Mafia
Organized crime in Italy and its criminal organizations have been prevalent in Italy, especially Southern Italy, for centuries and have affected the social and economic life of many Italian regions since at least the 19th century.
There are six ...
into a national crime syndicate
The National Crime Syndicate was the name given by the press to the multi-ethnic, loosely connected, American confederation of several criminal organizations. It mostly consisted of and was led by the closely interconnected Italian-American Mafia ...
. Running West Coast and Caribbean gambling operations for Lansky during the 1930s, as well as becoming a silent partner of movie studio Columbia Pictures
Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc. is an American film production studio that is a member of the Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group, a division of Sony Pictures Entertainment, which is one of the Big Five studios and a subsidiary of the mult ...
in the late 1930s, Stacher would later supervise gambling in Las Vegas, Nevada, particularly the Sands and Fremont Casinos.
Stacher continued running Mafia gambling operations until 1964, when Federal authorities arrested him for tax evasion
Tax evasion is an illegal attempt to defeat the imposition of taxes by individuals, corporations, trusts, and others. Tax evasion often entails the deliberate misrepresentation of the taxpayer's affairs to the tax authorities to reduce the taxp ...
. While the US government was in favor of deporting him to his native Poland, federal law prohibited deporting anyone to a communist-controlled country. However, because of the " Law of Return", Stacher was allowed citizenship in Israel and successfully immigrated there in 1965.
While living in Israel he served as the primary source of Israeli journalists Dennis Eisenberg, Uri Dan, and Eli Landau for a biography of Meyer Lansky
Meyer Lansky (born Maier Suchowljansky; July 4, 1902 – January 15, 1983), known as the "Mob's Accountant", was an American organized crime figure who, along with his associate Lucky Luciano, Charles "Lucky" Luciano, was instrumental in the deve ...
. Stacher continued living in Israel until his death.
Death
Stacher died, according to some reports in a Munich, West Germany, hotel room on February 28, 1977. His death was reported as a heart attack and his body shipped back to Israel. He was buried secretly and the nameplate of his grave was altered to hide his burial site. Only eight men were at the funeral, so the family had to ask a reporter and photographer to join the ceremony in order to attain a minyan
In Judaism, a ''minyan'' ( he, מניין \ מִנְיָן ''mīnyān'' , lit. (noun) ''count, number''; pl. ''mīnyānīm'' ) is the quorum of ten Jewish adults required for certain religious obligations. In more traditional streams of Jud ...
.
References
*Sifakis, Carl: ''The Encyclopedia of American Crime: Second Edition Vol. II (K–Z)''. New York: Facts On File, 2001.
*Englisch, T. J.: ''Havana Nocturne: How the Mob Owned Cuba ... and Then Lost It to the Revolution; The New York Times 2007, 2008;
*
*La Cosa Nostra Databas
*Tough Jews, 200
*Kefauver Final Repor
*FBI File Abner Zwillma
*Mob History Hotel Franconia Rai
*Dennis Eisenberg, Uri Dan, Eli Landau, Lansky's mob helps the war effort, then helps itself to gambling profit, ''Lakeland Ledger'' - Nov 4, 197
*John William Tuohy, 2001, The American Mafi
Further reading
*Chapin, David A. and Weinstock, Ben, ''The Road from Letichev: The history and culture of a forgotten Jewish community in Eastern Europe'', Volume 2. iUniverse, Lincoln, Neb., 2000, pp. 475–477.
*Dennis Eisenberg, Uri Dan, Eli Landau, 1979, ''Meyer Lansky: mogul of the mob''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Stacher, Joseph
1900s births
1977 deaths
People from Letychiv
Jews from the Russian Empire
Ukrainian Jews
Emigrants from the Russian Empire to the United States
American people of Ukrainian-Jewish descent
Jewish American gangsters
20th-century American Jews