1 00:00:02,000 --> 00:00:03,208 [tense dramatic music] [gunshot] 2 00:00:03,208 --> 00:00:06,542 - Tonight, the murder of a notorious Mob kingpin. 3 00:00:06,542 --> 00:00:09,542 - Sam Giancana is the very personification 4 00:00:09,542 --> 00:00:13,125 of the Mafia in America in the 1960s. 5 00:00:13,125 --> 00:00:15,417 - He's not only the head of the Chicago Outfit, 6 00:00:15,417 --> 00:00:18,708 he is America's celebrity gangster. 7 00:00:18,708 --> 00:00:21,417 - He is known to hobnob with a lot of Hollywood celebrities 8 00:00:21,417 --> 00:00:24,458 like Frank Sinatra and Marilyn Monroe. 9 00:00:24,458 --> 00:00:26,292 - When Sam Giancana's murdered, 10 00:00:26,292 --> 00:00:28,167 it's front-page news. 11 00:00:28,167 --> 00:00:29,833 - But 50 years later, 12 00:00:29,833 --> 00:00:32,625 the identity of Sam Giancana's killer 13 00:00:32,625 --> 00:00:34,125 remains a mystery. 14 00:00:34,125 --> 00:00:35,917 - Solving Sam Giancana's murder 15 00:00:35,917 --> 00:00:37,917 could open up a Pandora's Box. 16 00:00:37,917 --> 00:00:39,750 With every Mob murder, 17 00:00:39,750 --> 00:00:41,292 it's never one thing. 18 00:00:41,292 --> 00:00:42,917 It's always a combination of things. 19 00:00:42,917 --> 00:00:45,375 [gunshot] - Now we explore 20 00:00:45,375 --> 00:00:48,542 the top theories surrounding the assassination 21 00:00:48,542 --> 00:00:50,042 of a Mob legend. 22 00:00:50,042 --> 00:00:53,375 - Everyone benefits from Sam Giancana's murder. 23 00:00:53,375 --> 00:00:56,250 Police think that this is a Mob hit, 24 00:00:56,250 --> 00:00:58,958 but maybe the CIA had something to do with it. 25 00:00:58,958 --> 00:01:00,708 - Giancana was killed 26 00:01:00,708 --> 00:01:03,708 before he can share everything he knows. 27 00:01:03,708 --> 00:01:06,750 There's someone who doesn't want him to talk. 28 00:01:06,750 --> 00:01:12,042 - Why was Sam Giancana killed, and who ordered his murder? 29 00:01:12,792 --> 00:01:15,625 [dramatic orchestral music] 30 00:01:25,333 --> 00:01:27,958 [intense dramatic music] 31 00:01:27,958 --> 00:01:31,417 - [Laurence] June 19th, 1975. 32 00:01:31,417 --> 00:01:35,417 Shortly before midnight, police respond to an emergency call 33 00:01:35,417 --> 00:01:38,583 from a modest home in Oak Park, Illinois. 34 00:01:38,583 --> 00:01:40,042 - [Claire] At the scene, they find 35 00:01:40,042 --> 00:01:42,292 a dead body in a pool of blood. 36 00:01:42,292 --> 00:01:44,750 This man has been shot seven times. 37 00:01:44,750 --> 00:01:47,625 Once in the back of the head, five times in the neck, 38 00:01:47,625 --> 00:01:49,458 and once straight through the mouth. 39 00:01:50,875 --> 00:01:52,583 - [Sami] When police start to investigate the scene, 40 00:01:52,583 --> 00:01:55,625 they noticed $1,400 in his pocket. 41 00:01:55,625 --> 00:02:00,458 And behind the body is a pan of partially cooked sausages 42 00:02:01,250 --> 00:02:02,167 that are still on the stove. 43 00:02:02,167 --> 00:02:03,458 So they think, "Okay, 44 00:02:03,458 --> 00:02:04,958 well, this wasn't a robbery gone wrong." 45 00:02:04,958 --> 00:02:07,875 - They quickly realize that this is 46 00:02:07,875 --> 00:02:09,292 not just your average victim. 47 00:02:09,292 --> 00:02:12,417 This is Sam Giancana, 48 00:02:12,417 --> 00:02:14,875 one of the bosses of the Chicago Outfit. 49 00:02:14,875 --> 00:02:16,375 [suspenseful orchestral music] 50 00:02:16,375 --> 00:02:17,500 - [Matthew] He's a household name. 51 00:02:17,500 --> 00:02:19,042 He's in the papers all the time. 52 00:02:19,042 --> 00:02:20,750 He's on TV. 53 00:02:20,750 --> 00:02:22,542 He's dating movie stars. 54 00:02:22,542 --> 00:02:25,083 He's hanging out with Frank Sinatra. 55 00:02:25,083 --> 00:02:29,167 But all the while, people also know that he's the mobster. 56 00:02:30,833 --> 00:02:34,750 - This is one of the biggest Mob hits in American history, 57 00:02:34,750 --> 00:02:37,208 and a lot of people do seem to benefit 58 00:02:37,208 --> 00:02:38,542 from Giancana's death. 59 00:02:38,542 --> 00:02:40,208 - He's connected to everything, 60 00:02:40,208 --> 00:02:43,417 and maybe someone wants to take out Giancana 61 00:02:43,417 --> 00:02:45,542 because of what he knows. 62 00:02:45,542 --> 00:02:49,208 The Chicago Outfit, the federal government, the CIA. 63 00:02:49,208 --> 00:02:50,500 There's so many people 64 00:02:50,500 --> 00:02:53,667 that would've been happy to see him gone. 65 00:02:53,667 --> 00:02:56,333 - And there really aren't any obvious clues 66 00:02:56,333 --> 00:02:57,833 as to who the killer was 67 00:02:57,833 --> 00:03:00,167 or what the motive was for the shooting. 68 00:03:00,167 --> 00:03:01,750 So what we're left with 69 00:03:01,750 --> 00:03:04,500 is a mystery that is now over 50 years old. 70 00:03:05,750 --> 00:03:08,125 - [Laurence] But Giancana's past as a Mob kingpin 71 00:03:08,125 --> 00:03:13,250 provides a long list of potential suspects and motives. 72 00:03:13,250 --> 00:03:15,542 - [Matthew] Sam Giancana's born in 1908. 73 00:03:15,542 --> 00:03:19,375 He grows up in the Little Italy section of Chicago 74 00:03:19,375 --> 00:03:20,833 known as "The Patch." 75 00:03:20,833 --> 00:03:24,083 This is kind of a poor, run-down area of the city, 76 00:03:24,083 --> 00:03:25,875 and he doesn't have a great childhood. 77 00:03:25,875 --> 00:03:29,667 So Sam, at an early age, turns to a life of crime. 78 00:03:29,667 --> 00:03:31,625 - The police believe by his early 20s, 79 00:03:31,625 --> 00:03:34,333 he may have killed already three men. 80 00:03:34,333 --> 00:03:37,208 Many folks simply called him "Mooney," 81 00:03:37,208 --> 00:03:39,375 which is another word for being crazy. 82 00:03:39,375 --> 00:03:41,875 - Giancana is someone who's very willing 83 00:03:41,875 --> 00:03:44,542 to play into this idea that he's crazy. 84 00:03:44,542 --> 00:03:48,000 This is really a persona that he builds, 85 00:03:48,000 --> 00:03:49,917 a way to seem tough. 86 00:03:51,542 --> 00:03:55,083 - Al Capone allegedly took a liking to a young Sam Giancana, 87 00:03:55,083 --> 00:03:59,292 and he was viewed as a rising star in the Chicago Mafia. 88 00:03:59,292 --> 00:04:01,417 - [Matthew] A famous crime associated with the 89 00:04:01,417 --> 00:04:03,583 Chicago Outfit is the Saint Valentine's Day Massacre. 90 00:04:03,583 --> 00:04:06,500 Not only is it alleged that Sam was there as a driver, 91 00:04:06,500 --> 00:04:07,958 but also as a shooter. 92 00:04:09,417 --> 00:04:13,583 - [Laurence] In 1931, Giancana's mentor, Al Capone, 93 00:04:13,583 --> 00:04:17,667 is arrested for tax fraud and sentenced to prison. 94 00:04:17,667 --> 00:04:22,042 Giancana spends the next 20 years looking to replace him 95 00:04:22,042 --> 00:04:24,208 as the head of the Chicago Mob. 96 00:04:25,375 --> 00:04:27,500 - [Matthew] Sam is rising through the ranks, 97 00:04:27,500 --> 00:04:31,542 and by 1957, he is the head of the Chicago Mob. 98 00:04:31,542 --> 00:04:34,500 They expand their empire under Sam's control 99 00:04:34,500 --> 00:04:36,208 outside of Chicago. 100 00:04:36,208 --> 00:04:38,958 They start taking over not only Las Vegas 101 00:04:38,958 --> 00:04:40,667 but all the way down to Cuba. 102 00:04:40,667 --> 00:04:44,333 Sam and the Outfit are raking in millions of dollars a year. 103 00:04:44,333 --> 00:04:46,792 - [Scott] Sam Giancana is the epitome 104 00:04:46,792 --> 00:04:50,917 of what it meant to be an American crime lord, Mafia Don, 105 00:04:50,917 --> 00:04:53,375 and he controlled a national syndicate 106 00:04:53,375 --> 00:04:55,125 that was second to none. 107 00:04:55,125 --> 00:04:57,500 - [Scott] Everybody in America knew who Sam Giancana was, 108 00:04:57,500 --> 00:05:00,125 and he loved that, and he ate it up. 109 00:05:00,125 --> 00:05:02,208 - [Laurence] But in the late 1950s, 110 00:05:02,208 --> 00:05:04,792 Giancana makes a fateful decision. 111 00:05:04,792 --> 00:05:08,250 He becomes directly involved with the federal government. 112 00:05:09,375 --> 00:05:12,583 - Outside of traditional organized crime, 113 00:05:12,583 --> 00:05:15,375 he has a relationship with the CIA. 114 00:05:15,375 --> 00:05:18,500 He's allegedly taking meetings with JFK 115 00:05:18,500 --> 00:05:20,625 while he's president. 