Frank Matthews (drug trafficker)
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Frank Larry Matthews (February 13, 1944 – disappeared June 26, 1973), also known as "Black Caesar", "Mark IV" and "Pee Wee", is an American
drug trafficker The illegal drug trade or drug trafficking is a global black market dedicated to the cultivation, manufacture, distribution and sale of prohibited drugs. Most jurisdictions prohibit trade, except under license, of many types of drugs through ...
who sold
heroin Heroin, also known as diacetylmorphine and diamorphine among other names, is a potent opioid mainly used as a recreational drug for its euphoric effects. Medical grade diamorphine is used as a pure hydrochloride salt. Various white and brow ...
and
cocaine Cocaine (from , from , ultimately from Quechuan languages, Quechua: ''kúka'') is a central nervous system (CNS) stimulant mainly recreational drug use, used recreationally for its euphoria, euphoric effects. It is primarily obtained from t ...
throughout the eastern United States from 1965 to 1972. He operated in 21 states and supplied drug dealers throughout every region of the country. The
Drug Enforcement Administration The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA; ) is a Federal law enforcement in the United States, United States federal law enforcement agency under the U.S. Department of Justice tasked with combating drug trafficking and distribution within th ...
(DEA) ranks Matthews as one of the top 10 drug traffickers in U.S. history and he is estimated to have had $20 million in savings. Matthews led a flamboyant lifestyle, with luxury homes, vehicles and clothing along with prime seats at sporting events and regular trips to
Las Vegas Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vegas ...
to
launder money Money laundering is the process of concealing the origin of money, obtained from illicit activities such as drug trafficking, corruption, embezzlement or gambling, by converting it into a legitimate source. It is a crime in many jurisdictions ...
and gamble. He hosted an African-American and Hispanic drug dealers summit in
Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...
in 1971 and another in Las Vegas in 1972 to discuss how to break the
American Mafia The American Mafia, commonly referred to in North America as the Italian American Mafia, the Mafia, or the Mob, is a highly organized Italian American criminal society and organized crime group. The organization is often referred to by its membe ...
control of heroin importation. Matthews was arrested in 1973 on
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 ...
and drug charges but disappeared and has been a fugitive from justice ever since.


Early life

Matthews was born on February 13, 1944, in
Durham Durham most commonly refers to: *Durham, England, a cathedral city and the county town of County Durham *County Durham, an English county * Durham County, North Carolina, a county in North Carolina, United States *Durham, North Carolina, a city in N ...
,
North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and So ...
. His mother died when he was four years old and he was raised by his aunt, Marzella Steele, the wife of a Durham police lieutenant. Matthews was nicknamed "Pee Wee" and attended the East End Elementary school but dropped out of school in the seventh grade. At age 14, he led a teenage gang in stealing chickens from local farms. When confronted by a farmer, Matthews assaulted him with a brick. Matthews was arrested in October 1960 and served a year for theft and assault at the Raleigh State Reformatory for Boys in
Raleigh Raleigh (; ) is the capital city of the state of North Carolina and the seat of Wake County in the United States. It is the second-most populous city in North Carolina, after Charlotte. Raleigh is the tenth-most populous city in the Southeas ...
, North Carolina. Upon his release, Matthews moved to
Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...
,
Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...
, where he worked as a numbers writer. In Philadelphia, he made contacts that would become his future Philadelphia drug connections including
Major Coxson Major Benjamin Coxson, also known as The Maj, ( – June 8, 1973) was an American drug kingpin from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He was a flamboyant entrepreneur, civil rights activist, inner city power broker and intermediary between Italian-Ameri ...
and members of the
Black Mafia The Black Mafia, also known as the Philadelphia Black Mafia (PBM), Black Muslim Mafia and Muslim Mob, was a Philadelphia-based African-American organized crime syndicate. The organization began as a small criminal collective, known for holdin ...
. Matthews was arrested in 1963 and avoided conviction by agreeing to leave Philadelphia. He moved to the Bedford–Stuyvesant area of
New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
and became a barber, collecting numbers as he had in Philadelphia, as well as working as a collector and an enforcer.


