Israeli mafia

[edit] Israeli organized crime


According to Israeli police force spokesman Gil Kleiman, although there is a substantial presence of organized criminal gangs in Israel, they have not succeeded in infiltrating the establishment as for example gangsters such as Al Capone who had judges, police chiefs and other authority figures in his pocket. Mr Kleiman also said that since the September 11th attacks a lot of police resources were diverted to fighting terrorism rather than organized crime, leading to a resurgence in gangland violence. In December 2003, three men were killed by a bomb in Tel Aviv meant for a local crime boss. [1]



However Mr Kleiman's remarks considering organized crime's infiltration into the establishment may be disputed, since in 2004 a former government minister Gonen Segev was arrested for attempting to smuggle in thousands of ecstasy pills from Amsterdam[2], which might suggest that some elements of the Israeli establishment are indeed collaborating with organized crime.



[edit] Notable incidents

11 December 2003 - A bomb at a money exchange shop, aimed at Zeev Rosenstein, kills three bystanders and injures 18 but leaves Rosenstein unhurt.[3][4][dead link]

1 August 2004 - A grenade aimed at a casino owned by Asi Abutbul in Prague, Czech Republic, injures 18 tourists.[5]

11 July 2008 - Yoram Haham, one of Israel's best known criminal lawyers, was killed in a car bomb explosion in Tel Aviv.[6] Haham had represented Asi Abutbul.[7]

28 July 2008 - During an assassination attempt targeting associates of the Abergil crime family on a beach in Bat Yam, a gunman accidentally kills a bystander while she was spending time with her husband and two small children.[8]

8 September 2008 - Gunmen wound Charlie Abutbul and three bystanders in an attack in Netanya.[9]

12 September 2008 - Gunmen on motorcycles try to kill mob figure Yotam Cohen in Netanya.[10]

18 November 2008 - A car bomb kills mobster Yaakov Alperon in Tel Aviv.

[edit] The Israeli mafia in the United States

Israeli mobsters have a presence in the United States.



In New York City in the late 1980s Yehuda “Johnny” Attias operated a criminal organization heavily involved in drug trafficking, making millions through importing heroin from Amsterdam and Thailand as well as hashish from Turkey. They also pulled off the biggest gold heist in the history of Manhattan's jewellery district, getting away with over $4 million in gold jewellery. However Attias was ultimately murdered in January 1990, and New York's Israeli mafia fell apart soon after. Several members such as Ron Gonen had turned informant and the authorities arrested the rest of the gang in September of that year.[11]



The Israeli mafia (such as the Abergil crime family) is heavily involved in ecstasy trafficking in the United States[1] and were allegedly the suppliers to former Gambino crime family underboss Sammy Gravano in his Arizona drug ring. Gravano's main drug supplier was New York based Israeli mobster, Ilan Zarger.[12][13][14]. Reportedly Israeli criminal organizations are trying to move into Las Vegas, to control the drug and prostitution rackets in the city. [1]



[edit] Russian organized crime in Israel

Russian organized crime in Israel began with the mass immigration of Russian Jews to Israel in 1989.[15] An underground society of criminals and youth gangs developed quickly, encouraged by the increasing permissiveness of parts of Israel like Tel Aviv during the 1990s. The groups established networks and activities in narcotics, prostitution and human trafficking which still exist today, and their operations are often funded by the Russian mafia.



By 1998, 750 000 Russian Jews had immigrated to Israel following the collapse of the Soviet Union.[16]



Israel appealed to the organized crime bosses after 1989 for a number of reasons. Firstly, the Russian mafia saw it as an ideal place to launder money, as Israel's banking system was designed to encourage aliyah, the immigration of Jews, and the accompanying capital.[17] Following the trend of global financial deregulation, Israel had also implemented legislation aimed at easing the movement of capital. Combined with the lack of anti-money laundering legislation, Russian organised crime found it an easy place to transfer ill-gotten gains. In 2005, police estimated that Russian organised crime had laundered between $5 and 10 billion in the fifteen years since the end of the Soviet Union.[18]



The other reason for Israel's popularity among Russian organized crime bosses was the fact that many were Jewish. Instead of being discriminated against and penalised in the Soviet Union for being Jewish, the bosses, who often posed as legitimate businessmen to gain an Israeli passport, were, in the words of Misha Glenny, "welcomed as valuable and respected additions to the family".[18] Even non-Jewish criminals, such as Sergei Mikhailov, sought to come to Israel (Mikhailov used fake Jewish documentation). For these criminals, an Israeli passport was also seen as a door to the outside world.



[edit] Notable members

Abergil Crime Family

Asi Abutbul & family

Yaakov Alperon

Ludwig Fainberg

Semion Mogilevich

Zeev Rosenstein