London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Friday, Sep 04, 2026

Family of Al Capone to sell notorious mobster's treasures at auction: 'A very complex person'

Family of Al Capone to sell notorious mobster's treasures at auction: 'A very complex person'

Some 175 artifacts and mementos from the Prohibition Era, including his favorite guns, vintage prints featuring the infamous crime lord with various members of his family, letters written by Capone to his son while at Alcatraz Island Federal Penitentiary.

Personal effects from notorious organized crime boss Al Capone are up for sale as his three living granddaughters are looking to part with the belongings. The items were once held up in Capone’s estate on Palm Island in Florida following the 2004 death of their father, Sonny Capone, who was Al Capone’s only child.

Some 175 artifacts and mementos from the Prohibition Era – which include the gangster's favorite guns; vintage prints featuring the infamous crime lord with various members of his family; letters written by Capone to his son while at Alcatraz Island Federal Penitentiary; Sonny’s shooting medals; watches; knickknacks; fine gold-rimmed crystal ware and many other of Capone’s personal belongings – are all on the list.

Diane Capone, 77, a daughter of Sonny’s, told the Washington Post that she and her sisters were concerned the items could be ravaged by ongoing wildfires in Northern California and thus wanted to offload the possessions before they potentially went up in smoke.

Police mug shot of Chicago mobster Al Capone. The photograph was taken by the Miami Police Department. Some 175 artifacts and mementos from the Prohibition Era, including his favorite guns and letters written by Capone to his son while at Alcatraz ar


"It was a tremendous relief for the memorabilia of my grandparents to be removed because there’s no way we could save it from a wildfire," Diane told the publication. "We’d lose it all."

Of the letter penned by the Chicago gangster to Sonny, Diane maintained that they reveal an adverse side of the man known by many as "Scarface."

"I can’t imagine that anyone could read this letter without having at least a hint of an awareness about the fact that this man was a very complex person," Diane Capone said. "His name might be synonymous with Gangland Chicago, but there was another whole side to the man."

Capone is believed to have greenlighted the 1929 mob burnout that was dubbed the "St. Valentine’s Day Massacre." Seven mobsters were gunned down by firing squad on a winter morning in Chicago. Although Capone was rumored to have ordered the hit, he was in Florida at the time the gunfire erupted.

Chicago mobster Al Capone is seen at a football game in Chicago, Jan. 19, 1931. Artifacts connected to Capone are being auctioned off in October.


The ordeal is depicted in several films, including 1987's "The Untouchables," in which Kevin Costner portrays the famed Prohibition agent Eliot Ness, who mounts a team of gun-wielding associates to nab Capone – played by Robert De Niro.

Sean Connery, Andy Garcia, Billy Drago and Charles Martin Smith portray Jim Malone, George Stone, Frank Nitti and agent Oscar Wallace, respectively.

When Capone was finally convicted of income tax evasion in 1931, Ness and his team had amassed more than 5,000 indictments for violating Prohibition laws.

Capone spent seven-and-a-half years in prison, much of that time in Alcatraz. He died in 1947.

The relics are being presented by Witherell’s and bidding on the items will commence Oct. 8 at 9 a.m. ET.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Scottish Tech Company PureLifi Enters Administration With More Than 40 Job Losses
Scottish Government Names Alyn Smith Innovation and Education Minister
Green Party Co-Leader Zack Polanski to Contest By-Election for Keir Starmer’s Former Seat
Palestine Action Activists Appeal Terrorism-Related Prison Sentences
PwC Report Highlights Persistent Regional Spending-Power Divide Across Britain
UK Names Hundreds of Employers for Minimum Wage Violations
UK Commits £400 Million to International Tropical Forest Fund
UK Extends £2 Bus Fare Cap Across England Through 2027
UK Warns Travellers as US-Iran Tensions Disrupt Middle East Security and Shipping
Andy Burnham Faces Kemi Badenoch in First Prime Minister’s Questions
Kemi Badenoch Names Andrew Griffith Shadow Chancellor in Conservative Reshuffle
UK Treasury and Markets Focus on Fiscal Headroom Ahead of Autumn Budget
UK Government Reverses Early Release Plans for Serious Violent and Sexual Offences
UK and France Review Border Cooperation After 48,000 Small-Boat Crossings Prevented
UK Growth Outlook Weakens as Inflation and Energy Costs Rise
Breeding Tropical Mosquitoes Discovered in East London
Sadiq Khan Agrees to Search of Digital Communications in Palantir Lawsuit
Scottish Protesters Call for Moratorium on AI Data Centre Expansion
Uber Drivers Bring London Class Action Over Algorithmic Management
Reform UK Accepts £4 Million Donation From Cryptocurrency Billionaire Pardoned by Trump
Justice Secretary Tightens Early Release Scheme to Exclude Manslaughter Offenders
Kemi Badenoch Reshuffles Conservative Team as Reform UK Pressure Grows
British Mortgage Rates Rise as Global Bond Sell-Off Pushes Up Borrowing Costs
UK Records Hottest Summer on Record in 2026
UK Government Urges Households to Stock Essential Supplies Ahead of Severe El Niño Risk
UK Prepares Targeted Sanctions Over Israeli Settlements in West Bank
Reform UK Faces Electoral and Police Scrutiny Over Foreign Donation Allegations
UK and France Expand Channel Migration Cooperation as Trade Tensions Surface
UK Marks Merchant Navy Day With Tribute to Civilian Seafarers
Burnham Pays Tribute to Two Police Officers Killed on Duty in Northern England
Booking.com Left Fake Downing Street Listing Online for Two Months, Which Says
Burnham and Macron to Review UK-France Cooperation on Channel Crossings
UK Business Confidence Improves Slightly but Investment Concerns Persist
Burnham Faces Pressure Over Future North Sea Oil and Gas Licences
Burnham Pushes Wider English Devolution Through ‘Number Ten North’
British Chambers of Commerce Raises 2026 UK Growth Forecast to 1%
Keir Starmer Resigns as Holborn and St Pancras MP, Triggering By-Election
UK Chancellor Faces Tighter Budget Headroom as Long-Term Borrowing Costs Rise
UK Government Weighs Thames Water Nationalisation as Financial Crisis Deepens
Prime Minister Andy Burnham Faces First Commons Questions Over Tax and Spending Plans
Eleven British Seafarers Receive Merchant Navy Medal
Which? Creates Fake 10 Downing Street Rental Listing to Expose Booking.com Vetting Weaknesses
BP Appoints New Chairman in Effort to Stabilise Leadership
Aberdeen Sells Hydrogen Bus Fleet at Heavy Loss After Green Transport Experiment
UK Records Hottest Summer on Record as Climate Change Intensifies Extreme Heat
Scotland Pledges to End Temporary Accommodation for Children and Build 111,000 Affordable Homes
DNO Agrees $396 Million Deal to Acquire Capricorn Energy
Uber and Wayve Launch UK’s First Supervised Autonomous Ride-Hailing Service in London
Britain Expected to Avoid New US Tariffs Targeting European Union
Middle East Conflict Pushes UK Energy Costs Higher and Revives Inflation Concerns
×