An unprecedented sale of Chicago gangster Al Capone’s belongings, which remained in the possession of his family for almost 75 years after his death, garnered more than $3 million Friday night.

       “A Century of Notoriety: The Estate of Al Capone” was held at a private club in Sacramento, California, near where Capone’s three surviving granddaughters live and had almost 1,000 registered bidders — including 150 who were able to attend in person, according to Witherell’s, the auction house that hosted the event. Reporters and photographers were not allowed to observe the nearly four-hour-long event.

       Own Al Capone: The Chicago gangster’s favorite gun, diamond jewelry, bear-shaped humidor, family photos and more to be sold by his granddaughters at auction ？

       The highest-priced item, “Scarface’s” favorite Colt .45-caliber semi-automatic pistol, sold for $860,000 — more than $700,000 above the highest estimate. Its buyer is unknown at this time, but whoever purchased the gun will pay $1,040,600, which includes the 21% buyer’s premium.

       A gun Al Capone reportedly called "sweetheart," a Colt .45-caliber, sold at auction on Oct. 8, 2021, for $860,000. (Sheldon Carpenter/Witherell's)

       The lowest winning bid on a lot was $100 for two photographs of Capone’s son, Sonny. Most lots sold for above their pre-auction estimates.

       Kevin Nagle, a Sacramento investor, business owner and philanthropist, describes attending the auction as a once-in-a-lifetime experience. He said the room was buzzing — the feeling was “incredible” when bids were flying for Capone’s firearms and “intense” for two cigar holders, both of which he acquired.

       “It was really exciting. There was a lot of history that we were bidding on and there were people from all over the world participating online. It’s really amazing,” he said.

       Nagle, whose minority ownership of the NBA’s Sacramento Kings was bought out in September, spent $120,000 on a decorative humidor with walnut veneer. The second humidor, which features a carved bear holding a table in its raised paw, and a set of two chairs were purchased for $18,000.

       Al and Mae Capone's Black Forest carved humidor and side chairs are up for auction in California. (Witherell's) (Witherell's)

       Nagle, who briefly lived in Evanston in the early 1970s before receiving his master’s degree from the University of Southern California, said both humidors will be placed at his ranch in Montana and “will be great conversational pieces.”

       And, what ranch owner doesn’t need a belt buckle? Nagle picked up an 18-karat yellow gold and platinum one formerly owned by Capone for $22,500.

       “I was a borderline poverty-level kid and here I am buying such items,” he said. “Worked hard for it. Lots of war stories.”

       Author and collector Avi Bash has written several books, including a chapter about Al Capone’s Florida years for the book “Organized Crime in Miami.”

       He says he’s been a collector for about 15 years of previously unseen family photos of organized crime figures.

       Bash said he already owns photos of Capone on a Wisconsin hunting trip in the 1940s, but was interested in participating in this auction because “authentic Capone items are just so hard to find.”

       A collection of photographs from the estate of mob boss Al Capone is seen on display at Witherell's Auction House in Sacramento, California, on Aug. 25, 2021. (Rich Pedroncelli/AP)

       “I probably placed bids on six or seven different lots, and I won three lots,” he said.

       The three lots of Capone family photos cost a total of $2,500 for Bash, who bid online from his home in Miami.

       “Seeing the amount of publicity (the auction) got, that made me a little nervous going into this as far as prices,” Bash said.

       Yet, he believes those same prices will help increase the value of similar ones he already owns.

       “All of my collection is kept private. I do have a website and an Instagram account where I’ll show off a little bit, but for the most part it’s private,” Bash said. “I work with museums to loan or lease some items, but for now I’ll just keep them private.”

       Also staying private, for now, are the identities of most buyers who participated in the Capone auction. It’s also not known if any successful bids were placed by Chicago-area people or institutions.

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