December 21, 2021 — Well-known Detroit mob associate Anthony (Shrieky) Thomas was murdered in the summer of 1980 in a gangland hit that never received a single media headline nor has ever been solved. This “lost” Detroit mob hit was recently discovered by The Gangster Report based on a series of explosive interviews with people on other sides of the law who had first hand knowledge of Thomas’ slaying and the investigation into it that followed over 40 years ago.
The 63-year old Thomas served as a longtime driver, bodyguard and enforcer for Detroit mafia caporegime Vito (Billy Jack) Giacalone. He was found beaten to death in a Highland Park, Michigan trash dumpster on August 12, 1980.
Per Highland Park Police Department records and Wayne County Organized Crime Task Force internal memos, legendary Motown business man and convicted underworld figure Norm (King Hulk) Dabish was considered the No. 1 suspect in Thomas’ killing in the short-lived probe by HP PD & the Detroit office of the FBI, but never faced charges. According to sources, Giacalone sanctioned the murder of his one-time confidant, Thomas, who had began abusing drugs, using the Giacalone crew name in narcotics ripoff scams he wasn’t sharing profits from and acting belligerent in his street affairs. Giacalone died of natural causes in 2012.
Thomas and Dabish were of Middle Eastern descent: Thomas was Lebanese. Dabish’s family was from Iraq. The Detroit area is home to the biggest population of Middle-Easterners in North America.
Dabish founded the Powerhouse Gym franchise in 1975 and grew it into one of premier names in the fitness industry with 300 gyms located across 15 countries worldwide. He won weightlifting and bodybuilding competitions around the nation and earned a black belt in Karate.
Per Dabish’s FBI and DEA files, he also maintained king-sized status in the Southeastern Michigan underworld. The reputed Sergeant at Arms of The Highwaymen Motorcycle Club, Dabish played a major role in the birth of the so-called “Iraq Mafia,” a loosely-connected organization of Iraqi-Christian hoodlums, racketeers and drug bosses that went from a small clique of wannabe gangsters on the Northwest side of Detroit to a massively-influential, multi-National crime syndicate with outposts in California, Chicago, Arizona and Nevada, as well as cells operating overseas.
Dabish was a rare breed, able to effortlessly and efficiently shift between the corporate world and the gangland sphere simultaneously, while engendering fear, love and respect, according to people who knew him personally and members of law enforcement that tracked his every move. He was convicted in federal court of extortion in 1982 and did two and a half years in prison. His life was cut short due to a heart condition in October 2005 at the age of 46.
This article was originally posted here