Honor Among Thieves | True Crime & Crime Stories

Mike Mazursky returns to Honor Among Thieves Podcast to reveal what prison is really like inside Israel’s prison system after serving just over 4 years for a string of heists in Israel.

In this episode, Mike breaks down the hidden power structure behind Israeli prisons — where Israelis, Arabs, and Russians each operate under different rules, politics, loyalties, and prison codes. As a Russian inmate in Israel, Mike found himself pulled into a world shaped by Russian prison culture, the thieves’ code, prison politics, gang hierarchy, respect, violence, and survival.

Mike explains how the Russian prisoners organized themselves, how prison tattoos represented status, why “thief in law” culture still matters, how different groups handled conflict, and what it was like navigating Israeli prison yards where Russians, Arabs, and Israelis all had their own alliances and rules.

This conversation also covers the difference between American prisons and Israeli prisons, how paperwork and charges were viewed, how inmates handled sex offenders and cooperators, the role of guards, prison food, drugs, fights, discipline, religion, and the daily reality of doing time in a foreign country.

This is not a Hollywood version of prison.

This is a firsthand account of what Mike lived through while incarcerated in Israel — the gangs, the rules, the politics, the fear, the survival, and the lessons he carried with him after getting out.

In this episode, we cover:
Mike Mazursky’s return to Honor Among Thieves Podcast
Serving over 4 years in prison in Israel
The three major groups inside Israeli prisons: Russians, Arabs, and Israelis
How Russian inmates operated behind bars
Russian prison culture, tattoos, and the thieves’ code
What “thief in law” means inside prison culture
How prison gangs controlled different parts of the system
The difference between Israeli prisons and American prisons
Prison politics, respect, violence, and survival
How inmates handled paperwork, charges, and reputation
Guards, discipline, prison food, drugs, and daily life
The mental pressure of doing time in a foreign country
Mike’s prison stories and what he learned after losing his freedom

This episode gives a rare look inside Israel’s prison gangs, the Russian criminal underworld, and the inmate politics most people never get to hear about.

Chapters
0:00 Israel’s Prison Gangs: Mike Mazursky Returns
8:07 Russian Shot Callers & Inmate Power in Israeli Prison
18:13 Russian Prison Code, Tattoos & the Thief-in-Law System
29:57 Prison Punishments, Sentencing & Transfer to Be’er Sheva
40:55 Parole Programs, Violence Treatment & Israeli Prison Rules
51:20 Israeli Prison Guards, Arab Inmates & Ramadan Behind Bars
1:00:39 Guard Violence, Solitary & Prison Investigations in Israel
1:09:59 Israeli Crime Families, Russians & Arab Prison Politics
1:20:01 The Wildest Cell Block, Prison Violence & Foreign Inmates
1:29:56 Conjugal Visits, Final Prison Lessons & Life After Release

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Ryan Root joins Honor Among Thieves Podcast to tell the story of how he went from studying biochemistry and testosterone to running one of the largest underground steroid operations in the world.

In this true crime podcast episode, Ryan breaks down how the black market steroid world worked in the early 2000s, how underground labs exploded online, and how his operation grew into a massive illegal steroid empire that generated millions of dollars before the federal government came after him.

Ryan explains how he became known as one of the top steroid sources in the world, how the business scaled through bodybuilding forums, underground labs, suppliers, shipping networks, and money collectors, and how the operation eventually made around $10 million a year before it all came crashing down.

This episode also covers Operation Cyber Juice, the DEA investigation, the mistakes that exposed the operation, the federal case that followed, and how Ryan was sentenced to 78 months in federal prison.

But this conversation is bigger than steroids.

Ryan talks about low testosterone, bodybuilding culture, the difference between medical use and black market abuse, the criminal justice system, prison, losing everything, rebuilding his life, and what redemption looks like after becoming known as the “Walter White of Steroids.”

In this episode, we cover:

Ryan Root’s early interest in testosterone, hormones, and biochemistry

How the steroid black market worked in the early 2000s

Underground labs and the rise of online steroid forums

How Ryan built a massive anabolic steroid operation

Becoming one of the top steroid sources in the world

The $10 million-a-year steroid empire

Bodybuilding, performance enhancement, and steroid culture

Money collectors, suppliers, shipping networks, and federal exposure

Operation Cyber Juice and the DEA investigation

The mistake that led law enforcement to the organization

Ryan Root’s federal indictment and 78-month prison sentence

What federal prison taught him

Losing money, property, freedom, and identity

Life after prison and Ryan’s story of redemption

This is one of the most unique federal crime stories ever featured on Honor Among Thieves Podcast. Ryan Root gives a raw look inside the underground steroid world, the business behind anabolic steroid trafficking, the risks of illegal performance-enhancing drugs, and the consequences that come when a black market empire gets too big to hide.

