Frank Alphonse "Funzi" Tieri (; born Francesco Tieri, ; February 22, 1904 – March 29, 1981) was an Italian-American mobster who eventually became the front boss of the Genovese crime family of New York City.
Early life
Tieri was born on February 22, 1904, in Castel Gandolfo, Lazio, Italy, to Carmela Tofano and Augustino Tieri, and had two sisters, Assunta and Antonietta.
Conviction and death
Federal prosecutors eventually charged Tieri with being the head of a crime family that was involved in racketeering, extortion and illegal gambling. On January 23, 1981, the ailing Tieri, using a wheelchair and an oxygen tank, was convicted of violating the RICO Act. At the sentencing, Tieri's lawyers argued for leniency, saying that he was dying. Prosecutors told the judge it was an act, and the judge sent Tieri to prison for ten years.
Two months later, on March 29, 1981, Tieri died from an unspecified "long illness" at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York.