Excerpt for The Chicago Way

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 KEN “TOKYO JOE” ETO

       The raiders had a search warrant signed by the States Attorneys office Richard M. Daley special prosecutions unit. The raiders in a Tactical move, elected not to make arrests and instead served Eto 62 and his top lieutenant Ray Tom 45 with subpoenas directing them to appear before a county grand jury. Police also obtained the names 0f 50 players of which some will also appear before the grand jury  as it investigates Eto’s latest gambling operation.

       Police said that bets on a single card ranged from$50 to $5,000 during the game. The players ranging from young people with incomes in the $30,000-a year range to those with incomes of more than $125,000 a year. The game which changed locations was so professional it was played with chips that can’t be counterfeited. An undercover detective reported that on one occasion a player hit a hot streak and won more than $30,000. When the player balked at playing further until he could be assured that any further winnings could be covered by the operators, Eto was called. He arrived shortly with a suitcase containing $100,000 in cash to prove to the player that his winnings could be covered. The player resumed playing and ended up losing the $30,000 he won.

       Due to the fact that Eto had been recently convicted of operating a lucrative bolita ring the mob may have felt that Eto may have thoughts of informing on other mob members in return for a lighter sentence. On January 18 1983 Eto of 116 Rockhurst, Bolingbrook and another man were found guilty of operating a $70,000 a day bolita ring. Evidence showed that Eto and Walter Micus of Hillside operated the illegal numbers betting ring and collected bet in Illinois and Indiana. The gambling operation employed more than 100 people and grossed $3 million a year. Eto’s sentencing was set for Feb 25, he faces a maximum penalty of ten years in prison and a $30,000 fine.

       Eto is the highest ranking Oriental in the Chicago mob. He began his rise in the syndicate during the 40’s as a Rush Street gambling lieutenant for the late North Side gambling boss William Goldstein, better known as “Bill Gold.” Eto’s shooting followed by only three weeks the Jan 20 gangland-style execution of insurance millionaire Allen Dorfman whose insurance companies handled the scandal-tainted Teamster Central States Pension Fund.

       Bolita is a gambling game in which a bettor wagers that a number chosen by him will be the winning number. A form of lottery similar to Chicago’s policy racket, bolita was considered at first to be a relatively harmless amateur sport to raise money for clubs and fraternal groups. During the late 1950’s and the early 1960’s however, Eto and others drew bolita under the syndicate’s umbrella of activities and raised the financial stakes.

       Ken “Tokyo Joe” Eto who is now a government informer testified  for the first time against some of his former crime syndicate pals. Eto was surrounded by U.S. Marshall’s and FBI agents that guarded the courtroom on the 21^st floor when he took the stand. Eto’s testimony will draw attention from Justice Department officials and mob defense attorneys who will make their own judgments as to whether Eto is a good courtroom witness whose testimony would be valuable in other cases.