Kelly Phillips Erb ,
FORBES STAFF October 17, 2016
It was 85 years ago today that the feds finally got their
man: on this day in 1931, Al Capone was sentenced to serious prison time.
Despite Capone's reputation, he wasn't put away for murder or gambling or
bootlegging but for tax evasion.
Alphonse Gabriel Capone, better known as Al Capone, was born
in Brooklyn, New York in 1899. When he was 18, a friend, Johnny "The
Fox" Torrio, introduced Capone to Frankie Yale. Yale owned a number of
brothels which served as bases for illegal activities, including gambling. Yale
gave Capone a job as a bouncer and bartender at one of the brothels. While at
work, Capone, who wasn't known for being even-tempered, got into a fight and
was slashed across the face three times with a knife, earning him his first
nickname, "Scarface." Supposedly, the fight was over a girl: Capone
made a pass at a customer's sister.
While still just a teenager, Capone met and married Mae
Josephine Coughlin. That same month, Mae gave birth to the couple's first
child, a son, Albert Francis "Sonny" Capone. Capone then decided it
was time to settle down. He moved his family to Baltimore with intentions of
making an honest living. But he couldn't resist his old life, and when Torrio
asked Capone to move to Chicago and help him run his mob empire, it was an
offer Capone couldn't refuse. Prohibition was in full swing and the men saw an
opportunity to exploit the demand for booze, gambling, and women.
In 1925, Torrio barely survived an assassination attempt by
rival mobsters Hymie "The Pole" Weiss, Vincent "The
Schemer" Drucci, and George "Bugs" Moran. That was it for
Torrio: he wanted out. He decided to leave Chicago and head to Italy, handing
over control of his mob empire over to Capone.
Capone expanded Torrio's business in Chicago and made lots
of money doing it. By the mid-1920s, Capone was reportedly taking home $60
million annually ($826 million in today's dollars). Despite playing "Robin
Hood" to the locals, his wealth continued to grow, reportedly topping $100
million ($1.43 billion in today's dollars).
As Capone's empire grew, so did his penchant for violence.
The bodies piled up as rival gangs fought for control in Chicago. The
lawlessness culminated on February 14, 1929, when gunmen allegedly hired by
Capone posed as police officers before executing rival gangsters belonging to
George "Bugs" Moran. Capone was in Miami at the time of the shootings
but was immediately blamed for what came to be known as the St. Valentine's Day
Massacre. No one was ever prosecuted. After the shootings, the FBI dubbed
Capone "Public Enemy Number One," a label Capone reportedly hated.
Capone's exploits taunted lawmen who wanted him brought
down. Capone proved difficult to pin down, escaping prosecution for serious
crimes through a combination of smarts and, more importantly, bribes. Then
President Herbert Hoover made it clear that he wanted Capone off the streets.