Who was Jack ‘The Hat’ McVitie and how did he die?
JACK ‘THE HAT’ MCVITIE will be known for causing the downfall of the most notorious criminals in London during the 1950s and 60s, the Kray Twins.
This is all we know about Jack ‘The Hat’ McVitie and how he died.
Who was Jack ‘The Hat’ McVitie?
Jack ‘The Hat’ McVitie was born on April 19, 1932, in Battersea, London and grew up to have a criminal life.
He married Marie Marney in 1950 and they had a son together named Tony.
He was called Jack the Hat most of the time because of the trilby hat he always wore to hide his hair loss.
He used to work as an enforcer and hitman on occasions with The Firm and was known for drug trafficking throughout the 1960s.
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The Firm was the gang run by the Kray twins and they used to often hire him to commit certain crimes, the latest being the one to kill Leslie Payne.
Ronnie Kray paid McVitie £500 to kill Payne, and if successful, he promised that he’ll give him a further payment.
McVitie and his friend Bill Exley set off on the task at hand but they were unsuccessful in their attempt.
During this time, McVitie was a drug addict while Exley suffered from heart trouble.
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Since McVitie didn’t kill Payne, he was supposed to hand the money back to Ronnie Kray.
But instead, he kept it for himself, and this led to trouble.
Who killed Jack ‘The Hat’ McVitie?
McVitie was invited to a party on Evering Road in Stoke Newington in London were several figures from the criminal underworld and their families were meeting.
Reggie and Ronnie Kray were also attending and they planned to kill McVitie that night.
Reggie tried first but he failed as his gun jammed.
So then he resorted to a knife and stabbed McVittie repeatedly in the face, chest and stomach.
The Kray twins left the scene while minor members of The Firm got rid of the body.
When did Jack ‘The Hat’ McVitie die?
Jack ‘The Hat’ McVitie’s life came to an end on October 29, 1967.
When he attended that party, he died aged 35.
Because of his death, the Kray twins were arrested by the Scotland Yard police and were both sentenced to life imprisonment.
Ronnie had a conviction for murdering George Cornell while Reggie had to serve time for the killing of McVitie.
This was the downfall of the Kray Twins.