with President Richard Nixon. Embarrassed, IRS and Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) agents subsequently interviewed Jackie Presser in late 1972. Presser's information was verified, and Presser spent the rest of his life as an FBI informer. Presser began receiving $2,500 a month (roughly $12,500 in 2007 dollars) from the FBI for providing information. Presser was considered a "top-echelon informant," marking him as one of the Bureau's most prized sources. Shortly thereafter, Presser allegedly received permission from two FBI agents to pad the Local 507 payroll with fake employees. The individuals hired as "ghost employees" were not required to do any work but nevertheless received substantial paychecks. The paychecks, it was later claimed, were a way of funneling payments to Teamsters officials and members of the Cleveland mob. Involvement with the mafia According to court records, in 1974 Jackie Presser became deeply involved in mafia affairs. He allegedly told the leaders of the Chicago mafia that he was willing to do them favors in exchange for money and assistance. Jimmy "The Weasel" Fratianno, a former hitman in the Cleveland crime family and later acting head of the Los Angeles crime family, later testified that Chicago crime boss Joseph Aiuppa told him in 1974 that "if you need anything from Jackie Presser, he said he'll do it for you." Fratianno also testified that he colluded with Presser to set up a union dental program whose profits were skimmed into Presser's and the Mafia's bank accounts. Organizationally, however, Presser was under the control of the Cleveland crime family. Presser's involvement with organized crime eventually led to fears for his safety. In 1976, a battle for control inside the Cleveland mafia broke out. Longtime Cleveland mob boss John T. Scalish died without naming a successor. John Nardi, a high-ranking Teamster leader, formed a coalition with mobster Danny Greene to seize control of the Cleveland crime family. They were opposed by Scalish lieutenant James "Blackie" Licavoli. Eventually Nardi and Greene were murdered by Licavoli, along with several other Teamsters officials. Presser feared he was next. The FBI gave Presser a small radio transmitter that supposedly could detonate a car bomb from a distance. Presser also hired a large contingent of muscular bodyguards who accompanied him everywhere he went (including Teamster meetings). Despite being armed with the radio device and surrounded by guards, Presser fled to Florida and moved from hotel to hotel every few days