1. How La Cosa Nostra Makes Money

2. Racket
An illegal business or scheme

3. Labor Racketeering
The infiltration, domination, and/or use of a union or employee benefit plan for personal benefit by illegal, violent, or fraudulent means

4. Labor Racketeering
Basically, the mob uses their power and influence to control unions

5. Labor Racketeering
You may be saying, “Interesting, but how does that affect me, Joe Highschool?” I’m glad you asked…

6. Labor Racketeering
FBI investigations have shown that labor racketeering costs the American public (aka you and me) millions of dollars each year.
How you ask? Like this…

7. Labor Racketeering
Organized Crime can control the pricing in an entire industry
Manipulate value of shares on the stock market
Orchestrate strikes and work slowdowns
Rig bidding for contracts

8. Extortion
Unlawfully obtaining money, property, or services through intimidation or coercion
Shakedown
Making a threat of violence to require a payment in order to prevent future violence

9. Protection Racket Extortion scheme
Coerce the victim to pay money for protection against violence or damage to their property
Racketeers convince victim to pay by showing them what will happen if they don’t
In most cases, the racketeers are only protecting the victim from the racketeers themselves

10. Gambling Point-Shaving Difficult to pull off
Convince a player, coach, or official to prevent his team from covering the betting line

11. Gambling
Book-Making
Establishing the odds, point spread, or over/under for a variety of events
Usual goal is to have a “balanced book”
As much coming in as is going out
Mob bookies get unsuspecting bettors to gamble on their “skewed” lines

12. Loan Sharking Offering loans at extremely high interest rates
Sometimes enforce payments with the threat of violence
People who “go to the sharks;”
Businesses who need money for protection
Gamblers to pay bookies

13. Unfortunately, we give the mafia its power
Unfortunately, we give the mafia its power. We need, and want, what they provide. They know this, and that knowledge allows them to drive up prices, make exorbitant amounts of money, wield power, and avoid law enforcement

14. Taking cash “off the top” and reporting a lower total amount
Skimming
Taking cash “off the top” and reporting a lower total amount

15. What is Labor Racketeering?
The infiltration, domination, and/or use of a union or employee benefit plan for personal benefit by illegal, violent, or fraudulent means

16. What is Extortion?
Unlawfully obtaining money, property, or services through intimidation or coercion
Shakedown
Making a threat of violence to require a payment in order to prevent FUTURE violence

17. What is Loansharking?
Offering loans at extremely high interest rates

18. Skimming
Cashier doesn’t ring up transaction and instead, pockets the money
Businessman needs money to pay off extortionist—can’t record transaction—skims money to pay bribe
The larger the business, the more susceptible it is to skimming
Why?

19. To imitate something; produce fake replicas
Counterfeit
To imitate something; produce fake replicas

20. Counterfeit Depends on the naiveté of the buyer Often of low quality
Types of things commonly counterfeited
Money
Clothing
Purses
Art
Electronics

21. Deception for personal gain
Fraud
Deception for personal gain

22. Link Chart
Created during an ASSOCIATION ANALYIS to identify organized crime members

23. Link Chart

24. Numbers Racket “Running the numbers” Illegal lottery game
Preceded state-run lotteries
Popular in poor communities
Bookies extended credit to bettors

25. Numbers Racket Match your number to the selected number
Payouts were usually 600 to 1
However, odds of winning were 1000 to 1
You can see how the mob could make a lot of money with a numbers racket

26. Vigorish or The Vig Juice, The Cut, The Take
Amount charged by a bookie for his services
Allows the bookie to make money in the event that the payout is more than the intake
Interest on a loan shark’s loan
Difference between the the dollar amount of tickets and payout in a Numbers Racket