The Chicago Outfit (also known as the Outfit, the Chicago Mafia, the Chicago Mob, or The Organization) is an Italian-American crime syndicate based in Chicago, Illinois and dating back to the 1910s. It is part of the American Mafia originating in South Side, Chicago. The Outfit rose to power in the 1920s, under the control of Johnny Torrio and Al Capone, and the period was marked by bloody gang wars for distribution of illegal alcohol during Prohibition. Since then, the Outfit has been involved in a wide range of criminal activities, including loansharking, gambling, prostitution, extortion, political corruption, and murder. Following Capone's conviction for income tax evasion, the Outfit was run by Paul Ricca and Tony Accardo for more than 50 years after Frank Nitti killed himself instead of going to jail. Accardo took over as boss sometime in the 1940's and was one of the longest sitting bosses of all time right up until his death in the early 1990's