116 00:05:20,625 --> 00:05:22,708 - Giancana was trying to play everything against the middle 117 00:05:22,708 --> 00:05:24,667 and expected that the White House 118 00:05:24,667 --> 00:05:27,458 would take a kinder approach to organized crime, 119 00:05:27,458 --> 00:05:29,667 but it was the exact opposite. 120 00:05:29,667 --> 00:05:31,625 - He has been connected to organized crime 121 00:05:31,625 --> 00:05:33,458 essentially from his childhood, 122 00:05:33,458 --> 00:05:36,917 and the Feds want to find out exactly what he knows. 123 00:05:36,917 --> 00:05:40,042 - [Laurence] In 1965, after years of trying, 124 00:05:40,042 --> 00:05:42,875 federal agents believed they finally found a way 125 00:05:42,875 --> 00:05:45,208 to bring down Giancana. 126 00:05:45,208 --> 00:05:47,000 They put him before a grand jury 127 00:05:47,000 --> 00:05:50,583 investigating the Chicago Mob's alleged racketeering 128 00:05:50,583 --> 00:05:52,958 and narcotics operations. 129 00:05:52,958 --> 00:05:55,083 - They give him immunity from prosecution. 130 00:05:55,083 --> 00:05:58,333 They say, "If you talk, you're not gonna get prosecuted. 131 00:05:58,333 --> 00:05:59,375 You don't have to plead the Fifth, 132 00:05:59,375 --> 00:06:00,708 and you're gonna be okay." 133 00:06:02,542 --> 00:06:04,792 - They ask him questions, he doesn't answer them, 134 00:06:04,792 --> 00:06:07,417 and he winds up being put in jail for a year 135 00:06:07,417 --> 00:06:08,833 for contempt of court. 136 00:06:08,833 --> 00:06:11,250 But the other members of the Mafia 137 00:06:11,250 --> 00:06:13,417 don't like this public attention at all. 138 00:06:13,417 --> 00:06:15,208 - After Giancana is released from prison, 139 00:06:15,208 --> 00:06:18,125 he ends up going into exile in Mexico. 140 00:06:18,125 --> 00:06:22,375 In 1974, he gets deported back to the United States, 141 00:06:22,375 --> 00:06:25,458 and upon his arrival, he's subpoenaed. 142 00:06:25,458 --> 00:06:29,792 - He's been called in to testify for a US Senate inquiry 143 00:06:29,792 --> 00:06:33,583 looking into the CIA's activities, 144 00:06:33,583 --> 00:06:36,875 specifically the possibility that the Mob 145 00:06:36,875 --> 00:06:41,625 worked with the CIA to kill Fidel Castro. 146 00:06:41,625 --> 00:06:44,667 - That caused grave concern from a lot of very powerful, 147 00:06:44,667 --> 00:06:46,375 dangerous individuals. 148 00:06:46,375 --> 00:06:48,375 [tense uneasy music] 149 00:06:48,375 --> 00:06:49,708 - [Laurence] On the night of his murder, 150 00:06:49,708 --> 00:06:52,708 Giancana throws a party at his home in Oak Park. 151 00:06:52,708 --> 00:06:56,708 All of the guests leave by 10:30 p.m. 152 00:06:56,708 --> 00:07:00,292 - Living upstairs is Joseph DiPersio, who's 82 years old. 153 00:07:00,292 --> 00:07:02,625 He lives there with his wife, 154 00:07:02,625 --> 00:07:06,125 and they're kind of like the caretakers for Sam 155 00:07:06,125 --> 00:07:07,458 and the property. 156 00:07:09,000 --> 00:07:11,750 - [Sami] Around 11:00 p.m. DiPersio calls down to Giancana 157 00:07:11,750 --> 00:07:14,083 just to do a quick check, make sure he's doing all right, 158 00:07:14,083 --> 00:07:15,625 but there's no response. 159 00:07:15,625 --> 00:07:17,875 So DiPersio heads down to the unit. 160 00:07:19,042 --> 00:07:20,792 - He walks down into the basement kitchen, 161 00:07:22,000 --> 00:07:25,125 and Giancana's on the ground, blood everywhere. 162 00:07:25,125 --> 00:07:27,375 He immediately calls the police. 163 00:07:27,375 --> 00:07:29,917 - The police come and question DiPersio. 164 00:07:29,917 --> 00:07:31,542 He doesn't have a lot of answers. 165 00:07:31,542 --> 00:07:34,042 He doesn't even hear the shots being fired. 166 00:07:34,042 --> 00:07:36,417 - Police start to piece things together, 167 00:07:36,417 --> 00:07:38,583 and one of the early theories that emerges 168 00:07:38,583 --> 00:07:41,208 has nothing to do with Mob business. 169 00:07:41,208 --> 00:07:43,042 It's all about his personal life. 170 00:07:44,042 --> 00:07:45,625 [gas flame whooshes] 171 00:07:45,625 --> 00:07:47,125 - [Sami] Oddly enough, one of the clues 172 00:07:47,125 --> 00:07:49,333 that leads investigators down this path 173 00:07:49,333 --> 00:07:52,792 is that pan of partially cooked sausages. 174 00:07:52,792 --> 00:07:54,542 He had just recently had gallbladder surgery. 175 00:07:54,542 --> 00:07:55,667 And the last thing you wanna do 176 00:07:55,667 --> 00:07:56,833 after having a surgery like that 177 00:07:56,833 --> 00:07:59,708 is eating very greasy, very fatty food. 178 00:07:59,708 --> 00:08:03,417 Whoever those sausages were for, they're not for Giancana. 179 00:08:03,417 --> 00:08:05,250 He was preparing this meal for somebody 180 00:08:05,250 --> 00:08:10,083 that he cared about and trusted enough to turn his back to. 181 00:08:10,083 --> 00:08:12,542 - It shows you how much he had let down his guard, 182 00:08:12,542 --> 00:08:15,417 that somebody was there that he felt comfortable with, 183 00:08:15,417 --> 00:08:17,542 that he wasn't afraid of, 184 00:08:17,542 --> 00:08:19,917 but the way that the murder was carried out 185 00:08:19,917 --> 00:08:24,000 suggested a lot of anger and animosity. 186 00:08:24,000 --> 00:08:26,750 - Looking at the overkill of this crime, 187 00:08:26,750 --> 00:08:29,958 seven shots to the head, one in the mouth, 188 00:08:29,958 --> 00:08:31,500 this seems like something personal, 189 00:08:31,500 --> 00:08:33,625 not a professional hit. 190 00:08:36,667 --> 00:08:38,167 [tense thoughtful music] 191 00:08:38,167 --> 00:08:39,833 - [Laurence] In 1977, 192 00:08:39,833 --> 00:08:44,500 FBI investigators learn of a possible reason for such anger. 193 00:08:44,500 --> 00:08:48,167 A source tells the Bureau that Giancana was having an affair 194 00:08:48,167 --> 00:08:52,458 with the wife of Chicago mobster Tony Spilotro. 195 00:08:52,458 --> 00:08:53,750 - This would not have been the first time 196 00:08:53,750 --> 00:08:55,750 that he slept with another mobster's wife. 197 00:08:55,750 --> 00:08:58,292 Giancana is a notorious womanizer, 198 00:08:58,292 --> 00:08:59,542 and Nancy Spilotro was considered 199 00:08:59,542 --> 00:09:01,083 to be quite the knockout. 200 00:09:01,083 --> 00:09:05,042 - [Scott] Tony Spilotro was this little 5'3" 201 00:09:05,042 --> 00:09:09,167 demonic crazy man that was running around Chicago, 202 00:09:09,167 --> 00:09:10,917 putting people's heads in vises 203 00:09:10,917 --> 00:09:12,875 and popping people's eyeballs out, 204 00:09:12,875 --> 00:09:17,583 and getting a reputation for extreme violence. 205 00:09:17,583 --> 00:09:19,042 - [Claire] If all of this sounds familiar, 206 00:09:19,042 --> 00:09:21,875 it's because Joe Pesci's character in Casino 207 00:09:21,875 --> 00:09:24,542 is said to be based off of Tony Spilotro. 208 00:09:24,542 --> 00:09:28,500 He's really known for his ruthless behavior. 209 00:09:28,500 --> 00:09:31,000 - And Tony Spilotro at one time 210 00:09:31,000 --> 00:09:32,875 lived a couple blocks from Sam Giancana. 211 00:09:32,875 --> 00:09:35,167 He knew how to sneak between the backyards 212 00:09:35,167 --> 00:09:36,667 to get into his house. 213 00:09:36,667 --> 00:09:39,917 - If Giancana betrayed him by sleeping with his wife, 214 00:09:39,917 --> 00:09:42,875 you can imagine that this would clearly send Spilotro 215 00:09:42,875 --> 00:09:44,625 just flying into a murderous rage. 216 00:09:44,625 --> 00:09:46,042 [tense dramatic music] 217 00:09:46,042 --> 00:09:47,333 - [Laurence] While Tony Spilotro 218 00:09:47,333 --> 00:09:49,208 may have had a strong motive, 219 00:09:49,208 --> 00:09:52,750 some claim there's one detail that doesn't add up. 220 00:09:54,000 --> 00:09:56,792 - Despite the initial suspicions pointed at Spilotro, 221 00:09:56,792 --> 00:09:59,375 a lot of people are skeptical about that theory. 222 00:09:59,375 --> 00:10:02,917 - In 1975, at the time that Giancana was murdered, 223 00:10:02,917 --> 00:10:06,000 Spilotro was not a full-time resident of Chicago. 224 00:10:06,000 --> 00:10:08,750 He was living full-time in Las Vegas. 225 00:10:08,750 --> 00:10:10,750 - [Matthew] And Sam Giancana knows that 226 00:10:10,750 --> 00:10:13,042 Tony is a violent psychopath. 227 00:10:13,042 --> 00:10:14,625 He certainly wouldn't have his back to him 228 00:10:14,625 --> 00:10:16,292 cooking him sausage and peppers. 