Somalia’s most notorious outlaws..

[barbarossa]

Does anyone out there has unique stories , events, or exploits involving the legendary Somali outlaws such as, Tabeebe, John Kataatow, commonly known as JK, and Bedel, whose full aliases I don’t at the moment recall and others of similar trade? These were, from what I gathered, some of the most feared and violent gangsters in Somalia back in the sixties and seventies and were known as the Dons of Mogadiscio. Each and every one of them has left his proper mark and legacy in the criminal under- world of that era.
I heard the following minor incident involving John Kataatow at the tail end of his career.
JK was at some point in his life was enlisted in the military but was shortly thereafter decommissioned for some reason and had to for a while, at least, go back to his criminal activities.
Then, as fate would have it, in 1977, JK was once again called back to report for duty and take part the liberation of Western Somalia. He handpicked handful of men of similar criminal tendencies and with a stolen cache of arms, JK and his cohorts started embarking on broad- daylight sorties to ambush military supplies, shifta style, killing a lot of people in the process. He was eventually apprehended and brought to court, in front of a judge. It did take long for the court to find him guilty on all charges and was promptly sentenced to death. The judge asked JK if he had any last to word to say. JK calmly stood up from his seat and uttered these words in Italian, the lingua franca of criminals at that time:
Questo è per mia madre. Oggi, 8 Dicembre, 1977, è l'ultimo giorno, qui, sulla terra, di JK, il figlio del Sole. This loosely translated into English:
This is for my mother. Today, on the 8th of December, 1977, is the last day here on earth of JK, the son of the Sun. Thus ended the career of JK, one of the most notorious gangster of his time.

[Twist]

Nah, I didn't hear about any of those.

The most famous Somali outlaw I heard about back in the days was one called 'Baas abuur'. He also used to be a soldier, a commandos I think, and he had a fallout with the government & used to terrorize them for many years. He was highly trained, very clever & some people used to say that he even knew magic coz they couldn't capture him & was always ahead of them.

There were also narrations that he was kinda Robin-hood & used to rob the government & give it to poor people, though there were other stories that he used to go to villages in the countryside & pretend a victim of Baas-abuur (himself) and tell people bad stuff about Baas-abuur and used to kill whoever went along with him & said negative stuff about him etc.

[barbarossa]

Nah, I didn't hear about any of those.

The most famous Somali outlaw I heard about back in the days was one called 'Baas abuur'. He also used to be a soldier, a commandos I think, and he had a fallout with the government & used to terrorize them for many years. He was highly trained, very clever & some people used to say that he even knew magic coz they couldn't capture him & was always ahead of them.

There were also narrations that he was kinda Robin-hood & used to rob the government & give it to poor people, though there were other stories that he used to go to villages in the countryside & pretend a victim of Baas-abuur (himself) and tell people bad stuff about Baas-abuur and used to kill whoever went along with him & said negative stuff about him etc.

Thank you Twist for sharing this with us. I personally never heard of Baas-abuur but he does indeed fit the profile of a noteworthy outlaw. By the way, Twist, do you know which part of the country Baas-abuur hails from? The ones I have mentioned were mainly from Mogadiscio area, but I am sure, there a lot of others with no less notoriety in different parts of the country.

[Twist]

I think he was from the South but not exactly sure which city/region he hailed from.

I have this feeling that he might also be one of the guys you mentioned & that some other parts of the country he was known with a different nickname, as you already mentioned & is clear that all the names you & I used are just nicknames & not real names.

[barbarossa]

I think he was from the South but not exactly sure which city/region he hailed from.

I have this feeling that he might also be one of the guys you mentioned & that some other parts of the country he was known with a different nickname, as you already mentioned & is clear that all the names you & I used are just nicknames & not real names.

That could very well be the case, Twist..

