The Civil War Over Vegas

By the mid-1980's the Outfit in Chicago was gaining the benefits of the wealth pouring in from their control of Las Vegas. The New York Families had interests in Vegas, but not the control or opportunities that had fallen into the hands of the Outfit. While it was New York that put up most of the original funding for Vegas casinos, it was the Outfit that would reap most of the benefits. Bugsy Siegel had proposed the idea of creating a gambling empire in the desert of Nevada and the New York Families along with some other members of the Commission had decided to take part in the investment. It was agreed that Vegas would be an open city allowing families from throughout the country to gain profits. Various families had interests in hotels and casinos some controlled by New York and some by Outfit interests. From time to time there were conflicts over control but the commission knew a good thing existed in Vegas and would quickly intervene to maintain the peace. A war between Families could not be permitted to hurt the flow of cash from Vegas.

Peace was maintained and profits from skimming continued to increase the coffers of the various Families. In particular the Outfit made major gains through the utilization of Teamster loans to construct some of the larger casinos and hotels on the ever-growing Vegas Strip. The Outfit also felt that since the geographic area of Vegas was to the west of the Mississippi it should be under their major control. In 1977 an agreement was made in which the Chicago Mob agreed that they would seek no interest in the gambling in Atlantic City, allowing all of control to fall into the hands of the New York Families. In return they wanted Vegas to be closed as an open city and for the control to fall into the hands of the Outfit. The New York interests that had been established by that time would be allowed to continue, but in future Chicago would control Vegas. New York by this time had great hopes of creating their own Vegas in the East and had no desire to do battle against Chicago. So the bargain had been struck with the Outfit gaining the better part of the deal. Atlantic City was never ever to compete against the economic power of Vegas and many of the New York Families by the late 1970's and the early 1980, s began to feel that the Chicago Outfit had taken advantage of them.

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