Untouchables (law Enforcement) - The Mission of The Untouchables

The Mission of The Untouchables

Upon taking office in 1929, the 31st President of the United States, Herbert Hoover, charged his Secretary of the Treasury, Andrew Mellon, with bringing down Al Capone. The federal government approached the problem by attacking Capone's organization on two fronts. The first front was mounted by criminal investigators of the Treasury's Bureau of Internal Revenue, who would examine the financial records of Capone and his subordinates to see if they could be prosecuted for tax evasion. This unit of IRS agents was headed by Frank J. Wilson under the close supervision of Elmer Irey.

The second front would consist of a special unit of the Bureau of Prohibition, a branch of the United States Department of the Treasury and later the Department of Justice, who would attack Capone's beer and liquor empire by raiding speakeasies, stills, and, particularly, breweries. The unit's main purpose was twofold: to make it apparent that law enforcement was indeed still active against Capone, whose opulent lifestyle was turning many people against him as the Great Depression progressed, and to deprive Capone of his sources of the income he needed to pay the corrupting graft that was his greatest protection against prosecution. Ness was chosen to head this elite squad.

Raids against stills and breweries began immediately, and within six months, Ness claimed to have seized breweries worth over one million dollars. An extensive wire-tapping operation was the main source of information for the raids.

An attempt by Capone to bribe Ness's agents was seized on by Ness for publicity, leading to the media nickname "The Untouchables."

With the conclusion of the Capone case, "The Untouchables" were disbanded and Ness, in recognition of his work, was promoted to Chief Investigator of the Prohibition Bureau for Chicago.