El Salvador's warring street gangs-turned-armies may have finally been broken thanks to the heavy-handed policies of Nayib Bukele dumping anyone and everyone into prison. But before MS-13 and 18th Street had been taken down a notch, they ruled neighborhoods in El Salvador with a brutality rarely seen. It's not just face tattoos and machetes. We break down th ... Show More
Jul 8
The Shaman-Gangsters Who Built Indonesia
For centuries, brigands, gangsters and street toughs ruled the island of Java so thoroughly that they were woven into local myths. But in the 20th century, when the world bounded towards war, mob bosses in Jakarta spotted a chance to turn underworld kudos into an independent nati ... Show More
1h 7m
Jun 24
Cocaine, Camorra, Call Girls: Maradona's Downfall
In 1987, Argentine soccer star Diego Maradona was on top of the world. He’d just handed his nation a World Cup, and his club side Napoli its first league title in over 60 years. But Maradona’s hard-partying lifestyle and underworld friends would soon take their toll - and before ... Show More
1h 9m
Apr 2023
MC5: Dope, Guns, and F***ing in the Streets
MC5 embodied revolution in a way most bands only pay lip service to. The Detroit cops sent riot squads and even a tank to break up their shows, and even raided their house. They were the only band to play at the infamous protest outside the 1968 Democratic National Convention. Th ... Show More
37m 59s
Dec 2020
LA County Sheriff’s Gangs Pt. 5: The East LA Banditos
In East LA, a group of deputies named the Banditos stand accused of running the sheriff’s substation like a gang, institutionalizing a culture of fear and retaliation. And while they’re intimidating civilians and colleagues alike, they may be protected by the very top of the depa ... Show More
42m 51s
Sep 2019
N.W.A Pt. 1: Street Hustle, Reality Rap and Culture-Shifting Violence
N.W.A, the self proclaimed “most dangerous group in America,” were seen as violent, thuggish, profanity-spewing criminals, but they had nothing on those who were sworn to serve and protect them in South Central Los Angeles. The group’s hard hitting beats and reality rhymes launch ... Show More
45m 47s
Jun 2018
“The Beast” - Luis Garavito
Luis Garavito was born in Colombia in 1957 to an abusive, alcoholic father and a time of civil unrest. At the age of sixteen, Garavito was kicked out of the house. This sparked a transient lifestyle and murder spree during which Garavito raped, tortured, and murdered over one hun ... Show More
48m 33s