Crime & Anti-Crime, LOS-PHA
This category explores both sides of crime, delving into many different aspects and cases of unlawful conduct. It includes perpetrators as well as victims and those who fought against crime in an effort to establish a safe community environment.
Crime & Anti-Crime Encyclopedia Articles By Title
Los Angeles Chinese Massacre of 1871
One of the largest mass lynchings in U.S. history occurred in the original Chinese Quarter of Los Angeles on October......
Luby’s shooting
Luby’s shooting, mass shooting that occurred in Killeen, Texas, U.S., on October 16, 1991, when a gunman opened......
Lucchese crime family
Lucchese crime family, New York-based organized crime syndicate. The Lucchese crime family is one of New York City’s......
Luciano, Lucky
Lucky Luciano was the most powerful chief of American organized crime in the early 1930s and a major influence......
Ludlow Massacre
Ludlow Massacre, attack on striking coal miners and their families by the Colorado National Guard and Colorado......
Lufthansa heist
Lufthansa heist, theft on December 11, 1978, of some $5.8 million in cash and jewels from the air cargo building......
Lüdke, Bruno
Bruno Lüdke was a German serial killer who may have murdered more than 80 people. Although he is commonly regarded......
Lībī, Abū Yaḥyā al-
Abū Yaḥyā al-Lībī was a Libyan al-Qaeda strategist who emerged as one of the organization’s top leaders in the......
Madoff, Bernie
Bernie Madoff was an American hedge-fund investment manager and former chairman of the NASDAQ (National Association......
Madrid train bombings of 2004
Madrid train bombings of 2004, coordinated near-simultaneous attacks targeting commuter trains in Madrid on the......
Maersk Alabama hijacking
Maersk Alabama hijacking, incident involving the seizure of a U.S.-flagged cargo ship by four Somali pirates in......
Mafia
Mafia, hierarchically structured society of criminals of primarily Italian or Sicilian birth or extraction. The......
Maine, Louis-Auguste de Bourbon, duc du
Louis-Auguste de Bourbon, duke du Maine was an illegitimate son of King Louis XIV of France who attempted without......
Malatesta, Sigismondo Pandolfo
Sigismondo Pandolfo Malatesta was a feudal ruler and condottiere who is often regarded as the prototype of the......
Mangione, Luigi
Luigi Mangione is the confessed killer of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, who was gunned down in New York......
Manson Family
Manson Family, cult and criminal organization active in California, U.S., in the late 1960s, led by Charles Manson.......
Manson, Charles
Charles Manson was an American criminal and cult leader whose followers carried out several notorious murders.......
Maranzano, Salvatore
Salvatore Maranzano was an American gangster of the Prohibition era and leader among the old-country-oriented Italians,......
Masseria, Joe
Joe Masseria was a leading crime boss of New York City from the early 1920s until his murder in 1931. Emigrating......
Matteotti Crisis
Matteotti Crisis, political confrontation between liberals and the Fascist government of Italy after the assassination......
Maxwell, Ghislaine
Ghislaine Maxwell is a former British and American socialite who was convicted in 2021 of sex trafficking of underage......
McCrea, Jane
Jane McCrea was an American colonial figure whose death aroused anti-British feeling and helped sway opinion and......
McVeigh, Timothy
Timothy McVeigh was an American domestic terrorist who carried out the Oklahoma City bombing on April 19, 1995.......
Means, Gaston
Gaston Means was an American confidence man notable for attaining close proximity to the highest echelons of government......
Medici, Lorenzino de’
Lorenzino de’ Medici was the assassin of Alessandro, duke of Florence. Lorenzino was one of the more-noted writers......
Megrahi, Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed al-
Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed al-Megrahi was a Libyan intelligence agent who was the only person to be convicted in connection......
Memphis massacre of 1866
Memphis massacre of 1866, in the U.S. post-Civil War period, a brutal and unprovoked attack by a white mob on Black......
Menendez brothers
On August 20, 1989, brothers Lyle and Erik Menendez brutally murdered their parents, José and Kitty Menendez, shooting......
Metesky, George
George Metesky was an American terrorist known for having planted at least 33 bombs throughout New York City during......
Mexican Mafia
Mexican Mafia, prison gang and street gang network in the United States, centred in southern California but active......
Milošević, Slobodan
Slobodan Milošević was a politician and administrator, who, as Serbia’s party leader and president (1989–97), pursued......
Mladić, Ratko
Ratko Mladić was a Bosnian Serb military leader who commanded the Bosnian Serb army during the Bosnian conflict......
Mohammed, Khalid Sheikh
Khalid Sheikh Mohammed Islamist militant who, as an operational planner for al-Qaeda, masterminded some of that......
