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The End of Loan Shark Harry Kaminsky

12 min read

Harry was born December 13, 1908 in Appleton, Wisconsin to Louis and Annie (Alberts) Kaminsky. He was a lawyer by training, but found himself drawn to finance and insurance. He attended Lawrence University and Marquette, and got his start with his brother in the used car business. (He was also involved in the gay bar business briefly, which we have discussed elsewhere.)

November 18, 1959: Emil Leuzinger (president of Leuzinger Brothers Excavating and Plumbing) met Harry Kaminsky, who represented Interstate Investment Company. Kaminsky had a subdivision called Chateau Park in Menomonee Falls, and had Leuzinger put in $40,000 worth of sewer and water construction. In December 1960, Kaminsky contacted Leuzinger to do the same for another Menomonee Falls subdivision, Devonwood. After, Leuzinger sent IIC a bill for $169,000. The plan was for IIC to sell lots to DM Builders, who would sell homes to buyers – IIC would then reimburse Leuzinger. When Leuzinger tried to get payment, he was informed no lots had been sold and there was no money.

Desperate for money, Leuzinger again went to Kaminsky, who had a plan. Leuzinger could take out a loan using his property as collateral. The loan would be fiannced by Kaminsky’s other company, Auto Acceptance, and IIC would pay off the loan. Leuzinger agreed to this and signed documents. He later found that his signature was on documents not only for his own property, but for property he did not even own. Leuzinger also found that the loans were soon re-fiannced through two Chciago companies, Springer Investment and Mercantile Investment.

(trim)July 14, 1961: An informant said the license for Henri’s Show Lounge was transferred to Joseph Maniaci, meaning the business was more directly under Balistrieri’s control now, as Maniaci had long been a Balistrieri employee. A check of the license confirmed this. Maniaci listed past employment with the Hotel Roosevelt and Downtowner. He also said he had a deal for a $15,000 loan for furnishings from Auto Acceptance, the notorious company run by Harry Kaminsky.

In October 1962. Emil Leuzinger received a note from Springer Investment that he had signed a note a few months prior using a Cadillac and steam shovel as collateral. Leuzinger did not own the property listed, and did not recall signing the papers. He called Springer and the vice president (name unknown) informed him not to worry about it, the loan had been paid off.

Agents LeGrand and Thompson spoke with Carlo DiMaggio on January 13, 1964 at his residence. DiMaggio said he was losing his house to Harry Kaminsky on a land contract, and he was going broke on legal expenses for his son Sam, who was unemployed and living upstairs.

November 15, 1965: (redacted) was interviewed and he said he knew Kaminsky perhaps 18 years and had many loans with him over that time. He noticed that since 1960, Kaminsky would use the sam collateral on multiple loans. This jumped out at him, but did not bother him. He knew the loans were re-financed with Walter Heller and AIC in Chicago, and was okay with that. As far as the man knew, his name had never been forged.

November 30, 1965: A Hubertus man told the FBI that Kaminsky forged his name on a note, and that a Chicago company said he owed them $12,000. The man did not want to discuss it further without his attorney, who had the paperwork on this. The next day, the FBI spoke with the attorney and the attorney said the Chicago company was Walter Heller, but he didn’t want to talk about it at this time – he would provide the FBI with more information later.

December 6, 1965: The FBI approached AUSA James Brennan with what they were finding on Kaminsky. Brennan said selling a forged note to an out of state company, or selling a note with fabricated collateral, would be an interstate stolen property charge. Brennan said it also sounded like Kaminsky was doing the “double dip,” where the same mortgage was resold to two different places so he could get twice the value of the original mortgage. Brennan said this would be hard to prove as a legal issue because the purchaser would have no way of knowing the mortgage was duplicated and the transaction itself would be seen as legitimate. The FBI also presented evidence that people were signing mortgage notes for Kaminsky without being paid after he promised them he would never collect on the loan – he merely wanted the collateral to resell elsewhere.

January 21, 1966: The Milwaukee FBI wrote to the Director about Kaminsky, using some examples they had found. One loan was given out in June 1960 for $10,359 and in July 1964 the loan was at $35,000. Kaminsky could then sell the loan to AIC for more than it was originally worth. This was only possible if Kaminsky had somehow doubled the paper, or the interest was so high it couldn’t be paid off. And either way, the loan now exceeded the value of the collateral. Another loan was made in June 1961 for $9,000 and by July 1962 – only thirteen months – it was up to $23,000. The agents found this was done in part by having the person sign two notes, and then Kaminsky filed them on two separae days so the register of deeds would not notice.