229 00:10:19,917 --> 00:10:23,500 - In 1965, Sam Giancana spends a year in prison 230 00:10:23,500 --> 00:10:26,625 for refusing to testify against the Mafia. 231 00:10:26,625 --> 00:10:28,625 However, once he's released, 232 00:10:28,625 --> 00:10:32,458 he finds that he's not welcome back in Chicago. 233 00:10:32,458 --> 00:10:34,875 - The leadership of the Chicago Outfit 234 00:10:34,875 --> 00:10:37,458 thought maybe it's time that Sam move on 235 00:10:37,458 --> 00:10:40,125 'cause he was more of a liability than he was an asset. 236 00:10:41,500 --> 00:10:43,625 - He's exiled to Mexico, 237 00:10:43,625 --> 00:10:45,792 and Sam is not retired at this point. 238 00:10:45,792 --> 00:10:47,542 Sam continues to be Sam, 239 00:10:47,542 --> 00:10:50,208 and Sam is very good at making money. 240 00:10:50,208 --> 00:10:53,125 - A lot of mobsters think very small. 241 00:10:53,125 --> 00:10:56,750 Sam Giancana was a mobster who thought big. 242 00:10:56,750 --> 00:10:59,083 The world was his oyster. 243 00:10:59,083 --> 00:11:01,708 - He starts getting involved with Mexican casinos 244 00:11:01,708 --> 00:11:03,708 and bringing in money through them, 245 00:11:03,708 --> 00:11:07,333 and ultimately throughout Central and South America. 246 00:11:07,333 --> 00:11:10,792 - And then he extends to other crimes like prostitution 247 00:11:10,792 --> 00:11:13,583 and narcotics, extortion, kidnapping, 248 00:11:13,583 --> 00:11:15,000 everything else you could think of. 249 00:11:15,000 --> 00:11:16,417 - [Sami] According to the book Double Cross, 250 00:11:16,417 --> 00:11:19,333 which is written by members of the Giancana family, 251 00:11:19,333 --> 00:11:22,667 Giancana starts getting involved in narcotics trafficking 252 00:11:22,667 --> 00:11:24,833 with men from Colombia, 253 00:11:24,833 --> 00:11:26,833 who will later go on to become the Medellin Cartel, 254 00:11:26,833 --> 00:11:29,167 which is led famously by Pablo Escobar. 255 00:11:30,375 --> 00:11:32,917 - He's raking in millions from narcotics, 256 00:11:32,917 --> 00:11:34,875 and then he goes even further. 257 00:11:34,875 --> 00:11:37,708 He extends his reach to the Caribbean 258 00:11:37,708 --> 00:11:39,542 and even the Middle East. 259 00:11:39,542 --> 00:11:41,917 He opens up offshore gambling boats. 260 00:11:41,917 --> 00:11:44,375 He's making millions and millions of dollars, 261 00:11:44,375 --> 00:11:47,833 and he's not giving one penny to the Chicago Outfit. 262 00:11:47,833 --> 00:11:51,458 - This does not sit well with organized crime groups. 263 00:11:51,458 --> 00:11:55,000 In Italian-American organized crime, 264 00:11:55,000 --> 00:11:57,083 even if you are an individual earner, 265 00:11:57,083 --> 00:12:01,500 that money still needs to go back to your crime family. 266 00:12:01,500 --> 00:12:03,208 - "It doesn't matter if you're doing it out of state. 267 00:12:03,208 --> 00:12:06,083 It doesn't matter if you're no longer our leader. 268 00:12:06,083 --> 00:12:09,250 You belong to us until the day you die." 269 00:12:09,250 --> 00:12:11,917 - He tells him, "I'm not giving you anything. 270 00:12:11,917 --> 00:12:13,375 I made money for you. 271 00:12:13,375 --> 00:12:15,042 You sent me down here to Mexico. 272 00:12:15,042 --> 00:12:16,708 I'm gonna continue to make money for myself 273 00:12:16,708 --> 00:12:18,208 and for my family." 274 00:12:18,208 --> 00:12:21,708 - The Mob was furious with Sam for not cutting them in 275 00:12:21,708 --> 00:12:23,875 on all the money he was making in Mexico. 276 00:12:23,875 --> 00:12:25,750 [uneasy dramatic music] 277 00:12:25,750 --> 00:12:28,042 - At the same time, the Mexican government 278 00:12:28,042 --> 00:12:30,625 wanted to become friendly with Cuba 279 00:12:30,625 --> 00:12:33,833 and was concerned that this American 280 00:12:33,833 --> 00:12:37,917 had been attached to a plot to kill Fidel Castro. 281 00:12:37,917 --> 00:12:41,250 The authorities came to his place in Mexico, 282 00:12:41,250 --> 00:12:44,542 and they literally arrested him in his pajamas 283 00:12:44,542 --> 00:12:46,917 and sent him back to Chicago. 284 00:12:48,042 --> 00:12:49,958 - [Laurence] Even when Giancana returns 285 00:12:49,958 --> 00:12:53,542 to the Chicago Outfit's territory in 1974, 286 00:12:53,542 --> 00:12:55,958 he refuses to pay tribute. 287 00:12:55,958 --> 00:12:57,833 - [Scott] There were a lot of people in Chicago 288 00:12:57,833 --> 00:12:59,375 when he came home 289 00:12:59,375 --> 00:13:01,333 that felt someone needs to go sit with Sam Giancana 290 00:13:01,333 --> 00:13:03,042 and tell him the rules of the game again. 291 00:13:03,042 --> 00:13:05,500 "He might have forgotten them, and we gotta remind him." 292 00:13:05,500 --> 00:13:07,042 [tense thoughtful music] 293 00:13:07,042 --> 00:13:10,417 - There is physical evidence that ties the Chicago Outfit 294 00:13:10,417 --> 00:13:12,208 potentially to this crime. 295 00:13:13,500 --> 00:13:16,542 - In the initial investigation into this murder, 296 00:13:16,542 --> 00:13:18,375 it did not look like a Mob hit 297 00:13:18,375 --> 00:13:23,167 because the shooter used a .22-caliber pistol. 298 00:13:23,167 --> 00:13:26,417 Just doesn't seem like a Mob gun. 299 00:13:26,417 --> 00:13:29,208 - The Mob, up to that point, used larger caliber weapons. 300 00:13:29,208 --> 00:13:30,625 They're famous for using a Tommy gun, 301 00:13:30,625 --> 00:13:32,708 which shoots .45-caliber. 302 00:13:32,708 --> 00:13:36,958 Al Capone himself carried around a .45-caliber Colt 1911 303 00:13:36,958 --> 00:13:39,208 that he called "Sweetheart." 304 00:13:39,208 --> 00:13:43,167 - However, in 1977, Time magazine releases an article 305 00:13:43,167 --> 00:13:47,458 which talks about how, from 1975 to 1977, 306 00:13:47,458 --> 00:13:52,125 the .22 seemed to be the preferred weapon for Mob hits. 307 00:13:53,708 --> 00:13:55,708 In August of 1975, 308 00:13:55,708 --> 00:13:58,958 landscapers in a town called River Forest, Illinois, 309 00:13:58,958 --> 00:14:00,542 happened to find in the woods 310 00:14:00,542 --> 00:14:03,167 a discarded .22-caliber pistol. 311 00:14:03,167 --> 00:14:06,167 River Forest is pretty much right next door to Oak Park, 312 00:14:06,167 --> 00:14:10,042 where Sam Giancana lived and was murdered two months prior. 313 00:14:10,042 --> 00:14:13,083 And this particular .22 has been modified 314 00:14:13,083 --> 00:14:15,375 with a homemade silencer. 315 00:14:15,375 --> 00:14:19,583 - [Matthew] If we add a silencer to a .22-caliber handgun, 316 00:14:19,583 --> 00:14:21,958 we can get that shot down to, like, 30 decibels, 317 00:14:21,958 --> 00:14:23,292 [gun shot thuds] 318 00:14:23,292 --> 00:14:25,250 which is about like the sound of like a whisper. 319 00:14:25,250 --> 00:14:27,167 And so this would explain why 320 00:14:27,167 --> 00:14:28,583 DiPersio doesn't hear anything. 321 00:14:28,583 --> 00:14:29,958 It's not because he's old, 322 00:14:29,958 --> 00:14:31,875 it's not because he's watching TV. 323 00:14:31,875 --> 00:14:34,750 It's because of that silencer. 324 00:14:34,750 --> 00:14:37,375 - They did a ballistics test on this weapon, 325 00:14:37,375 --> 00:14:41,375 and it was the weapon used to kill Sam Giancana. 326 00:14:41,375 --> 00:14:44,042 - [Laurence] The location of the discarded gun 327 00:14:44,042 --> 00:14:47,500 may point to one Mafia triggerman in particular. 328 00:14:50,042 --> 00:14:53,125 [ominous uneasy music] 329 00:14:53,125 --> 00:14:54,500 - If you're gonna use that gun, 330 00:14:54,500 --> 00:14:56,042 then you've gotta come in close. 331 00:14:56,042 --> 00:14:57,875 So it's believed that Sam was killed 332 00:14:57,875 --> 00:15:00,208 by someone he knew really well. 333 00:15:00,208 --> 00:15:04,292 And interestingly, the gun is found on a road 334 00:15:04,292 --> 00:15:07,125 that would lead you from Sam's house 335 00:15:07,125 --> 00:15:10,958 to one of his closest allies, Dominic Blasi, 336 00:15:10,958 --> 00:15:12,875 also known as "Butch." 337 00:15:14,208 --> 00:15:16,458 - Blasi, he did live in River Forest 338 00:15:16,458 --> 00:15:21,375 and was probably Sam Giancana's most trusted soldier 339 00:15:21,375 --> 00:15:25,042 and confidant, a guy that he trusted with his life. 340 00:15:25,042 --> 00:15:26,833 - Blasi is somebody that has literally been 341 00:15:26,833 --> 00:15:29,208 by Giancana's side for decades. 