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Ken Eto

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OwlTail

Ken Eto and Vince Solano An American-born man of Japanese extraction left the internment camps after World War II and landed in Chicago. Ken Eto was a professional gambler who received notice from the Outfit. By the 1970s, Vince Solano, boss of the Rush Street crew took over all Bolita action and he placed Ken Eto in charge. The FBI made a gambling case on Eto and before he appeared for sentencing, he assured Solano that he could do the time and he would not turn into a witness. Vince Solano did not want to take a chance and he dispatched two of his men named Jasper Campise and John Gattuso to murder Eto. they bungled the hit and Eto survived. A few months later Solano had his two errant hitmen murdered. Ken Eto and Elaine Smith FBI agent Elaine Smith had made the original case on Eto. She was part of the team who turned Eto and she became his minder turning the time when he started testifying about every Outfit secret he knew. They even flew him to Kansas City for the Las Vegas casino skim trials where he identified the Outfit hierarchy and told the jury that this was a criminal organization and was able to identify the hierarchy and tell how they worked.   Show notes by Gary Jenkins To go to the store or make a donation click here To rent Brothers against Brothers, the documentary, click here.  To rent Gangland Wire, the documentary, click here To buy my Kindle book, Leaving Vegas: The True Story of How FBI Wiretaps Ended Mob Domination of Las Vegas Casinos. To subscribe on iTunes click here, please give me a review and help others find the podcast. The post 1989 Year of the Stool Pigeon Ken Eto appeared first on Gangland Wire.

<h2>Ken Eto and Vince Solano</h2> An American-born man of Japanese extraction left the internment camps after World War II and landed in Chicago. Ken Eto was a professional gambler who received notice from the Outfit. By the 1970s, Vince Solano, boss of the Rush Street crew took over all Bolita action and he placed Ken Eto in charge. The FBI made a gambling case on Eto and before he appeared for sentencing, he assured Solano that he could do the time and he would not turn into a witness. Vince Solano did not want to take a chance and he dispatched two of his men named Jasper Campise and John Gattuso to murder Eto. they bungled the hit and Eto survived. A few months later Solano had his two errant hitmen murdered. <h2>Ken Eto and Elaine Smith</h2> FBI agent Elaine Smith had made the original case on Eto. She was part of the team who turned Eto and she became his minder turning the time when he started testifying about every Outfit secret he knew. They even flew him to Kansas City for the Las Vegas casino skim trials where he identified the Outfit hierarchy and told the jury that this was a criminal organization and was able to identify the hierarchy and tell how they worked. Show notes by Gary Jenkins To go to the store or make a donation <a href="https://ganglandwire.com/store/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">click here</a> To rent Brothers against Brothers, the documentary, <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Brothers-against-Civella-Spero-War/dp/B081ZKBVRC/ref=sr_1_1?crid=20I5V6JFYZ1PQ&amp;keywords=brothers+against+brothers+the+civella-spero+war&amp;qid=1578331170&amp;sprefix=brothers+agais%2Caps%2C163&amp;sr=8-1" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">click here. </a> To rent Gangland Wire, the documentary,<a href="https://www.amazon.com/Gangland-Wire-David-Jackson/dp/B088G28QJC/ref=sr_1_fkmr0_1?dchild=1&amp;keywords=gangland+wire+gary+jenkins&amp;qid=1629734408&amp;sr=8-1-fkmr0" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"> click here</a> To buy my Kindle book, <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Leaving-Vegas-Wiretaps-Domination-Casinos/dp/1540779254" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Leaving Vegas: The True Story of How FBI Wiretaps Ended Mob Domination of Las Vegas Casinos</a>. To subscribe on iTunes <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/gangland-wire/id984020877?mt=2" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">click here,</a> please give me a review and help others find the podcast. The post <a href="https://ganglandwire.com/1989-year-of-the-stool-pigeon-ken-eto-vince-solano/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">1989 Year of the Stool Pigeon Ken Eto</a> appeared first on <a href="https://ganglandwire.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Gangland Wire</a>.