Chapters

0:00 Intro

3:03 Low Testosterone, Getting Picked On & Finding the Gym

13:46 Biochemistry, Hormone Research & First Steroid Connect

25:18 Breaking Into the World’s Largest Steroid Forum

35:00 Becoming the #3 Steroid Source In The World

45:03 Going All In, Building the Underground Labs

55:17 Money Collectors, China Suppliers & a National Operation

1:05:50 $10M a Year, Five Houses & How "Operation Cyber Juice" Started

1:18:14 Federal Prison, Otisville, Mike “The Situation” & Prison Lessons

1:27:41 Redemption, Go H4M & Life After Prison

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Marina Lacerda joins Honor Among Thieves Podcast to tell her story as a documented survivor connected to the Jeffrey Epstein case and identified in court records as Minor Victim #1.

In this powerful true crime podcast episode, Marina opens up about her childhood in Brazil, moving to New York as a young girl, surviving abuse before ever meeting Jeffrey Epstein, and how the trauma of her early life made her vulnerable to people who knew how to exploit pain, poverty, fear, and desperation.

Marina details how she was introduced to Jeffrey Epstein at 14 years old, what she saw inside his Manhattan home, how Epstein used money, power, manipulation, and access to control young girls, and why so many survivors struggled to understand what was happening to them in real time.

This episode also covers the FBI investigation, the 2008 Epstein case, why Marina believes she was labeled Minor Victim #1, the New York victims, the Florida victims, the legal pressure survivors faced, and how Epstein’s power protected him for years while the people around him were left to carry the trauma.

This conversation is not about conspiracy theories or internet rumors.

It is about the survivor’s perspective.

It is about what happens when powerful people exploit vulnerable young girls, how institutions fail victims, and what it takes to survive, heal, and speak publicly after years of silence.

In this episode, we cover:

Marina Lacerda’s childhood in Brazil and move to New York

Surviving abuse before the Jeffrey Epstein case

How Marina was introduced to Jeffrey Epstein at 14 years old

Inside Epstein’s Manhattan home

How Epstein used money, power, and manipulation

Why young girls were targeted and groomed

The New York victims connected to Jeffrey Epstein

The FBI investigation into Epstein

Marina being identified as Minor Victim #1

The 2008 Epstein case and the sweetheart deal

How survivors were pressured, questioned, and silenced

Trauma, memory, addiction, healing, and survival

Why Marina chose to speak publicly about her story

The larger failure of power, politics, and the justice system

This is one of the most important and emotional episodes of Honor Among Thieves Podcast, exposing the human reality behind the Jeffrey Epstein case through the voice of someone who lived it.

Chapters

0:00 Intro

5:29 Marina’s Childhood in Brazil & Moving to New York

12:08 Early Abuse, Family Betrayal & Feeling Unprotected

20:08 Going to Police, Family Fallout & Working Young

27:24 How Marina Was Introduced to Jeffrey Epstein

37:14 Why She Went Back & How Epstein Manipulated Victims

52:46 Epstein’s Network, Immigrant Girls & New York Victims

59:10 The 2008 FBI Knock, Minor Victim #1 & the Sweetheart Deal

1:12:02 Life After Epstein, Strip Clubs & Trying to Move Forward

1:21:03 The FBI Returns in 2018 & the New York Investigation

1:34:49 Epstein’s Death, Addiction, Recovery & Survivor Trauma

1:42:41 Looking Back: Boundaries, Healing & Who Failed Her

1:54:18 Marina’s Next Chapter: Book, Podcast, Brazil & Redemption

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Alex Montanez joins Honor Among Thieves Podcast to tell the real story behind one of the most powerful cartel bloodlines connected to the Medellín Cartel, Griselda Blanco, the Ochoa family, and the 1980s Colombia-to-Miami cocaine pipeline.

Alex is the nephew of Rafa Salazar, a key figure in the Miami cocaine era and a close business associate connected to Griselda Blanco’s inner circle. He is also the godson of Jorge Ochoa Sr., one of the founding figures tied to the rise of the Medellín Cartel. In this episode, Alex breaks down the family history, the real Miami cocaine story, the connection to Griselda Blanco, and what Hollywood and Netflix often leave out.

