Quick Wiki
- Full Name Frank Figliuzzi
- Occupation Former FBI Executive, Author, National Security Analyst, Security Expert
- Nationality American
- Birth Date Sep 12, 1962
- Age 62 Years, 1 Months
Frank Figliuzzi | Biography 2021
NBC News National Security AnalystWhen Frank Figliuzzi was 11 years old, he wrote a letter to the FBI after watching law enforcement shows and the agency’s news on television. In the letter, he penned his enthusiasm on getting the bad guys and bringing them to justice. He also asked what he could do to become an FBI agent. To his luck, a Special Agent working in FBI Connecticut replied to his letter and gave him directives and encouragements on joining the agency.
Frank Figliuzzi is a former FBI agent and author of the national bestseller, ‘The FBI Way: Inside the Bureau’s Code.’
Who is Frank Figliuzzi?
Figliuzzi is a former assistant director of the counterintelligence department. He was interested in becoming an agent since he was 11 years old. He was inspired to join the FBI whenever he watched the agency’s news in news and tv shows.
So, after graduating from Fairfield University in 1984, he enrolled at the University of Connecticut to get a doctorate in law and also joined the FBI Academy. He graduated from Connecticut and the Academy in 1987.
The FBI then posted him to the counterintelligence and counter-terrorism department in Atlanta, Georgia. Fulfilling the duty, he went on to work as an FBI agent in numerous investigative cases such as economic espionage in Silicon Valley, public corruption investigations and financial crimes in Florida and Ohio, and the first anthrax murder in 2001.
Then, in 2011 he was appointed as the assistant director of the Counterintelligence Division. Subsequently, he retired from the bureau with 25 years of service in 2012.
After that his retirement, he worked as a security director in international companies. In 2017, he joined NBC News as the national security contributor and also started writing columns for MSNBC News.
Further, in 2021, he published his first book, ‘The FBI Way: Inside the Bureau’s Code’ followed by the launch of his true-crime-based podcast The Bureau with Frank Figliuzzi.
Early Bio & Age
Figliuzzi was born on 12 September 1962 and raised in Connecticut, New York, USA. When he was 11 years old, he wrote a letter to the FBI after watching law enforcement shows and the agency’s news on television. In the letter, he penned his enthusiasm on getting the bad guys and bringing them to justice. He also asked what he could do to become an FBI agent. To his luck, a Special Agent working in FBI Connecticut replied to his letter and gave him directives and encouragements on joining the agency.
Education and Training
So, when Figliuzzi enrolled at Fairfield University to study Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) in English Literature (British and Commonwealth) in 1980, he applied for the job of resident advisor. As an advisor, he got the time and opportunities to be engaged in practical dialogues with faculty members of the university. There, he rigorously debated and theorized the problems of politics, society, and the background of laws and rules in communities. This approach made it easier for him to understand the need for justice.
In 1984, he graduated with a BA degree, majoring in literature and minoring in communication and sociology.
After that, he joined the University of Connecticut in 1984 and graduated in 1987 with honors from Juris Doctorate (JD) in Law.
Following that, he completed numerous diploma curriculums on specific positions, such as the Havard University National Security Program for Senior Executives in Government (received from the John F. Kennedy School of Government) and the Northwestern University’s executive course on Leading Strategic Change from the Kellogg School of Management.
Figliuzzi also passed the FBI honors summer internship. He completed a moot crime-strike drill organized by the FBI in New Haven and eventually graduated from the FBI Academy Quantico, Virginia, in 1987.
Career in FBI
After graduating from the academy, Figliuzzi was appointed as an FBI special agent. He was then dispensed to Atlanta, Georgia, in the counterintelligence and counter-terrorism department. His first assignment was tracking spies and terrorists during the 1988 Democratic National Convention and the Olympic Games organized in Albertville, France, and Barcelona, Spain. After that, he got a promotion to be a part of the National Security Division at FBI Headquarters in Washington, D.C, in 1992. His responsibility there was to engage in oversight of economic espionage matters
Three years later, he landed a stint as a supervisory senior resident agent of the Palo Alto Resident Agency. The agency was located in Silicon Valley in the FBI’s San Francisco Division. There, Figliuzzi led the agency’s effort to minimize foreign-sponsored thefts of trade secrets. Then, in 1997, he led the FBI’s first task force that focused on crime against children.
