Chapter 201: Chapter 201 Stabilizing Las Vegas
Chapter 201: Chapter 201 Stabilizing Las Vegas
Hardy nodded in satisfaction.
He needed the Mexicans as a buffer but didn't want them to grow too big and threaten the Los City Company position, so he would occasionally hassle them.
"Bill, although the Los City Company now controls Los Angeles, you must be careful. Other Mafia families might have their eyes on Los Angeles. We just had a conflict with the Selton family from San Francisco, they might seek revenge. Also, be wary of the Irishman Raymond and his possible retaliation."
Hardy thought for a moment.
"Bill, in the second half of the year, I'll have Lancer aggressively expand the security company's business in San Francisco. You can send a capable team to scout out the situation in San Francisco first."
Bill's eyes lit up.
"Boss, are you planning to expand the Los City Company into San Francisco?!"
"I don't want anyone on the West Coast to become a threat to us. We've already made an enemy of the Selton family, and I'm afraid other families might exploit this, so we need to plan ahead."
"Opportunities present themselves to those who are prepared. We can't wait for things to come to us before starting to deal with them hastily, don't you think so?"
"Boss, what did you mean by that last sentence?"
Hardy was somewhat helpless. Bill was a good subordinate he was loyal and executed all of his orders perfectly, but he lacked a sense of crisis and the initiative to prepare for the future on his own.
"Just do as I say." Hardy said.
"Got it, boss," Bill replied with a smile.
Bill returned to Los Angeles with his men, but Hardy had him leave Rossi behind. Rossi was one of the four legion leaders of the Los City Company and was the one who took down Jaimie Weiss.
Rossi was also a former Marine and one of Hardy's trusted men who had chosen to join the gang on his own.
He had more than fifty men under him, and Hardy left him in charge of the Flamingo's security affairs, as well as the future management of Las Vegas's underworld.
During this time,
The Corleone family's casino was robbed and closed down. The casinos of the other four major families, including Barzini, were also robbed and even bombed, leaving them in ruins.
Continuous conflicts have left Las Vegas residents on edge.
During this time. The newspapers and radio stations in Las Vegas continuously spread news pessimistic about the city's future, worrying those who had purchased land. More and more people were listing their land for sale, causing prices to drop, with some selling below their purchase price.
Hardy felt the time was right and had Andy send people to negotiate with the landowners.
In just half a month, the real estate company secretly acquired over 6,000 acres of land, almost half of the best land along the future Las Vegas Boulevard.
However, he also spent a considerable amount of money.
Wells Fargo had a branch in Las Vegas and now has a partnership with Hardy. Every time the real estate company bought a piece of land, they mortgaged it to Wells Fargo for loans, continuously rolling over the investments. In the end, the real estate company spent just over $1 million to acquire the land.
And this over $1 million came from robbing the casinos of the four major families.
...
A week later.
Las Vegas held a city council meeting to discuss municipal construction and whether the police department should sign an agreement with HD Security to hire them as a supplemental force.
At the meeting, Chief Steve made a case, emphasizing the necessity of having HD Security as an additional protection force for the police.
"Las Vegas's population is growing, and crime is increasing yearly. The police force is severely understaffed, and we frequently face violent incidents, necessitating a significant increase in personnel. We estimated that we need about 100 more officers."
"We calculated that adding more personnel would require an annual increase in salaries, equipment funds, facility funds, and other expenses, totaling around $150,000 to $200,000."
The council members were taken aback by the cost.
"How much would it cost to hire HD Security?" one council member asked.
"$120,000 annually, with a three year renewal contract," Steve replied.
The math was simple: hiring additional police meant not only paying salaries and equipment costs but also future medical insurance, life insurance, retirement pensions, and other miscellaneous expenses.
Hiring an outside service for $120,000 a year was an all inclusive deal with no extra worries.
It was clear that hiring HD Security was more cost effective.
With most council members in agreement, two days later, HD Security and the Las Vegas Police Department officially signed an agreement, making HD Security a supplementary force to maintain order in Las Vegas.
The estate where Hardy and his team were staying had been purchased by the security company and would become the base for HD Security's Las Vegas branch.
The estate was large, and Lancer invited all the police officers to visit. The officers were stunned by the arsenal in the warehouse.
Shelves were filled with pistols, machine guns, carbines, sub machine guns, and even heavier weaponry, like several heavy machine guns with long ammo belts showcasing their lethal power.
One slightly knowledgeable officer asked, "Are those M1919A6 heavy machine guns?"
"Yes, they are M1919A6s."
The officer clicked his tongue and said, "These things can take down tanks. Do we really need them here?"
"Haha, who knows if we will encounter a strong armed gangsters, It's better to be prepared." Lancer said it with a smile.
"Any gangsters facing you guys would have to behave. You guys are real killers."
Further inside, the officers saw even more astonishing items.
Grenades, explosives, even bazookas, and M2 60 mortars— the officers were shocked. Were these prepared for a gang fights or for war?
After the visit.
The officers had a clearer understanding of HD Security.
Don't provoke them, these guys are out for blood.
Hardy's actions in Las Vegas, taking down the casinos of the four major families, greatly angered the four New York families.