Kray Brothers
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The Kray twins - jailed in 1969.
Reginald and Ronald Kray were notorious criminals whose  obsession with assaulting others, encouraging each other to greater levels of  violence, and extending their personal power and domination culminated in a  serious protection racket in London and a number of murders. Their blatant  violence and unstable mental condition, particularly of Ronald Kray, led to  intimidation of witnesses and the prospect of their escaping justice until they  were arrested and convicted by the efforts of a special squad of detectives led  by Detective Superintendent Leonard ("Nipper") Read.
The twins were born in 1933 and made their first appearance  at the Old Bailey in 1950, where the case of assault was dismissed for lack of  evidence. In 1952 they entered a period of National Service remarkable for their  violence, serious trouble with the military authorities and periods in custody.  After being released, they commenced a period of increasing control over  criminals, pubs and clubs in the East End of London. On 5th November  1956 Ronald Kray was jailed for 3 years for assaulting Terence Martin in a  gang-related incident, later became friends in Wandsworth prison with Frank  Mitchell and was diagnosed as suffering from paranoid schizophrenia. His  violence worsened after his release.
In February 1960 Reginald Kray was imprisoned for 18 months  for protection-related threats, and whilst he was in prison, Peter Rachman, the  head of a violent landlord operation, gave Ronald the Esmeralda's Barn night  club in Knightsbridge which served to increase the twins' influence in the West  End, and with some "celebrities" and famous people, rather than East End  criminals. They were assisted by a banker Alan Cooper who needed protection from  the rival Richardson gang from South London.
Christmas 1965 marked a confrontation between the Krays and  Richardsons at the Astor Club when a Richardson henchman, George Cornell,  referred to Ronald Kray as a "fat poof". A gang war followed, and a Kray ally  Richard Hart was murdered at Mr Smith's club in Catford on 8th March  1966. Ronald Kray took revenge by killing George Cornell in The Blind Beggar  public house, Whitechapel Road. Intimidation prevented any witnesses from  cooperating with police.
On 12th December 1966 the Krays assisted Frank  Mitchell ("The Mad Axeman") to escape from Dartmoor prison, but Mitchell became  increasingly violent and unstable whilst staying in a flat in Barking Road. He  disappeared and the Kray twins were later acquitted of his murder, allegedly on  23 December 1966 in London E6. The body was  never recovered.
Ronald gave a gun and ï¿½100 to Jack "The Hat" McVitie with  instructions to murder Leslie Payne and the promise of a further ï¿½400 when the  murder had taken place. Payne remained alive, but it was Reginald who went to  collect the ï¿½100. He was moved by McVitie's tale of sorrow and gave McVitie ï¿½50.  This infuriated Ronald, and led to a stand-off between the Krays and McVitie,  culminating in the Krays inviting him to a "party" where Reginald, egged on by  Ronald, murdered him. McVitie's was another body not recovered.
The Krays tested Alan Cooper by suggesting that he carry out  a murder, and Cooper in turn recruited Paul Elvey to do the work for him. Elvey  was arrested, and Detective Superintendent Read's team interviewed him. Elvey  confessed, and Cooper became implicated in three attempted murders. Through  Cooper there would be evidence against the Krays.
The Kray twins were arrested on 9th May 1968 and  once they were detained in police custody, witnesses slowly started to develop  the confidence to give evidence of the truth to the police team. The trial  lasted 39 days at the Old Bailey and the Kray twins were sentenced to life  imprisonment, thereby removing from London a notorious criminal influence.