January 21: The FBI spoke to Louis Schlimovitz. He said he would not talk about Auto Acceptance, Harry Kaminsky or anything else, and any documents he signed he did so without reading.

January 25: Agent Kent Dixon spoke with a woman in Milwaukee who had received many loans from Kaminsky in the past few years. She said, however, she only ever received $200 in cash. More often, Kaminsky would say she had creditors and had her sign to pay those creditors. She would sign blank forms that he would fill out after, and she never saw what he wrote. After consulting her attorney, who told her to stop doing that, Kaminsky no longer told her she had creditors. Her arrangement with Kaminsky was unsuual. She owned a $70,000 building with a tavern and dwelling, for which Kaminsky collected the rent. He used the money collected to pay bills. There never seemed to be any money leftover once bills were paid. On another occasion, she had her pay him $1,000 to get a building of hers painted, bu never showed her the bill. She once mentioned the loans to local authorities, and he then threatened to “destroy” her and foreclose on her properties, putting her on the street. He later said he would buy her property for $1 and then she’s be free of him, but she refused. Once, in his office, he mimed the action of pulling a gun from his desk drawer while talking to her. Multiple times during the interview with FBI, the woman broke down crying.

January 27, 1966: The FBI spoke with someone at Walter Heller who explained they had been buying land from Kaminsky for 30 years, but had stopped about 18 months prior. They still had $204,000 from Kaminsky and were working on liquidating that. The representative said the reason had nothing to do with anything illegal, but because Heller preferred to handle loans of $500 and less, and Kaminsky was increasingly getting loans in much larger amounts. The Heller employee said they audited loans 90 to 180 days after buying them, and made sure the collateral existed. He had no knowledge of any forged loans and in the rare event Heller received a “second mortgage” instead of a “first mortgage,” they moved to liquidate that transaction more quickly. After the interview, the employee spoke with the company attorney, and then let the FBI know any further information or records could only be received by subpoena.

January 27, 1966: FBI agent Kent Dixon spoke to a bar owner who said he had an $11,000 loan from Kaminsky. It was odd to him because the items he listed as collateral were worth $6,000 at most. He later found that items were added on to a blank form after he left Kaminsky’s office, including two automobiles. The man told Kaminsky, who said it was probably just a typing error.When he filled out the paperwork, he did not work with Kaminsky directly, but with Louis Shlimovitz, but it was clear Kaminsky was in charge.

January 31: The FBI spoke with an employee at AIC. They said AIC currently had $6,000,000 of Kaminsky’s loans, and as recently as 19 days ago had done an audit and could verify that at least 86% of the amounts and collateral were correct. He said they knew of no fraud, and to guard themselves from this only paid 85% up front and held 15% in reserve until everything cleared. He said if the FBI wanted any records they would need clearance from the company’s attorney.

February 3, 1966: An FBI agent interviewed an employee of Mercantile Contract Purchase Corporation in Chicago. They said they had been working with Kaminsky for about three years, and currently had about $31,000 of business with them. They were in the process of liquidating, however, because Kaminsky found he could get a better rate from AIC. The employee knew of no fraud, and declined to turn over records without a subpoena, stating Kaminsky was a good customer and did not want to jeopardize their relationship.

February 4, 1966: The Milwaukee FBI wrote to Headquarters that they now suspected Walter Heller was involved in a conspiracy with Kaminsky, and that AIC was a victim in this. The decision was made to cease contact with Walter Heller. This same day, SA Kent Dixon spoke to a rep at Midland National Bank (201 West Wisconsin). The rep said dire rumors were circulating about Kaminsky and trouble he was facing… rumors went so far as to suggest he might be suicidal over it.

February 7, 1966: A woman said she originally took out $10,000 from Kaminsky for her tavern, and over the past few years took out more loans for attorney fees and hospital bills. She now owed $47,000 – she was paying $125 a month, and the interest was 12%. She realized that Kaminsky effectively owned all her property, but hoped some day she could pay. (Even if there was NO interest, it would take her 31 years to pay at this rate.)

February 9, 1966: SA Kent Dixon spoke with Milo Lalich, who owned Milo’s Bar and Restaurant (539-543 North Fourth). Lalich said he had been dealing with Kaminsky since 1948 and always found their dealings friendly. At the present time he owed around $65,000 on his property, which he estimated to be worth around $80,000. Lalich acknowledged the interest rate he was charged was very high, but said this was part of business when no one else would give you a loan. (Lalich had at various times been involved in commercial gambling, but that was not brought up this time.)

February 16: A man who owned two restaurants said he was currently paying $500 per month to Kaminsky on a loan of $18,400. He was okay with that but noticed the papers he received with the loan listed two cars and a variety of restaurant equipment he either did not own, or did not exist.

