More On Chagra And Harrelson....Friday, August 1, 2008 Neal Rubin Las Vegas drug dealer was toast of the town Jimmy Chagra was a drug dealer. Nobody seemed to mind. When I met him in the late 1970s, he was the toast of Las Vegas, a flamboyant high roller who might win or blow $1 million in a week. Either was fine with the casinos; put the money in play, they figured, and the numbers would eventually catch up with him, the same way the feds did. He'd show up at Caesars Palace with footlockers full of cash. In the early hours at Binion's Horseshoe, I once watched him bet $100,000 on a single hand of blackjack. He was loud and profane and funny, the life of a perpetual party. And back in El Paso, Texas, his able assistants were bringing cocaine and marijuana to America in tramp steamers, airplanes and, for all I know, the Goodyear blimp. He lived back then for free in the most luxurious mega-suite Caesars had to offer. When he died last Friday in Mesa, Ariz., he was living in a trailer park. Though his sister denies it, there's strong evidence to suggest he was in the Federal Witness Protection Program. But the marshals couldn't hide him from cancer. His money was welcomed I was always astonished at how cavalier everyone was about his occupation. No one even pretended that he'd been, say, an unusually successful rare book dealer. He was spending drug money with both hands, and the city welcomed it. Sydney Pollack, the movie director, liked him so much he gave him a small role in "The Electric Horseman," which filmed in Las Vegas in '78. Then Chagra was indicted for conspiring to kill a U.S. District judge, and Pollack snipped out his scenes. Befriending the CEO of a drug conglomerate was one thing. Potential bad publicity was quite another. The judge, John Wood Jr., was known as Maximum John for the sentences he dispensed to drug dealers. He was scheduled to preside over Chagra's trial when one Charles Harrelson shot him in the back with a rifle. Harrelson, the father of actor Woody Harrelson, said Chagra had followed him into a Las Vegas men's room and offered him $250,000 to pull the trigger. He died in prison. Chagra was convicted only of obstructing justice in that case, but he later drew 30 years for drug dealing and a life sentence for arranging the attempted assassination of an assistant U.S. Attorney. His parole came through in 2003. Placing a bet In the heady days in Las Vegas -- his heady days; I was making $240 a week -- he won upwards of $500,000 one night shooting craps at Binion's, then decided he wanted to lay down $100,000 on a single hand of blackjack. The casino prided itself on never refusing a challenge, and manager Jack Binion rolled out of bed and came downtown to supervise. In lieu of $100,000 worth of chips, Chagra placed a single silver dollar on the table. The dealer was showing a face card. It's been nearly three decades; I can't recall which one. Chagra held a queen and a deuce, for a total of 12. He signaled for a hit ... and the dealer slid him a nine. For $100,000, Chagra had totaled 21. The dealer's down card was another nine, for a 19. It was riveting theater, and I've wondered over the years how often Chagra told the story. I bet the guys he bunked with loved it. I bet they didn't even care that he was a drug dealer -- but then, on the cell block, I wouldn't expect them to. Reach Neal Rubin at (313) 222-1874 or
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