Leland M. Beloff (born April 17, 1942) is a former American politician and convicted criminal. Mob boss Nicky Scarfo, who himself had been an amateur boxer followed the careers of young fighters from South Philadelphia, including Beloff. He was a Jewish Democratic member of the

Pennsylvania House of Representatives The Pennsylvania House of Representatives is the lower house of the bicameral Pennsylvania General Assembly, the legislature of the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. There are 203 members, elected for two-year terms from single member districts. It ...

and the

Philadelphia City Council The Philadelphia City Council, the legislative body of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, consists of ten members elected by district and seven members elected at-large. The council president is elected by the members from among their number. Each ...

, who resigned from office after being convicted in Federal court on extortion charges. His district was

Olde City, Philadelphia Olde is the surname of: * Barney Olde (1882–1932), Australian politician * Erika Olde, Canadian film producer, financier and billionaire heiress * Hans Olde (1855–1917), German painter and art school administrator * Margareth Olde (born 2000), ...

. The City Council would not approve any property development without consent of the district councilman. This gave Beloff power over the developers that would be given permits to build. In 1985 Beloff backed a construction project for an apartment building in return for a luxury apartment in Old City and then moved his mistress into the apartment that was rent-free. It was the failed extortion attempt by Lee Beloff, Nick Caramandi and Thomas DelGiorno that led to Caramandi deciding to turn as a

cooperating witness A criminal turns state's evidence by admitting guilt and testifying as a witness for the state against their associate(s) or accomplice(s), often in exchange for leniency in sentencing or immunity from prosecution.Howard Abadinsky, ''Organized Cr ...

against Scarfo after hearing that Scarfo put a murder contract on him. Beloff was sentenced to 10 years in prison, along with Philadelphia Mob boss Nicodemo Scarfo, for extorting money from Center City developer Willard Rouse. In 1998, he and his wife were convicted on voter fraud charges. He received a three-year sentence served concurrently with his earlier sentence. He was paroled in 1993 and went on to become Democratic ward chairperson. He was arrested in 2011 on disorderly conduct but the charges were later dropped. Beloff has been a resident of Longport, New Jersey, and

Gladwyne, Pennsylvania Gladwyne is a suburban community in Lower Merion Township, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, United States along the historic Philadelphia Main Line. In 2018, Gladwyne was ranked the sixth richest ZIP code (using 2015 IRS data) in the country in a ...

.Schneider, Howard
"Beloff Planning To Keep Seat"
'' The Philadelphia Inquirer'', June 30, 1986. Accessed November 19, 2013. "During a 20-minute interview in the den of his Longport home, Beloff, a former actor and prize-fighter - unshaven from his court appearance the day before and clad in a brightly colored striped bathrobe - offered no explanation or theories for the arrests."

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Beloff, Leland Democratic Party members of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives Pennsylvania politicians convicted of crimes People from Longport, New Jersey Philadelphia City Council members Politicians convicted of extortion under color of official right Living people 1942 births