Ron Gonen

Ron Gonen (born 1948) is a former Israeli mobster and cooperating witness, who was the chief witness against the New York based Israeli mafia in the early 1990s.

Early life

Gonen was born as Roman Gershman in the Ukraine in 1948. His father had arrived during World War II as a refugee from German occupied Poland. His maternal grandfather ruled the village black market in concert with corrupt Soviet officials. In order to obtain better treatment for his father's arthritis, the Gershman family emigrated to Israel in 1956, during the Khrushchev thaw.

Criminal career

After settling in Tel Aviv, his parents tried in vain to straighten out their delinquent son by sending him to work at Israeli kibbutzes. Gonen, who had shortened his name, continued to use drugs and chase girls. Even while serving in the Israeli Defense Force, he used the opportunity to steal cars and break into parking meters. He was first arrested for this at the age of 18. While serving his sentence, he was introduced to Sammy Merkel, a legendary Israeli mob boss based in Munich, West Germany. Merkel advised him that there were greater opportunities there due to the German economic miracle. Merkel added, "Why would you want to steal from your own people when you can steal from them?"

As a result, Gonen decided to avoid causing his parents any more embarrassment by committing his future crimes abroad. After committing scores of crimes in Munich, London and Guatemala, Gonen moved to New York City where he became involved in cocaine trafficking, using a Los Angeles-based contact of his friend Ran Ephraim.

In June 1982 he met Honey Tesman, a drug fueled Manhattan party girl. Tesman introduced him to drug suppliers and the couple married two years later. The couple moved to Tel Aviv with Gonen commuting to "work" in New York. But Tesman missed her family and the pair soon moved back to America.

In 1987 Gonen became involved with Johnny Attias, an Israeli mob boss of Moroccan descent. Attias viewed Gonen as a major money maker and was enraged at Gonen's desire to retire from crime in order to focus on his wife and infant daughter. While trying to decide whether to do business with Gonen or murder him, Attias began to fill the vacuum left by the collapse of New York's Five Families, assassinated Russian gangsters from Brighton Beach, and negotiated major drug deals.

Federal witness

Gonen started cooperating with the government in 1989 and was placed in witness protection along with his family and mother, who had received death threats in Israel. Johnny Attias' crew of Israeli gangsters fell apart soon after, with most of its top members either dead or in prison.

Later life

Ron and Honey Gonen have since separated, but have never divorced, as this could cause Gonen to be deported to Israel, where the sons of the men he testified against in the 1980s are now major figures in Tel Aviv's criminal underworld.

In 2004, journalism student Dave Copeland got in touch with Honey Gonen while researching the Witness Protection Program on Craigslist. After hundreds of hours of interviews and careful fact checking, the book "Blood & Volume: Inside New York's Israeli Mafia," was published by Barricade Books in 2007.

References

*Dave Copeland, "Blood and Volume: Inside New York's Israeli Mafia" ISBN 1569803277

External links

* [http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?apage=1&cid=1171894562924&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull An Interview with the Jerusalem Post]
* [http://www.bloodandvolume.com Blood & Volume: Book Web site]