These 26 worst, most feared, biggest gangsters in the world have made sure the world remembers them.
Dangerous gangs are everywhere, and they commit countless crimes every day all around the world. Some of these dangerous groups are local while others that are well organized become international and spread everywhere. According to the FBI report, about 1.4 million gang members who belong to more than 33,000 gangs were criminally active in the United States only. But, there is more! According to the same report, criminal gangs are responsible for about 48 % of violent crime in most jurisdictions while the numbers reach 90% in rest.
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Furthermore, it appears that gangs are not going anywhere. Instead, they are only becoming more dangerous. They are enhancing their criminal operations, becoming more adaptable and they connect with other gang members. We wrote about this earlier in 8 Easiest Gangs to Join in and Get Out where you can also read about ex-gang members, who managed to get out of these dangerous criminal groups.
Some of the worst gangsters in the world have made sure we remember their gruesome deeds as if they are competing who will be in the world top gangster list. In order to fight gangs and their criminal violence, the FBI established the National Gang Intelligence Center in 2005. But gangs remain as powerful as ever, and America’s cities are filled with them. If you want to learn more about gangs in the U.S., take a look at 11 Biggest Gangs in America. Mara Salvatrucha (MS-13), the international criminal gang that originated in Los Angeles in 1980s, involved in drug-smuggling and known for savage beatings and assassinations is ranked pretty high on the list. Read about how to join MS 13, and eventually to get out of it in the NYPost’s article. As for the rest of the world, some of the most brutal and dangerous gangs are the Mungiki — the machete-wielding ethnic gang from Kenya, Los Zetas — the Mexican cartel operating in Mexico, and the Chechen mafia in Moscow, to name a few.
We decided to compile a list and include the worst, biggest gangsters the world has ever seen. We included both well-known names from the past and some biggest gangsters in the world today. While mostly operating in the United States, gangsters on our list include some of the top 10 gangsters in India and other parts of the world as well.
There are names in the gangster world that are familiar to everyone but to compile this list, we also watched many YouTube videos about most dangerous criminals on the Earth, and real-life career criminals. We didn’t rank the gangsters in any particular way except we placed the two most famous ones at the top of the list, of course. Here are the 26 worst, most feared, biggest gangsters in the world.
26. Enedina Arellano Félix de Toledo
Enedina Arellano Félix is the first female drug lord in Mexico, and a ruthless criminal who committed many crimes. She became the leader of the Tijuana cartel in 2015, which was previously run by Felix’s six brothers. As they were all killed or arrested, she took over the gang. She is a sort of a celebrity as ballads are dedicated to her, and a movie is made about her life. She is responsible for raising the Tijuana’s murder rate to 910,37% higher than it used to be.
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25. Semion Mogilevich
We are continuing our list of worst, most feared, biggest gangsters in the world with Semion Mogilevich who is believed to be the boss over all bosses of the Russian mafia. In his long career of being a criminal, he was accused of many crimes such as drug trafficking, hiring killers, and smuggling gems. Anonymous sources also revealed that he tried to sell nuclear material to Al-Qaeda.
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24. Dawood Ibrahim
Dawood Ibrahim is one of the top 10 gangsters in India, and the the second richest gangster ever (Pablo Escobar is the richest criminal to have ever lived). He is the founder of Indian crime syndicate D-company and he is responsible for smuggling drugs and selling blood diamonds. He has businesses in real estate, Bollywood, and telecommunications.
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23. John Mongrel
The Numbers Gang is a terrifying South African prison gang, and each section of the gang has a different name and number. John Mongrel, who ranks 23th on our list of worst, most feared, biggest gangsters in the world, joined the gang at the age of 14 when he was imprisoned for murder in 1987, and he became the leader of the 28s, a section of the gang. This gangster claims to have personally killed over 1000 people in jail.
22. Frank Lucas
Frank Lucas ranks 22nd on our list of worst, most feared, biggest gangsters in the world. He was a notorious drug lord during the 1960s and 1970s. It was believed that Lucas made $1 million a day doing what he did, smuggling drugs. He even smuggled drugs in coffins underneath dead bodies. This ruthless gangster is definitely remembered, and a movie was made based on his life.
21. Rick Ross
Another gangster who made an empire by selling drugs is Rick Ross, who made an amazing $2-$3 million a day. Rick Ross, who ruled the Los Angeles drug trade in 1980, was sentenced to life in prison but managed to get out early.
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20. Jack “Legs” Diamond
Up next on our list of worst, most feared, biggest gangsters in the world is Jack Diamond, who was an Irish American gangster who operated mostly in Philadelphia. Diamond was a bootlegger, and he was friends with other gangsters such as Arnold Rothstein. He was involved in kidnappings and other crimes and died after he was shot by his enemies.
19. James Coonan
James Jimmy Coonan was a mobster who operated in New York. James was also a racketeer who decided to form an organized group of criminals and become a gangster. This was for the purposes of avenging his father’s death who was killed by another mobster who operated in the 1960s, Mickey Spillane.
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18. Angel Gabriel Reyes Marroquin
We’re continuing our list of worst, most feared, biggest gangsters in the world with Mara Salvatrucha’s leader, or at least one of the leaders — Angel Gabriel Reyes Marroquin, also known as Blanco. He operated in the United States, and Guatemala as well. It is believed that he is guilty of at least ten murders in September 2017. Furthermore, in August this year, Blanco and his man killed seven an wounded twelve people while storming of one of Guatemala City’s largest hospitals in order to free another gang member… And these are just some of the latest crimes he committed. Luckily, in October, police in Guatemala announced that this gangster is captured.
