The Yakey Yakes was a 19th-century street gang, prominent in New York's underworld during the late 1890s and early 1900s. Based in the neighborhood of Catherine and Madison Streets, the gang were formed by Yakey Yake Brady in the 1890s and later participated in the gang war between
Monk Eastman
Edward "Monk" Eastman (1875 – December 26, 1920) was a New York City gangster who founded and led the Eastman Gang in the late 19th and early 20th century; it became one of the most powerful street gangs in the city. His aliases included Jose ...
and Paul Kelly.
Rivals of the Cherry Hill Gang, eight members were arrested in connection with the murder of rival Jimmy Brennan on the night of January 11, 1905. One of the gang members, Thomas "Nine-Eyed" Donegan, later admitted to have taken part in Brennan's murder, shooting him three times. However, members Robert Ginan and John Dalton ("Kid" or "Brady") were held in custody while the others were released under
subpoena
A subpoena (; also subpœna, supenna or subpena) or witness summons is a writ issued by a government agency, most often a court, to compel testimony by a witness or production of evidence under a penalty for failure. There are two common types of ...
s. Two others thought to be involved included Edward Lynch, who was found earlier that night with a gunshot wound in the leg, and John Sullivan, arrested in