Moll Cutpurse
Moll Cutpurse was the most notorious female member of 17th-century England’s underworld. She was a thief, an entertainer,......
Monster of Florence
Monster of Florence, Italian serial killer or killers who murdered at least 16 people in the hills outside Florence......
Montonero
Montonero, member of an Argentine left-wing Peronist group known for violent urban terrorist actions such as political......
Mooney, Tom
Tom Mooney was a U.S. Socialist union organizer and activist convicted of murder in connection with a 1916 San......
Moran, George
George Moran was a Chicago gangster and bootlegger of the Prohibition era. He was a childhood friend and, later,......
Morgan, Sir Henry
Sir Henry Morgan was a Welsh buccaneer, most famous of the adventurers who plundered Spain’s Caribbean colonies......
Mountain Meadows Massacre
Mountain Meadows Massacre, (September 1857), in U.S. history, slaughter of a band of Arkansas emigrants passing......
MS-13
MS-13, international gang involved in drug and human smuggling, prostitution, murder, and extortion, among other......
Mughniyeh, Imad
Imad Mughniyeh was a Lebanese militant who served as a senior official in the Lebanese militia group Hezbollah.......
Mumbai terrorist attacks of 2008
Mumbai terrorist attacks of 2008, multiple terrorist attacks carried out by 10 militants associated with the Pakistan-based......
Munich 1972 Olympic Games
Munich 1972 Olympic Games, athletic festival held in Munich that took place August 26–September 11, 1972. The Munich......
Munich massacre
Munich massacre, terrorist attack on Israeli Olympic team members at the 1972 Summer Games in Munich orchestrated......
Murdaugh, Alex
Alex Murdaugh is a former lawyer from one of South Carolina’s most powerful families. In 2021 his wife, Margaret......
murder of James Byrd, Jr.
murder of James Byrd, Jr., killing of James Byrd, Jr., an African American man, on June 7, 1998, in the East Texas......
Murder of JonBenét Ramsey
“We have your daughter.” Those words, handwritten on a ransom note, launched one of the most sensationalized crime......
Murder, Inc.
Murder, Inc., in popular usage, an arm of the American national crime syndicate, founded in the 1930s to threaten,......
Murrieta, Joaquín
Joaquín Murrieta was a legendary bandit who became a hero of the Mexican-Americans in California. Facts of his......
Mwanga
Mwanga was the last independent kabaka (ruler) of the African kingdom of Buganda, whose short but turbulent reign......
My Lai Massacre
My Lai Massacre, mass killing of as many as 500 unarmed villagers by U.S. soldiers in the hamlet of My Lai on March......
Mūsawī, ʿAbbās al-
ʿAbbās al-Mūsawī was a Lebanese Shīʿite Muslim cleric and secretary-general (1991–92) of the militant Hezbollah......
Nanjing Massacre
Nanjing Massacre, (December 1937–January 1938), mass killing and rape of Chinese citizens and capitulated soldiers......
Narodnaya Volya
Narodnaya Volya, 19th-century Russian revolutionary organization that regarded terrorist activities as the best......
National Terrorism Advisory System
National Terrorism Advisory System, two-tiered indicator system that communicates the likelihood of a forthcoming......
Nechayev, Sergey Gennadiyevich
Sergey Gennadiyevich Nechayev was a Russian revolutionary known for his organizational scheme for a professional......
Nelson, Baby Face
Baby Face Nelson was an American gunman and bank robber noted for his vicious killings and youthful looks. From......
Nemours, Jacques d’Armagnac, duc de
Jacques d’Armagnac, duc de Nemours was a peer of France who engaged in conspiracies against Louis XI. He was the......
Ness, Eliot
Eliot Ness was an American crime fighter, head of a nine-man team of law officers called the “Untouchables,” who......
New Orleans lynching of 1891
New Orleans lynching of 1891, the largest mass lynching of Italian Americans to take place in the United States.......
New Orleans massacre of 1866
New Orleans massacre of 1866, incident of white violence directed against newly freed African Americans in urban......
New York slave rebellion of 1741
New York slave rebellion of 1741, a supposed large-scale scheme plotted by enslaved Black people and poor white......
Niceforo, Alfredo
Alfredo Niceforo was an Italian sociologist, criminologist, and statistician who posited the theory that every......
Nichols, Terry
Terry Nichols is an American militant who in 1995, with Timothy McVeigh, was found guilty of the Oklahoma City......
Nitti, Frank
Frank Nitti was an American gangster in Chicago who was Al Capone’s chief enforcer and inherited Capone’s criminal......