1989 Year of the Stool Pigeon Ken Eto

FBI Agent Elaine Smith and Ken Eto Ken Eto was a Japanese-American who became the highest known Asian-American in any Organized Crime family in the United States. He was called Joe the Jap or Toyko Joe by his peers in the Chicago Outfit. In this podcast, I interview retired FBI agent Elaine Smith about Eto because she worked up a gambling case on him and after it became known the government was sending Eto to jail, his Chicago Outfit boss, Vincent Solano ordered his murder. Ken Eto History  Ken Eto was born in California prior to World War II. He was raised by socially conservative and strict Japanese immigrant parents. The government forced the Eto family along with thousands of other Japanese-Americans into Idaho internment camps for the duration of the War. Ken Eto spent the War at the Minidoka War Relocation Center. During this time, he learned he had a great mind for numbers and a memory for what cards had been played or not played during endless poker games in the camp. Ken Eto moved to Chicago in 1959 to make his fortune. The Chicago Outfit and Ken Eto Once Ken Eto arrived at Chicago, he sought out high stakes poker games where he was known as a consistent winner. The men who protected these games were Outfit up and comers like Turk Torrello, Vince Solano, Sam Giancana, and Joey Aiuppa. They noticed this newcomer was winning consistently and they forced him to pay a street tax on his earnings. In return for the money he made the Outfit, they assisted him in setting up a large Bolito or numbers operation. He was known to turn over up to $200,000 a week. Eto was responsible to pay off the Chicago cops to the tune of $3,000 per week. He became a huge earner for the Outfit.  How The FBI got onto Ken Eto A new FBI agent named Elaine Smith talked her way into being assigned to the Organized Crime Squad at the Chicago FBI office. Ms. Smith was from Chicago and being steeped in the lore of the Outfit had long wanted to work cases on these guys. One of her first assignments was to look into Ken Eto. The squad had dismissed Eto as a minor player and of no consequence because of his ethnicity. Agent Smith learned he was a major earner for the Outfit. Once she made her case and it became known that the US Attorney was going to convict him, Eto’s Outfit boss, Vince Solano, got nervous. He “whistled in” Eto for a meet. Ken Eto assured Solano that he could easily take a gambling conviction and do his time. Vincent Solano was irrationally afraid that Eto would turn government witness. Elaine Smith turns Eto into a witness On February 10, 1983, Eto pleads guilty and gets prepared for sentencing. On February 10, 1983, Vince Solano sends hitmen Jasper Campise and John Gattuso to pick him up and take him to a dinner meeting.  Solano was unaware of Eto’s culture and Samurai spirit or he would never have worried about him turning witness. Eto believes this is the way his life ends as he enters the car. He has instructed his wife on what to do if he is killed. Campise and Gattuso direct him to a restaurant that Eto has never heard body talk about. They park in a side street. Eto noticed that the hitmen’s hands are shaking and they keep incessantly and nervously talking about how great this food is going to taste. All of a sudden the men pull guns and fire to Ken Eto’s head and body. They push him out of the car and leave him on the street. Ken Eto staggers into an open drug store and calls for an ambulance. Elaine Smith answers a late-night phone call and leans of this murder attempt while on a Colorado ski trip. When she returned she is able to turn Eto against his bosses. She will spend the next week’s, months, and even years with Eto going around the country testifying against various Outfit members. Elaine Smith maintains a relationship with Eto until his death from natural causes while in Witness Protection living in a small Georgia town. Support the Podcast Hit me up on Venmo for a cup of coffee or a shot and a beer @ganglandwire To go to the store or make a donation Click Here.   To rent Brothers against Brothers, the documentary, click here.  To rent Gangland Wire, the documentary, click here To subscribe on iTunes click here, please give me a review and help others find the podcast The post Ken Eto and the FBI appeared first on Gangland Wire.