After 1997, Figliuzzi jumped up the ranks to look after serious allegations against FBI personnel as the Office of Professional Responsibility’s chief at FBI Headquarters. Two years later, he got the opportunity to handle the FBI Miami’s division as an assistant special agent. Fulfilling the position, he conducted public corruption investigations and large-scale financial crimes in Florida and Ohio.
Post 11 September 2001 Attack
After the tragic attack, he was given the responsibility to head the FBI Miami’s newly founded counter-terrorism branch. There, he led the South Florida Joint Terrorism Task Force. He was also the on-scene commander after America’s first anthrax murder in Boca Raton, Florida, in 2001.
In 2004, he led teams all over the world as an FBI inspector. A year later, he was promoted to the chief inspector before handling the Cleavland Division from 2006 to 2010.
Subsequently, in 2011, then-FBI director Director Robert S. Mueller III promoted him to assistant director of the Counterintelligence Division. He worked in the position for a year and retired from the bureau in 2012 after 25 years of service.
Accomplishments
One of Figliuzzi’s most notable accomplishments was exposing the FBI agent Robert Hanssens’ deception. Figliuzzi was on a counterintelligence operation, attempting to enlist the help of a foreign double agent, but Hanssen endangered the entire mission by revealing the mission’s cover. Hassen then went to serve a life imprisonment sentence for espionage in federal prison.
Having led many crucial investigations, Figliuzzi conducted several national media conferences. He was the FBI spokesperson for the press explanation on the apprehension of ten Russian sleeper agents in the United States. He was also one of the leading personnel of the bureau during the White House, Congress, and the Attorney General briefings on the nation’s intelligence services.
Security Expert and Analyst
After retiring from the FBI, Figliuzzi worked in the General Electric Company as a corporate investigations director and the assistant chief security officer from 2012 to 2017. During his five years of working in the company, he headed investigations related to workplace violence and insider threat. He also handled special event security of the company’s expansion in 180 countries with 300,000 employees.
Then, from 2017 to 2018, he was the chief operating officer at the ETS Global Risk Management. There he worked for executive protection in Greater Boston Area.
Later, Figliuzzi also started working as a national security analyst and columnist for NBC News in 2017.
On 12 January 2021, Figliuzzi launched his first book, ‘The FBI Way: Inside the Bureau’s Code of Excellence.’ The book gives a peek into the FBI’s administrative works, and the ethics followed during the process of investigations.
He states that he has themed the book to let the unfamiliar reader understand one of the world’s leading agencies’ ways of handling work and sensitive issues. He narrowed, “The book is called ‘The FBI Way,’ because I think it has something to offer each of us. You don’t need to spend 25 years inside the FBI to glean some of the leadership lessons about what it takes to preserve your values, your family, your business, your country when it’s under severe stress. And we are under severe stress.”
Later, on 25 May 2021, Figliuzzi released the first episode of his podcast, The Bureau with Frank Figliuzzi. He themed the podcast as a recollection of his encounters with criminals while working as an FBI agent.
Is Frank Figliuzzi Married?
Figliuzzi is married to his college sweetheart Coleen Button. They both graduated from Fairfield University; Figliuzzi majored in B. A. Literature, and Button graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Nursing.
Button is a licensed registered nurse in Arizona and Massachusetts. She holds more than 30 years of experience in nursing leadership and has received accolades for her contribution to health education.
Did you Know?
One of the most asked questions about Figliuzzi is "Where does Frank Figliuzzi Live?" Figliuzzi is currently based in Tucson, Arizona, United States. He resides in his house with his wife, Coleen.
