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Portrait of Jimmy Burke

Photo: Юанистин · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Born in United States · Nationality American — Organised crime / Lucchese family / Lufthansa / sports corruption / murder

Jimmy Burke

Organised crime and cartels

Documented profile covering 8 controversies, including “1969: posthumous allegation of involvement in strangling Paul Katz” and “1979–1988: Richard Eaton murder — conviction upheld on appeal”.

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Profile No. 2013 · Updated on 12 October 2026

Portrait of Jimmy Burke

Photo: Юанистин · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
8Documented controversies
9Sources
3 followed by a conviction

§ Legal statuses reflect the documented sources as of the date shown; they replace neither court decisions nor the presumption of innocence. Counts are not a rating. Methodology

I. Documented controversies

01

1969; accusation rendue publique en 2014

1969: posthumous allegation of involvement in strangling Paul Katz

Allegations

A 2014 federal indictment against Vincent Asaro alleged that Burke and Asaro had strangled Paul Katz with a dog chain because they believed he was cooperating with police.

Attribution
Directly implicated

Sources · 1

  1. [1]
    U.S. Department of JusticeBonanno Family Captain Vincent Asaro Indicted for Participation in the 1978 Lufthansa Robbery and Murder of Paul KatzProsecutor's statementVery high reliability

Last verified: 14 September 2026

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02

meurtre en February 1979; appels jusqu'en 1988

1979–1988: Richard Eaton murder — conviction upheld on appeal

Conviction

Burke was convicted of murdering Richard Eaton, who was found bound and gagged in an abandoned trailer; the evidence relied heavily on Henry Hill and the conviction was upheld.

State of the evidence
Established by a court
Attribution
Accused

Sources · 2

  1. [1]
    New York Appellate Division via vLexPeople v. Burke, 128 A.D.2d 542Court decisionVery high reliability
  2. [2]
    New York Court of Appeals via CaseMinePeople v. BurkeCourt decisionHigh reliability

Last verified: 14 September 2026

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03

1978–1979; condamnation 1981–1982

1978–1979: conspiracy to fix Boston College games

Conviction

Burke was convicted of RICO conspiracy, sports bribery conspiracy and interstate travel in furtherance of bribery in the Boston College scandal.

State of the evidence
Established by a court
Attribution
Accused

Sources · 2

  1. [1]
    U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit via JustiaUnited States v. James Burke, et al., 700 F.2d 70Court decisionVery high reliability
  2. [2]
    The Washington PostKuhn Gets 10-Year Sentence In BC Point-Shaving CasePressHigh reliability

Last verified: 14 September 2026

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04

1980

1980: arrested for parole violation amid new Mafia investigations

Investigation

Burke was arrested in 1980 for a parole violation as investigations into the Boston College point-shaving scheme and other criminal activities mounted.

Attribution
Directly implicated

Sources · 1

  1. [1]
    The Washington PostKuhn Gets 10-Year Sentence In BC Point-Shaving CasePressHigh reliability

Last verified: 14 September 2026

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05

December 1978–1979

1978–1979: suspected of arranging killings of several participants or associates after Lufthansa heist

No legal proceedings

Several participants or associates disappeared or were killed in the months following the operation; Burke has long been described as having ordered some of these killings to silence witnesses.

State of the evidence
Documented

Sources · 2

  1. [1]
    The Washington PostLufthansa Case Holds Clues for Point-Shaving InvestigatorsPressHigh reliability
  2. [2]
    Biography.comHenry Hill and the Real-Life GoodFellas: The True Story Behind the MoviePressMedium reliability

Last verified: 14 September 2026

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06

11 December 1978

1978: identified by investigators as one of the masterminds of Lufthansa heist

No legal proceedings

Investigators and corroborated accounts described Burke as a central organiser of the Lufthansa heist at JFK.

Attribution
Directly implicated

Sources · 2

  1. [1]
    U.S. Department of JusticeBonanno Family Captain Vincent Asaro Indicted for Participation in the 1978 Lufthansa Robbery and Murder of Paul KatzProsecutor's statementVery high reliability
  2. [2]
    The Washington PostLufthansa Case Holds Clues for Point-Shaving InvestigatorsPressHigh reliability

Last verified: 14 September 2026

Add to this entry

07

1972–1974

1972–1974: extortion conviction in Tampa case

Conviction

Burke and Henry Hill were convicted in an extortion case involving the assault of a debtor in Tampa; Burke was still described as imprisoned for this conviction in the early 1980s.

Attribution
Accused

Sources · 2

  1. [1]
    The Washington PostKuhn Gets 10-Year Sentence In BC Point-Shaving CasePressHigh reliability
  2. [2]
    Biography.comHenry Hill - Death, Family & GoodfellasPressMedium reliability

Last verified: 14 September 2026

Add to this entry

08

June 1970

1970: alleged participation in murder of William 'Billy Batts' Bentvena

No legal proceedings

Henry Hill and later accounts attributed the murder of William Bentvena, a Gambino soldier, to Burke and Tommy DeSimone following an altercation.

Attribution
Directly implicated

Sources · 1

  1. [1]
    Den of GeekThe Real Goodfellas: Gangsters That Inspired the Martin Scorsese FilmSecondary sourceMedium reliability

Last verified: 14 September 2026

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II. Constellation of documented links

  • Linked profile (portrait or initials) — click to open it
  • Line width: number of documented references
  • Hover over or tap a line: controversies and sources

Two profiles are linked when a documented controversy of one names the other. The link points to that controversy and its sources; it does not indicate a personal relationship.

List of documented links (2)
  1. Henry Hill2 documented references
  2. Tommy DeSimone1 documented reference

III. Has something changed?

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