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"They were the best years of our lives. They called them the swinging sixties. The Beatles and the Rolling Stones were rulers of pop music, Carnaby Street ruled the fashion world... and me and my brother ruled London. We were fucking untouchable." - Ronnie Kray in his autobiography

Ronald "Ronnie" Kray and Reginald "Reggie" Kray were two British gangster brothers in the 1960s.

Background
The Kray twins were born on October 24, 1933 in Hoxton, East England, Reggie ten minutes before Ronnie. They had a six-year-old brother, Charlie Jr., and also later had a sister, Viola, who died an infant. Their parents were Charles "Charlie" Kray and Violet Lee-Kray. When World War 2 began, Charles Sr. went into hiding to avoid being drafted. When the twins were three, both came down with diphteria. Reggie recovered quickly, but Ronnie almost died. In 1942, Ronnie also suffered a head injury while fighting with his brother. Inspired by their maternal grandfather, Jimmy "Cannonball" Lee, both took up amateur boxing and even made it to the finals of the London Schools Boxing Championship. They formed a gang, which became infamous in the area, and narrowly dodged prison sentences on several occasions. The longest legitimate job the twins had in their lives was a six-month stint at a fish market. In 1952, they were drafted for National Service in the Royal Fusiliers, a British Army infantry regiment, but frequently deserted, only to be recaptured every time. While on the lam, the twins assaulted a police officer who tried to arrest them and were arrested. After a brief stay in the Tower of London (they were among the last to serve prison time there), they were sent to a military prison where they frequently assaulted guards and caused mayhem. Finally, the twins were dishonorably discharged, ending their boxing careers, and began a life of crime.

Crimes, Incarcerations and Deaths
In Bethnal Green, a district of the East End of London, the twins bought an old billiards club with a loan from their older brother, formed a gang with Cockney and Scottish criminals they called "The Firm" and began running several protection rackets, escalating to armed robbery, hijacking and arson in the late 1950s. They also extorted money from other, lesser local criminals. With their earnings, the brothers opened a night club, The Double R, in the East End in 1957. They also brought in their older brother to handle their nightclub accounts. By the 1960s, the twins had established themselves in the London scene with their glamorous nightclubs and had celebrities such as members of parliament, famous actors and singers as customers.

Modus Operandi
The Krays killed George Cornell by shooting him. When they killed "the Hat" McVitie, they tried to shoot him, but stabbed him to death instead when the gun jammed.

Known Victims

 * March 9, 1966: George Cornell
 * October, 1967: Jack "the Hat" McVitie

On Criminal Minds
The Krays were mentioned in Lo-Fi as an example of team killers.