Juanita Perez - Gypsy Killer Queen
Born into a wandering Gypsy clan, Juanita Perez learned young that power was taken, not given - and she killed without hesitation to keep it.
Gypsies are wanderers; traveling from place to place, living life by their own rules. Those rules are different from the rules of their neighbors, and the penalty for breaking those rules is swift and final. Juanita Perez was a Gypsy, full of fire and hard as ice; her family knew she would end up in trouble some day. In 1922, and still only thirteen years old, she led the other children in her clan down a crime-filled road. The other children looked up to Juanita, she was beautiful and without regret.
Eventually Juanita began targeting the Gypsy community to line her ever-expanding treasure chest. The teenagers began raiding the tents of their makeshift town in the swamps of Florida. When the elders of the community caught Juanita stealing, they banished her from the clan. She left the group with the clothes on her back and a fire in heart.
Juanita left the swamplands and headed for the old city of St. Augustine. Her beauty was intoxicating and she relied on it to land a job at an industrial plant. The men who worked at the plant loved Juanita, her smile flirtatious personality made their workday a little less dreary. It was not long before she caught the attention of the company treasurer.
He was a meek, mild man; not at all like the men Juanita was used to dating. He was stuck in a loveless marriage and tied to a boring job; Juanita sparked his interest immediately. She reciprocated his advances and eventually they were entangled in a secret love affair. He had no idea that he played right into her hands; he really believed he had a shot with her.
After several months, Juanita began demanding more from her new boyfriend than he could financially provide. When he tried to satisfy her without money, she almost broke off the relationship. Afraid of losing her he began embezzling funds from the company to provide her with the things she demanded. Once he came across with the cash she knew he could get, she spun a web of lies to make a nest egg for herself and break free from him and her loathsome job.
“I want us to be together Joe; I want to leave this place and start over with you in a town where no one knows us. Leave your lonely marriage and this tiresome job; run away with me.” She crooned as she kissed him and held him close.
Joe fell for her lies and soft melodic voice; he fixed the books and walked away with over twenty thousand dollars in hard cold cash. It was just what Juanita was waiting for. When he showed up at her apartment, money and suitcase in hand, she clobbered him over the head with a silver candlestick. “Goodbye Joe; I have a bus to catch and a new life to live.” She took the cash from his suitcase and placed it in a large pocketbook then left Florida for good.
New Orleans was her new destination; she heard it was easy for an enterprising person like her to get ahead in that town. Dope was easy to come by in New Orleans and she knew her way around the dope trade. She wanted to settle in and get involved in that lucrative business; the money she got from Joe would set her up nice, and make her look big time.
Her hunch was right and soon after arriving in New Orleans, the local boss set her up as a dance hall hostess. The gig was perfect; she met all the local thugs, thieves, and dope dealers and sold weed to anyone who knew where to come.
Eventually she hooked up with a minor crook named Ed Reilly; he was handsome and knew how to step. Ed introduced her to his gang and brought her along on a few heists as a lookout. Juanita was not happy being a lookout, she wanted more action and more cash so she demanded a rod. Ed caved to her demand and gave her a pistol. She got her first chance to use it two days later during the robbery of a department store.
She proved herself ruthless and quick with the gun. A security guard fired on the gang as they were making their getaway and Juanita shot him point blank in the back of the head. He didn’t even know she was there. The boys were proud of their new gun moll and Juanita was proud of her new paycheck.
While the gang celebrated their latest haul the police received a tip about their location. The boys were drunk and loud when the police surrounded the hideout. Juanita was not a drinker and when the police began firing on the place she grabbed the cash and split. She looked back only once; in time to see Ed take a slug to the back. The gang died in the firefight and police never knew Juanita slipped out.
The Gypsy queen left New Orleans for New York. She set herself up in lavish new digs in a suite in Manhattan. She dyed her hair blonde and took a new name; Janet Pollard. After sniffing around the gin joints and dance halls, she captured the attention of a local crime boss.
The boss was a hard drinker and womanizer, the perfect mark for Juanita. She began working for him as the boss of a female dope ring. The drugs were distributed to unassuming women who then sold it to those in need. Juanita was perfect for the job, she demanded complete obedience and never let the girls skim off the top.
The Queen was patient and bided her time, waiting for an opening to claim the entire outfit for herself. She did not plan on remaining boss of the female drug pushers; she wanted to be Queen of the whole organization.
One night she agreed to go back to the boss’s room for a few drinks. She knew he had been drinking all night and was in no condition to resist her. After several more drinks the boss decided to give her a little kiss; he paid for his presumption with a punch to the eye and a bullet to the gut. He crumpled to the floor and stared up at Juanita as she pointed the gun at his head, “You are a week, loathsome creature. This organization deserves a better leader.” She said as she pulled the trigger.
The boss’s lieutenants ran into the room when they heard the gunshots and found Juanita standing over his body with the gun in her hand. “Get rid of this garbage and tell the rest of the outfit I am in charge now.” Juanita announced pointing to the body. The lieutenants did as they were told and never challenged her leadership.
The organization was quickly galvanized behind the Gypsy queen when she more than doubled the profits and the cash in their pockets. Her criminal brilliance was evident in her decision to expand into the sports racket. Bookies and payouts were organized and the Queen profited.
