Locked In with Ian Bick

Leo Silva grew up in Texas, was recruited into the DEA at just 22 years old, and spent the next 28 years on the front lines of America's war on drugs — starting with undercover operations in Texas before being stationed in Monterrey Mexico as Resident Agent in Charge where he built cases against the Gulf Cartel and the infamous Los Zetas and eventually rose to Special Agent in Charge. In this episode of Locked In with Ian Bick, he shares what hunting cartels from the inside of Mexico really looked like — the undercover buys the high stakes operations the cartel violence and the bureaucracy that most people on the outside never hear about. He also breaks down how cartels have evolved over nearly three decades how Los Zetas changed everything about cartel violence and what the real truth about the war on drugs looks like from the person who lived it on the front lines for 28 years.
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#cops #cartels #truecrimestories
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Connect with Leo Silva:
https://leosilvaauthor.com/
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Hosted, Executive Produced & Edited By Ian Bick:
https://www.instagram.com/ian_bick/?hl=en
https://ianbick.com/
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Timestamps:
 00:00 Meet Leo Silva: DEA Agent's Story
01:18 Growing Up on the Border
02:18 Early Encounters With Cartel Culture
03:32 Choosing DEA Over Teaching
05:03 Training, Family Reactions, and Joining DEA
07:07 First Assignment in Texas
08:18 Undercover Work & Street Smarts
09:55 DEA Training vs. Real-World Experience
12:22 Being a Young Undercover Agent
14:04 Cartel Connections and Local Targets
17:44 Violence and Danger Along the Border
18:56 Cases, Informants, and Prosecution
21:14 Experiencing the Drug Trade Firsthand
24:47 Wiretaps and Changing Technology
27:14 Big Undercover Operations
29:20 Handling Risk and Mental Toll
32:08 Life as a DEA Agent in Texas
36:42 Transferring to Mexico: Bigger Targets
41:09 Adapting to Work in Mexico
44:00 Operations Against Zetas and Cartel Wars
48:19 Cartels, Corruption, and Survival
52:51 Cartel Violence and Evolution
57:08 Prioritizing Cases & Supervisory Challenges
01:01:17 Mexico Operations, Leadership, and Cartel Dynamics
01:07:59 Cartel Power, Money, and Tactics
01:12:00 Personal Toll, Stress & Burnout
01:17:21 Darkest Moments: Loss and Violence
01:19:44 Justice, Reforms & Mexico's Future
01:21:26 Retirement, Recovery, and Life After DEA
01:24:42 Reflections, Writing, and Final Thoughts
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Diaz Aguilar grew up in Compton California raised by a single mother who struggled with addiction — and when the streets filled the gap the Vice Lords became his family. In this episode of Locked In with Ian Bick, he shares how a trip to Chicago pulled him into the Vice Lords, how a trip to Mississippi ended with a manslaughter charge for something he says he did not do, and what losing at trial and being sentenced to 20 years in Mississippi's most brutal maximum security prison actually felt like for a Vice Lord from Compton who knew he was innocent. He opens up about the prison politics inside Mississippi's worst facility, what life as a Vice Lord inside those walls actually required of him, and what 22 years of wrongful incarceration really does to a person before they find a way to keep going.
