The Ballad of Red Levine.......

[Valin]

...The Mafia Assassin Who Vanished Off The Face Of The Earth

International Business Times

Palash Ghosh

May 29 2013

 

 

Samuel "Red" Levine isn't a name known to the general public, that is, outside of hardcore aficionados of American mafia and organized crime. Yet, Levine -- a Jewish gunman whose red hair and freckles inspired his nickname -- allegedly participated in two of the most pivotal crimes in Mafia history.

 

Following the orders of Lucky Luciano and Meyer Lansky, Levine was one of a crack squad of killers who're believed to have murdered Joe "The Boss" Masseria in a Coney Island, Brooklyn restaurant in April 1931; five months later, Levine helped end the life of Masserias rival, Salvatore Maranzano, the Sicilian "capo di tutti capi," or "boss of bosses," who established the rules and hierarchy of the U.S. version of La Cosa Nostra that still exist.

 

 

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A report from the Village Voice from March 2001 indicated that Levine was involved with the Newspaper and Mail Deliverers Union during the 1970s, suggesting that Jewish racketeers played a major role in the union even at that late a date.

 

Law enforcement officials, as well as longtime union members and mob associates say that Levine cleverly allowed each of the city's five Mafia families to have a piece of the newspaper delivery action, which included bootleg sales of stolen papers as well as loan-sharking and gambling among drivers, according to the the article.

 

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I am forced to admit I had never heard of this guy

 

H/T Friends Of Ours