Between infiltrating other areas of underworld profit and usurping power, she consolidated her power base by courting corrupt politicians, judges and cops. Everyone in the gang sung her praises; those who didn’t were already in jail or dead. The money rolled in, Juanita’s ego craved more than criminal recognition, and fear fueled lip service.
Juanita wanted respect from the socialites of New York, she wanted to be a part of their world and make a name for herself. She began patronizing charities and engaging in other philanthropic pursuits. Soon she was making speeches before crowds of New York royalty by day and ruling the violent underworld of drugs by night.
Even a Queen needs a King and Juanita met her match one night during a ballet performance in Carnegie Hall. He was tall and moved through the crowd with an air of elegance that captured Juanita’s eye. He noticed her too, and during the intermission, he introduced himself. Juanita was smitten with his charm and the two were soon involved in a whirlwind romance.
The Queen began shirking her duties at court; when new alliances were struck between her organization and the lords of the lower east side she was absent from the table. When a minor bookie tried to run off with profits, she was not there to pass sentence. Her lieutenants began making decisions for her and they were not happy with her new attitude.
Mike, Juanita’s first lieutenant began scheming to get rid of her. He spread rumors in the gin mills and proffered allegiance to rival groups in exchange for protection if the coup went awry. Mike took over right under her nose and waited for the right time to strike; one mistake and he could lose more than power and money.
Juanita was completely in love with her new man, nothing, not even the whispers of a hostile takeover could tear her away from the romantic candle lit dinners and ball room dances. She ignored the warnings and continued to busy herself with romance; until Mike began making threats against her lover. She was outraged that he would stoop to such a level and hatched a plan to put him out of service for good.
Downtown in an abandoned warehouse Mike was gathering a group of associates for initiation into the organization. Juanita showed up unannounced with her new first lieutenant I.R. Moody. Mike was shocked when she entered the room, armed and angry. “So I hear you want to hurt my friend Mr. Moody; is this true Mike?” she said in a sultry voice.
“Who told you that, it’s a dirty lie, who’s the rat spreading these lies!” Mike shouted pretending to be loyal. “I am here doing my job, checking out these guys before they get close to you; that’s my job, to make sure you are safe!” He pounded his fist on the table, and knocked over his chair.
“I admire your loyalty Mike, however I don’t remember asking you to interview these gentleman for me…did I ask you to do this for me Mike?” She tapped her finger on the trigger of her rod as she spoke.
Mike was distressed; it was obvious from the color of his face to his shaking hands. “No you didn’t ask me to do it for you; I was taking care of things so you could spend time with that man of yours. You left us in a spot; business goes on with or without you!” His eyes were riveted to her trigger hand as he spurted out his defense.
“Why don’t you gentleman find somewhere else to go; this is official business.” Juanita waved her gun and the shocked men who had been watching the argument; they were relieved to get out of there. “I can see my rod is making you anxious Mike, I am going to put this nasty thing down on the table so you and I can really clear the air.” Slowly she placed her pistol on the table in front of Mike; she could see the tense muscles in his face loosen as she stepped back from the gun.
“I knew that would make you feel better, I couldn’t put that down until I got rid of those guys. You know I have to maintain an image.” She primped her hair and smiled as she spoke, attempting to lull Mike into a false sense of security. Then she moved closer to him, until they were standing face to face.
“I believe you Mike; I believe you were planning to take my life and the life of my lover…” As the words slipped from her lips, she pushed a six-inch blade into his heart. His eyes grew wide and he struggled to speak but he could not form the words.
Moody watched from across the room, he didn’t realize Mike was dead until he hit the floor and Juanita turned to face him holding the bloody knife. “Drop the knife!” he yelled pointing his own revolver at her head. “Get on the floor and drop the knife; I am an agent of the F.B.I!” He shouted as he crossed the room without taking his eyes off her.
The Gypsy Queen couldn’t move, she was frozen, her arms felt like lead weights; his words hit her like a canon blast…F.B.I! She began to shake and dropped to her knees, “I love you, how could this be, why…” she sobbed.
Moody let down his guard as he approached her, he was in shock himself; she killed a man right in front of him and now she was sobbing like frightened child. He lowered the gun and reached down to grab her arm.
Suddenly she stood up fast hitting him in the face with her head, knocking him backward. She was out the backdoor before he regained his balance, he raced after her, and he could not let her get away. As he swung open the heavy metal door to the back lot, he came face to face with a cornered animal. She was in a fit of rage, screaming, crying and pointing her rod at his head.
Juanita the Gypsy queen was shaking all over, trying hard to keep the gun straight and see through black streaks of mascara that burnt her eyes. She wanted to pull the trigger, she wanted to die and she wanted to wake up from this nightmare. After what seemed like an eternity, she lowered the gun, and then dropped it on the ground. “It’s over, you win.” She whispered.
Moody received honored recognition for his successful sting; he put an end to the reign of Gypsy Queen Juanita without firing a shot. Juanita went to prison for life to pay for her crimes. She used her love to make her way to the top of the criminal underworld, and in the end, it was love that brought her down.
Blog written by Guy Hadleigh, author of Crimes That Time Forgot, the Macabre True Crimes & Mysteries Series, the Murder and Mayhem Series, the British Killers Series, the Infamous True Crimes and Trials Series - and many more!