342 00:15:29,208 --> 00:15:31,625 He actually was one of the pallbearers 343 00:15:31,625 --> 00:15:33,292 at Sam Giancana's funeral. 344 00:15:34,583 --> 00:15:38,042 - It was the common perception by both the press 345 00:15:38,042 --> 00:15:40,125 and local law enforcement 346 00:15:40,125 --> 00:15:43,042 that Butch was the one who killed Giancana. 347 00:15:44,208 --> 00:15:45,458 [tense thoughtful music] 348 00:15:45,458 --> 00:15:47,000 - [Claire] When police question him, 349 00:15:47,125 --> 00:15:49,500 he swears that he was there earlier in the evening, 350 00:15:49,500 --> 00:15:53,375 but that when he left, his friend was still alive. 351 00:15:53,375 --> 00:15:56,042 - He always denied it and was pretty adamant in his denials 352 00:15:56,042 --> 00:15:58,208 until he died in the early '90s. 353 00:15:58,208 --> 00:16:01,083 But they always tap your best friend 354 00:16:01,083 --> 00:16:02,417 to kill you in that world. 355 00:16:02,417 --> 00:16:05,375 And Blasi was Giancana's best friend. 356 00:16:05,375 --> 00:16:07,417 - Whether Blasi was the actual gunman or not, 357 00:16:07,417 --> 00:16:10,042 the question now becomes: what was the reason behind it? 358 00:16:10,042 --> 00:16:11,750 What is the motive? 359 00:16:11,750 --> 00:16:16,708 - One of the best motives we've got comes in the early 2000s 360 00:16:16,708 --> 00:16:19,042 during testimony by Nick Calabrese, 361 00:16:19,042 --> 00:16:22,208 who was a longtime hitman for the Chicago Outfit. 362 00:16:22,208 --> 00:16:23,875 He claims that the 363 00:16:23,875 --> 00:16:26,708 Chicago Outfit's main issue with Giancana 364 00:16:26,708 --> 00:16:29,750 was not paying them their cut. 365 00:16:29,750 --> 00:16:31,042 The problem with this, though, 366 00:16:31,042 --> 00:16:34,208 is: why was this hit so personal? 367 00:16:34,208 --> 00:16:37,208 Why was there this level of overkill? 368 00:16:37,208 --> 00:16:38,708 He's shot in the back of the head, 369 00:16:38,708 --> 00:16:39,875 that would've killed him, 370 00:16:39,875 --> 00:16:42,625 but then he's shot five more times in the neck 371 00:16:42,625 --> 00:16:44,750 and the one shot in his mouth. 372 00:16:44,750 --> 00:16:47,042 - A lot of researchers insist 373 00:16:47,042 --> 00:16:51,208 that what happened to Giancana was a Mob hit. 374 00:16:51,208 --> 00:16:53,875 But the nature of it wasn't over money. 375 00:16:53,875 --> 00:16:58,125 [pounding dramatic music] 376 00:16:58,125 --> 00:17:01,083 - [Laurence] The coroner's report on the 1975 murder 377 00:17:01,083 --> 00:17:04,250 of Sam Giancana indicates he was first shot 378 00:17:04,250 --> 00:17:06,125 in the back of the head. 379 00:17:06,125 --> 00:17:08,583 Then the shooter delivered six more bullets 380 00:17:08,583 --> 00:17:10,042 into his face and neck. 381 00:17:10,958 --> 00:17:12,667 - It's a signature of the Mafia 382 00:17:12,667 --> 00:17:14,542 that when they are gonna kill somebody 383 00:17:14,542 --> 00:17:17,125 who they believe is snitching to the government, 384 00:17:17,125 --> 00:17:20,583 to deliberately put a series of bullet shots 385 00:17:20,583 --> 00:17:22,500 around his mouth. 386 00:17:22,500 --> 00:17:23,792 - That last shot, that coup de grace, 387 00:17:23,792 --> 00:17:26,333 is basically saying, "Hey, keep your mouth shut," 388 00:17:26,333 --> 00:17:28,708 and it's a warning to others to also do the same. 389 00:17:28,708 --> 00:17:31,833 - The Giancana family has been relatively vocal 390 00:17:31,833 --> 00:17:33,583 that Giancana's murder 391 00:17:33,583 --> 00:17:35,542 really had nothing to do with the money. 392 00:17:35,542 --> 00:17:37,333 It had to do with the fact that he was being subpoenaed 393 00:17:37,333 --> 00:17:39,625 in front of the Church Committee. 394 00:17:39,625 --> 00:17:42,000 - The Church Committee is the Senate committee 395 00:17:42,000 --> 00:17:45,042 led by Idaho Senator Frank Church 396 00:17:45,042 --> 00:17:48,042 that is tasked with investigating the CIA, 397 00:17:48,042 --> 00:17:50,375 specifically whether there was any collusion 398 00:17:50,375 --> 00:17:52,542 between the CIA and the Mafia. 399 00:17:53,875 --> 00:17:55,042 - [Laurence] Within months 400 00:17:55,042 --> 00:17:56,833 of returning to Chicago from Mexico, 401 00:17:56,833 --> 00:18:00,250 Giancana is told he's expected to appear under oath 402 00:18:00,250 --> 00:18:01,625 before the Church Committee. 403 00:18:03,083 --> 00:18:05,208 - Giancana is somebody that has a track record 404 00:18:05,208 --> 00:18:07,500 of not ratting anybody out. 405 00:18:07,500 --> 00:18:11,167 In the '60s, he's jailed for a year for contempt 406 00:18:11,167 --> 00:18:13,875 because he doesn't say anything. 407 00:18:13,875 --> 00:18:17,875 - [Claire] But by 1975, Giancana has been painted into a corner. 408 00:18:17,875 --> 00:18:21,458 He's tried to plead the Fifth, but there's no way to know 409 00:18:21,458 --> 00:18:24,583 whether the Senate will let him get away with that. 410 00:18:24,583 --> 00:18:28,042 - Does he wanna risk being thrown in jail for another year? 411 00:18:28,042 --> 00:18:31,042 This is a 67-year-old man. 412 00:18:31,042 --> 00:18:33,833 It might be Giancana doesn't wanna risk 413 00:18:33,833 --> 00:18:35,708 having to go to prison again 414 00:18:35,708 --> 00:18:38,583 because he doesn't have that much life left. 415 00:18:38,583 --> 00:18:41,375 - So it's very possible that he's going to try 416 00:18:41,375 --> 00:18:44,417 a whole nother tactic in front of the Church Committee, 417 00:18:44,417 --> 00:18:47,375 and that might be telling the truth. 418 00:18:47,375 --> 00:18:50,375 Giancana's death happens just five days 419 00:18:50,375 --> 00:18:52,542 before he's set to appear. 420 00:18:52,542 --> 00:18:56,458 All of this ties into the idea of the code of Omerta. 421 00:18:56,458 --> 00:18:58,542 - [Scott] Omerta is the oath of silence that you take 422 00:18:58,542 --> 00:19:00,792 when you become a member of the Mafia. 423 00:19:00,792 --> 00:19:04,333 To break Omerta is to basically sign your own death warrant. 424 00:19:07,833 --> 00:19:09,375 [tense dramatic music] 425 00:19:09,375 --> 00:19:11,333 - [Matthew] The Mob is afraid of what's coming next, 426 00:19:11,333 --> 00:19:13,708 that he may actually say something. 427 00:19:13,708 --> 00:19:15,042 I mean, he's an old-school gangster. 428 00:19:15,042 --> 00:19:16,583 He might have kept his mouth shut, 429 00:19:16,583 --> 00:19:19,875 but seems like an easy answer just to take him out. 430 00:19:19,875 --> 00:19:22,708 - [Laurence] As a longtime member of the Chicago Outfit, 431 00:19:22,708 --> 00:19:26,667 Giancana's fate rested in the hands of one man. 432 00:19:26,667 --> 00:19:28,375 Tony Accardo. 433 00:19:28,375 --> 00:19:30,542 - Even when Sam Giancana was boss, 434 00:19:30,542 --> 00:19:32,917 there was still a boss above the boss, 435 00:19:32,917 --> 00:19:35,208 and that boss was Tony Accardo. 436 00:19:35,208 --> 00:19:39,375 Nobody in America held the amount of power, 437 00:19:39,375 --> 00:19:42,167 the amount of influence that Accardo held 438 00:19:42,167 --> 00:19:43,625 in that time period. 439 00:19:43,625 --> 00:19:46,208 - [Thomas] Tony Accardo witnessed Al Capone, 440 00:19:46,208 --> 00:19:48,333 this larger-than-life figure 441 00:19:48,333 --> 00:19:52,708 who winds up drawing a great deal of attention to himself. 442 00:19:52,708 --> 00:19:56,917 And Tony Accardo realizes that he should keep your head low. 443 00:19:56,917 --> 00:20:00,458 - He wanted to be the boss without holding the title. 444 00:20:00,458 --> 00:20:03,583 So he created all of these acting bosses and street bosses 445 00:20:03,583 --> 00:20:06,875 and day-to-day bosses that would run the family for him. 446 00:20:06,875 --> 00:20:09,708 - [Sami] Despite Sam Giancana the boss of the Outfit 447 00:20:09,708 --> 00:20:14,500 in 1957, Accardo is actually the real guy calling the shots, 448 00:20:14,500 --> 00:20:18,542 and Giancana is just sort of the face of the Outfit. 449 00:20:18,542 --> 00:20:22,375 - [Laurence] Accardo spared Giancana's life in 1966 450 00:20:22,375 --> 00:20:25,000 by exiling him to Mexico. 451 00:20:25,000 --> 00:20:30,125 When Giancana returns in 1974 and is immediately subpoenaed, 452 00:20:30,125 --> 00:20:32,458 the real head of the Chicago Outfit 453 00:20:32,458 --> 00:20:34,208 may have been less forgiving. 