Cleveland’s underworld has featured some of the most ruthless and influential mob figures in American crime history. From Prohibition-era bosses to violent power struggles in the 1970s, these names left a lasting mark.
Here are 15 notorious Cleveland mobsters and gangsters whose stories still resonate today:
Joseph “Big Joe” Lonardo
The first Cleveland crime boss, who built his power through corn sugar bootlegging during Prohibition.
Salvatore “Black Sam” Todaro
Lonardo’s underboss who betrayed him and led the charge in the infamous Porrello assassination.
Frank Milano
Leader of the Mayfield Road Mob who ascended after wiping out the Porrello clan and linked Cleveland to the national syndicate.
John T. Scalish
The longest-serving boss of the Cleveland mob, who brought stability and made deals with Vegas casino figures and unions.
James “Jack White” Licavoli
A calculated underboss who rose to power, was convicted under the RICO Act, and lasted into the violent wars of the 1970s.
Shondor Birns
Dubbed “Public Enemy No. 1,” a charming early figure in rackets, his death came by car bomb in 1975.
Danny Greene
Irish-American gangster and union boss who fought Licavoli in a deadly war, ultimately dying by bomb as well.
Joseph “Joe Loose” Iacobacci
Took over after Licavoli, known for his loan-sharking and labor racketeering—later convicted.
Joseph Filkowski (“King Kobra”)
Leader of the Flats Mob who became Public Enemy No. 1 after bank robberies and murder in the early 1930s.
Thomas “Blackjack” McGinty
An early bootlegger and violent enforcer during Cleveland’s “circulation wars” and Prohibition.
Alfred Polizzi
Milano’s successor who extended control into the 1940s before convictions ended his run.
Moe Dalitz
Though not Cleveland-based, Dalitz’s partnership with Scalish influenced mob control over Vegas casinos.
Raymond Porrello
Briefly Cleveland boss—his home was bombed in retaliation, part of the mob fratricide era.
Lonardo’s Rival Barbershop Killers
Triggered the Corn Sugar War when gangsters attacked his family’s shop, setting mob killings off.
Arthur McBride’s Mayfield Gang
Forebears of the Napoli family and early labor sluggers who laid the groundwork for organized crime’s structure…