Walter L. Shaw Sr. (December 20, 1916, in Vineland, New Jersey – July 21, 1996) was an American telecommunications engineer and inventor who clashed with his employer (variously identified as AT&T, Bell and Southern Bell) over ownership of his inventions. As a result, he quit and eventually ended up supplying the Mafia with black boxes capable of making free and untraceable telephone calls. In 1976, he was convicted of "illegal... see more