Career

In 1965, Matthews grew tired of the numbers game and began to transition into the
heroin Heroin, also known as diacetylmorphine and diamorphine among other names, is a potent opioid mainly used as a recreational drug for its euphoric effects. Medical grade diamorphine is used as a pure hydrochloride salt. Various white and brow ...
drug trade in order to make more money. In the early 1960s, the main supply of wholesale heroin was the
American Mafia The American Mafia, commonly referred to in North America as the Italian American Mafia, the Mafia, or the Mob, is a highly organized Italian American criminal society and organized crime group. The organization is often referred to by its membe ...
through their famed
French Connection The French Connection was a scheme through which heroin was smuggled from Indochina through Turkey to France and then to the United States and Canada, sometimes through Cuba. The operation started in the 1930s, reached its peak in the 1960s, and ...
. Matthews attempted to partner with the Gambino and Bonanno crime families, both part of the
Five Families The Five Families refers to five major New York City organized crime families of the Italian American Mafia formed in 1931 by Salvatore Maranzano following his victory in the Castellammarese War. Maranzano reorganized the Italian American gangs ...
that controlled organized crime in New York City since the 1930s, however, both organizations declined. From his days in the numbers game he knew of "Spanish Raymond" Márquez, a prolific
Harlem Harlem is a neighborhood in Upper Manhattan, New York City. It is bounded roughly by the Hudson River on the west; the Harlem River and 155th Street (Manhattan), 155th Street on the north; Fifth Avenue on the east; and 110th Street (Manhattan), ...
numbers operator. Márquez put him in contact with "El Padrino", the New York Cuban Mafia godfather Rolando Gonzalez Nuñez, a major Cuban
cocaine Cocaine (from , from , ultimately from Quechuan languages, Quechua: ''kúka'') is a central nervous system (CNS) stimulant mainly recreational drug use, used recreationally for its euphoria, euphoric effects. It is primarily obtained from t ...
supplier, shortly before Gonzalez fled to
Venezuela Venezuela (; ), officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela ( es, link=no, República Bolivariana de Venezuela), is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many islands and islets in th ...
because of an upcoming indictment in the United States. Before fleeing, Gonzalez sold Matthews his first kilogram of cocaine for $20,000, with a promise to supply more in the future. This relationship expanded into a lucrative and expansive drug trafficking network. Gonzalez began sending Matthews large loads of cocaine and heroin from South America. Gonzalez continued to be a major figure in the international cocaine trade with bases in
Miami Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a East Coast of the United States, coastal metropolis and the County seat, county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade C ...
,
New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...
and New York and partnerships with the
Corsican Mafia The Corsican mafia is a set of criminal groups originating from Corsica, which are partially independent of but also closely tied to and participating heavily in both the French underworld and Italian Mafia. The Corsican mafia is an influential ...
. Gonzalez was arrested in
Caracas Caracas (, ), officially Santiago de León de Caracas, abbreviated as CCS, is the capital and largest city of Venezuela, and the center of the Metropolitan Region of Caracas (or Greater Caracas). Caracas is located along the Guaire River in the ...
, Venezuela in 1972 in a raid that netted 70 pounds of heroin and cocaine. Found not guilty, he again was arrested in the early 1980s, caught with 18 pounds of cocaine; he served 5 years in prison, retired from a life of crime, and quietly lived with his wife Esmeralda on a small farm near Caracas until his death in 1992. Matthews expanded on this and, within a year, was one of the major players in the New York drug business. Realizing the need for diversification, he would continually seek out new sources of supply for
narcotics The term narcotic (, from ancient Greek ναρκῶ ''narkō'', "to make numb") originally referred medically to any psychoactive compound with numbing or paralyzing properties. In the United States, it has since become associated with opiates ...
, willing to do business with anyone as long as the product was sufficiently pure. Matthews also developed a
cocaine dependence Cocaine dependence is a neurological disorder that is characterized by withdrawal symptoms upon cessation from cocaine use. It also often coincides with cocaine addiction which is a biopsychosocial disorder characterized by persistent use of coc ...
that grew along with his business and power. By the early 1970s, the Matthews organization was handling multimillion-dollar loads of heroin. The
Internal Revenue Service The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is the revenue service for the United States federal government, which is responsible for collecting U.S. federal taxes and administering the Internal Revenue Code, the main body of the federal statutory ta ...
(IRS) estimates that he earned over $10 million in 1972. According to the
Drug Enforcement Administration The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA; ) is a Federal law enforcement in the United States, United States federal law enforcement agency under the U.S. Department of Justice tasked with combating drug trafficking and distribution within th ...
(DEA), "Matthews controlled the cutting, packaging, and sale of heroin in every major
East Coast East Coast may refer to: Entertainment * East Coast hip hop, a subgenre of hip hop * East Coast (ASAP Ferg song), "East Coast" (ASAP Ferg song), 2017 * East Coast (Saves the Day song), "East Coast" (Saves the Day song), 2004 * East Coast FM, a ra ...
city." In New York City, he operated two massive drug mills in
Brooklyn Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...
: one located at 925 Prospect Place, nicknamed the "Ponderosa", and the other at 101 East 56th Street, nicknamed the "OK Corral". Both locations were heavily fortified and secured, with walls reinforced with steel and concrete and protected by guards with machine guns. Besides controlling the retail sale of heroin, the organization supplied other major dealers throughout the East Coast with multi-kilogram shipments for up to $26,000 per kilogram. He was known to supply heroin to Philadelphia through
