Michael Frances, a former captain in the Colombo crime family, testified before a Senate subcommittee in 1992 about the deep ties between organized crime and professional boxing, describing fixed fights, laundered drug money, and the involvement of some of the sport’s biggest names. Frances, who became a cooperating witness after leaving the mob and later built a career as an author and YouTube personality, told senators that he spoke from firsthand experience. He was a capo in the Colombo family, and his father, John “Sonny” Frances, was a longtime member who once served as underboss and had financial interests in boxers, including Rocky Graziano. He testified that he was inducted into the Colombo family on Halloween night in 1975 and assigned to the crew of Andrew “Andy Mush” Russo, described as a first cousin of family boss Carmine Persico.
Russo controlled a middleweight boxer named Vito Antuofermo, who later became middleweight champion. According to Frances, family members were frequently told fight outcomes in advance, allowing them to bet successfully. He said he and about ten other Colombo members attended Antuofermo’s first title bout against “Marvelous” Marvin Hagler at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas, but were told that fight was not predetermined. Actors James Caan and Bert Young attended the post-fight party with them, both being friends of Russo.
Frances also testified about his own ownership stake in boxer Davey Moore. In June 1983, Moore was scheduled to fight Roberto Duran, but Moore was not in good physical shape and wanted the fight postponed. Frances said the owners believed Moore had no chance in his condition, so they let the fight proceed, bet against him, and collected their winnings. When asked how Moore passed the physical, Frances said he was told not to worry because “everything would be taken care of” with the state boxing commission.
The testimony then turned to an FBI sting operation targeting money laundering through boxing. In 1983, a New York promoter introduced undercover FBI agent Victor Guerrero and an informant to Frances’s father, saying they had substantial money to invest. They claimed to be former drug traffickers from South America looking to launder millions through boxing promotions, with Don King as the ideal partner. Frances agreed to arrange a meeting with King.
To do so, he said he had to get approval from the leadership of his own family and clear the deal through other crime families. He met with Persico’s son and another Colombo capo, who gave their blessing. He then brought the deal to a soldier in the DeCavalcante family, who contacted the Cleveland crime family, which approved the arrangement. The Reverend Al Sharpton was brought in to set up the meeting with King.
Frances said Sharpton was associated with people in the Genovese family, particularly soldier Danny Pagano. Frances told Pagano that if Sharpton could make the deal work with King, he would be cut in for a piece of the action. The meeting with King took place on January 12, 1983, at King’s Manhattan offices. Frances said he met privately with King and explained that the two investors were former drug dealers who wanted to launder a substantial amount of money through co-promoting fights.
He told King they would invest and expect a 50 percent split, with Frances receiving half of their share. When King was asked if he had objected to the illicit source of the money, Frances said no. King reportedly told him not to worry about getting the promoters licensed in various states because he could get them licensed anywhere. Frances also said he made it clear his family was very interested in the deal going forward.
Frances explained that the plan involved four organized crime families: the Colombo, DeCavalcante, Genovese, and Cleveland families, along with King as boxing’s leading promoter. In the end, the deal fell apart because the supposed investors never produced the money. Frances was also questioned about how the undercover agents obtained promoter licenses in New Jersey. He said they were obtained through a contact for a price, allegedly paying for the licenses.
Asked whether he was still a member of organized crime, Frances said no. He acknowledged that a person cannot formally resign from the mob, but said he simply chose not to be involved anymore and went his own way. He confirmed that he had been made aware of threats against him after leaving. Frances also testified about the scale of betting on fixed fights, saying bets of $50,000 to $100,000 were placed on a single fight by one person.
He described the fight business as a prime target for organized crime because many of its participants came from the streets, making them easier to influence. In closing, Frances said organized crime figures were becoming more reluctant to get involved in activities monitored by the federal government because of pressure from federal prosecutions. He suggested that federal involvement in boxing would likely reduce organized crime’s role in the sport.