Mob FilesPublic-domain archive of American organized crime
A seated man doubled over with his coat pulled over his head, and a man in a suit standing behind a desk covered in small packets, beside an open case with a card reading Police Department City of New York.
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Joseph Basile under arrest in a $25 million narcotics seizure, New York (February 1949)

A February 1949 New York Times Paris Bureau photograph: per the catalog, Joseph Basile, hiding his face with his coat, under arrest in connection with a narcotics seizure, with Chief of Detectives William T. Whalen standing near him.

Date
1949-02
Kind
photograph
Source
National Archives Catalog, Records of the U.S. Information Agency (RG 306), Photographic File of the Paris Bureau of the New York Times
Retrieved
2026-10-12
NAID
541915
Rights
The National Archives catalog marks this item "Use Restriction: Unrestricted." Its parent series, the Photographic File of the Paris Bureau of the New York Times (NAID 541877, Record Group 306, Records of the U.S. Information Agency), carries the note: "Prints stamped New York Times with the Paris address are presumed to be in the public domain, as are the glass negatives of original photographs. Copyright restrictions may apply to all other prints and copy negatives." The Paris stamp is not visible in the digital image. This archive relies on the item-level "Unrestricted" pending a check of the physical print. The stored copy is an 1,800-pixel downsample of the catalog's TIFF.

The National Archives catalog titles this photograph “Joseph Basile, hiding his face with his coat, under arrest in connection with the seizure of $25 million worth of narcotics,” and its description adds: “Chief of Detectives William T. Whalen standing near him with some of the confiscated drugs.” The catalog dates it February 1949. Local identifier 306-NT-1375-2; its select-list identifier is “AMCITY #136.”

The picture shows a man seated and doubled over, his coat pulled over his head, holding a fedora, and a man in a suit and patterned tie standing behind a desk covered with small packets and envelopes. An open case on the desk holds a card reading “POLICE DEPARTMENT CITY OF NEW YORK,” and a desk calendar shows “TUESDAY 8.”

The names, the dollar figure and the description of the packets as narcotics are the catalog’s, taken from the original caption. The photograph records an arrest; it does not record a charge, a trial or a conviction, and this page states none.