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#wrongfulconviction #TrueCrime #prison
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Connect with Diaz Aguilar:
 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/diaz_santiago_55?igsh=MTZvMWkxM2U4MDB6dA== _____________________________________________
Buy his book: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0GZYDGM5J?ref=cm_sw_r_ffobk_apan_dp_Y0MGDT0AZRAAQKJ14QC9&ref_=cm_sw_r_ffobk_apan_dp_Y0MGDT0AZRAAQKJ14QC9&social_share=cm_sw_r_ffobk_apan_dp_Y0MGDT0AZRAAQKJ14QC9&bestFormat=true&fbclid=PAcGRvZgJleHRuA2FlbQIxMQBzcnRjBmFwcF9pZA8xMjQwMjQ1NzQyODc0MTQAAaccY68BMUhqLOhGfqVyG5b0jFGHckUvPBwgIetA_Sm_iCFscImzCEQEJWavmA_aem_mhRhsWedJChoBH70P-GvTA&utm_content=link_in_bio&utm_medium=social&utm_source=ig ____________________________________________
Hosted, Executive Produced & Edited By Ian Bick:
https://www.instagram.com/ian_bick/?hl=en
https://ianbick.com/
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Timestamps:
00:00 Intro: Diaz Aguilar's Story
00:18 Growing Up in Compton
01:41 Mother's Addiction & Early Hardships
03:59 Friendships & Finding Family
05:04 Reflections on Mother-Son Relationship
07:36 Childhood Trouble & Gang Influence
09:01 Neighborhood Gangs and Associations
10:03 Joining the Vice Lords
13:13 Gang Symbolism & Identity
14:55 Dreams, Aspirations, and Early Outlook
16:18 School Life and Influential Teacher
17:52 Writing Inspiration & Starting a Book
21:02 Adoption, Family Changes & Moving to Mississippi
25:31 Troubled Adoption and Feeling Isolated
28:44 Mississippi: New Beginnings and Trouble
31:31 The Incident: Manslaughter Charge
38:12 Court, Trial, and Sentencing
43:03 Life in Mississippi State Penitentiary
50:12 Gang Dynamics and Prison Politics
01:00:19 Economics of Prison: Protection and Extortion
01:08:45 Adapting and Surviving in Prison
01:13:15 Solitary Confinement and Mental Health
01:17:51 Struggles for Justice & Maintaining Innocence
01:23:00 Life After Release: Reentry Challenges
01:24:47 Relationships, Intimacy & PTSD 
01:26:34 Making Peace and Coping with Trauma
01:33:32 Thoughts on Gang Life Now
01:34:12 Wisdom Gained: Reflections on Life
01:35:50 Life Today: Work, Books & New Beginnings
01:38:40 Closing Thoughts & Farewell
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Tamara Cook grew up poor in a small Texas town with eight siblings, a mother struggling to hold everything together, and a biological father who was never in the picture — and when her babysitter started abusing her at just seven years old the life she deserved was already being taken from her before she was old enough to understand what was happening. In this episode of Locked In with Ian Bick, she shares how her mother fell into addiction and began pimping her out, how her parents splitting sent everything into further chaos, how she eventually started selling drugs herself and ultimately became a pimp — the exact monster she had always been afraid of and never wanted to become. She opens up about her own addiction the relationships the multiple children she was raising in the middle of everything, and what a seven year sentence in the Texas Department of Corrections finally did to give her back the life that started being taken from her when she was seven years old.
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#womeninprison #TrueCrime #redemptionstory #prison
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Connect with Tamara Cook:
YouTube: https://youtube.com/@tamarasherrell87?si=0laBG70KXTx69hZI
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@nobodybby87?_r=1&_t=ZP-98ZtlRlPlcc
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Hosted, Executive Produced & Edited By Ian Bick:
https://www.instagram.com/ian_bick/?hl=en
https://ianbick.com/
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Timestamps:
00:00 Tamara Cook Introduction
00:21 Growing Up in Amarillo
02:02 Early Family Life & Childhood Memories
06:46 Life Changes at Age Seven
09:05 Abuse and Family Struggles
13:17 Mother's Addiction Begins
20:28 Role Reversal: Becoming the Caregiver
23:12 Trauma, Betrayal & Survival
27:01 Deeper Into Abuse and Neglect
33:32 Adolescence in Chaos
39:00 Survival and First Crimes
43:43 Turning to the Streets & Dealing
49:57 Dealing Drugs and Gang Life
58:00 Solo Survival and Criminal Hustle
01:05:30 Becoming a Dealer and a Pimp
01:14:00 Running Operations and Family Fallout
01:26:02 Violence, Survival & Self-Defense
01:35:29 From Teen Mom to Emancipation
01:46:06 Trying to Be a 'Normal' Wife & Mother
01:56:02 Losing Children and Hitting Rock Bottom
02:05:40 Falling into Addiction
02:11:00 Deep Addiction, Homelessness & Jail Time
02:24:00 Year Under Investigation & Final Arrest
02:33:50 Prison: The Breaking Point
02:46:00 Life Changing Years Inside
03:02:00 Release, Recovery & Faith
03:14:00 Domestic Violence and New Beginnings
03:18:00 Career, Ministry, and Healing
03:26:00 Mother's Redemption and Passing
03:33:00 Forgiveness, Recovery and Purpose
03:35:51 Reflection & Message of Hope
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Cole Goldberg was 22 years old when his girlfriend — a woman who appeared on the TLC reality TV show 90 Day Fiancé: Happily Ever After — accused him of attempted murder at the 2022 Boca Bash, a massive annual boating event in Lake Boca Raton, claiming he held her head underwater during an argument on the boat. He was charged with attempted second-degree murder, domestic battery by strangulation, and simple battery — and spent nearly four years fighting those charges before finally going to trial. In this episode of Locked In with Ian Bick, he shares his complete account of what happened that day on the water, what facing an attempted murder charge for nearly four years actually required of him, why he turned down a plea deal that would have required six months in jail and three years of probation rather than accept a felony conviction, and what the judge's not guilty verdict on all counts actually produced in someone who spent four years living under the most serious accusation available.
