Jackie Presser Indictment Scandal - Jackie Presser

Jackie Presser

In 1952, Jackie Presser became an organizer for the Teamsters. His father, William Presser, was a vice president of the international union and a known associate of Mafia figures in Cleveland, Ohio. Presser quickly rose within the Teamster hierarchy, becoming president of Local 507, a regional elected official, and a pension trustee.

In 1972, Presser, his father, and Teamster president Frank Fitzsimmons became criminal informers for the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), offering the IRS incriminating evidence about rivals in the Teamsters union. The two Pressers also offered evidence against Fitzsimmons in an attempt to get the government to drop prosecution of William Presser on various criminal charges. The three eventually were turned over to the FBI, which began using them as informants as well. Presser began receiving $2,500 a month (roughly $12,500 in 2007 dollars) from the FBI for providing information. Presser was considered a "top-echelon informant," marking him as one of the Bureau's most prized sources.

Shortly thereafter, Presser allegedly received permission from two FBI agents to pad the Local 507 payroll with fake employees. The individuals hired as "ghost employees" were not required to do any work but received substantial paychecks. The paychecks were, it was later claimed, a way of funneling payments to other Teamsters officials and members of the Cleveland mob.

According to court records, in 1974 Jackie Presser became deeply involved in Mafia affairs. He allegedly told the leaders of the Chicago Mafia that he was willing to do them favors in exchange for money and assistance with his own goals and ambitions. Jimmy "The Weasel" Fratianno, a former hitman in the Cleveland mob and later acting head of the Los Angeles Mafia, later testified that Chicago crime boss Joseph Aiuppa told him in 1974 that "if you need anything from Jackie Presser, he said he'll do it for you." Fratianno also testified that he colluded with Presser to set up a union dental program whose profits were skimmed into Presser's and the Mafia's bank accounts. Organizationally, however, Presser was under the control of the Cleveland crime family.

In 1976, Jackie Presser was elected an international vice president of the Teamsters. William Presser had resigned his vice presidency after being convicted of extortion and obstruction of justice. Allegedly, William Presser met with Roy Lee Williams, then president of the Central Conference of Teamsters, a regional council which controlled union locals in 14 Midwestern states (including Ohio). Williams, who was working with the Kansas City crime family, agreed to help Presser convince Teamster President Fitzsimmons to make Jackie a vice president. Jackie Presser's election was unanimous.

Presser was named to Ronald Reagan's presidential transition team in 1980. When his appointment was made public, it created a political scandal and led to calls for him to resign. Reagan aides denied any knowledge of Presser's alleged ties to organized crime. After two weeks, the scandal died out when the transition team completed its work and disbanded.

In 1981, the United States Department of Labor began investigating Presser after receiving allegations he had padded the Local 507 payroll with "ghost employees." A secret affidavit outlining the government's actions and preliminary findings was filed with a federal court in 1982, but never acted on.

On April 15, 1981, Teamster President Frank Fitzsimmons announced he was stepping down due to worsening health. Roy Lee Williams succeeded him in office.

Although turncoat mob leaders and others had long accused Jackie Presser of being a government informant, the first official confirmation came on August 22, 1981. In its August 31 issue, Time magazine reported that Presser and other Teamsters had served as government informants since the early 1970s to avoid possible prosecution. Presser confirmed that he, his father and Fitzsimmons had met with federal agents, but declared that there had been only one meeting in 1972. Days later, at least one newspaper retracted the story. Mafia figures had long doubted claims that Presser was an informant, and the retraction helped renew mob confidence in Presser. The mob's confidence in Presser was reaffirmed a year later when the Justice Department publicly ended its investigation into an alleged kickback scheme.

On April 14, 1983, Roy Williams announced he would resign as Teamsters president after being convicted for conspiring to bribe Senator Howard Cannon. Presser was elected president by the Teamsters on April 21, 1983, to serve the remainder of Williams' term of office. Williams and others later alleged that Mafia families in Chicago, Cleveland and various cities on the East Coast had conspired to secure Presser's election.

In April 1985, the President's Commission on Organized Crime held hearings in Chicago on organized crime involvement in labor unions. During the hearings, Commission members charged that the Mafia controlled the Teamsters, the Laborers, HERE and the International Longshoremen's Association. Former mobsters described numerous syndicate cash bribes and other payments to Presser. Other witnesses testified that Presser had used violence and other illegal methods to intimidate political opponents within the Teamsters. During his own testimony, Presser invoked his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination 15 times.

In March 1986, the Commission released a preliminary report on organized crime influence in the Teamsters. The Commission found corruption "so pervasive" that it recommended that the federal government seek court supervision of the union and take it over. Department of Justice lawyers immediately began preparing a civil lawsuit to place the Teamsters under federal control. Presser vigorously opposed the Justice Department's efforts, and planned a five-year legal, public relations, legislative and political counter-attack to keep the Teamsters free from court supervision.