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17. Vito Genovese
Vito Genovese was an Italian-American gangster and the head of the Genovese crime family. He was also a mentor to Vincent Gigante who was his successor as the head of the crime family. Vito Genovese became extremely popular during the Castellammare War in the 1930s.
16. Bugsy Siegel
Bugsy Siegel was an American mobster and founder of Murder Incorporated, who headed the Genovese, crime family. He was known as one of the most feared gangsters who was ruthless to people we worked with. He was in charge of some casinos in Las Vegas back in the 1940s, and later he became a bootlegger. Bugsy killed the Fabrizzo brothers as well as the Amberg brothers.
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15. John Dillinger
John Dillinger was responsible for about 25 robberies of banks and police stations in America as well as several murders. He became famous during the Great Depression, and the public remembers him as one of the most notorious criminals of all times.
14. Jacques Mesrine
Jacques Mesrine was a French gangster who was involved in many robberies, murders, kidnappings and other crimes in America, Canada, and France. Due to his habit of disguising himself for every operation, he was also known as The Man With a Thousand Faces. Even though he was imprisoned many times, he always managed to escape, and he even killed his judges.
13. Anthony Accardo
Anthony Accardo was the head of the crime syndicate called the Chicago Outfit. He was nicknamed Joe Batters or Big Tuna, and during his reign, the Chicago Outfit became significantly rich and powerful. He was not reluctant to kill, and he became one of the most dangerous men of his time.
12. Arnold Rothstein
Next in line on our list of worst, most feared, biggest gangsters in the world is Arnold Rothstein who was a dangerous businessman and an American gangster. He was the organizer of corruption in professional athletics and was responsible for fixing the 1919 World Series. He was also the founder of one of the most notorious Jewish mobs in New York.
11. Lucky Luciano
Lucky Luciano is remembered as the father of modern organized crime in America. He was also the head of the Genovese crime family and a very dangerous man who may have led to splitting the country into five mafia families. He is known for organizing the National Crime Syndicates of the United States.
And now, let’s see the top ten worst, most feared, biggest gangsters in the world.
10. Amado Carrillo Fuentes
Amado Carrillo Fuentes was an extremely dangerous, feared criminal who was a leader of a Mexican drug cartel which is a title he obtained by killing their previous leader. This criminal feared no one and he was also one of the richest drug lords in the world.
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9. Meyer Lansky
Meyer Lansky was a Polish gangster who is remembered as one of the most notorious gangsters of the 20th century. Meyer Lansky had a significant role in the Italian Mafia and is one of the crime figures who developed the National Crime Syndicate in the United States.
8. Griselda Blanco
One of the worst, most feared, biggest gangsters in the world turns out to be a woman named Griselda Blanco. Griselda Blanco was also known as The Cocaine Godmother, and she was responsible for cocaine trade in Miami. Previously a prostitute and a pickpocket, she began her journey as one of the biggest female gangsters very early. Sentenced to 10 years in prison, Griselda had no troubles continuing her cocaine business from there.
7. Frank Costello
Frank Costello was an Italian criminal, and he was also known as The Prime Minister. This crime boss was very popular in the United States, and he was connected to several other criminal groups such as Lower East Side Gang of Manhattan and the Morello Gang.
6. Carlo Gambino
The head of the Gambino crime family, Carlo Gambino was a Sicilian mobster who gained millions through rackets. The Gambino crime family was the most powerful criminal organization in Manhattan at the time and this gangster is surely remembered as one of the worst, most feared, biggest gangsters in the world.
5. Meyer Harris Cohen
Meyer Harris Cohen was known as Mickey, and he is one of the biggest gangsters the world has known. He worked for the mafia and quickly climbed the ladder until he became one of the most infamous mob bosses that Los Angeles has seen. Despite being ruthless, he managed to stay away from prison, and he was only ever arrested for tax evasion.
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4. Jesse James
Jesse James was a notorious criminal and a legendary figure of the Wild West who was also a member of the James-Younger Gang. Their specialty was robberies and, it is believed that the gang stole over $200,000 over their career murdering anyone who got int heir way. They were a group of outlaws surrounded by Jesse and his brother Frank James.
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3. James Whitey Bulger
James Bulger was nicknamed Whitey due to his light blond hair, and he was one of the most ruthless criminals who also became the boss of the Boston’s Winter Hill Gang. The Winter Hill Gang was a group of criminals and Bulger was responsible for crimes such as extortion and arms trafficking. This gangster went into hiding in 1994 but wasn’t arrested until 2011 at the age of 81.
2. Pablo Escobar
One of the worst gangsters in the world, Pablo Escobar spent 10 years in the Medellin drug cartel in Colombia known for countless murders and violence. He was a drug lord and a terrorist and possibly the most powerful man in Colombia at the time. His drug empire made him one of the wealthiest people in the country as well. Pablo Escobar was killed in 1993.
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1. Al Capone
Al Capone made a huge amount of money during the prohibition thanks to illegal liquor business. He is known for violence and murders, but he was also a somewhat popular person who even donated money to charity. Undoubtedly, Al Capone is the greatest name among 26 worst, most feared, biggest gangsters in the world.
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