True Crime Friday: Eliot Ness and the Cleveland Torso Serial Killer Murders
Eliot Ness was an American Agent of Prohibition. Today the agency is now known as the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). He is known for his take down of mobster Al Capone. Ness was the leader of a team of law enforcement agents known as the Untouchables. These agents were handpicked by Ness because of their incorruptibility. Actor Robert Stack portrayed Ness in the television series “The Untouchables.” Ness became known as an incorruptible lawman and hero to many.
The Early Childhood of Eliot Ness
Eliot Ness was gifted to the world on April 19, 1903. He was born in Chicago, Illinois. Ness was the youngest of five children born to Peter Ness and Emma Ness. Ness graduated from the University of Chicago with a degree in Political Science and Business Administration. He began his career as an investigator for the Atlanta based company called Retail Credit where he was assigned to the Chicago territory. Ness conducted background investigations for the purpose of credit information. Ness returned to college to earn a Master’s in criminology. Ness became a Prohibition Agent in 1926.His brother in law was an agent for the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and encouraged Ness to join the agency. Ness joined the Treasury Department which was the Bureau of Prohibition in Chicago. Hebert Hoover was asked by the Chicago Commissioner to take down mobster Al Capone’s operation. A plan was implemented by President Hoover for sending a small team of Prohibition agents, working under a United States Attorney General to bring down the Capone’s gang activities. Ness was 27 years old when he was chosen to bring down Al Capone and his gangsters.
Chicago’s Agent Endemic
The corruption within law enforcement in Chicago was huge. Ness investigated the agents file choosing a group of ten men who became known as the Untouchables. They gained that name because they would not accept bribes from criminals. Raids against liquors stores and breweries began in March, 1931. The raids were a success within a six month period of the mission being launched. The main source of information for the raids was an extensive phone tapping of the gangs and their associates. Al Capone tried to recruit Ness and his agents but failed several times. Bribes nor intimidation tactics worked against the agents. A columnist for the Chicago Daily News dubbed the agents "untouchables”. The nicknames would go down in infamy.Al Capone was arrested, tried and convicted on Tax Evasion in 1932. During this time Ness was promoted to Chief Investigator of the Prohibition Bureau for Chicago. In 1932, He was hired by the mayor of Chicago to be its Safety Director. This role put Ness in charge of the police and fire departments.
The Cleveland Torso Murders
Ness was also Safety Director at the time of the murders known as the Cleveland Torso Murders. The unknown serial killer operated during the years of 1935-1938. The serial killer mocked Ness by placing two bodies of the victims within view of Ness’s public office window. With the crime not being solved quickly by Ness and his team, he began to lose his hero status within the public sphere. He and first his wife soon divorced. His divorce and drinking was blamed for his lack luster efforts to solve the Cleveland Torso Murders. His drinking was publicly known and there had been calls for his resignation. He eventually married a second time and moved to Washington D.C. He and his second wife divorced. After several attempts to get hired in corporate America, Ness eventually moved back to Chicago and ran for Mayor of Cleveland in 1947. The Cleveland Torso Serial Killer has never been found and the murders were never solved.The Victims of the Cleveland Torso Murders
- John Doe 1
- John Doe II
- John Doe III
- John Doe IV
- John Doe V
- Jane Doe I
- Jane Doe II
- Jane Doe III
- Jane Doe IV
- John Doe VI
- Lady of the Lake
- Robert Robertson
- Peter Merylo
Murder Swamp Killings: Possible Victims of the Cleveland Torso Serial Killer
- Unknown Victim 1
- Unknown Victim 2
- Unknown Victim 3
- Unknown Victim 4
- Unknown Victim 5
- Unknown Victim 6
- Unknown Victim 7
- Unknown Victim 8
- Unknown Victim 9
The Untouchables Television Series
The Untouchables is an American crime drama produced by Desilu Productions which ran from 1959 to 1963 on the American Broadcasting Company (ABC) television network. Based on memoirs by Ness and Oscar Fraley the show starred Robert Stack as Eliot Ness. The series fictionalizes the experiences of Ness as an agent fighting crime in Chicago in the 1930s. Ness along with the assistance of a special team of agents handpicked for their courage, moral character and incorruptibility were central to the show. There was also a studio film of the memoirs in 1987. Another television series was made in 1993, but it was less successful than the original. A dynamic, hard-hitting action drama and a landmark television crime series, The Untouchables won series star Robert Stack an Emmy for best actor in a drama series in 1960.Lady Justice
Al Capone was arrested, tried and convicted on Tax Evasion in 1932. He died in prison. The Cleveland Torso Murders Serial Killer has never been found and therefore, no justice was obtained for the victims and their families.Reference
Eliot Ness - WikipediaThe Untouchables (1959 TV series) - Wikipedia
The Untouchables (TV Series 1959–1963) - Episode list - IMDb The Untouchables (Full Episodes) - YouTube
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