Career
Known for his cruelty, he was called the "Godfather" of the Russian American mafia. Born in Leningrad, Agron immigrated to the United States under the Jackson–Vanik amendment in 1975. He swiftly gained control of criminal operations among the Soviet Jews living in Brighton Beach.
Agron organized a motor fuel racket which would earn millions, if not billions, through fuel tax fraud.
This type of fraud, which involved selling tax-free home heating oil as diesel fuel, eventually cost the state of New Jersey alone an estimated $1 billion annually in lost tax revenues. Agron died after being shot twice in the head outside his Brooklyn apartment in May 1985, at age 53.
He was succeeded by Marat Balagula as leader of the Russian mob in the United States.