Takedown: The True Story of the Undercover Detective Who Brought Downa Billion-Dollar Car

A great book. A nice crisp and fast read that will have you turning the pages in anticipation of what comes next. Detective Rick Cowan infiltrated the New York garbage mafia as a problem fixer for an independent garbage hauler. Five years later his investigation resulted in indictments across the board, which have put an end to mafia involvement in the New York garbage industry and has saved New York customers and businesses millions upon millions of dollars.The book is more than an entertaining read. It provides you a real life glimpse into how the mafia infiltrates and consolidates and industry. Cowan and Century provide background history in the novel that tell the origins of the garbage empire. I don't know of any other book that gives you such a detailed nuts and bolts picture of day to day mob operations - mafia bosses meeting on a daily bases and hatching out deals and shakedowns over Italian pasteries. It is all done by word of mouth and handshakes. As they give orders to their brutal underlings they literally get fat off of the hog.I doubt that this is the "Fall of the Last Mafia" empire as the book cover says. I'd like to know what other businesses the mafia have "owned" in New York and how they have adjusted to Cowan's Takedown.After finishing the book I wondered if it was worth it to Detective Cowan - spending five years of his life immersed in an undercover operation that risked his life and disrupted his family life. I think he hints at an answer with his discussion with his father at the end of the book, but there is still some ambiguity. Like a lot of things in life there is probably no yes or no answer.Buy this book and read it. Like another reviewer said it gives a much better picture of how the mafia operates than the "exposes" written by Mafia goons and second to third generation accounts that pack the "true crime" sections of the book stores.

An interesting, suspensful and funny book about how one NY detective, almost unwittingly, found him self the central figure in bringing down the "garbage cartel" in New York. Having been a business owner in Manhattan, who had to pay the unbelievable fees to carters, I hughly recommend this book to anyone looking to get insight into how the "Mob" infiltrated both big and small business. Kudos to Cowan and Sal Benedetto for following through to the end. Let's hope the politicans have as much back bone as Cowan and Benedetto in insuring that their work was not in vain. A great read. Hope they don't screw up the movie.

Takedown: The Fall of the Last Mafia Empire is by far the best Mob-related book I've read in years. For once we have the perspective of a true good-guy insider, not a bunch of turncoat felons or distant relationss to Mafiosi who heard some stories second and third hand. Detective Cowan's undercover journey was very suspenseful, and this book is definitely a page-turner. Here's an Irish-American cop who did it all, became a believable Italian -American business executive and got up close, wearing wires for YEARS as he met with made guys and capos in the Gambino and Genovese families. Definitely recommended, even if you are not a "Mob buff."

He went by alias of Danny Bridges. He was just on Connie Chung / CNN speaking about his new book Takedown. "Danny" was instrumental in 'taking down' the last mafia empire...that of garbage collection rings that charged extremely high rates and forced Mom and Pop businesses to use their services. Watch out! If any other garbage collection tried to get the business they were 'made a deal' they 'couldn't refuse' (if you know what I mean...).This book is full of great detail of the inner workings and is very suspenseful! Rick Cowan alone worked his way into the mob to 'get the goods' (evidence) on the inner workings of the Mafia. He risks his life and the life's of his family and their families. He found collusion that resulted in the imprisonment of high level "Don's". The Mafia made billions through use of their 'leverage'. I highly recommend this book and hope that one day Rick will not end up in a garbage dump like Jimmy Hoffa. Buy this book today and read it! I couldn't put it down. Great book, great read. Will win the book Academy Awards in December.

What a great read. I just cannot put this book down. It truly amazes me what this Rick Cowan guy has done!