Staffa started his career as a smuggler and retired with a decent amount of credits and contacts. He was enamored with the planet of Berchest and joked that he would retire there and enter politics. When he quit smuggling, he was elected to the Berchestian Council. He found out the governor was taking kickbacks from smugglers operating on the planet and blackmailed him into quitting and suggesting Staffa as a replacement. Once appointed, Staffa reached out to his former colleagues and setup an informal "taxation" program that involved taking a cut of the business taking place on Berchest. While he thought he was able to avoid attention, Imperial Intelligence kept an eye on him to help root out other members of the fringe.
Staffa had known and had a working agreement with the smuggler chief Talon Karrde for several years. His assistant Fingal went behind his back and told of his dealings with Karrde to Grand Admiral Thrawn.
- The Thrawn Trilogy Sourcebook