<h2>FBI Agent Elaine Smith and Ken Eto</h2> Ken Eto was a Japanese-American who became the highest known Asian-American in any Organized Crime family in the United States. He was called Joe the Jap or Toyko Joe by his peers in the Chicago Outfit. In this podcast, I interview retired FBI agent Elaine Smith about Eto because she worked up a gambling case on him and after it became known the government was sending Eto to jail, his Chicago Outfit boss, Vincent Solano ordered his murder. <h2>Ken Eto History </h2> Ken Eto was born in California prior to World War II. He was raised by socially conservative and strict Japanese immigrant parents. The government forced the Eto family along with thousands of other Japanese-Americans into Idaho internment camps for the duration of the War. Ken Eto spent the War at the Minidoka War Relocation Center. During this time, he learned he had a great mind for numbers and a memory for what cards had been played or not played during endless poker games in the camp. Ken Eto moved to Chicago in 1959 to make his fortune. <h2>The Chicago Outfit and Ken Eto</h2> Once Ken Eto arrived at Chicago, he sought out high stakes poker games where he was known as a consistent winner. The men who protected these games were Outfit up and comers like Turk Torrello, Vince Solano, Sam Giancana, and Joey Aiuppa. They noticed this newcomer was winning consistently and they forced him to pay a street tax on his earnings. In return for the money he made the Outfit, they assisted him in setting up a large Bolito or numbers operation. He was known to turn over up to $200,000 a week. Eto was responsible to pay off the Chicago cops to the tune of $3,000 per week. He became a huge earner for the Outfit.  <h2>How The FBI got onto Ken Eto</h2> A new FBI agent named Elaine Smith talked her way into being assigned to the Organized Crime Squad at the Chicago FBI office. Ms. Smith was from Chicago and being steeped in the lore of the Outfit had long wanted to work cases on these guys. One of her first assignments was to look into Ken Eto. The squad had dismissed Eto as a minor player and of no consequence because of his ethnicity. Agent Smith learned he was a major earner for the Outfit. Once she made her case and it became known that the US Attorney was going to convict him, Eto’s Outfit boss, Vince Solano, got nervous. He “whistled in” Eto for a meet. Ken Eto assured Solano that he could easily take a gambling conviction and do his time. <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vincent_Solano" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Vincent Solano</a> was irrationally afraid that Eto would turn government witness. <h2>Elaine Smith turns Eto into a witness</h2> On February 10, 1983, Eto pleads guilty and gets prepared for sentencing. On February 10, 1983, Vince Solano sends hitmen Jasper Campise and John Gattuso to pick him up and take him to a dinner meeting.  Solano was unaware of Eto’s culture and Samurai spirit or he would never have worried about him turning witness. Eto believes this is the way his life ends as he enters the car. He has instructed his wife on what to do if he is killed. Campise and Gattuso direct him to a restaurant that Eto has never heard body talk about. They park in a side street. Eto noticed that the hitmen’s hands are shaking and they keep incessantly and nervously talking about how great this food is going to taste. All of a sudden the men pull guns and fire to Ken Eto’s head and body. They push him out of the car and leave him on the street. Ken Eto staggers into an open drug store and calls for an ambulance. Elaine Smith answers a late-night phone call and leans of this murder attempt while on a Colorado ski trip. When she returned she is able to turn Eto against his bosses. She will spend the next week’s, months, and even years with Eto going around the country testifying against various Outfit members. Elaine Smith maintains a relationship with Eto until his death from natural causes while in Witness Protection living in a small Georgia town. <h3>Support the Podcast</h3> Hit me up on Venmo for a cup of coffee or a shot and a beer @ganglandwire To go to the store or make a donation<a href="https://ganglandwire.com/store/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"> Click Here</a>. To rent Brothers against Brothers, the documentary, <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Brothers-against-Civella-Spero-War/dp/B081ZKBVRC/ref=sr_1_1?crid=20I5V6JFYZ1PQ&amp;keywords=brothers+against+brothers+the+civella-spero+war&amp;qid=1578331170&amp;sprefix=brothers+agais%2Caps%2C163&amp;sr=8-1" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">click here. </a> To rent Gangland Wire, the documentary,<a href="https://www.amazon.com/Gangland-Wire-David-Jackson/dp/B00I2C67ZU" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"> click h</a>ere To subscribe on iTunes <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/gangland-wire/id984020877?mt=2" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">click here,</a> please give me a review and help others find the podcast The post <a href="https://ganglandwire.com/ken-eto-and-the-fbi/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Ken Eto and the FBI</a> appeared first on <a href="https://ganglandwire.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Gangland Wire</a>.

