RINGLEADER

ringleader

(noun) a person who leads (especially in illicit activities)

Source: WordNet® 3.1

Etymology

Noun

ringleader (plural ringleaders)

A leader of a group of people, especially an unofficial group.

A person who starts and leads a disturbance (such as a riot), a conspiracy, or a criminal gang.

Source: Wiktionary

Ring"lead`er, n.

1. The leader of a circle of dancers; hence, the leader of a number of persons acting together; the leader of a herd of animals. A primacy of order, such an one as the ringleader hath in a dance. Barrow.

2. Opprobriously, a leader of a body of men engaged in the violation of law or in an illegal enterprise, as rioters, mutineers, or the like. The ringleaders were apprehended, tried, fined, and imprisoned. Macaulay.

Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition