Overview
The Bebos were a narcotics organization led by Howard “Pappy” Mason in South Jamaica, Queens. The Second Circuit described the group as controlling much of the local crack trade during the mid-to-late 1980s.
Drug Operation
Federal appellate records state that between February and mid-August 1988 the Bebos distributed approximately one kilogram of crack cocaine per week. Mason continued directing the organization while incarcerated, relying on telephone calls, visitors, and trusted intermediaries to transmit instructions.
Leadership and Communications
Mason was the organization’s leader. His mother, Claudia Mason, was convicted for her involvement and was described in federal court as an active liaison who relayed narcotics instructions and monitored members’ compliance with Mason’s orders.
Murder of Edward Byrne
The Bebos became nationally known after Mason ordered members to assassinate a police officer in retaliation for his imprisonment. On February 26, 1988, Bebos members killed Officer Edward Byrne while he guarded a drug-case witness’s home in South Jamaica.
Relationship to Lorenzo Nichols
Mason had earlier been closely associated with Lorenzo “Fat Cat” Nichols. The Bebos and Nichols organization therefore form an overlapping Queens network, but federal historical reporting treats them as two separate gangs. This distinction should be preserved in relationship maps.
Related Entries
Evidence Status
A. Leadership, distribution scale, prison-based direction, and the Byrne murder are documented in federal appellate decisions.