454 00:20:35,125 --> 00:20:36,708 - When the FBI gets involved 455 00:20:36,708 --> 00:20:39,208 in the investigation of Sam Giancana's death, 456 00:20:39,208 --> 00:20:41,792 they immediately looked to Tony Accardo, 457 00:20:41,792 --> 00:20:45,500 and they identify him as a potential suspect. 458 00:20:45,500 --> 00:20:48,292 - Accardo was very unhappy with the idea 459 00:20:48,292 --> 00:20:50,958 that Giancana was now back in Chicago, 460 00:20:50,958 --> 00:20:53,208 and whoever killed Sam Giancana 461 00:20:53,208 --> 00:20:56,167 had to get the okay of Accardo. 462 00:20:56,167 --> 00:20:58,667 - But it turns out that he may have had 463 00:20:58,667 --> 00:21:01,250 a lot more to do with it than just orchestrating the affair. 464 00:21:01,250 --> 00:21:02,625 [tense suspenseful music] 465 00:21:02,625 --> 00:21:04,208 - [Laurence] In the early 2000s, 466 00:21:04,208 --> 00:21:08,708 the FBI learns that Chicago Outfit hitman Nick Calabrese 467 00:21:08,708 --> 00:21:11,708 and his nephew Frank Calabrese, Jr. 468 00:21:11,708 --> 00:21:14,833 are both willing to turn state's evidence. 469 00:21:14,833 --> 00:21:18,917 - They spilled the beans on a lot of unsolved murders, 470 00:21:18,917 --> 00:21:20,708 and that turned into the biggest 471 00:21:20,708 --> 00:21:23,083 Mob prosecution in Chicago history. 472 00:21:23,083 --> 00:21:25,042 Operation Family Secrets. 473 00:21:25,042 --> 00:21:27,167 - Nick Calabrese goes to the FBI 474 00:21:27,167 --> 00:21:30,417 and tells them one of the biggest 475 00:21:30,417 --> 00:21:32,667 juiciest secrets of all time. 476 00:21:32,667 --> 00:21:35,417 - According to him, Tony Accardo 477 00:21:35,417 --> 00:21:37,875 felt strong enough about Giancana 478 00:21:37,875 --> 00:21:40,917 that he wanted to do his own housecleaning. 479 00:21:40,917 --> 00:21:42,875 - It's an extraordinary claim. 480 00:21:42,875 --> 00:21:45,917 Tony Accardo hadn't just authorized 481 00:21:45,917 --> 00:21:48,042 the hit on Sam Giancana. 482 00:21:48,042 --> 00:21:49,292 He had carried out 483 00:21:49,292 --> 00:21:51,375 the hit on Sam Giancana. 484 00:21:53,833 --> 00:21:58,333 - If Accardo went out of his way to commit this hit himself, 485 00:21:58,333 --> 00:22:00,208 this is big. 486 00:22:00,208 --> 00:22:04,625 Mob bosses do not commit their own hits. 487 00:22:04,625 --> 00:22:06,917 It is likely that Accardo believed 488 00:22:06,917 --> 00:22:11,083 that Giancana was about to blow everything wide open. 489 00:22:11,083 --> 00:22:12,875 - Yeah, he was old. 490 00:22:12,875 --> 00:22:15,208 He might have looked like your grandfather, 491 00:22:15,208 --> 00:22:16,583 but he could still pull a trigger. 492 00:22:16,583 --> 00:22:19,083 [gunshot] - This theory makes sense. 493 00:22:19,083 --> 00:22:20,625 Accardo is another person 494 00:22:20,625 --> 00:22:23,375 who Giancana probably would've trusted, 495 00:22:23,375 --> 00:22:25,208 would have likely allowed 496 00:22:25,208 --> 00:22:28,375 willingly into his home late at night. 497 00:22:28,375 --> 00:22:30,167 - [Laurence] Alongside Giancana, 498 00:22:30,167 --> 00:22:32,292 the Church Committee also subpoenaed 499 00:22:32,292 --> 00:22:35,042 two other famous Mafia associates. 500 00:22:35,042 --> 00:22:39,917 Teamsters boss Jimmy Hoffa and mobster Johnny Roselli. 501 00:22:39,917 --> 00:22:42,708 - [Scott] Jimmy Hoffa was friendly with Giancana 502 00:22:42,708 --> 00:22:44,250 and Roselli, and he was supposed to testify 503 00:22:44,250 --> 00:22:45,875 at the Church Committee 504 00:22:45,875 --> 00:22:48,292 about six weeks after Giancana was murdered. 505 00:22:48,292 --> 00:22:50,125 Jimmy Hoffa ended up disappearing 506 00:22:50,125 --> 00:22:51,917 and never being found. 507 00:22:51,917 --> 00:22:56,083 - Johnny Roselli does testify, and he just drops a bomb. 508 00:22:56,083 --> 00:22:59,792 He says that the Mob was actually working with the CIA. 509 00:23:01,542 --> 00:23:03,583 - Until this point, this is all rumors. 510 00:23:03,583 --> 00:23:06,708 This is the first time that we're actually confirming 511 00:23:06,708 --> 00:23:10,833 that there is a connection between the CIA and the Mob. 512 00:23:10,833 --> 00:23:13,542 After testifying, Johnny Roselli goes missing. 513 00:23:13,542 --> 00:23:14,708 He's eventually found 514 00:23:14,708 --> 00:23:16,833 dismembered, death by asphyxiation, 515 00:23:16,833 --> 00:23:20,042 in a 55-gallon oil drum floating in the bay, 516 00:23:20,042 --> 00:23:22,042 not far from Miami. 517 00:23:22,042 --> 00:23:25,625 - Sam Giancana, Jimmy Hoffa, and Roselli. 518 00:23:25,625 --> 00:23:29,167 All three of them murdered either before they testified 519 00:23:29,167 --> 00:23:31,042 or after they testified. 520 00:23:31,042 --> 00:23:32,375 - This seems to suggest that 521 00:23:32,375 --> 00:23:34,958 the Mafia was willing to silence anybody 522 00:23:34,958 --> 00:23:37,125 who was willing to cooperate with Congress. 523 00:23:37,125 --> 00:23:38,792 - So the message was clear. 524 00:23:38,792 --> 00:23:41,458 You don't break the code of silence. 525 00:23:41,458 --> 00:23:41,750 [gunshots] 526 00:23:45,542 --> 00:23:48,250 - The murder of mobster Sam Giancana in June 1975 527 00:23:48,250 --> 00:23:50,542 comes at a time of intense scrutiny 528 00:23:50,542 --> 00:23:53,208 on government corruption in America. 529 00:23:53,208 --> 00:23:55,375 President Richard Nixon has resigned 530 00:23:55,375 --> 00:23:57,458 in the Watergate scandal, 531 00:23:57,458 --> 00:24:00,208 and illegal activity by American spy agencies 532 00:24:00,208 --> 00:24:03,458 is being exposed by the media. 533 00:24:03,458 --> 00:24:06,333 Some believe that Sam Giancana's murder 534 00:24:06,333 --> 00:24:09,583 wasn't just about protecting Mob secrets. 535 00:24:09,583 --> 00:24:12,875 Is it possible he was killed to protect the CIA? 536 00:24:14,083 --> 00:24:16,458 - After the Watergate scandal, 537 00:24:16,458 --> 00:24:18,542 one of the things that came to light 538 00:24:18,542 --> 00:24:21,417 was the improper use of CIA surveillance 539 00:24:21,417 --> 00:24:22,875 and things of that nature. 540 00:24:22,875 --> 00:24:26,042 And so the Church Committee was set up 541 00:24:26,042 --> 00:24:29,583 to oversee what was going on with the CIA. 542 00:24:29,583 --> 00:24:31,625 - Today, the Church Committee is considered 543 00:24:31,625 --> 00:24:34,250 to be one of the biggest oversight investigations 544 00:24:34,250 --> 00:24:39,375 in all of US history because they uncover a series of plots, 545 00:24:39,375 --> 00:24:43,417 including the plot to kill Fidel Castro 546 00:24:43,417 --> 00:24:46,208 by the CIA and the Mob. 547 00:24:46,208 --> 00:24:49,667 - These alleged ties between the CIA and the Mafia 548 00:24:49,667 --> 00:24:51,250 lead to the Church Committee 549 00:24:51,250 --> 00:24:53,208 calling people like Johnny Roselli 550 00:24:53,208 --> 00:24:54,667 and Sam Giancana to testify. 551 00:24:55,542 --> 00:24:59,917 In June of 1975, the CIA is in big trouble. 552 00:24:59,917 --> 00:25:02,042 They know exactly what they've done, 553 00:25:02,042 --> 00:25:04,625 and they know that it's about to all come out. 554 00:25:04,625 --> 00:25:06,208 [uneasy dramatic music] 555 00:25:06,208 --> 00:25:07,667 - So not only we have the Mob 556 00:25:07,667 --> 00:25:09,625 not wanting Sam Giancana to talk, 557 00:25:09,625 --> 00:25:12,542 but we also have the CIA not wanting him to expose 558 00:25:12,542 --> 00:25:14,375 that relationship between that. 559 00:25:14,375 --> 00:25:16,000 - [Thomas] There are a number of people, 560 00:25:16,000 --> 00:25:19,625 including Giancana's oldest daughter, Antoinette Giancana, 561 00:25:19,625 --> 00:25:23,833 who have claimed that the CIA was somehow involved 562 00:25:23,833 --> 00:25:26,875 in the murder of Sam Giancana. 563 00:25:30,542 --> 00:25:32,000 [Castro speaking in foreign language] 564 00:25:32,000 --> 00:25:34,542 - So we're in the midst of the Cold War, 565 00:25:34,542 --> 00:25:37,333 and both the Eisenhower and Kennedy administrations 566 00:25:37,333 --> 00:25:40,333 are very concerned about this charismatic revolutionary, 567 00:25:40,333 --> 00:25:45,000 Fidel Castro, who aligns closely with the Soviet Union. 568 00:25:45,000 --> 00:25:48,000 - Before Fidel Castro took control of the Cuban government 569 00:25:48,000 --> 00:25:52,542 in the 1950s, Mafia figures own most of the major casinos 570 00:25:52,542 --> 00:25:54,792 and hotels in Havana. 