Frank Balistrieri was the boss of the Milwaukee Mafia for nearly 33 years. During his tenure at the top, he expanded the reach of the Family’s racket operations by having the membership become more aggressive and by bringing in several new men as members. He also quickly sidelined anyone who displeased him in even the slightest way.
In fact, over the years. many previously respected members were “aced out” of the Family and found that Balistrieri either half-ignored them or outright “shelved” them. In Cosa Nostra, that amounts to the equivalent of casting them out of the Family and treating them as lepers.
Balistreri was also a figure in the FBI’s infamous “Donnie Brasco” undercover operation as we’ll learn in this snapshot bio.