Major Coxson Major Benjamin Coxson, also known as The Maj, ( – June 8, 1973) was an American drug kingpin from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He was a flamboyant entrepreneur, civil rights activist, inner city power broker and intermediary between Italian-Ameri ...
who then sold it to the
Black Mafia The Black Mafia, also known as the Philadelphia Black Mafia (PBM), Black Muslim Mafia and Muslim Mob, was a Philadelphia-based African-American organized crime syndicate. The organization began as a small criminal collective, known for holdin ...
. Matthews purchased a house in the Mafia enclave in
Todt Hill Todt Hill ( ) is a hill formed of serpentine rock on Staten Island, New York. It is the highest natural point in the five boroughs of New York City and the highest elevation on the entire Atlantic coastal plain from Florida to Cape Cod. The summi ...
,
Staten Island Staten Island ( ) is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Richmond County, in the U.S. state of New York. Located in the city's southwest portion, the borough is separated from New Jersey by the Arthur Kill and the Kill Van Kull an ...
right across the street from the Gambino crime boss,
Paul Castellano Constantino Paul Castellano (; June 26, 1915 – December 16, 1985), was an American crime boss who succeeded Carlo Gambino as head of the Gambino crime family. Castellano was killed in an unsanctioned hit on December 16, 1985. Early life Cast ...
. Matthews would take multiple trips to
Las Vegas Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vegas ...
with suitcases full of cash to have the drug money laundered at casinos for a fee of 15–18%. In 1971, Matthews invited major African-American and Hispanic drug traffickers throughout the country to attend a meeting in
Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...
,
Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...
. The DEA became aware of the meeting and monitored who attended. The topic of the meeting was how to import heroin without the Mafia. Those present decided to build stronger independent relationships with the Corsicans and possibly Cubans. In addition, they agreed to diversify their product to include cocaine, which was becoming available in massive quantities. This gathering of major drug traffickers throughout the United States is significant because it represented the changing nature of the drug business. Whereas, previously, the Italians controlled the importing and wholesaling of narcotics, therefore controlling who could and could not advance past them, now others were establishing their own pipelines. Before, the Mafia asserted behind-the-scenes control of the business while African-Americans sold and used the drugs in their cities; now the black dealers established connections and took control of their neighborhoods. This later evolved to include not just black people controlling the business, but also local gangs of black people eliminating out-of-town black suppliers trying to control their neighborhoods from a distance. Matthews clashed with the Philadelphia Black Mafia and, on Easter Sunday in 1972 in
Atlantic City Atlantic City, often known by its initials A.C., is a coastal resort city in Atlantic County, New Jersey, United States. The city is known for its casinos, Boardwalk (entertainment district), boardwalk, and beaches. In 2020 United States censu ...
, New Jersey, the Black Mafia killed Tyrone "Mr. Millionaire" Palmer, Matthews' main dealer in Philadelphia, at the "Club Harlem" packed with 600 people. Many innocent bystanders were shot during the shoot-out, with five people killed and twenty-six injured. No one was prosecuted for the crime and none of the 799 potential witnesses came forward. Three of Matthews' top lieutenants in the city were murdered by the Black Mafia. In 1972, Matthews held another drug dealer summit in Las Vegas at the
Sands Hotel The Sands Hotel and Casino was a historic American hotel and casino on the Las Vegas Strip in Nevada, United States, that operated from 1952 to 1996. Designed by architect Wayne McAllister, with a prominent high sign, the Sands was the seventh ...
during the Muhammad Ali vs. Jerry Quarry boxing match. Soon after this meeting, police received authority to tap his phone lines and he was recorded discussing drug transactions. Ernie "Coco" Coralluzzo, an associate of the
Genovese crime family The Genovese crime family, () also sometimes referred to as the Westside, is an Italian-American Mafia crime family and one of the "Five Families" that dominate organized crime activities in New York City and New Jersey as part of the American M ...
's
Greenwich Village Crew The Greenwich Village Crew is a crew within the Genovese crime family, active in the Greenwich Village area of Manhattan. It was originally controlled by Don Vito Genovese from the early 1920s until his arrest in the late 1950s.G. T. Harrell. ''F ...
, negotiated the sale of 40 kilograms of heroin to Matthews for $375,000 during a meeting at the
Waldorf Astoria New York The Waldorf Astoria New York is a luxury hotel and condominium residence in Midtown Manhattan in New York City. The structure, at 301 Park Avenue between 49th and 50th Streets, is a 47-story Art Deco landmark designed by architects Schult ...
in April 1973. While Matthews delivered the fee via an intermediary the following day, Coralluzzo failed to provide the drugs and instead fled to the
Bahamas The Bahamas (), officially the Commonwealth of The Bahamas, is an island country within the Lucayan Archipelago of the West Indies in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic. It takes up 97% of the Lucayan Archipelago's land area and is home to ...
. Matthews and his associates then kidnapped James "Big Jimmy" Capotorto, an underling and bodyguard to Coralluzzo, in an effort to retrieve the money. Upon hearing of Capotorto's kidnapping, Coralluzzo took a flight to New York, returned the $375,000 to Matthews and gave him 25 kilograms of heroin on consignment.Black Caesar Vs. The New York Mafia: When The Genovese Mob Tried Ripping Off Frank Matthews In A Drug Deal, It Didn’t Go As Planned
Scott Burnstein, GangsterReport.com (April 18, 2022)


