When he learned that Michael Jackson wanted to end cooperation with a mafia-owned agency, a tycoon made Michael Jackson change his mind.

Michael Jackson once faced tycoon Michael Franzese because of his intention to terminate the contract with a mafia-backed representation company. Photo: Sydney Morning Herald

During the period 1980-1984, Michael Jackson wanted to end his activities with the representative company that Joe Jackson, his father, hired to run the Jackson family’s million-dollar concerts.

However, the “king of pop” did not know that the representative company was owned by the Colombo gang, one of the feared crime groups in New York.

Hearing the news, Michael Franzese – one of the leaders of the Colombo gang in New York – boarded a personal plane to California to convince Michael Jackson to cancel the decision. Michael Franzese is the mafia member who has made the most money since the time of boss Al Capone.

“We signed an agreement with Michael Jackson’s father to represent their family on the Victoria tour of the US and Canada in 1984. Then suddenly Joe came to us and said Michael had put him in a difficult position. when he wanted to fire his agency,” Michael Franzese told The Sun.

Facing Michael Jackson and his new agent, Michael Franzese talked about the consequences if the “king of pop” tours without receiving the support of the Colombo gang. Immediately, the new agent panicked and canceled the deal with Michael Jackson.

After the meeting, Michael Jackson’s tour took place as planned, bringing in millions of dollars for the mafia gang.

However, money was not the reason why Franzese met the “king of pop”. At that time, Franzese’s income from gas tax fraud reached $8-10 million  per week.

Two years after meeting Michael Jackson, Fortune magazine placed Franzese at number 18 on the list of the 50 richest mafia bosses in America. Franzese is the youngest on the list. Currently, 48 people on the list have died. Many of them were murdered, and some died in prison.

Franzese, 72 years old in 2023, is on the living list.

During his late twenties, Franzese had a private jet, a Bell helicopter, a 7,000-square-foot house in New York, a house in Florida and a beach house in California.

Franzese defrauded the US federal government of more than  $350 million  by cheating on gas taxes, making him one of the most powerful people in New York.

When Franzese went to prison for fraud and faced the risk of being sentenced to up to 200 years in prison, following the advice of his lover (who later became his wife), Franzese cooperated with the authorities to enjoy a 10-year prison sentence, plus time as a witness in court to put many mafia people in prison.

After completing his sentence, Franzese moved to Los Angeles, California, to avoid the pursuit of the Colombo gang. In addition to business activities, Franzese became a speaker to convince delinquent teenagers to turn their lives around.