571 00:25:54,792 --> 00:25:57,125 Mobsters are essentially kicked out of Cuba 572 00:25:57,125 --> 00:25:58,750 during the revolution, 573 00:25:58,750 --> 00:26:02,542 and Fidel Castro becomes a common enemy for the CIA 574 00:26:02,542 --> 00:26:04,167 and the Mafia. 575 00:26:04,167 --> 00:26:07,708 - The CIA felt like the best people to kill Castro 576 00:26:07,708 --> 00:26:09,875 were the most dangerous killers 577 00:26:09,875 --> 00:26:12,333 that they could find on the streets. 578 00:26:12,333 --> 00:26:14,708 This was an unholy alliance. 579 00:26:14,708 --> 00:26:17,042 - [Laurence] Conducted in total secrecy, 580 00:26:17,042 --> 00:26:21,833 this partnership becomes known as Operation Mongoose. 581 00:26:21,833 --> 00:26:24,208 - [Sami] We'll never know for sure what Giancana would 582 00:26:24,208 --> 00:26:26,708 or would not have said during his testimony, 583 00:26:26,708 --> 00:26:29,458 but due to Roselli's testimony, 584 00:26:29,458 --> 00:26:31,125 we do get a very clear picture 585 00:26:31,125 --> 00:26:34,583 of the collaboration between the CIA and the Mob. 586 00:26:34,583 --> 00:26:37,750 - Roselli tells an extraordinary story 587 00:26:37,750 --> 00:26:41,208 that has the nation on the edge of their seats. 588 00:26:41,208 --> 00:26:44,083 He was recruited by the CIA 589 00:26:44,083 --> 00:26:47,417 in a plot to assassinate Fidel Castro. 590 00:26:47,417 --> 00:26:51,500 And the two key players in this are Roselli and Giancana. 591 00:26:51,500 --> 00:26:52,875 - Sam Giancana feels that the CIA 592 00:26:52,875 --> 00:26:55,625 and the Mob are two sides of the same coin. 593 00:26:55,625 --> 00:26:56,875 They both want the same thing, 594 00:26:56,875 --> 00:26:58,417 and they're both not above murder. 595 00:26:58,417 --> 00:27:00,125 [tense suspenseful music] 596 00:27:00,125 --> 00:27:02,917 - Johnny Roselli and Sam Giancana 597 00:27:02,917 --> 00:27:07,500 ran a casino in Havana known as "Sans Souci," 598 00:27:07,500 --> 00:27:12,708 and so they claimed that they still had contacts in Cuba 599 00:27:13,833 --> 00:27:17,500 that could get close enough to Fidel Castro. 600 00:27:17,500 --> 00:27:19,042 - During Johnny Roselli's testimony, 601 00:27:19,042 --> 00:27:22,125 he says that the CIA was willing to pay these mobsters 602 00:27:22,125 --> 00:27:27,083 $150,000, which is $1.6 million in today's money. 603 00:27:28,708 --> 00:27:31,708 Giancana and Roselli actually hire someone 604 00:27:31,708 --> 00:27:35,208 to put poison pills in Fidel Castro's food. 605 00:27:35,208 --> 00:27:37,917 The assassin winds up backing out. 606 00:27:37,917 --> 00:27:42,375 - When the poisoning fails, then Roselli and Giancana think, 607 00:27:42,375 --> 00:27:46,167 "All right, well, let's bring in some armed commandos 608 00:27:46,167 --> 00:27:47,667 to assassinate him." 609 00:27:47,667 --> 00:27:49,667 But that didn't work either. 610 00:27:49,667 --> 00:27:51,583 - The CIA documents are declassified 611 00:27:51,583 --> 00:27:52,875 several decades later, 612 00:27:52,875 --> 00:27:54,417 and you just walk through the documents, 613 00:27:54,417 --> 00:27:55,750 you go, "Oh, Roselli was right. 614 00:27:55,750 --> 00:27:57,250 Roselli was right. 615 00:27:57,250 --> 00:27:58,792 Roselli was right." 616 00:27:58,792 --> 00:28:02,042 - The assassination attempts on Castro fail. 617 00:28:02,042 --> 00:28:07,042 But we do see other collusion between Sam and the CIA. 618 00:28:08,125 --> 00:28:09,750 At this time, he's dating Phyllis McGuire, 619 00:28:09,750 --> 00:28:13,042 who's a musician, a national celebrity. 620 00:28:13,042 --> 00:28:15,750 He believes that Phyllis McGuire is cheating on him 621 00:28:15,750 --> 00:28:18,167 with comedian Dan Rowan. 622 00:28:18,167 --> 00:28:20,833 - [Larry] The CIA bugged the bedroom of Dan Rowan 623 00:28:20,833 --> 00:28:23,542 to appease Sam Giancana. 624 00:28:23,542 --> 00:28:27,375 Now you have not only the CIA working with gangsters, 625 00:28:27,375 --> 00:28:30,208 you have the CIA help a gangster deal with 626 00:28:30,208 --> 00:28:33,000 an emotional problem with his girlfriend. 627 00:28:33,000 --> 00:28:35,625 So what we're looking at in 1975 628 00:28:35,625 --> 00:28:39,583 is that this direct testimony of Giancana 629 00:28:39,583 --> 00:28:42,875 might simply blow the top off this story. 630 00:28:42,875 --> 00:28:45,375 - [Claire] Essentially, Giancana has the power 631 00:28:45,375 --> 00:28:48,667 to completely take down the CIA. 632 00:28:48,667 --> 00:28:51,292 The CIA might wanna take out Giancana 633 00:28:51,292 --> 00:28:53,333 before he can take out them. 634 00:28:53,333 --> 00:28:56,042 - [Sami] The media and the public really quickly 635 00:28:56,042 --> 00:28:57,917 start to draw a connection between the CIA 636 00:28:57,917 --> 00:28:59,583 and Giancana's murder. 637 00:28:59,583 --> 00:29:00,917 If all of this information 638 00:29:00,917 --> 00:29:03,000 was being presented to the committee, 639 00:29:03,000 --> 00:29:05,333 who else could it possibly have been? 640 00:29:05,333 --> 00:29:08,042 Case in point, the Time magazine article, 641 00:29:08,042 --> 00:29:10,500 which talked about how the .22-caliber pistol 642 00:29:10,500 --> 00:29:14,000 was becoming the preferred weapon of choice for Mob hits, 643 00:29:14,000 --> 00:29:17,208 also points out that the .22-caliber 644 00:29:17,208 --> 00:29:19,750 has been the pistol of choice for the CIA 645 00:29:19,750 --> 00:29:21,708 for years and years. 646 00:29:21,708 --> 00:29:23,458 - It reached the point where Frank Church 647 00:29:23,458 --> 00:29:25,458 felt the need to come out and make a statement 648 00:29:25,458 --> 00:29:28,208 that these theories that are being bandied about 649 00:29:28,208 --> 00:29:30,125 couldn't be further from the truth. 650 00:29:30,125 --> 00:29:33,000 - [Matthew] They do uncover several other assassinations 651 00:29:33,000 --> 00:29:34,958 orchestrated by the CIA, 652 00:29:34,958 --> 00:29:37,958 but when it comes to the death of Sam Giancana, 653 00:29:37,958 --> 00:29:41,000 Senator Church says it's probably Mob-related. 654 00:29:41,000 --> 00:29:43,042 Despite these denials, it makes sense. 655 00:29:43,042 --> 00:29:45,375 I mean, it would be certainly something 656 00:29:45,375 --> 00:29:46,208 you'd want to investigate. 657 00:29:49,833 --> 00:29:51,250 - [Laurence] In 1975, 658 00:29:51,250 --> 00:29:53,833 Sam Giancana is subpoenaed by the Church Committee 659 00:29:53,833 --> 00:29:56,708 to testify about the CIA's involvement 660 00:29:56,708 --> 00:30:01,875 with organized crime to kill Cuban dictator Fidel Castro. 661 00:30:01,875 --> 00:30:04,333 But the committee is also tasked 662 00:30:04,333 --> 00:30:07,708 with investigating the possible connection between the CIA 663 00:30:07,708 --> 00:30:09,958 and one of the most consequential events 664 00:30:09,958 --> 00:30:11,333 in US history, 665 00:30:11,333 --> 00:30:14,542 the assassination of President John F. Kennedy. 666 00:30:15,542 --> 00:30:16,958 - It's something that is 667 00:30:16,958 --> 00:30:18,875 one of the darkest days in American history, 668 00:30:18,875 --> 00:30:20,333 and we still don't know 669 00:30:20,333 --> 00:30:22,917 60 years later what exactly happened. 670 00:30:22,917 --> 00:30:24,625 - In 1964, 671 00:30:24,625 --> 00:30:27,542 President Lyndon B. Johnson creates the Warren Commission 672 00:30:27,542 --> 00:30:30,375 to investigate the assassination of John F. Kennedy, 673 00:30:31,375 --> 00:30:34,458 and they conclude that Lee Harvey Oswald 674 00:30:34,458 --> 00:30:36,833 is a lone actor in the assassination. 675 00:30:36,833 --> 00:30:38,208 No one else is involved. 676 00:30:39,542 --> 00:30:41,042 - An awful lot of people 677 00:30:41,042 --> 00:30:42,833 were bothered by the Warren Commission 678 00:30:42,833 --> 00:30:45,875 not looking at other scenarios, 679 00:30:45,875 --> 00:30:48,625 and argued that there were more plausible theories 680 00:30:48,625 --> 00:30:50,250 than the lone gunman. 681 00:30:50,250 --> 00:30:53,167 And one of them has to do in part with the idea 682 00:30:53,167 --> 00:30:55,292 that Sam Giancana was involved. 