Arrest and disappearance

In December 1972, Matthews was indicted by federal prosecutors in Brooklyn, charged with the attempted sale of 40 pounds of cocaine in Miami between April and September 1972. In January 1973, the DEA arrested Matthews at
McCarran International Airport Harry Reid International Airport is an international airport in Paradise, Nevada, and is the main government airport for public use in the Las Vegas Valley, a metropolitan area in the U.S. state of Nevada, about south of Downtown Las Vegas. ...
in Las Vegas, ahead of a planned trip to
Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...
with his girlfriend Cheryl Denise Brown, on charges of tax evasion and conspiracy to distribute heroin and cocaine. A federal magistrate originally set bail at $5 million, the highest bail amount ever set at the time. The bail was reduced to $2.5 million when Matthews agreed to not fight extradition and be returned to New York. After a few weeks in detention in New York, his bail was further reduced to $325,000. He was indicted on six counts of tax evasion and conspiracy to distribute heroin and cocaine and faced 50 years in prison. On July 2, 1973, Matthews was scheduled to appear in a Brooklyn courthouse but never showed. He allegedly took $20 million and fled the country with Brown. Matthews left behind his common-law wife, their three sons and their Staten Island mansion and was never seen again. Former DEA agent Frank Panessa stated in a July 2022 podcast interview that the DEA received unconfirmed reports from informants that the Genovese family had lured Matthews to the Bahamas under the false pretence of aiding him while he was at large and subsequently killed him, partially due to fears that he may turn government witness and implicate the Mafia, and partially due to his feud with Ernie Coralluzzo.Black Caesar Lost His Crown To The Mafia: Genovese Mob Took Out Frank Matthews, Tales Of Him Living Life Abroad False, Per Ex-Fed
Scott Burnstein, GangsterReport.com (July 15, 2022)
The
Federal Bureau of Investigation The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic intelligence and security service of the United States and its principal federal law enforcement agency. Operating under the jurisdiction of the United States Department of Justice, ...
(FBI) placed a $20,000 bounty on Matthews, the highest set by a federal agency since the FBI placed the same amount for the capture of bank robber
John Dillinger John Herbert Dillinger (June 22, 1903 – July 22, 1934) was an American gangster during the Great Depression. He led the Dillinger Gang, which was accused of robbing 24 banks and four police stations. Dillinger was imprisoned several times and ...
.


See also

* List of fugitives from justice who disappeared


Footnotes


References

* * *


External links


IMDb: The Frank Matthews Story
documentary on the life and times of Frank matthews (2012) {{DEFAULTSORT:Matthews, Frank 1944 births 1970s missing person cases 20th-century African-American people 20th-century American criminals American male criminals African-American gangsters American crime bosses American drug traffickers American money launderers Criminals from Brooklyn Criminals from Staten Island Criminals from North Carolina Fugitives wanted by the United States Fugitives wanted on drug trafficking charges Gangsters from New York City Gangsters from Philadelphia Missing gangsters People from Bedford–Stuyvesant, Brooklyn People from Durham, North Carolina People from Todt Hill, Staten Island Possibly living people