World War II

The U.S. military tapped all its resources, including the Mafia, during WWII, so U.S. Naval Intelligence approached Meyer Lansky for assistance in stopping the sabotage of the Eastern Seaboard in 1942. With help from Charlie Lucky Luciano, the Mafia partnered with the U.S. military during Operation Underworld, and Naval sabotage ended. The Mafia was patriotic, felt it was their duty to assist, and successfully cleaned up the Eastern Seaboard. In exchange, Charlie Lucky was given clemency for a prior conviction and returned to Italy a free man.