Bagman

Bagman

A bag man (or bagman), is a person designated to collect money in a protection racket, who in this context may also be known as a delivery boy or running man.

Originally the term applied only to Mafia members collecting for mob bosses, but the term later spread to use in corrupt police precincts for patrolmen who picked up and delivered bribes from the local mob(s) to the precinct captain.

The bagman may receive a fraction of the money collected. The term can also be used for a person who performs small tasks for the Mafia, such as chaffeuring, transportation of goods, or even shakedowns.

The term is also used pejoratively to describe fundraisers for political parties and employees of the IRS.

The Oxford Concise Dictionary defines "Bagman" as an "agent who collects or delivers money for illicit purposes".


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  • Bagman — Bag man, n.; pl. {Bagmen}. A commercial traveler; one employed to solicit orders for manufacturers and tradesmen. Thackeray. [1913 Webster] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Bagman — Bagman, eine persische Apothekerdrogue von unbekannter Abstammung; eine rothbraune, innen gelblichweiße, 1–11/2 Zoll dicke, geruchlose, wie alt gewordene Wallnüsse schmeckende Wurzel; wird von den Persern innerlich als Reizmittel des geschwächten …   Pierer's Universal-Lexikon

  • bagman — [bag′mən; ] for 2 [, bag′man΄] n. pl. bagmen [bag′mən; ] for 2 [, bag′men΄] 1. Brit. a traveling salesman: an old fashioned usage ☆ 2. Slang a go between in offering bribes, collecting money as for the numbers racket, etc …   English World dictionary

  • bagman — [“baegmaen] 1. n. a tramp. □ Two old bagmen wandered slowly down the lane. □ The bagman asked politely for some work that he would be paid for in food. 2. n. a drug dealer. (Drugs.) □ Sam was a bagman for a well known dealer for a while. D …   Dictionary of American slang and colloquial expressions

  • bagman — UK [ˈbæɡmæn] / US [ˈbæɡˌmæn] noun [countable] Word forms bagman : singular bagman plural bagmen Australian informal a man who has no home and travels around carrying the things he owns in a bag …   English dictionary

  • bagman —    someone employed in a taboo activity    Originally a tramp, with his bag of belongings over his shoulder. Now a passer of bribes, a person who distributes narcotics illegally, etc.:     Shri Adam Zogoiby , who had allegedly been the bagman in… …   How not to say what you mean: A dictionary of euphemisms

  • bagman — /ˈbægmən / (say bagmuhn) noun (plural bagmen) Colloquial 1. a swagman; tramp. 2. a mounted swagman. 3. a male itinerant of the Depression of the 1930s: *Later as a bagman on the roads in the Depression he was active in the Unemployed Workers… …  

  • Bagman (video game) — Infobox VG title=Bagman developer = Valadon Automation publisher = Valadon Automation distributor=Stern Electronics (U.S) designer= version= released = 1982 (Arcade) 1984 (vairous) platforms= Arcade Game, Commodore 64 (as Bagitman and Gilligan s… …   Wikipedia

  • bagman — noun Date: 1765 1. chiefly British traveling salesman 2. a person who on behalf of another collects or distributes illicitly gained money; broadly an intermediary in an illicit or unethical transaction …   New Collegiate Dictionary

  • bagman — /bag man / for 1; /bag meuhn/ for 2, 3, n., pl. bagmen / men / for 1; / meuhn/ for 2, 3. 1. dishonest official; a person who collects, carries, or distributes illegal payoff money. 2. Brit. a traveling salesman; drummer. 3. Australian. a tramp;… …   Universalium

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