683 00:30:56,417 --> 00:31:00,125 - By bringing Giancana to Washington in 1975, 684 00:31:00,125 --> 00:31:02,875 these investigators were hoping to find out 685 00:31:02,875 --> 00:31:06,042 whatever Giancana may know about Castro, 686 00:31:06,042 --> 00:31:07,500 but while they're at it, 687 00:31:07,500 --> 00:31:10,250 they could also ask him about the JFK assassination. 688 00:31:10,250 --> 00:31:13,042 - [Scott] It's really not a crazy conspiracy theory, 689 00:31:13,042 --> 00:31:15,000 the way that sometimes it's made out to be. 690 00:31:15,000 --> 00:31:17,708 'Cause we know there were quite a few people 691 00:31:17,708 --> 00:31:19,083 that had connections to Giancana 692 00:31:19,083 --> 00:31:22,667 that were within the radius of that assassination. 693 00:31:22,667 --> 00:31:24,458 - Imagine if Giancana testified 694 00:31:24,458 --> 00:31:29,167 and said, "Hey, not only did the CIA use me for Castro, 695 00:31:29,167 --> 00:31:31,708 but they also used me to kill JFK." 696 00:31:31,708 --> 00:31:33,792 Now, whether it is the government 697 00:31:33,792 --> 00:31:35,875 or the Mafia that killed him, 698 00:31:35,875 --> 00:31:38,875 either way, Sam dies because he knows too much. 699 00:31:38,875 --> 00:31:42,125 [pounding dramatic music] 700 00:31:42,125 --> 00:31:44,167 [tense uneasy music] 701 00:31:44,167 --> 00:31:48,042 - Most everyone is in agreement that Lee Harvey Oswald 702 00:31:48,042 --> 00:31:51,042 is the one who shot the president. 703 00:31:51,042 --> 00:31:54,417 But did he really act alone? 704 00:31:54,417 --> 00:31:56,208 - There is a lot of strong evidence 705 00:31:56,208 --> 00:31:59,375 that maybe the Mafia is also involved. 706 00:31:59,375 --> 00:32:02,125 You sound crazy connecting all the dots there, 707 00:32:02,125 --> 00:32:03,458 but it makes sense. 708 00:32:03,458 --> 00:32:06,542 Lee Harvey Oswald grows up in New Orleans. 709 00:32:06,542 --> 00:32:10,000 His uncle is a bookie who works for Carlos Marcello, 710 00:32:10,000 --> 00:32:12,333 who is in charge of the Mob in New Orleans, 711 00:32:12,333 --> 00:32:14,542 and a friend of Sam Giancana. 712 00:32:14,542 --> 00:32:16,875 Lee Harvey Oswald, when he is a teenager, 713 00:32:16,875 --> 00:32:19,500 is mentored by this person, David Ferrie, 714 00:32:19,500 --> 00:32:22,167 who is also a private investigator 715 00:32:22,167 --> 00:32:26,375 that works with Carlos Marcello. 716 00:32:26,375 --> 00:32:28,292 - [Scott] After the assassination of Kennedy, 717 00:32:28,292 --> 00:32:30,375 Oswald was murdered by Jack Ruby, 718 00:32:30,375 --> 00:32:31,708 [gunshot] 719 00:32:31,708 --> 00:32:34,917 who was a well-known Mafia associate of Giancana's. 720 00:32:34,917 --> 00:32:36,708 - [Thomas] In 1975, 721 00:32:36,708 --> 00:32:40,833 after Johnny Roselli testifies before the Church Committee, 722 00:32:40,833 --> 00:32:43,583 his lawyer floated that Johnny 723 00:32:43,583 --> 00:32:46,667 would not only be willing to talk about Castro, 724 00:32:46,667 --> 00:32:50,833 but he also knew something about the JFK assassination. 725 00:32:50,833 --> 00:32:52,417 And it was at that point 726 00:32:52,417 --> 00:32:56,208 that Roselli winds up being murdered just like Giancana. 727 00:32:56,208 --> 00:33:00,125 - The really interesting twist here is that Sam Giancana 728 00:33:00,125 --> 00:33:03,917 and the Mob helped get President Kennedy elected. 729 00:33:03,917 --> 00:33:05,500 [crowd applauding] 730 00:33:05,500 --> 00:33:09,875 - It's pretty much acknowledged historically 731 00:33:09,875 --> 00:33:14,208 that Sam Giancana helped the Kennedy campaign 732 00:33:14,208 --> 00:33:17,708 both in West Virginia and to some degree in Illinois. 733 00:33:17,708 --> 00:33:19,250 With the election there, 734 00:33:19,250 --> 00:33:22,000 Giancana was telling other mobsters, 735 00:33:22,000 --> 00:33:23,542 "I'm supporting Kennedy 736 00:33:23,542 --> 00:33:27,250 because I think he'll go easy on us." 737 00:33:27,250 --> 00:33:29,500 - [Matthew] Sam Giancana does all this work behind the scenes 738 00:33:29,500 --> 00:33:32,042 to get John F. Kennedy elected president, 739 00:33:32,042 --> 00:33:34,708 expecting that his life is gonna get easier, 740 00:33:34,708 --> 00:33:36,125 and it does not. 741 00:33:36,125 --> 00:33:40,167 - The Mob became very angry and bitter 742 00:33:40,167 --> 00:33:42,417 at the fact that almost immediately 743 00:33:42,417 --> 00:33:44,250 when Kennedy got into office, 744 00:33:44,250 --> 00:33:47,458 he came after the Mafia with an assault 745 00:33:47,458 --> 00:33:51,042 that had never been bigger or more widespread. 746 00:33:51,042 --> 00:33:52,583 - [Sami] A year later, in 1961, 747 00:33:52,583 --> 00:33:54,542 JFK's younger brother Bobby Kennedy, 748 00:33:54,542 --> 00:33:57,125 who was serving as Attorney General, goes after Jimmy Hoffa, 749 00:33:57,125 --> 00:33:58,208 who's the head of the Teamsters, 750 00:33:58,208 --> 00:34:00,250 which has connections to the Mob. 751 00:34:00,250 --> 00:34:03,167 RFK also goes after New Orleans mobster Carlos Marcello, 752 00:34:03,167 --> 00:34:04,708 who gets deported to Guatemala. 753 00:34:04,708 --> 00:34:09,333 So Giancana allegedly vows to take revenge on JFK. 754 00:34:09,333 --> 00:34:10,750 [tense thoughtful music] 755 00:34:10,750 --> 00:34:13,708 - [Thomas] Giancana was known as a very violent guy, 756 00:34:13,708 --> 00:34:17,000 one of the most violent people that the Chicago Mob 757 00:34:17,000 --> 00:34:21,208 had ever known, that you don't fool around with Sam Giancana 758 00:34:21,208 --> 00:34:23,500 or you're gonna find a bullet in your head. 759 00:34:24,667 --> 00:34:27,500 - [Laurence] In 1992, Sam Giancana's brother 760 00:34:27,500 --> 00:34:31,000 and his godson publish Double Cross. 761 00:34:31,000 --> 00:34:33,208 The book claims to reveal the Mob boss's 762 00:34:33,208 --> 00:34:37,000 most shocking secrets, including what he allegedly said 763 00:34:37,000 --> 00:34:39,250 about the Kennedy assassination. 764 00:34:39,250 --> 00:34:41,375 - In his book Double Cross, 765 00:34:41,375 --> 00:34:45,625 Chuck Giancana says one day Sam said to him, 766 00:34:45,625 --> 00:34:50,583 "Look, we," meaning "we," the Mob, and the CIA, 767 00:34:52,167 --> 00:34:55,042 "took care of Kennedy together." 768 00:34:55,042 --> 00:34:57,208 - [Matthew] He states that Sam told him 769 00:34:57,208 --> 00:35:00,000 that Lee Harvey Oswald was a CIA plant, 770 00:35:00,000 --> 00:35:01,583 and that it was Giancana 771 00:35:01,583 --> 00:35:05,500 that ordered the murder of John F. Kennedy. 772 00:35:05,500 --> 00:35:08,125 - [Scott] So to break it down in its most simple form, 773 00:35:08,125 --> 00:35:09,667 Oswald was the patsy, 774 00:35:09,667 --> 00:35:11,625 and then Ruby was the guy sent to take him out. 775 00:35:11,625 --> 00:35:14,250 And that's the typical Mob protocol. 776 00:35:14,250 --> 00:35:15,833 You assign somebody to do the job, 777 00:35:15,833 --> 00:35:17,083 and then you assign somebody to get rid of the guy 778 00:35:17,083 --> 00:35:17,958 that did the job. 779 00:35:17,958 --> 00:35:19,208 [light tense music] 780 00:35:19,208 --> 00:35:21,250 - There's no way for Chuck Giancana 781 00:35:21,250 --> 00:35:23,042 to corroborate his story, 782 00:35:23,042 --> 00:35:24,875 and there's no way that we will ever know 783 00:35:24,875 --> 00:35:28,625 what Sam Giancana might have testified to in 1975. 784 00:35:28,625 --> 00:35:33,042 But if that is what Sam Giancana was going to say, 785 00:35:33,042 --> 00:35:36,542 that is an explosive issue. 786 00:35:36,542 --> 00:35:39,250 - If Sam Giancana really had something to do 787 00:35:39,250 --> 00:35:43,667 with the assassination of JFK in collusion with the CIA, 788 00:35:43,667 --> 00:35:46,375 that is information that the CIA does not want out, 789 00:35:46,375 --> 00:35:49,500 and it is good reason to kill Sam Giancana. 790 00:35:53,875 --> 00:35:55,333 - [Laurence] Since he first became the head 791 00:35:55,333 --> 00:35:56,958 of the Chicago Mob, 792 00:35:56,958 --> 00:36:00,000 Sam Giancana has kept the Chicago Police Department 793 00:36:00,000 --> 00:36:01,917 in his pocket, 794 00:36:01,917 --> 00:36:05,917 but as he prepares to go on the witness stand in 1975, 795 00:36:05,917 --> 00:36:10,292 this once-close relationship may have sealed his fate. 796 00:36:10,292 --> 00:36:12,375 [tense dramatic music] 797 00:36:12,375 --> 00:36:14,500 - Since Giancana's set to testify 798 00:36:14,500 --> 00:36:16,042 in front of a Senate committee, 799 00:36:16,042 --> 00:36:18,333 federal prosecutors have a vested interest 800 00:36:18,333 --> 00:36:20,083 in keeping him alive. 