Nelson on Instagram

https://www.instagram.com/montanatheprophet/

Jason on Instagram

https://www.instagram.com/8upjay/

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Time Stamps

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Nelson on Instagram

https://www.instagram.com/montanatheprophet/

Manny on Instagram

https://www.instagram.com/myfightourwar/

Former Detroit police officer Manny Vitale reveals how he went from enforcing the law to riding with the notorious Detroit Highwaymen Motorcycle Club—a 1% outlaw biker gang. Manny opens up about the double life he once led, the brutal realities of gang-infested Detroit, and the dirty cops he encountered along the way. But the wildest twist in his story? He was given just six weeks to live after a total organ shutdown—only to miraculously survive. From the unwritten rules of MC life to real-life corruption on the streets, Manny’s story is packed with grit, danger, and redemption.

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Time Stamps

0:00 Intro

1:41 From Law Man to Out Law

8:12 The Laws of The MC

19:15 Life As An Alcoholic Cop

30:03 Leaving The Force And Getting Shot In The Face

42:00 Being Told I’m Going To Die

48:45 Second Chance At Life

55:18 Redemption

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John "Poet" Thorton on Instagram

https://www.instagram.com/johnpoetthornton/

Nelson on Instagram

https://www.instagram.com/montanatheprophet/

John "Poet" Thorton News Article

https://www.tampabay.com/archive/2008/05/02/10-years-for-murder-attempt/

On this explosive episode of Honor Among Thieves, host Nelson Rodriguez Jr. sits down with John "Poet" Thornton, infamously known as The White Tony Montana and King of the Underground. Once dubbed by local newspapers as the leader of "The Society", Poet ran one of Tampa’s largest underground coke empires, distributing high-purity product through over 30 nightclubs across the city. His drug network eventually expanded into New York, Louisiana, Alabama, and more—turning a solo pill hustle into a multi-state coke distribution empire.

In this raw and gripping interview, Poet opens up about the dark reality of drug trafficking, the emotional breakdown that came after losing the love of his life, and how it led to a spiral that ended in a near-fatal attempt on someone's life. This is the rise, fall, and near self-destruction of a man once feared in the streets and revered in the club scene.

Stay tuned for Part Two, where Poet details his time in federal prison, gang life behind bars, and what redemption looks like after surviving the drug game.

Time Stamps

0:00 Intro

3:58 Poet’s Childhood

12:19 Finding Drugs for the first time

21:15 The Bean Plug

38:15 Finding The Night Clubs: Distribution

49:37 The Bean Plug Retires: Meet The Plug’s Plug

53:24 Nicole: Starting The Coke Business

1:08:30 The Team Takes Form

1:12:45 The Big Time: Distribution, Moving Big Weight, & “The Society”

1:26:17 Blowing Money Like A Drug Dealer

1:31:52 Love At First Sight

1:44:09 The Night That Landed Him In Prison

1:49:19 Wanted: On The Run

1:55:10 Getting Caught: Arrested At The Border

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Nelson on Instagram

https://www.instagram.com/hellonrikers/

Use Promo Code MONTANA Gus Villa Jewelry

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In this episode of Honor Among Thieves, we sit down with Josh—better known as Hell On Rikers—as he shares the raw, unfiltered truth about life growing up in the Bronx projects, his upbringing in the crack trade, and his harrowing experiences doing time in Rikers Island and the New York State prison system. From armed robberies to surviving the brutal world of gang violence, solitary confinement, and the inner politics of Bloods and Crips, Josh takes us deep inside the culture of Rikers Island at its most violent peak. He eventually joins a Bloods faction and gives jaw-dropping insight into prison gangs, extortion, and the psychological toll of life behind bars. This is one of the most intense and brutally honest looks at street crime, urban survival, and the long road to redemption ever told on this podcast. If you're into true crime, gang culture, and prison stories, you won’t want to miss this one.

Time Stamps

0:00 Intro

2:03 The Bronx: The Bloodline 

8:38 Mother In the Crack Cocaine Game

13:31 First time getting arrested selling crack

24:37 The Beginning of A Career In Robbery

31:30 First Time Going To Prison

39:16 Busted Again: Sent To Riker’s Island

49:15 Riots, Gangs & The Box: Getting Moved To Another Unit

1:04:35 Sentenced To A Year: Moved Units Again

1:13:45 Going Home From Riker’s Island

1:18:30 Back To Riker’s Island: Joining A Gang

1:28:15 Washington Correctional Facility

1:41:10 Free Again: Going Back To The Crack Game

1:51:15 The Feds

1:58:15 Redemption 

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Nelson on Instagram

https://www.instagram.com/montanatheprophet/

Lonnie Jones on instagram

https://www.instagram.com/lifeafterlife20/

Lyle Jones on Instagram

https://www.instagram.com/jonesjr.lyle/

Ever seen "New Jack City" starring Wesley Snipes? Well meet two men who lived that movie in real life. This is Lonnie and Lyle Jones. Now typically when people hear Connecticut, they think of rich white people that live in one giant suburb just outside New York City. The Jones Brothers will introduce you to a whole other side of Connecticut that contradicts everything you would ever think that place is. 

