Edward Herbert (1907–1949) was an American criminal active in the 1940s.

Early life

Edward Herbert was born on December 1, 1907, in

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. He was the youngest of 5 and grew up in NYC. He was the brother of Arthur "Tootsie" Herbert and Charlie Herbert, both of whom were involved in the Kosher chicken Union rackets. He was a confidant and associate of Mickey Cohen.

Los Angeles

When his boss, Benjamin Siegel, moved out to

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, Herbert did the same. When he moved to L.A., he worked as an

enforcer Enforcer or enforcers may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Comics * Enforcer (comics), a Marvel Comics character * Enforcers (comics), a Marvel Comics team * New Enforcers, another Marvel Comics team Film and television * ''The Enforcer ...

for the Siegel-Cohen crime family. On June 20, 1947, Siegel was murdered by an apparent

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Mafia "Mafia" is an informal term that is used to describe criminal organizations that bear a strong similarity to the original “Mafia”, the Sicilian Mafia and Italian Mafia. The central activity of such an organization would be the arbitration of d ...

hitman Contract killing is a form of murder or assassination in which one party hires another party to kill a targeted person or persons. It involves an illegal agreement which includes some form of payment, monetary or otherwise. Either party may be ...

with a

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military

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. When Siegel was murdered, his right-hand man,

Mickey Cohen Meyer Harris "Mickey" Cohen (September 4, 1913 – July 29, 1976) was an American gangster, boxer and entrepreneur based in Los Angeles during the mid-20th century. Early life Mickey Cohen was born on September 4, 1913, in New York City to Je ...

became the boss of his criminal empire spanning from L.A. to

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. Along with Harry "Hooky" Rothman, Nerbert was a top lieutenant of Cohen's. However, one of Siegel's lieutenants and Cohen's rival,

Jack Dragna Jack Ignatius Dragna (born Ignazio Dragna, ; April 18, 1891 – February 23, 1956) was an American Mafia member and Black Hander who was active in both Italy and the United States in the 20th century. He was active in bootlegging in Californ ...

, didn't sit well with his rise as boss and decided to rage a full-scale war on Cohen.

Battle of Sunset Strip

Dragna and Cohen's war was nicknamed the "Battle of Sunset Strip". Dragna soon began to eliminate Cohen's lieutenants, one-by-one; he ordered the deaths of: Harold Rothman, Frank Niccoli,

Anthony Brancato Anthony Brancato (July 18, 1914 – August 6, 1951) was an American criminal who served as a freelance gunman to various Mafia and syndicate organizations. Early career Born in Kansas City in 1914, Brancato became involved in armed robbery a ...

, and several others.

Death and aftermath

At 3:55 a.m. on July 20, 1949, Dragna made another move on Cohen, but this time with civilians in the mix. A failed shooting attempt was made with several people injured: reporter

Florabel Muir Florabel Muir (May 6, 1889 – April 27, 1970) was an American reporter, newspaper columnist and author. She became known for covering both Hollywood celebrities and underworld gangsters from the 1920s through the 1960s. Career Muir was b ...

, Dee David (an actress), Cohen, Harry Cooper (a bodyguard assigned to Cohen by Frederick N. Howser), and Herbert was injured. But, later, Herbert died of his wounds that same day and was buried in New York.

Media

* Evan Jones portrayed Herbert in the 2013 film '' Gangster Squad''.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Herbert, Neddie Gangsters from New York City 1907 births 1949 deaths Murdered American gangsters Deaths by firearm in California