Chicago mobster who stole Marlborough Diamond jailed again at 73
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Your support makes all the difference.A reputed Chicago mobster who gained notoriety three decades ago for stealing the 45-carat Marlborough Diamond from a London jeweller has been jailed for another crime.
Arthur "The Brain" Rachel, 73, told the judge he got involved because he was bored. He was sentenced to eight-and-a-half years on Thursday for his involvement in planning robberies with two accomplices, both of whom are also in their 70s.
Before sentencing, US District Court Judge Harry Leinenweber asked Rachel why he got involved, after spending nearly a decade in prison for the diamond robbery. "It's the way we are," Rachel said. "We got nothing better to do. We sit around talking."
Rachel, pictured, and Joseph "The Monk" Scalise, 74, stole the Marlborough Diamond in 1980 in a daylight raid during which they threatened staff with a hand grenade. Both were convicted in Britain of robbing Graff Diamonds of goods worth £2.3m, including the diamond. They began 15-year prison terms in 1984 and were released in 1993. The diamond was never recovered.
The federal prosecutor, Amarjeet Bhachu, said of Rachel's long criminal record: "This thug has the gall to ask for leniency when he does the same thing over and over. He is a parasite."
The FBI has said Scalise's CV includes serving as a technical adviser on the 2009 film Public Enemies, about Depression-era gangster John Dillinger.
Asked earlier this year if the Marlborough Diamond could be found, Scalise said: "If Lloyd's wanted to pay enough money, maybe they could."
AP
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