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#florida #attemptedmurder #truecrimestories
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 Connect with Cole Goldberg:
https://www.instagram.com/lmcolee/
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Hosted, Executive Produced & Edited By Ian Bick:
https://www.instagram.com/ian_bick/?hl=en
 https://ianbick.com/
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Timestamps:
00:00 Introduction and Background
01:01 Moving to Florida and Sports Life
02:13 College, Law Aspirations, and Life Changes
 03:14 Bokea Bash: Setting the Scene
05:20 Day of the Incident: Boating and Tensions
 07:52 Boat Hopping, Parties, and Escalation
 09:13 Drinking, Arguments, and Boat Incident
12:13 Accusations Begin and Sequence of Events
16:13 Events Escalate: The Swimming Incident
20:22 Alleged Drowning and Confrontation
24:22 Police Arrive: Investigation and Arrests
29:13 In Jail: The Fallout and Media Frenzy
33:39 Public Opinion, Press Coverage, and Personal Fallout
37:12 Legal Struggles and Ongoing Trials
41:52 Criminal Trials and Legal Delays
45:16 The Court of Public Opinion and Advocating Change
49:40 Defense Strategy and Trial Outcomes
52:32 Final Trial, Verdict, and Life After the Case
56:00 Lessons Learned, Moving Forward, and Advocacy
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Hollyhood Texus (Luis Murillo) grew up in the gang infested neighborhoods of Chicago before his family moved to Dallas, Texas hoping to give him a better life — but with his parents splitting and his teenage years split between Mexico and Texas the path toward trouble found him anyway. In this episode of Locked In with Ian Bick, he shares how robberies led to multiple stints in Dallas County Jail before a felony robbery and gun charge landed him a seven year sentence in the Texas prison system — where he faced something most inmates never have to navigate alone. As a Mexican with no gang affiliation and no crew to back him up Luis rode solo through one of the most politically charged prison systems in the country, surviving the racial politics the daily danger and a race riot that got him transferred to maximum security — before finally getting released after four and a half years and turning his life completely around.
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#texas #TrueCrime #prison
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Hosted, Executive Produced & Edited By Ian Bick: https://www.instagram.com/ian_bick/?hl=en https://ianbick.com/
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Connect with Hollyhood Texus: https://www.instagram.com/hollyhoodtexus?igsh=bDBreDFjZXdtdDVz 
 
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Timestamps:
00:00 Intro & Luis's Early Life
00:22 Growing Up in Chicago and Family Roots
03:00 Early Encounters with Crime & Trauma
05:30 Moving to Texas & Adapting to a New Life
07:30 Struggles with Family and School
10:45 Culture Clash & Visits to Mexico
14:00 Growing Up, Family Split & Impact
16:15 Life Changes After Parents' Divorce
18:57 First Steps Into the Streets
21:00 Rebelling & Losing Direction
23:00 High School Life & First Arrest
27:30 First Jail Experience & Aftermath
32:00 Street Family, Not a Gang
39:00 How Luis Ended Up in Prison
44:00 Aggravated Robbery & Choices
49:00 Prison Sentencing and Reflection
53:00 First Prison Unit – Life Inside
01:00:00 Prison Society, Rules & Racial Tensions
01:12:00 Race Riot Incident & Transfer to Max Security
01:24:00 Maximum Security: Survival & Adapting
01:34:00 Mentality Shift, Influence & Gaining Wisdom
01:43:00 Bonding in Prison, Real Friendship
01:48:00 Release, Rebuilding, and Survivors Guilt
01:54:00 Relationships & Lessons After Prison
02:00:00 Building a New Life & Business
02:02:00 Product Launch & Health Awareness
02:04:30 Final Reflections & Words to Younger Self
02:05:20 Outro & Closing Remarks
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To advertise on the show, contact sales@advertisecast.com or visit https://advertising.libsyn.com/LockedInWithIanBicka