Ken Eto and the FBI

Ken Eto or Tokyo Joe was an unusual dude in the world of the Sicilian Chicago Outfit. The only Japanese American to be in any position of trust with the Chicago Outfit or any other family. He was Japanese-American born in 1919. In 1942 the feds placed his entire family in a Japanese Internment Camp. At the end of the war Tokyo Joe worked at different jobs and in 1949, he appears in Chicago. Chicago authorities first notice him during an investigation into the Numbers racket. At this time, nobody runs this kind of operation without the Outfit’s approval. Toyko Joe helped the Outfit take over African-American and Puerto Rican Numbers operations. It was thought he even helped set up hits on his competition. By the 1980s, the Tokyo Joe is doing as much as $200,000.00 a Ken Eto week in total business. Of the most interest to the F.B.I. is the fact he is making payments to corrupt Chicago cops. The Bureau soon learns that Tokyo Joe’s boss in the Outfit is Vincent Solano. Solano was a capo or captain over the Rush Street Crew and covered most of Northern Chicago and the adjoining suburbs. Solano was also the elected union president of the Local 1 of the Laborers’ International Union of North America. Vincent Solano F.B.I. agents focus on Tokyo Joe and his operation and soon he is indicted for running a gambling racket. Tokyo Joe was convicted of running the numbers gambling racket. His capo, Vincent Solano invited him to a meeting and asked for assurances that he would keep him mouth shut and do his time. Tokyo Joe claimed he asserted to his boss Solano that he would not talk and do his time. Tokyo Joe was invited to a dinner on February 10, 1983, a few weeks before his sentencing. He was nervous and actually thought he might be killed because he dressed himself in his best suit before leaving. Same thing with the Spilotro brothers, Tony left his jewelry and billfold at home before he went to his last meeting. Toyko Joe was sitting in his car when two men approached. They fired several times, shooting into his torso and head and leaving him for dead. He crawled out of the car and into a nearby Pharmacy. He was able to call 911. The call-taker told him to drive himself to a hospital. Eventually, the call taker was convinced and an ambulance was dispatched. Toyko Joe would survive this hit because the hit team, trying to be too careful, had loaded their own bullets. When they loaded the shells with black powder, they failed to load enough and the lead bullets failed to do enough body damage to kill Joe. The FBI would quickly visit Joe and offer him a deal. He agreed and agents moved him to another hospital under another name. They started the paperwork to place Eto into the witness protection program. He would name Jasper Campise and John Gattuso as the unsuccessful hit men. The FBI immediately contacted both these Outfit mobsters and offered a deal in exchange for implicating Solano and other higher-ups. As was well known with the Chicago Outfit, they were now at risk. A few months later, July 14, 1983, they were both found dead in the trunk of a car in  the Chicago suburb of Naperville, Illinois. Both had been strangled. Ken Eto or Toyko Joe would testify against many other Chicago Outfit mobsters. Eto’s testimony convicted 15 of them and they were sent to prison for various activities related to the numbers operation. This number included several corrupt Chicago cops. Vincent Solano would live out his life and die at the age of 72 in 1992. After he went into Witness Protection the FBI took Toyko Joe around to different mob trials that involved the Chicago Outfit as an expert on that family. He would eventually die at age 84 in 2004, under the name Joe Tanaka. He had been relocated to a small town called Norcross close to Atlanta Georgia. Photo credit      Thanks to Wikipedia, Breakshot Blog and the Chicago Syndicate.  To go to the store click here To rent Gangland Wire, the documentary, click here To subscribe on iTunes click here, give me a review and I will send you a link to see the film for free.  The post Ken Eto and the Chicago Outfit appeared first on Gangland Wire.