[ElfRuler]

Does anyone out there has unique stories , events, or exploits involving the legendary Somali outlaws such as, Tabeebe, John Kataatow, commonly known as JK, and Bedel, whose full aliases I don’t at the moment recall and others of similar trade? These were, from what I gathered, some of the most feared and violent gangsters in Somalia back in the sixties and seventies and were known as the Dons of Mogadiscio. Each and every one of them has left his proper mark and legacy in the criminal under- world of that era.
I heard the following minor incident involving John Kataatow at the tail end of his career.
JK was at some point in his life was enlisted in the military but was shortly thereafter decommissioned for some reason and had to for a while, at least, go back to his criminal activities.
Then, as fate would have it, in 1977, JK was once again called back to report for duty and take part the liberation of Western Somalia. He handpicked handful of men of similar criminal tendencies and with a stolen cache of arms, JK and his cohorts started embarking on broad- daylight sorties to ambush military supplies, shifta style, killing a lot of people in the process. He was eventually apprehended and brought to court, in front of a judge. It did take long for the court to find him guilty on all charges and was promptly sentenced to death. The judge asked JK if he had any last to word to say. JK calmly stood up from his seat and uttered these words in Italian, the lingua franca of criminals at that time:
Questo è per mia madre. Oggi, 8 Dicembre, 1977, è l'ultimo giorno, qui, sulla terra, di JK, il figlio del Sole. This loosely translated into English:
This is for my mother. Today, on the 8th of December, 1977, is the last day here on earth of JK, the son of the Sun. Thus ended the career of JK, one of the most notorious gangster of his time.

Thank you for sharing this info. True or not, it's always interesting to hear about diverse narratives relating to Somalis.

[barbarossa]

Does anyone out there has unique stories , events, or exploits involving the legendary Somali outlaws such as, Tabeebe, John Kataatow, commonly known as JK, and Bedel, whose full aliases I don’t at the moment recall and others of similar trade? These were, from what I gathered, some of the most feared and violent gangsters in Somalia back in the sixties and seventies and were known as the Dons of Mogadiscio. Each and every one of them has left his proper mark and legacy in the criminal under- world of that era.
I heard the following minor incident involving John Kataatow at the tail end of his career.
JK was at some point in his life was enlisted in the military but was shortly thereafter decommissioned for some reason and had to for a while, at least, go back to his criminal activities.
Then, as fate would have it, in 1977, JK was once again called back to report for duty and take part the liberation of Western Somalia. He handpicked handful of men of similar criminal tendencies and with a stolen cache of arms, JK and his cohorts started embarking on broad- daylight sorties to ambush military supplies, shifta style, killing a lot of people in the process. He was eventually apprehended and brought to court, in front of a judge. It did take long for the court to find him guilty on all charges and was promptly sentenced to death. The judge asked JK if he had any last to word to say. JK calmly stood up from his seat and uttered these words in Italian, the lingua franca of criminals at that time:
Questo è per mia madre. Oggi, 8 Dicembre, 1977, è l'ultimo giorno, qui, sulla terra, di JK, il figlio del Sole. This loosely translated into English:
This is for my mother. Today, on the 8th of December, 1977, is the last day here on earth of JK, the son of the Sun. Thus ended the career of JK, one of the most notorious gangster of his time.

Thank you for sharing this info. True or not, it's always interesting to hear about diverse narratives relating to Somalis.

You are absolutely right Elfruler, urban legend stories are, by their very nature, ever liable to great deal of exaggerations and almost impossible to verify one way or the other, but as you have said, it is always interesting to hear them related with a Somali flavor.

[Coldoon]

Cool story.

[Amirsade]

Good thread! No one can beat the legacy of abdullahi yusuf, read Halgan iyo Hagardaamo,

[Daff]

The only one I remember is Tabeebe, I used to hear stories about the guy, he was a serial rapist and used to cut off women's breast.

there were more but i can't remember now

[barbarossa]

Good thread! No one can beat the legacy of abdullahi yusuf, read Halgan iyo Hagardaamo,

Amirsade, I can appreciate how difficult it can be, for someone like yourself, to resist the ever alluring temptation of turning every single thread to a qabiil thread, but, please, do, for once, show some restrains, and don't hijack this one.

[barbarossa]

The only one I remember is Tabeebe, I used to hear stories about the guy, he was a serial rapist and used to cut off women's breast.

there were more but i can't remember now

Yes, Dafiyomiriq, Tabeebe was one the most brutal and merciless gangster of his time, and as you have mentioned, he has, for some odd reason, targeted mainly women . This might have been motivated by a deep seeded grudge against a particular woman, in his past, that in his mind, grievously wronged him.

[barbarossa]

Cool story.

Thank you, Coldoon..