True Crime Reporter

By Robert Riggs The Godfather. Goodfellas. The Sopranos. Hollywood entertained us with polished fiction—honor among thieves, loyalty bound by blood, men of principle wrapped in tailored suits. But the real mob? It was darker. Colder. Predatory. The smile came first. The knife came after. This is the true story of how FBI Special Agent Mike Campi helped dismantle the Genovese crime family—the oldest, largest, and most insidious of New York’s five Mafia Families. Founded by Charles “Lucky” Luciano in 1931. Consolidated under Vito Genovese in the late 1950s. The family once ruled Manhattan’s west side piers and the Fulton Fish Market on the East River with quiet brutality. Everything moved through their hands—money, muscle, silence. Campi joined the FBI’s Organized Crime Squad in 1985, stepping into the heart of a sweeping federal assault on the American Mafia. Over the next two decades, he led investigations that exposed the rot behind the façade. His new book, Mafia Takedown, pulls back the curtain on what really happened. Not the Hollywood version. The truth. PLEASE SUPPORT MY WORK Click here to purchase my “Texas Crime Stories” audiobook. It downloads into your podcast app. Click here to purchase the Paperback & Kindle editions on Amazon. Schedule me to speak at your social meeting or corporate event. My presentation, “Evil Walks Among Us,” features stories about serial killers and notorious criminals and personal safety tips. Step into the storied halls of the Texas Prison Museum and uncover the gripping tales of infamous inmates, daring escapes, and the history of justice in the Lone Star State. GET YOUR EXCLUSIVE DISCOUNT PROMO CODES 41% Off Cozy Earth Sheets, Pajamas and More 20% Off Eric Javits Designer Hats Worn by True Crime TV Detectives 20% Off HyperNatural Men’s Polo Shirts 15% Off TONA Activewear Designer Gym Leggings 15% Off STAND+ Comfort Shoes For Extended Standing 10% Off AKILA Sunglasses and Eyewear

The story sounds like something straight out of a spy thriller.  A plot by America’s most feared criminal syndicate and its most secretive intelligence agency to assassinate a foreign leader using poison cigars and other James Bond-inspired schemes.  But this isn’t fiction. This is the true story of how the CIA joined forces with Mafia hitmen to assassinate Fidel Castro. The revelations with ties to the Watergate scandal in the 1970s have fueled conspiracy theories about the assassination of President John F. Kennedy.  In this episode of True Crime Reporter®, I sit down with fellow investigative reporter Thomas Maier, whose book Mafia Spies pulls back the curtain on a chilling chapter of American history.  Together, we trace how the mob lost its Cuban gambling empire after Castro’s revolution and how, in Cold War fear, U.S. intelligence agents turned its gangsters to eliminate Castro. Maier says the challenge of his investigation was figuring how out to tell a story in which everyone lies.  Here’s a link to the cast of characters in the episode. PLEASE SUPPORT MY WORK Click here to purchase my “Texas Crime Stories” audiobook. It downloads into your podcast app. Click here to purchase the Paperback & Kindle editions on Amazon. Schedule me to speak at your social meeting or corporate event. My presentation, “Evil Walks Among Us,” features stories about serial killers and notorious criminals and personal safety tips. Step into the storied halls of the Texas Prison Museum and uncover the gripping tales of infamous inmates, daring escapes, and the history of justice in the Lone Star State. GET YOUR EXCLUSIVE DISCOUNT PROMO CODES 41% Off Cozy Earth Sheets, Pajamas and More 20% Off Eric Javits Designer Hats Worn by True Crime TV Detectives 20% Off HyperNatural Men’s Polo Shirts 15% Off TONA Activewear Designer Gym Leggings 15% Off STAND+ Comfort Shoes For Extended Standing 10% Off AKILA Sunglasses and Eyewear

Whether walking through a dimly lit parking lot, meeting someone new, or even evaluating the behavior of people close to you, the ability to read people and size them up could mean the difference between safety and danger. This episode teaches you how to think like an FBI Behavioral Analyst. Robin Dreeke, who headed the FBI’s Behavioral Analysis Program, joins me to discuss his framework for predicting human behavior. Dreeke wrote the book, “Sizzling People Up”, based on his years in counterespionage.  His unit was part of the Behavioral Analysis Unit that focuses on violent crime—popularly known as the serial killer unit. Now, in private consulting, Dreeke teaches how anyone can learn to predict what others will do in the most important situations.  Robin Dreeke is here to help keep you safe in public and online by learning to read people. PLEASE SUPPORT OUR WORK Click the Promo Code for your exclusive 20% OFF DISCOUNT at Eric Javits Designer Hats. We wear these hats and receive a sales commission to keep producing stories. Click the Promo Code for your exclusive 41% OFF DISCOUNT at Cozy Earth Bedding & Lounge Wear. Oprah’s favorite since 2018. We receive a sales commission. Click the Promo Code for your exclusive 30% OFF DISCOUNT at Protégé Painless Stiletto Heels. Designed by an MIT graduate who wanted comfort & luxury. We receive a sales commission. Click the Promo Code for your exclusive 20% OFF DISCOUNT at Men’s HyperNatural Cool Polo Shirts. Great for travel and golf. We receive a sales commission. Click the Promo Code for your exclusive 15% OFF DISCOUNT at TONA Activewear Designer Gym Leggings. Created by one of the founding designers of Lululemon. We receive a sales commission. Please support me by purchasing my books. Click here to purchase my “Texas Crime Stories” audiobook. It downloads into your podcast app. Click here to purchase the Paperback & Kindle editions on Amazon. Subscribe to the True Crime Reporter® podcast. Subscribe to the “Stories To Keep You Safe” Newsletter on the True Crime Reporter® website. Schedule me to speak at your social meeting or corporate event. My presentation, “Evil Walks Among Us,” features stories about serial killers and notorious criminals and personal safety tips. Step into the storied halls of the Texas Prison Museum and uncover the gripping tales of infamous inmates, daring escapes, and the history of justice in the Lone Star State.

