The Chinatown section of Manhattan in New York City has always had an aura of attraction and mystery. The Cantonese and Mandarin languages spoken by its inhabitants have provided the neighborhood with a form insulation which kept the eyes of outsiders at bay. But for those who venture into the area, there is an abundance of outstanding cuisine, endless shops, and the realization of a city within a city. I personally have walked the streets of Chinatown as an eager shopper and have driven its streets on my way to the Manhattan Bridge to return to Brooklyn. But what many are unaware of is the dark history of Chinatown and the powerful crime bosses who once ruled with iron fists. This book is the story of the former boss of the Ghost Shadows gang, Peter Chin. Readers may recognize Chin from his appearance on the YouTube channel called Vlad TV. Here, his unbelievable story is presented by author Everett De Morier as told to him by the former crime boss. And it is a deep dive into a world most New Yorkers did not know existed.

You may be wondering why a former crime boss decided to tell his life story. It is a good question, and the long road taken by the author in telling Chin’s story is explained. Chin could take what he knows with him to the grave when he takes his final breath. But a suggestion by a former New York City Police Department (“NYPD”) officer plants a seed in his mind which results in Chin agreeing to tell his story. And once he begins, the book becomes a roller coaster ride as we run the streets of Chinatown and explore the criminal underworld. The story begins in China but when Peter is eight, the family emigrates to New York City where they are reunited with his father Bark Chin, who forms a dark cloud over the home. Also, he makes an appearance late in the story in a role that is interesting and puzzling. Father and son did not have a good relationship, and what Chin recalls left me shaking my head at times. Any questions regarding the importance of a strong father in the home are answered here.

Sadly, Chin’s personal life provided the perfect pretext for his gravitation towards the streets. And through a series of events, he soon finds himself running with the Ghost Shadows. But he quickly learns that Chinatown is a hotbed of turf battles and throughout the story we see the rise and fall of other gangs such as the White Tigers, Flying Dragons under Michael Chen (1950-1983) and the Hip Sing Tong led by the Godfather of Chinatown Benny “Uncle Seven” Ong (1907-1994). Gunfights, fistfights, back door deals and homicides are on the menu as Chinatown turned into a battle zone. While I read, I was taken back because as a New Yorker, I know that geographically, Chinatown is not as big as one might expect. Encounters between gangs often occur due to their proximity to each other. And when they cross paths, the tension escalates at breakneck speed. Chin finds himself a target more than once in the book, and one incident leaves him at Downtown Beekman Hospital for an extended stay. But despite the dangers, Chin continues to rise to the top and along the way as he makes friends with powerful crime figures and others holding access to vast amounts of wealth. It is the type of gangster story Hollywood loves to produce but this is non-fiction and Chin’s life was on the line daily.

There is one area of the story that I wish had more content and that is Chin’s marriage and his son Anthony. His wife and son are mentioned but rarely, and this is likely because Chin was telling the story and chose to keep them out of it. In fact, the author does explain that Chin kept them hidden in Brooklyn for their protection while he conducted business on the streets. As the cash rolls in and he gains fame and respect, his exposure to law enforcement also grows, drawing the attention of the NYPD’s Jade Squad and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (“FBI”). Readers will see that his fall is inevitable but there is still time before that happens, and that means more violence on the streets of Chinatown. The swift pace in which situations escalate gives new meaning to the term “on sight”. Actions are instant and deadly, with shocking displays of rage and destruction which claim innocent lives and places Chinatown’s gangs in the crosshairs of prosecutors who had been given a tool unlike anything courts had seen before: the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, simply known as “RICO”.  This new law would devastate criminal organizations across the country and takedown Chinese gangsters, the Italian Mafia and other crime figures who remain behind bars.

Chin’s fall, which we know is coming eventually does but I surprised at the sentenced he received and did not anticipate the judge’s ruling. It hits Chin like a stack of bricks, but jail proves to be the place he needed to be. His time in prison is interesting and shows that old habits die hard. The seasoned gangster moves like you would expect inside prison walls revealing that the world within its walls has its own structure which outsiders would not understand. However, prison also proves to be a turning point when he meets an inmate who gives him two gifts which change his life permanently. And when readers reach this point in the book, the realization that Chin rose to surreal heights without a full formal education will set in. It did for me. And it is here that his redemption begins. Luckily for him, there is life after prison which we learn of towards the end of the book when he is reborn and comes full circle. And in an ironic twist of fate, a prosecutor who once chased him, finds himself facing criminal charges. Further, the prosecutor in Chin’s case would later gain infamy for her role in a case which shook New York City to its core, and later revealed disturbing questions of misconduct, bigotry, and wrongful prosecution. In this story, Chin rides off into the sunset, but his story is not over, and he has many years to live and can look back on his time as the leader of the Ghost Shadows. If you love history and the stories from New York City, you will love this.

“Anyone who thinks criminals don’t follow the news coverage about them is dead wrong. They follow it avidly. That’s how Chin’s gang came by their name. A newspaper reporter had written a story about their crimes and concluded with a bit of a poetic flourish: They came in like a shadow and left without a trace . . . like a ghost shadow.”

ASIN ‏ : ‎ B0D2SNJV9Z
Publisher ‏ : ‎ Citadel Press (January 21, 2025)