Gordon's success later led him to run all of Rothstein's bootlegging on most of the east coast, specifically
New York and
New Jersey, and importing large amounts of Canadian whisky over the
Canada–United States border. Gordon, now earning an estimated $2 million a year, began buying numerous
breweries and
distilleries as well as owning several
speakeasies. Gordon began to be known to live extravagantly, traveling in
limousines and living in prominent
Manhattan hotel suites, as well as owning mansions built for him in New York and
Philadelphia. Rothstein died in 1928 and Gordon's position began to decline. He made an alliance with future
National Crime Syndicate founders
Charles Luciano,
Louis Buchalter, and
Meyer Lansky. Gordon, however, constantly fought with Lansky over bootlegging and gambling interests and soon a gang war began between the two; several associates on each side were killed. Lansky, with Luciano, supplied interim
United States Attorney Thomas E. Dewey with information leading to Gordon's conviction on charges of
tax evasion in 1933. Gordon had a large million-dollar operation that included many trucks, buildings, processing plants, and associated employees and his business front could not account for this ownership and cash flow and he paid no
taxes on it. Gordon was sentenced to ten years' imprisonment. At this time he was married to a
rabbi's daughter and their son was in
medical school. This son died in a weather-related automobile accident while traveling from an out-of-town college planning to plead with the judge for leniency with his father's sentence. Gordon had tried to insulate his otherwise respectable family from his organized crime career and the incident greatly shocked their relations, and great stress was put on the deteriorating marriage. ==Later career==