How well do we truly know our friends? Can we discern when they are lying, or even worse, when they might be hiding a deadly secret? In this episode, I delve into the unsettling story of Fred Roehler, who seemed to embody the perfect father and husband in the idyllic setting of Malibu, California. However, beneath this facade of a picture-perfect family lies a chilling tale of deception, tragedy, and murder. Join me as I unravel the mystery that Ivor Davis and his wife Sally, both seasoned journalists, uncovered about their close friend in their book The Devil In My Friend: The Inside Story Of A Malibu Murder. FOLLOW the True Crime Reporter® Podcast  SIGN UP FOR my True Crime Newsletter THANK YOU FOR THE FIVE-STAR REVIEWS ON APPLE Please leave one – it really helps. TELL ME about a STORY OR SUBJECT  that you want to hear more about

In the blood-soaked pantheon of Depression-era gangsters, one killer stood apart – not for his height, but for his face.  Witnesses consistently described him as looking like “an angel,” with bright blue eyes and features so youthful that bank tellers often mistook him for a teenage messenger boy.  That angelic countenance masked the soul of perhaps the most efficient killer in gangster history.  Baby Face Nelson didn’t just rob banks – he hunted FBI agents for sport, kept a list of their license plates, and giggled like a schoolboy while gunning them down.  He was a member of John Dillinger’s gang and replaced him as Public Enemy Number One. This isn’t the story of another charming outlaw like Bonnie and Clyde – it’s the tale of a cherub-faced psychopath who turned Depression-era America into his personal killing ground. FOLLOW the True Crime Reporter® Podcast  SIGN UP FOR my True Crime Newsletter THANK YOU FOR THE FIVE-STAR REVIEWS ON APPLE Please leave one – it really helps. TELL ME about a STORY OR SUBJECT  that you want to hear more about Step into the storied halls of the Texas Prison Museum and uncover the gripping tales of infamous inmates, daring escapes, and the history of justice in the Lone Star State.

Mike Cox’s name is synonymous with Texas crime reporting.  Cox spent decades covering grisly crimes, working as a police beat reporter and later as the Chief of Media Relations for the Texas Department of Public Safety and authoring books about the Texas Rangers.  His latest book, Getting Away with Murder: Learning from Dateline and Other True Crime Shows, blends his sharp wit with his vast experience in law enforcement, offering readers a tongue-in-cheek take on crime and the often bizarre ways criminals get caught.  As an enterprising police beat reporter for the Austin American Statesman, Mike broke the story about serial killer Henry Lee Lucas’ courtroom confession to 100 murders. Mike extensively interviewed Lucas in jail and wrote the definitive book about the case, The Confessions of Henry Lee Lucas. During our interview, Cox reflects on his lifelong immersion in storytelling, his family’s deep connection to journalism, and how true crime shows like Dateline rekindled his passion for the subject. FOLLOW the True Crime Reporter® Podcast  SIGN UP FOR my True Crime Newsletter THANK YOU FOR THE FIVE-STAR REVIEWS ON APPLE Please leave one – it really helps. TELL ME about a STORY OR SUBJECT  that you want to hear more about

Joe Pulizzi, the Godfather of Content Marketing, takes an audacious leap into crime fiction, delivering a story that is as mesmerizing as it is chilling.  Set within the haunting confines of a funeral home, “The Will To Die” unravels a dark and twisted narrative brimming with suspense, secrets, and a touch of macabre. Pulizzi’s protagonist, a marketing professional, finds himself entangled in a web of deceit and danger. He is compelled to uncover the mysteries buried deep within the family-run funeral home he unexpectedly inherits. Since I grew up in East Texas, I was drawn to Pulizzi’s crime novel because of the real-life case of Bernie Tiede. The chubby-cheeked mortician befriended the widow of a wealthy oilman at his funeral.  Bernie became her personal assistant and sole heir to her multi-million dollar estate. And in 1996, he carried out one of the most bizarre murders in Texas history.  Pulizzi is on to something by incorporating the morticians and embalmers into his story. They are typically seen as caretakers of the dead, but their presence confronts the unnerving possibility that death has taken on a new, more sinister dimension within their midst. JOE PULIZZI – LINKS “The Will To Die” “The Content Entrepreneur” The Orange Effect Foundation – Help children with speech disorders receive the speech therapy and technology they need. FOLLOW the True Crime Reporter® Podcast  SIGN UP FOR my True Crime Newsletter THANK YOU FOR THE FIVE-STAR REVIEWS ON APPLE – Please leave one – it really helps. TELL ME about a STORY OR SUBJECT  that you want to hear more about Read The Story