801 00:36:20,083 --> 00:36:23,208 In fact, on the night of Giancana's murder, 802 00:36:23,208 --> 00:36:25,333 there are two officers that are stationed 803 00:36:25,333 --> 00:36:27,000 directly outside of his house. 804 00:36:27,000 --> 00:36:31,667 - At about 10:30 on the night of the shooting, they left. 805 00:36:33,167 --> 00:36:35,208 The skeptics would argue 806 00:36:35,208 --> 00:36:39,917 what they did was leave him unprotected. 807 00:36:39,917 --> 00:36:41,375 - It's really extraordinary 808 00:36:41,375 --> 00:36:45,208 that, within about an hour or so after the cops leave, 809 00:36:45,208 --> 00:36:48,542 they're called back by the housekeeper 810 00:36:48,542 --> 00:36:51,167 saying that Sam Giancana has been murdered. 811 00:36:51,167 --> 00:36:53,458 - And then asked to investigate it, 812 00:36:53,458 --> 00:36:56,958 the Chicago PD put it off to the local police department, 813 00:36:56,958 --> 00:36:58,708 who don't have the experience 814 00:36:58,708 --> 00:37:02,625 or the resources to find out who killed Sam Giancana. 815 00:37:02,625 --> 00:37:04,083 So this brings up a lot of questions. 816 00:37:04,083 --> 00:37:05,167 Why were they not there? 817 00:37:05,167 --> 00:37:06,708 Why won't they investigate it? 818 00:37:06,708 --> 00:37:08,625 - There's people who believe that Chicago police 819 00:37:08,625 --> 00:37:11,500 deliberately leave the case unsolved 820 00:37:11,500 --> 00:37:13,458 because they have something to hide. 821 00:37:16,875 --> 00:37:18,375 [tense mysterious music] 822 00:37:18,375 --> 00:37:21,000 - It's very possible when you consider 823 00:37:21,000 --> 00:37:23,042 the history of the Chicago Police Department 824 00:37:23,042 --> 00:37:24,875 that they played some role 825 00:37:24,875 --> 00:37:27,917 in the conspiracy to get rid of Giancana. 826 00:37:27,917 --> 00:37:29,292 The Chicago Police Department 827 00:37:29,292 --> 00:37:32,333 is probably one of the most notoriously corrupt 828 00:37:32,333 --> 00:37:35,417 organizations in the history of law enforcement. 829 00:37:35,417 --> 00:37:38,625 - Chicago police and their connection to the Mob 830 00:37:38,625 --> 00:37:41,417 goes back all the way to the gangland days of the 1920s 831 00:37:41,417 --> 00:37:44,625 and the 1930s, when Al Capone was in charge 832 00:37:44,625 --> 00:37:48,542 and was able to pay off officers and to pay off judges 833 00:37:48,542 --> 00:37:50,458 to make sure that they looked the other way 834 00:37:50,458 --> 00:37:52,333 when crimes were being committed. 835 00:37:52,333 --> 00:37:53,875 - Now, it would be ludicrous to argue 836 00:37:53,875 --> 00:37:56,708 that every Chicago policeman was corrupt. 837 00:37:56,708 --> 00:37:59,167 But by the time of the Giancana murder, 838 00:37:59,167 --> 00:38:02,792 reporters noted, there'd only been two gangland murderers 839 00:38:02,792 --> 00:38:04,542 that had been solved. 840 00:38:04,542 --> 00:38:08,667 Sam Giancana himself bragged to his associates 841 00:38:08,667 --> 00:38:10,958 that he had many policemen in his back pocket. 842 00:38:10,958 --> 00:38:12,792 [tense uneasy music] 843 00:38:12,792 --> 00:38:15,458 - [Thomas] An amazing character named Richard Cain 844 00:38:15,458 --> 00:38:19,292 is the perfect example of this intermingling 845 00:38:19,292 --> 00:38:22,917 between law enforcement and the Mafia in Chicago. 846 00:38:22,917 --> 00:38:26,375 Richard Cain was a Chicago cop 847 00:38:26,375 --> 00:38:28,542 who was a great police investigator, 848 00:38:28,542 --> 00:38:31,375 and so they say, "Wow, he's a terrific cop. 849 00:38:31,375 --> 00:38:34,792 But actually, secretly, he was on the payroll 850 00:38:34,792 --> 00:38:37,542 of Sam Giancana and always had been. 851 00:38:38,875 --> 00:38:42,708 - His police training came in really handy for the Mob 852 00:38:42,708 --> 00:38:46,708 because he would put mobsters through lie detector tests, 853 00:38:46,708 --> 00:38:49,417 not to try and get them on a crime, 854 00:38:49,417 --> 00:38:54,042 but to see if they were talking about the Outfit. 855 00:38:54,042 --> 00:38:55,667 - Cain winds up going to jail. 856 00:38:55,667 --> 00:38:56,917 And what does he do when he gets out? 857 00:38:56,917 --> 00:39:00,000 He goes straight to work for Sam Giancana again, 858 00:39:00,000 --> 00:39:03,000 and he's Sam Giancana's driver for a couple years. 859 00:39:03,000 --> 00:39:05,417 And then he shot in the face with a shotgun 860 00:39:05,417 --> 00:39:07,542 inside of a sandwich shop. 861 00:39:07,542 --> 00:39:11,125 - But it wasn't just cops who were corrupt in Chicago. 862 00:39:11,125 --> 00:39:13,958 Other parts of the justice system were on the take. 863 00:39:13,958 --> 00:39:15,417 - [Claire] During the investigation, 864 00:39:15,417 --> 00:39:17,625 there's a judge who is actively stonewalling 865 00:39:17,625 --> 00:39:19,208 the progress of the police. 866 00:39:19,208 --> 00:39:23,958 He refuses to allow police to investigate Giancana's desk. 867 00:39:23,958 --> 00:39:26,250 - When the police finally opened the desk drawers, 868 00:39:26,250 --> 00:39:28,708 they find the guest list 869 00:39:28,708 --> 00:39:32,000 at one of the weddings of Giancana's daughters. 870 00:39:32,000 --> 00:39:34,667 And this judge was on the guest list. 871 00:39:34,667 --> 00:39:36,417 So what we're looking at is 872 00:39:36,417 --> 00:39:39,083 a law enforcement system in Chicago 873 00:39:39,083 --> 00:39:42,583 that is consistently been corrupt 874 00:39:42,583 --> 00:39:44,958 when they had to deal with organized crime. 875 00:39:44,958 --> 00:39:47,208 - [Sami] Now, historians have researched this, 876 00:39:47,208 --> 00:39:48,792 and there's really no hard evidence 877 00:39:48,792 --> 00:39:50,625 tying the Chicago Police Department 878 00:39:50,625 --> 00:39:52,792 with the death of Sam Giancana. 879 00:39:52,792 --> 00:39:56,542 It is possible, though, that Chicago police feared 880 00:39:56,542 --> 00:39:59,042 that Giancana would eventually spill the beans 881 00:39:59,042 --> 00:40:02,458 about activities between police and the Mob. 882 00:40:02,458 --> 00:40:05,208 And since he's no longer the main power broker, 883 00:40:05,208 --> 00:40:06,625 there's no reason to be nice anymore. 884 00:40:06,625 --> 00:40:08,083 And if that were the case, 885 00:40:08,083 --> 00:40:10,625 Giancana may have ended up paying the ultimate price. 886 00:40:11,792 --> 00:40:15,250 - [Thomas] It's still considered an open homicide. 887 00:40:15,250 --> 00:40:19,750 We don't know who killed him, but there were a lot of people 888 00:40:19,750 --> 00:40:21,667 who wanted Sam Giancana dead. 889 00:40:21,667 --> 00:40:23,375 [tense dramatic music] 890 00:40:23,375 --> 00:40:27,000 - [Claire] This is a man who has infiltrated American business, 891 00:40:27,000 --> 00:40:28,500 the CIA. 892 00:40:28,500 --> 00:40:30,542 It's hard to imagine a mobster 893 00:40:30,542 --> 00:40:33,250 more enmeshed with the United States government. 894 00:40:33,250 --> 00:40:36,542 You can't help but wonder if we could just figure out 895 00:40:36,542 --> 00:40:39,125 who killed Sam Giancana and why 896 00:40:39,125 --> 00:40:42,792 it might help us solve some even larger mysteries. 897 00:40:42,792 --> 00:40:44,458 - It's the thread that you could pull, 898 00:40:44,458 --> 00:40:45,792 and the next thing you know, 899 00:40:45,792 --> 00:40:47,417 the whole ball of the yarn is gone. 900 00:40:50,250 --> 00:40:54,208 - 50 years later, the unsolved murder of Sam Giancana 901 00:40:54,208 --> 00:40:58,625 still raises as many questions as there are suspects. 902 00:40:58,625 --> 00:41:00,875 It remains one of the most elusive 903 00:41:00,875 --> 00:41:05,000 and intriguing murders in the annals of organized crime, 904 00:41:05,000 --> 00:41:08,542 particularly for the secrets it may hold 905 00:41:08,542 --> 00:41:12,125 about a truly tumultuous period in our history. 906 00:41:13,250 --> 00:41:15,042 I'm Laurence Fishburne. 907 00:41:15,042 --> 00:41:19,167 Thank you for watching History's Greatest Mysteries. 908 00:41:19,167 --> 00:41:20,167 [tense uneasy music]