<a href="http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2012-07-15/news/ct-met-kass-0715-20120715_1_law-enforcement-trunk-outfit-bosses" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Ken Eto </a>or Tokyo Joe was an unusual dude in the world of the Sicilian Chicago Outfit. The only Japanese American to be in any position of trust with the Chicago Outfit or any other family. He was Japanese-American born in 1919. In 1942 the feds placed his entire family in a Japanese Internment Camp. At the end of the war Tokyo Joe worked at different jobs and in 1949, he appears in Chicago. Chicago authorities first notice him during an investigation into the Numbers racket. At this time, nobody runs this kind of operation without the Outfit’s approval. Toyko Joe helped the Outfit take over African-American and Puerto Rican Numbers operations. It was thought he even helped set up hits on his competition. By the 1980s, the Tokyo Joe is doing as much as $200,000.00 a Ken Eto week in total business. Of the most interest to the F.B.I. is the fact he is making payments to corrupt Chicago cops. The Bureau soon learns that Tokyo Joe’s boss in the Outfit is <a href="http://articles.chicagotribune.com/1992-11-17/news/9204150007_1_reputed-gambling-boss-mob" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Vincent Solano</a>. Solano was a capo or captain over the Rush Street Crew and covered most of Northern Chicago and the adjoining suburbs. Solano was also the elected union president of the Local 1 of the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laborers%27_International_Union_of_North_America" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Laborers’ International Union of North America</a>. Vincent Solano F.B.I. agents focus on Tokyo Joe and his operation and soon he is indicted for running a gambling racket. Tokyo Joe was convicted of running the numbers gambling racket. His capo, Vincent Solano invited him to a meeting and asked for assurances that he would keep him mouth shut and do his time. Tokyo Joe claimed he asserted to his boss Solano that he would not talk and do his time. Tokyo Joe was invited to a dinner on February 10, 1983, a few weeks before his sentencing. He was nervous and actually thought he might be killed because he dressed himself in his best suit before leaving. Same thing with the Spilotro brothers, Tony left his jewelry and billfold at home before he went to his last meeting. Toyko Joe was sitting in his car when two men approached. They fired several times, shooting into his torso and head and leaving him for dead. He crawled out of the car and into a nearby Pharmacy. He was able to call 911. The call-taker told him to drive himself to a hospital. Eventually, the call taker was convinced and an ambulance was dispatched. Toyko Joe would survive this hit because the hit team, trying to be too careful, had loaded their own bullets. When they loaded the shells with black powder, they failed to load enough and the lead bullets failed to do enough body damage to kill Joe. The FBI would quickly visit Joe and offer him a deal. He agreed and agents moved him to another hospital under another name. They started the paperwork to place Eto into the witness protection program. He would name <a href="http://chicago.cbslocal.com/2013/07/12/30-years-later-mob-hitmen-murders-remain-unsolved/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Jasper Campise and John Gattuso </a>as the unsuccessful hit men. The FBI immediately contacted both these Outfit mobsters and offered a deal in exchange for implicating Solano and other higher-ups. As was well known with the Chicago Outfit, they were now at risk. A few months later, July 14, 1983, they were both found dead in the trunk of a car in  the Chicago suburb of Naperville, Illinois. Both had been strangled. Ken Eto or Toyko Joe would testify against many other Chicago Outfit mobsters. Eto’s testimony convicted 15 of them and they were sent to prison for various activities related to the numbers operation. This number included several corrupt Chicago cops. Vincent Solano would live out his life and die at the age of 72 in 1992. After he went into Witness Protection the FBI took Toyko Joe around to different mob trials that involved the Chicago Outfit as an expert on that family. He would eventually die at age 84 in 2004, under the name Joe Tanaka. He had been relocated to a small town called Norcross close to Atlanta Georgia. <a href="http://Fair use, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?curid=29963941" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Photo credit</a>      Thanks to Wikipedia, <a href="http://breakshotblog.blogspot.com/2013/09/ken-eto.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Breakshot Blog</a> and the <a href="http://www.thechicagosyndicate.com/2008/12/tokyo-joe-man-who-brought-down-chicago.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Chicago Syndicate.</a> To go to the store <a href="https://ganglandwire.com/store/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">click here</a> To rent Gangland Wire, the documentary,<a href="https://www.amazon.com/Gangland-Wire-David-Jackson/dp/B00I2C67ZU" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"> click h</a>ere To subscribe on iTunes <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/gangland-wire/id984020877?mt=2" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">click here,</a> give me a review and I will send you a link to see the film for free. <a href="https://www.blubrry.com/kc_crime/survey/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"></a> The post <a href="https://ganglandwire.com/ken-eto-and-the-chicago-outfit/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Ken Eto and the Chicago Outfit</a> appeared first on <a href="https://ganglandwire.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Gangland Wire</a>.