Normandy Massacres
Normandy Massacres, execution of as many as 156 Canadian soldiers by German forces that had taken them prisoner......
Northumberland, Henry Percy, 8th earl of
Henry Percy, 8th earl of Northumberland was an English Protestant member of the predominantly Roman Catholic Percy......
O.J. Simpson trial
O.J. Simpson trial, criminal trial of former college and professional football star O.J. Simpson, who was acquitted......
Ocoee massacre of 1920
Ocoee massacre of 1920, deadly race riot that broke out in central Florida on November 2, 1920, when a white mob......
Ohio Gang
Ohio Gang, in U.S. history, a group of politicians who achieved high office during the presidential administration......
Oklahoma City bombing
Oklahoma City bombing, terrorist attack in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, U.S., on April 19, 1995, in which a massive......
Omagh bombing
Omagh bombing, terrorist attack in Omagh, County Tyrone, Northern Ireland, on August 15, 1998, in which a bomb......
Omar Khadr case
Omar Khadr case, the imprisonment, trial, and eventual release of Omar Khadr, a Toronto-born Canadian, captured......
Operation Wrath of God
Operation Wrath of God, covert assassination campaign carried out by Israel to avenge the kidnapping and murder......
Order, The
The Order, American white supremacist group known for its assassination of Jewish radio talk-show host Alan Berg......
Ordnungspolizei
Ordnungspolizei, uniformed police agencies of the Third Reich. They became an integral part of the SS and police......
Orlando shooting of 2016
Orlando shooting of 2016, mass shooting that took place at the Pulse nightclub in Orlando, Florida, in the early......
Orléans, Gaston, duc d’, duc d’Anjou
Gaston, duke d’Orléans was a prince who readily lent his prestige to several unsuccessful conspiracies and revolts......
Orsini, Felice
Felice Orsini was an Italian nationalist revolutionary and conspirator who tried to assassinate the French emperor......
Osage murders
Osage murders, series of murders of Osage tribal members in Oklahoma principally in the 1920s. Many of the killings......
Oslo and Utøya attacks of 2011
Oslo and Utøya attacks of 2011, terrorist attacks on Oslo and mass shooting on the island of Utøya in Norway on......
Oswald, Lee Harvey
Lee Harvey Oswald was the accused assassin of U.S. Pres. John F. Kennedy in Dallas on November 22, 1963. He himself......
O’Bannion, Dion
Dion O’Bannion was a bootlegger of the early 1920s, boss of the most feared Chicago gang next to that of his arch......
O’Connell, David
David O’Connell was an Irish political activist and a cofounder of the Provisional (“Provo”) wing of the Irish......
Pakistani Taliban
Pakistani Taliban, formally Tehreek-e Taliban Pakistan or Tehrik-i Taliban Pakistan (TTP), militant group that......
Pan Am flight 103
Pan Am flight 103, flight of a passenger airliner operated by Pan American World Airways (Pan Am) that exploded......
Panama Papers
Panama Papers, documents from the database of the Panama-based law firm Mossack Fonseca that were made public in......
Paris attacks of 2015
Paris attacks of 2015, coordinated terrorist attacks that took place in Paris on the evening of November 13, 2015.......
Parkland High School Shooting
At 2:21 pm on February 14, 2018, a former student entered Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida,......
Parliament Hill attack
Parliament Hill attack, shooting that took place at Parliament and the National War Memorial in Ottawa, Ontario,......
Parsley Massacre
Parsley Massacre, state-sponsored mass killing that occurred in the Dominican Republic in early October 1937. Acting......
Pavelić, Ante
Ante Pavelić was a Croatian fascist leader and revolutionist who headed a Croatian state subservient to Germany......
Paxton Boys uprising
Paxton Boys uprising, attack in 1763 by Pennsylvania frontiersmen upon an Indian settlement during the Pontiac......
Pazzi conspiracy
Pazzi conspiracy, (April 26, 1478), unsuccessful plot to overthrow the Medici rulers of Florence; the most dramatic......
Percy, Thomas
Thomas Percy was a participant in the Gunpowder Plot (1605), which aimed to blow up the Houses of Parliament (Palace......
Peshawar school massacre
Peshawar school massacre, terrorist attack in which seven heavily armed fighters of the Pakistani Taliban stormed......
Peterloo Massacre
Peterloo Massacre, in English history, the brutal dispersal by cavalry of a radical meeting held on St. Peter’s......
Petiot, Marcel
Marcel Petiot was a French serial killer who preyed on Jewish refugees attempting to flee France during the Nazi......
Phaulkon-Tachard conspiracy
Phaulkon-Tachard conspiracy, (1685–88), in Thai history, an unsuccessful attempt to establish French control over......