Part 4/10:
Central to the narrative is Murder Incorporated, a clandestine contract killing group that emerged as a tactical response to law enforcement pressure, allowing the Mafia to conduct hits indirectly. Francis recounts how this group was formed through a partnership between Jewish gangsters like Louis Lepke (Lepke Buchalter) and Italian mobster Albert Anastasia.
He explains how Costello, a prominent boss, and the Commission—mob’s ruling council—approved the initiative. The strategy was ingeniously designed: assign murders to specialized killers, and if they got caught or revealed information, it would be impossible to link the crimes directly back to the Mafia, shielding its leadership from legal retaliation.