| Founded | c. 1918 |
|---|---|
| Founder | Vito Guardalabene |
| Founding location | Milwaukee, Wisconsin, United States |
| Years active | c. 1918–2024 |
| Territory | Primarily the Milwaukee metropolitan area, with additional territory throughout Wisconsin, as well as Las Vegas |
| Ethnicity | Italians as "made men" and other ethnicities as associates |
| Activities | Skimming, gambling, narcotics, racketeering, murder, extortion, prostitution, bookmaking, bribery, and loan sharking |
| Allies | |
| Rivals | Various gangs in the Milwaukee area |
The Milwaukee crime family, also known as the Balistrieri crime family or the Milwaukee Mafia, was an Italian-American Mafia crime family based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.[1] The crime family was considered a branch of the Chicago Outfit. The family's most influential boss was Frank "Mr. Big" Balistrieri, who was greatly involved in the Las Vegas skimming casinos.[2] With the death of boss Peter Picciurro and consigliere John Balistrieri both in 2024, the crime family is defunct. Since Balistrieri died in 1993, the Chicago Outfit gaining control over some of the illegal rackets in the area.[3]
- ^ Peter J. Devico The Mafia Made Easy: The Anatomy and Culture of La Cosa Nostra. (pg.154-156)
- ^ United States District Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin Searches Conducted on March 8, 1980 Archived January 2, 2007, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Jay C. Ambler. "Milwaukee, WI Crime family" (2000) Rick Porrello's American Mafia.com
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