This conversation goes beyond the Netflix version of the Griselda story. Alex talks about the real people behind the cocaine empire, how Miami became a major hub for Colombian trafficking, how money was moved through businesses and shipments, and how the Medellín Cartel changed organized crime forever.

From Rafa Salazar and the Ochoa family to Griselda Blanco, Pablo Escobar, Narcos, Miami in the 1980s, cartel violence, prison, loyalty, family legacy, and the consequences of the criminal underworld, this episode gives a rare inside look at one of the most infamous eras in true crime history.

In this episode, we cover:
Alex Montanez’s connection to the Medellín Cartel bloodline
His uncle Rafa Salazar and the Miami cocaine pipeline
The Ochoa family’s role in cartel history
Griselda Blanco’s inner circle and the real Miami cocaine era
The Colombia-to-Miami drug trafficking route
How cartel money allegedly moved through businesses and shipments
The real stories behind Narcos and the Griselda Netflix series
Pablo Escobar, Medellín, Miami, and the rise of Colombian organized crime
Family legacy, cartel history, and growing up connected to infamous names
The difference between Hollywood cartel stories and real life
Prison, loyalty, betrayal, consequences, and life after the cartel era

This is one of the most important cartel history episodes of Honor Among Thieves Podcast, revealing the real story behind the people, families, and criminal networks that helped shape Miami during the cocaine boom of the 1980s.

Chapters
0:00 Intro
2:41 Mattresses, The Bloodline & The Medellín Cartel
12:42 His Parents Meet & His Father Enters the Family Business
24:06 The Mattress Scheme That Moved Money Back to Colombia
34:09 Griselda Blanco’s Hitman, Rafa & Pablo Escobar’s Jealousy
47:10 Why the Cartel Chose Miami Over California
56:28 Barry Seal, Carlos Lehder & Cartel Secrets
66:05 $20 Million Cash, Panama Money & Life on the Run
73:13 Growing Up Around Bricks, Cash & the Family Business
84:19 New York, Chicago, & Street Reputation
93:17 Life After the Streets & Redemption

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Christian Carmona joins Honor Among Thieves Podcast to tell the story of growing up as the son of a Colombian drug trafficker whose family was taken down in a major federal RICO case connected to a criminal narcotics enterprise.

In this true crime podcast episode, Christian opens up about his father’s federal case out of Portland, Oregon, the FBI raid that changed his family forever, the money found buried in the house, and the moment his father accepted responsibility and took a 20-year prison sentence without cooperating.

This episode goes deeper than a drug trafficking story. Christian explains what it was like to be a kid when the federal government came after his family, how his mother was accused of laundering money and sentenced to 12 years, and how the consequences of the criminal underworld shaped his life long after the case was over.

From Colombia and Medellín to South Florida, Atlanta, Portland, federal prison, deportation, family loyalty, and survival, this is a raw look at the cost of organized crime from the perspective of the child left behind.

In this episode, we cover:
Christian Carmona’s childhood after coming to America from Colombia
His father’s rise from Medellín to the U.S. drug world
The federal RICO case that brought down his family
The FBI raid in Portland, Oregon
The money found buried inside the house
Why his father took 20 years and never cooperated
His mother’s money laundering case and 12-year sentence
Growing up with both parents in federal prison
Colombian drug trafficking, South Florida, Atlanta, and Oregon
The impact of the war on drugs on immigrant families
Loyalty, silence, family codes, and the price of the criminal underworld
Life after the case and how Christian carried the story into adulthood

This is one of the most personal episodes of Honor Among Thieves Podcast, exposing the reality behind federal drug cases, organized crime, family loyalty, criminal justice, and the long-term damage caused when an entire family is pulled into the federal system.

0:00 Intro
3:13 His Father’s 20-Year Sentence & Old School Silence
8:43 Medellín’s Criminal Underworld
12:14 How Narco Money Changed Everything
18:05 Moving to America & His Father's Double Life
24:58 His Father’s National Drug Case
30:00 FBI Raid, Buried Cash, RICO & the Family Collapse
39:00 His Father Takes 20 Years and His Mother Gets 12
50:40 Losing His Brother to the Federal System
1:00:00 Miami Nightlife, Bank Work & Criminal Connections
1:09:40 The DEA Setup, Informant & Christian's Arrest
1:21:45 Locked Up With His Brother & Fighting the Case
1:30:15 The Hole, Finding God, Life After the Case & Redemption

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