Bridgeport, the poorest city in the state and home to the most notorious projects in New England, the PT Barnum Housing Projects. This is where our story begins. From humble beginnings, to building a $100,000 a day drug empire that spanned an entire city. Ultimately, this ends in both of them getting life sentences in prison.... How are they out today? Watch the full podcast and find out.

Time Stamps

0:00 Intro

1:59 Bridgeport, NOT rich white Connecticut 

15:20 Lyle Finds The Streets

23:50 Lonnie Gets In The Game

37:40 Lyle Gets Back in The Game With Lonnie

50:49 The Feds Are Coming

1:02:10 Brothers Go To Prison And Go To Trial

1:16:06 Serving Life Sentences

1:35:00 Reunited after 20 years

1:40:40 Redemption 

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Nelson on Instagram

https://www.instagram.com/montanatheprophet/

Jerry Ormond on Instagram

https://www.instagram.com/universalartsfitness/

Nelson sits down with Jeremiah Ormond, an Irish-American kid from Stafford, Connecticut, whose life took a sharp turn from promising hockey star to convicted felon. Growing up surrounded by a crew that lived on the edge—fighting, stealing, and constantly in trouble—Jeremiah shares how one bad decision led to another, until a single violent incident changed everything.

After stepping into a fight to defend a friend, Jerry delivered a brutal stomp that nearly cost another kid his life. That moment landed him in court—alongside 30 of his friends facing charges the same day—and eventually behind bars for a one-year prison bid that exposed him to the brutal realities of life inside: fights, stabbings, and death in the yard.

Raw, unfiltered, and brutally honest, Jeremiah opens up about the path that led him into the system—and what he saw while he was in it. This episode is a deep dive into how fast life can spiral, and how thin the line really is between freedom and a cage.

Time Stamps

0:00 Intro

2:58 Connecticut Is The Hood

8:10 Growing Up Irish And Around Violence

16:40 The Beginning of Crime 

22:47 The Assault & Getting Arrested

35:44 Going to Prison

44:11 Officially In Prison

52:45 Seeing A Dead Body In Prison

58:30 How Races Interact In Prison

1:03:20 Getting Into A Prison Fight

1:10:38 Coming Home

1:21:50 Surrounded By Death

1:27:03 Redemption

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Jorge Valdes on Instagram

https://www.instagram.com/drjorgeluisvaldes/

Nelson on Instagram

https://www.instagram.com/montanatheprophet/

Nelson Rodriguez Jr. reunites with Jorge Valdes, the original architect of the U.S. cocaine trade and a central figure in Cocaine Cowboys: Kings of Miami. While Part One told the story of his meteoric rise and fall, this episode picks up in 1984, right after Jorge is released from prison—and builds his drug empire all over again.

But one night, a moment with his young daughter sparks a radical change of heart, and Jorge walks away from millions in cocaine profits—overnight. Just a few years into living a better life, the federal government comes back, this time taking everything: $66 million in assets gone in just 15 minutes of signing paperwork.

Out of prison again in 1996, Jorge’s transformation begins for real. While earning his PhD behind bars, he emerges as a new man—becoming an assistant professor teaching Greek, finding love, reuniting with his children, and building a cleaning business from scratch that would eventually become an 8-figure success story.

Today, Jorge lives retired in Orlando, a devoted husband, father, grandfather, and man of faith. This is not just a story of crime—it’s a story of grace, grit, and redemption. Don’t miss one of the most unbelievable second acts ever told.

