Blind Maks – the story of Łódź's Al Capone

We don't know how the fate of blind Maks (actually: Menachem Bornsztajn) would have unfolded had it not been for the tragedy that befell him in childhood. He witnessed the death of his own father. Benjamin Goldberg, while performing his work (knife sharpening on the street), became ill and fell onto the road, right under an oncoming carriage driven by Aron Goldberg, son of one of the wealthiest men in the city at the time. An enraged Aron began beating the injured man with a whip; a stójkowy (the equivalent of today's police officer) also joined in dispensing "justice", striking blows with a club. Benjamin died from his injuries. Neither the stójkowy nor Aron could have suspected that ten-year-old Menachem would seek revenge on both of them. The stójkowy was actually the first victim of young Bornsztajn – when some time later the officer dragged him into a nearby doorway and began beating him with his club, Menachem, with help from his friend, broke free, took the stójkowy's gun and shot him without hesitation. Interestingly, it was during this beating by the stójkowy that Menachem's eye was damaged (a distinctive film formed on it). Hence his later nickname – Blind Maks.

A wedding for revenge

The murder of the stójkowy (largely stemming from self-defense) was not the end of Bornsztajn's revenge. Menachem, still remembering the wrong he had suffered, began making a career in the underworld. His Bałuty gang began robbing freight trains, whose contents belonged to the occupier. Maks quickly established himself in an appropriate position and after some time entered into business with Aron Goldberg, pretending that what had happened in the past no longer mattered. Bornsztajn even proposed to Goldberg's daughter and married her – certainly not because he had fallen in love with her. It was at the wedding reception that Blind Maks completed his work. His men stabbed Aron, and Bornsztajn thus became the heir to his fortune – Goldberg's daughter was his only heiress. From that moment on, Blind Maks had by far the most powerful influence in Łódź's criminal underworld.

Justice Łódź-style

Interestingly, Blind Maks not only held the entire Łódź criminal underworld in his grip and ruled it with an iron hand, but also made sure that criminals adhered to certain rules. He ensured this with the help of the din torah, or Jewish arbitration courts. For example, if some gangster operated in a way that brought shame on the rest of the criminal world (such as Feliks Światała aka Skull Head, who had particularly sadistic methods), he would be reprimanded and brought into line. And if that didn't work – he was simply killed. Besides, Blind Maks was even capable of helping victims of Łódź criminals. An example might be the case of the renowned violinist Bronisław Huberman, whose violin was stolen in Łódź when he came to the city for a performance. Thanks to Bornsztajn's intervention, the instrument was quickly found and returned to its owner. As for his "charitable" activities, it's worth mentioning the Bureau of Requests and Petitions run by the gangster. The wronged (mostly poor Jews) who couldn't count on state help would turn to Blind Maks for help and justice against their oppressors. A small fee was all that was needed (and of course Bornsztajn's approval, who would assess whether intervention was necessary) for a few of Blind Maks's men to deal with someone who had wronged the victim.

Blind Maks thus had two faces. On one hand, he was a ruthless, calculating gangster who not only could devise and implement long-term plans, but also held the entire Łódź underworld with an iron hand – hence the nickname "Łódź's Al Capone". On the other hand, many called him the "Jewish Robin Hood" or "Janosik of Bałuty" – because despite everything, it was hard to deny him honor and adherence to certain principles or help for the wronged. Regardless of how one judges his actions, one thing is certain – Blind Maks left a permanent mark on the history of Łódź's criminal underworld.