February 18: A Milwaukee man showed the FBI loan papers that said he received $887 for a Chevrolet. He said he never signed them, never received the money, and the car wasn’t his – he had not even drove in the last 17 years. A check with the DMV confirmed the given VIN did not exist.

February 23: Mafia elder statesman Carlo DiMaggio talked to the FBI. He showed them a form that said he owed $5,300 for a $500 loan using a Plymouth as collateral. He said he did received $100, not $500, and never owned a Plymouth. A check with the DMV confirmed the given VIN did not exist. DiMaggio further had a business ledger showing the date and amount of $100 borrowed.

February 24, 1966: A man was shown a $12,500 note he received using four cars as collateral. The man received the money, which was used for furniture and fixtures, but never owned the cars listed.

March 3, 1966: A Milwaukee man told the FBI that Kaminsky had used six vehicles on paperwork that he (the man seeking the loan) did not own. He told Kaminsky, but was told, “Leave them on there. It looks good for the bankers in Chicago.” He said he originally received $3,000 or $4,000, but because of the interest rate has paid $31,000 back and still owes Kaminsky. The debt caused him to lose his home and business.

March 3, the FBI brought the above and more to the US Attorney who agreed there was evidence of a violation. Amounts over $5,000, with false collateral, and going interstate, could be quite serious.

May 20, 1966: The FBI spoke with a man they previously interviewed who had since talked to Kaminsky. Kaminsky was concerned about what the FBI had asked the man, and Kaminsky asked if the FBI knew about blank contracts and which cars were used as collateral. He was curious if the FBI was “fishing” or had specific information, and the man said the FBI had copies of the contracts. If the man was being truthful to the FBI, it appears Kaminsky knew what he had done wrong and how they were investigating him. The man told Kaminsky he was going to file for bankrupcy, and Kaminsky talked him out of it, agreeing to release him from any loan obligation immediately.

June 24, 1966: The US Attorney told the FBI an indictment was coming soon. He was considering calling Kaminsky’s staff before a grand jury, in part to feel out how they would be as witnesses. This same day, a civil suit was filed against Kaminsky by Milwaukee Acceptance Corp (owned by Meyer Goldman and John Shields). They alleged that Kaminsky had sold loans to them, but then proceeded to collect $100,000 on loans he no longer owned. Kaminsky’s attorney, Harold Sawville, hoped to resolve the matter in negotiations. Kaminsky was more vocal, telling the press AAC owned the loans in question and they would countersue for $500,000 to protect their property.

Unrelated, in October 1966, the Parkland Plaza shopping center in Muskego was foreclosed on with $12,800 left unpaid. Kaminsky was the president of this business, which could hold 16 stores. That same month, Kaminsky’s Chateaux Restaurant in Pewaukee went into receivership for owing $17,500. Restaurant manager Charlotte Wilson was said to owe $3,800 – she sued Kaminsky for fraud, saying she had not signed the legal papers making her liable. Kaminsky denied owning Parkland or the Chateaux, but the deeds were still in his name.

Wilson’s suit came around the same time the federal government brought down its indictment of Kaminsky, alleging he had “transported forged mortgages in interstate commerce.”

Kaminsky was judged bankrupt on December 16, 1966… this lead to his large home on Lake Michigan in Fox Point, sitting on three acres of land, to be sold off under value – a situation his wife Charlotte would protest for years.

February 1967: Kaminsky was delinquent on a $58,000 loan on Papa Joe’s restaurant in Brookfield. The news came as a surprise to Joseph Sorce, who operated the restaurant – he had been paying a mortgage to Kaminsky since 1964 and believed he had paid it off and was the owner of record.

March 1967: After Kaminsky failed to pay $44,000 on a $66,000 loan, a judge ordered the sale of 19 lots in the River Hills subdivision of Pewaukee. This same month, the IRS filed a lien of $113,800 against Kaminsky for unpaid taxes.

May 2, 1967: Kaminsky filed a motion to suppress any information gathered on him through the use of electronic surveillance. Internal FBI discussion noted this was absurd – he had never been the target of such surveillance or even picked up on any accidentally.

March 21, 1968: To reimburse creditors, Kaminsky’s property was auctioned off.

Harry died October 27, 1968 at age 59. The bankruptcy issues continued for some time, though the criminal cases vanished. It was likely a very tangled web of paperwork – in addition to whatever businesses Charlotte owned with her husband, she also had a stake in the women;s garment company Adam’s Rib started by her father William Landers.

Edward Kaminsky continued in car sales, working for Rank and Son in Milwaukee. He was said to be the best Buick salesman in the country before passing on September 18, 1979 at age 72.