I've often posted that's it's almost impossible to do bulletproof (no pun intended) research on OC because mobsters aren't the kind to leave their collected letters and papers to college libraries so people like us can peruse them. And, those who talk are usually lying up, down and sideways.

Obviously there's no record of conversations Lepke may have had with others about surrendering. But, it is logical to assume that, with the garment rackets falling apart while Lepke was on the lam, some mobsters (like Tommy Lucchese, a main partner) would have had an interest in tresolving the Lepke issue once and for all so they could take over before the whole thing collapsed. Charlie Luciano, in his "Last Testament," bragged that he engineered the Lepke double-cross, using Frank Costello as a go-between, to promise Dewey Mob money, support and inside info for his run at the governorship. Dewey himself was a slippery character--he probably suborned perjury from prostitutes to convict Luciano in his "compulsory prostitution" trial. Dewey was the GOP Presidential candidate in '44 and '48. L ewise, DA O'Dwyer could have been exaggerating about Reles's "photographic memory" to make himself look good and to scare Lepke. We'll never know for sure.