Time Stamps

0:00 Intro

01:06 1984: Escobar, Ochoa, & Dicky Lynn

13:04 Jorge Walks Away From The Cocaine Business

20:21 Going Back To Prison And Losing Everything

27:44 Starting Over: PHD, Marriage, & The New Business

36:58 Miguel Velez: The Man Who Killed Barry Seal

46:15 Jorge’s Take On The Modern Day War On Drugs

56:11 Redemption of Cocaine Cowboy

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Nelson on Instagram

https://www.instagram.com/montanatheprophet/

Jorge Valdes on Instagram

https://www.instagram.com/drjorgeluisvaldes/

Nelson sits down with none other than Dr. Jorge Valdes, the man credited with bringing cocaine into the United States and one of the central figures behind the infamous Cocaine Cowboys: Kings of Miami docuseries. In the late 1970s, Jorge Valdes helped architect the billion-dollar cocaine pipeline that forever changed Miami and American drug culture. A former U.S. government employee turned drug lord, Valdes shares the chilling truths behind building a drug empire, what life was like at the top of the underworld, and ultimately, what led to his transformation. From private jets and briefcases of cash to prison cells and redemption, this episode dives deep into one of the most fascinating criminal evolutions of our time. You won't want to miss this firsthand account of the man who once sat at the throne of the cocaine trade.

Time Stamps

0:00 Intro

4:25 The Reality of The Narco Life

14:09 Coming From Cuba

27:31 The Federal Reserve Bank

37:08 Finding The Cocaine Trade

48:51 Crossing The Line: Money Laundering & The Cocaine Business

57:16 Becoming Manny’s Right hand

1:10:38 “Cocaine Cowboys” 

1:23:29 Sal Magluta & Willy Falcon

1:30:17 The Bolivian Connection & Tortured In Panama

1:44:10 Charged With The Largest Drug Conspiracy In American History

1:52:45 What Prison Is Like For A Drug lord

2:01:00 Getting Out from Prison In 1984

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Nelson on Instagram

https://www.instagram.com/montanatheprophet/

Alysia Smith on Instagram

https://www.instagram.com/allie.say.what/

Nelson Rodriguez Jr. welcomes Alysia Smith, a survivor with a powerful story of chaos, survival, and redemption. Born and raised in Akron, Ohio—a city plagued by gangs, biker wars, and rampant violence—Allie knew from a young age that the streets could swallow her whole. When neighbors were caught up in a major federal fentanyl bust, she made the bold decision to escape, relocating to Tallahassee, Florida in search of a better life.

But running from Akron didn’t heal the scars. Battling depression, benzodiazepine and alcohol abuse became her way of coping—until one fateful visit back to Ohio changed everything. A night out with friends at a strip club spiraled out of control when Allie was falsely accused of stealing a stripper's purse. What followed was a 24-hour whirlwind trial, shocking revelations about the accuser’s six fake identities, and a devastating prison sentence that landed Allie behind bars in Ohio, surrounded by some of the state’s most dangerous women.

Time Stamps

0:00 Intro

3:38 Akron, Ohio: Murder & Gangs

10:07 Growing Up In Akron

16:30 Crazy Work Environments

22:25 Catching The Assault Case

27:01 Getting In A Fight With A Stripper

32:25 Bailed Out: The Case Starts

37:30 Going To Trial

41:15 Sent To Jail

46:39 Dayton Prison

50:06 The Daddy Killers

54:48 Cell Mate Wants To Smash

57:33 Filing For Parole/Riding In The Patty Wagon

1:02:06 Finally Out

1:04:26 Redemption

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Nelson on Instagram

https://www.instagram.com/montanatheprophet/

Devin on Instagram

https://www.instagram.com/devindon22/

Nelson sits down with Devin Donovan, a man whose life reads like a gritty crime drama—but whose journey is all too real. Born just outside of Boston into a world surrounded by addiction and criminality, Devin was raised in the shadow of a father who was a habitual offender and addict, and a mother who eventually fled to Australia to escape the chaos.

Influenced by street life and mobster movies like Goodfellas, Devin spiraled into a world of drugs and violence as a teen. When his father died at just 18, it pushed him past the edge into overdose and criminal activity. But karma dealt a cruel twist—he was arrested for a breaking and entering he didn’t even commit, landing him in the prison system anyway.

After getting sober and attending NA meetings daily for 18 months, Devin tried to change—but relapsed hard, not once but twice. It wasn’t until the birth of his twin daughters that everything finally shifted. Now walking the path of true sobriety and redemption, Devin shares his raw, unfiltered story of what it really takes to rebuild your life from rock bottom.

Time Stamps

0:00 Intro

1:30 The Lace up Podcast

4:06 Devin’s Story

9:01 Having Addicts As Parents

14:01 First Time Devin Gets Arrested

20:10 Catching His Case and Going To Prison

27:21 Drugs In Prison

30:20 Doing Time & Recidivism

38:59 Getting Out & Relapsing

45:11 Relapsing Again

49:45 Redemption

51:42 Outro

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