Jul 25, 2007 7:12 pm US/Central
Mobster Tells All About Past Chicago Corruption
"The Beak" Reveals Alliance Between Outfit And Cops
By CBS 2's John Drummond
CHICAGO (CBS) ―
-
-
Bobby "The Beak" Siegel
CBS
Related Stories
-
Defense Scoffs Testimony By Mob Trial Witness (July 23, 2007)
(7/24/2007)
-
Nick Calabrese Wraps Up Mob Trial Testimony (July 19, 2007)
(7/20/2007)
-
Mobster Spills Details Of Hits That Inspired Movie (July 18, 2007)
(7/19/2007)
-
Grisly Details Of 9 Mob Murders Revealed (July 17, 2007)
(7/18/2007)
-
Turncoat Takes Stand In Family Secrets Mob Trial (July 16, 2007)
(7/17/2007)
-
Mobster Son Calls Father 'Sick' (July 12, 2007)
(7/12/2007)
-
Mob Trial Reveals Details Of Cold-Blooded Crime (July 10, 2007)
(7/11/2007)
-
Calabrese Jr. Testifies On Mob Do's And Don'ts (July 9, 2007)
(7/10/2007)
-
Bookie Mum At Mob Trial, Jailed For Contempt (July 2, 2007)
(7/2/2007)
-
Adult Bookstore Operator: Lombardo Made Me Pay (June 26, 2007)
(6/27/2007)
-
Mob Trial Opening Statements Underway (June 21, 2007)
(6/21/2007)
-
Jury Selection Continues In Historic Mob Trial (June 20, 2007)
(6/20/2007)
-
Suspicious Package Found At Calabrese Home (June 19, 2007)
(6/20/2007)
-
Family Secrets Case Built On Son Against Father (June 19, 2007)
(6/20/2007)
-
Historic Mob Trial Gets Underway (June 19, 2007)
(6/20/2007)
-
2 Plead Guilty To Charges On Eve Of Mob Trial (June 18, 2007)
(6/18/2007)
-
Reputed Mobster May Go Away For 7 To 9 Years (June 15, 2007)
(6/15/2007)
-
Appeals Court: Reputed Mobsters Must Stand Trial (June 13, 2007)
(6/13/2007)
-
Reputed Mobster Admits To 14 Murders (May 18, 2007)
(5/18/2007)
-
Government Releases List Of Witnesses Against Mob (April 19, 2007)
(4/20/2007)
-
Reputed Mobster Lombardo Denies He Was Fugitive (March 20, 2007)
(3/20/2007)
-
Mob Informant Talks About Life In Chicago Gangland (March 13, 2007)
(3/14/2007)
-
Reputed Mob Boss Charged With Obstruction (March 9, 2007)
(3/10/2007)
-
Feds Want Anonymous Jury In Mob Murder Case (Feb. 19, 2007)
(2/20/2007)
-
Deputy U.S. Marshal Pleads Not Guilty In Mob Leak (Jan. 31, 2007)
(1/31/2007)
-
Marshal Accused Of Leaking Info On Mob Witness (Jan. 11, 2007)
(1/12/2007)
-
Alleged Mob Boss Asks To Be Moved From Jail (Dec. 6, 2006)
(12/6/2006)
-
Aging Mob Trial Defendants Complain Of Bad Health (Nov. 16, 2006)
(11/17/2006)
-
Judge Orders Alleged Mobster To Stay Behind Bars (June 19, 2006)
(6/20/2006)
-
Prosecutors: Keep Alleged Mob Figure Behind Bars (June 12, 2006)
(6/13/2006)
-
Conversations Of Reputed Mobsters Caught On Tape (July 18, 2005)
(7/19/2005)
-
Feds Name Names in Chicago Mob Hits (Jun. 2, 2005)
(6/2/2005)
-
Mobster Pleads Innocent To Murder Conspiracy Charges (May 6, 2005)
(5/6/2005)
-
14 Indicted In Old Mob Murders (April 25, 2005)
(4/25/2005)
A key witness at the family secrets mob murder trial confirmed Chicago's past reputation as a corrupt city run by the mob.
CBS 2's John Drummond reports on testimony from Bobby "The Beak" Siegel, telling all about the unholy alliance between the outfit and the police.
Siegel, a 6th grade dropout, began his underworld career when he was just 13 years old.
"Stealing anything that we could make a buck with," Siegel said in court.
Siegel's associates included Lefty, The Turk, Potatoes, Fifi and the Calico kid.
"The Beak", as he was called, because of his prominent proboscis, bragged about his prolific career as a master burglar.
Prosecutor Marcus Funk asked "The Beak", "How many stores did you rob?"
Siegel: "Maybe a hundred."
Prosecutor: "How many banks?"
Siegel: "Three or four."
Prosecutor: "How many murders?"
Siegel: "Three."
One of the victims was a government snitch.
As a youth, "The Beak" soon began working for the outfit and looked up to mobsters.
"They made the money. They didn't go to jail. They had the power," he said. "Most of the police were on the (mob) payroll. It was a different era."
Siegel testified that he was present when his outfit boss took him to meet police crime-busters Bill Hanhardt and his partner John Hinchey.
According to Siegel, his boss then told the cops "to leave me alone."
Siegel said the going rate for police protection was as much as $1,200 a month, plus a new car every two years to Hanhardt and Hinchey and $600 a month to their underlings.
After some burglars disappeared following the break-in at mob boss Tony Accardo's home, Siegel said he volunteered to take a lie detector test to prove he wasn't involved. He passed and wasn't killed.
Also on hand Wednesday was the widow and daughter of slain burglar John Mendell, a pal of Siegel's who was targeted with six others. They had no comment.
Siegel said he was told the slain burglars were chosen from among various ethnic groups. Siegel said he just happened to be the Jew.
Police honcho John Hinchey is deceased and was never charged with any wrongdoing.
(© MMVII, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
SLIDESHOW: Openly Gay Celebrities
Click to enlarge
Stumble It!
