Ghost Shadows

Ghost Shadows
Founded1971[1]
Founding locationNew York City
Years active1970s–1990s
TerritoryNew York City, Houston Texas, Providence, Rhode Island
EthnicityCantonese and Taishanese[2]
Criminal activitiesRacketeering, extortion, illegal gambling, assault, murder, armed robbery and kidnapping
AlliesOn Leong Tong, Big Circle Gang, Tiny Rascal Gang[3]
RivalsFlying Dragons

The Ghost Shadows or GSS (traditional Chinese: 鬼影幫; simplified Chinese: 鬼影帮; Jyutping: gwai2 jing2 bong1) was a Chinese American street gang that was prominent in New York City's Chinatown from the early 1970s to the mid 1990s.

History

Formed in 1971 by immigrants from Taiwan and Hong Kong, the gang was affiliated with the On Leong Tong. They adopted the colors black and white as their clothing to match the name of the set. Throughout the 1980s, the gang was often engaged in bloody turf wars with other Chinatown gangs such as the older Flying Dragons, affiliated with Hip Sing Tong and the Division Street Boys affiliated with Tung On Association.

Their activities included extortion, kidnapping, murder, racketeering, drug trafficking and illegal gambling. The Ghost Shadows' influence was widespread, having links to Chinatowns in other cities, as well as links to Sicilian-American Mafia families. The organization is defunct due to Federal RICO crackdowns during the 1990s.

Members

Wing Yeung Chan

Wing Yeung Chan (born Jan 6, 1945) was president of On Leong Tong and for a decade the leader of the Ghost Shadows. Charged with murder and racketeering, he was sentenced to 10 years imprisonment.[4][5]

Applehead

Shui Ping Wu (born 1956), also known as Applehead (pronounced Apo with silent-L), was one of the original founders of Ghost Shadows and a leader of breakaway factions of Ghost Shadows[6] Bayard Boys during the late 1970s, up to his indictments on RICO statutes in the mid-1980s.

In 1977, Wu was charged with four others for extorting money from a restaurant employee in Montgomery County, MD.[7] He pled guilty in a re-trial in 1983, suspending the final few years of his original 5 year sentence.[8]

References

  1. ^ "Ghost Shadows to be arraigned today". United Press International. February 18, 1985. Retrieved May 26, 2018.
  2. ^ Transnational activities of Chinese crime organizations
  3. ^ Valdez, Investigator Al (31 December 1999). "The Tiny Rascal Gang: Big Trouble". www.policemag.com. Retrieved 2019-07-15.
  4. ^ Weiss, Murray (April 17, 2003). "Cig-Stab Suspects' Dad Led C'Town Mob". New York Post. Retrieved 2021-10-23.
  5. ^ "Feds say Chinatown crime run like Mafia". United Press International. June 2, 1995. Retrieved 2021-10-23.
  6. ^ "Youth gang leader isn't smiling anymore" , 1978, Peter Arnett, AP
  7. ^ Katz, Barbara J. (December 29, 1977). "Five Men Indicted in Chinese Restaurant Extortion Attempt". Washtington Post. Retrieved 2023-07-21.
  8. ^ Guillermoprieto, Alma (January 11, 1983). "2 Plead Guilty In Retrial in Extortion Case". Washtington Post. Retrieved 2023-07-26.