203 episodes
The Underworld Podcast Underworld Subscribers +
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- Society & Culture
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4.7 • 640 Ratings
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Underworld exposes the secret world of transnational criminal networks that have flourished since there were banks to bust, drugs to smuggle, and scams to run. Journalists Danny Gold and Sean Williams bring their experience reporting on dangerous people and organizations to take listeners on a global tour of mobsters, warlords and crooks - from Brooklyn to Beijing, from the streets to the boardrooms - and everywhere in between. Underworld is a show about heroes, villains, and the barely visible mafias that affect all our lives, whether we know it or not.
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India's Gangster Assassins Are Running Wild
When hitmen shot dead Sikh activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar near Vancouver last June, Canadian cops blamed the government of India’s strongman leader Narendra Modi. Subsequent assassination plots in NYC, the UK and Germany have pointed at two men.
One is India’s most notorious mobster. The other is its most decorated spy, a man whose undercover ops—and willingness to dip into the underworld—has earned him the nickname “India’s James Bond.”
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The Most Corrupt NYPD Detective & His Mafia Uncle w/Steve Fishman
Louis Sarcella might be one of the most corrupt NYPD detectives ever, though he was once heralded as a master at getting confessions on homicides. A slick dressing, tough talking cigar smoker who could bench 400 pounds, he got such a good reputation that he was invited on the Dr. Phil show.
But while he was waging a war on the streets, his uncle, Nicky Black Grancio, was waging a mafia war as the third Colombo family civil war heated up and bodies started to drop. Both Nicky and Louis's luck would soon run out. We're joined by the host of The Burden, journalist Steve Fishman.
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The Gangster Warlords of Haiti's Collapse with Jason Motlagh
Haiti's gangs have effectively taken over the country, plunging into chaos and violence as warring gangster warlords like the infamous Barbeque fight for territorial control. In February gangs stormed police stations, shot up the airport and freed thousands of prisoners after storming the country's biggest prisons, causing a humanitarian crisis. Things have gotten so bad that Kenya is sending in 1,000 police officers to try to regain some sort of control.
We're joined by reporter Jason Motlagh, who's been reporting down there for years and has hung out with Barbeque before.
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El Mayo: The Undisputed King of Mexico & the Betrayal of El Chapo
In the late 2000's, the Mexico government put together a list of dozens of Narco kingpins it wanted to bring down. Only one name from that list is not imprisoned or dead, and still sitting stop the Mexican cartel world: El Mayo. Nearing 80, he's never so much as been arrested despite co-founding and then co-leading the Sinaloa cartel for decades.
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El Chapo's Boss & The Most Powerful Kingpin in Mexico: El Mayo
Everyone knows El Chapo, the infamous leader of the Sinaloa Cartel, one time most powerful kingpin that Mexico has ever seen. The man who revolutionized the Mexican cartels' drug trade. But...what if he never actually was at the top of the food chain?
Some have long suspected that the head of the Sinaloa cartel has always been Ismael Zambada Garcia, also known as El Mayo. Nearing his 80's, little is known about his early life, but he's always managed to stay two steps ahead of the cartel wars and the police. He's never been arrested. He's always played the background, avoiding the spotlight and letting Chapo get the notoriety even though they cofounded and shared leadership of the Sinaloa Cartel.
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BONUS: Jacob Kushner on the German Bank-Robbing Terror Gang that Evaded Justice For Over a Decade
BONUS: Jacob Kushner on the German Bank-Robbing Terror Gang that Evaded Justice For Over a Decade
Customer Reviews
One of the most well-informed “gangster” podcasts
These guys are both journalists who actually have real life experience covering their subject matter, and when they don’t they bring on an expert who does. They don’t base their content and sources off of Wikipedia or YouTube, but instead from real research, interviews, and experts.
5 stars
These boys have grown on me.
Quite literally the best podcast
No question, this is my favorite podcast available. The well-researched, well-written deep dives into the inter workings of transnational criminal organizations is informative and entertaining. A great mix of current events and historical subjects from all around the world.
The Underworld Podcast is the only podcast to which I subscribe on Patreon, and I value that subscription more than most video streaming services.
Their work has led me down deep rabbit holes of Danny Gold’s documentary work and Sean Williams’s long form work (the Purple Haze episode and article are both top-tier work).
Fellas, keep up the great work. And also to answer a recent question on the show: more of the current underworld (cartels, triads, narco states, and street gangs) from far-flung lands, and keep the same amount of the old American mafia stories.