About this episode
Former undercover FBI Agent Bob Hamer is BACK in the tent to take us on a deep dive into Operation Smoking Dragon, where he took down an intricate Chinese crime syndicate. What started as a mission to investigate the illegal flow of counterfeit cigarettes turned into uncovering a sophisticated network of characters and criminals that were also bringing in counterfeit money, drugs and war-grade weapons into the United States. Follow along as the Forrest Gump of the FBI takes us through the start of his decorated 26-year career in the FBI and one of his biggest assignments on this episode. WELCOME TO CAMP! Check out Bob's first episode if you haven't already: https://open.spotify.com/episode/3hh6PSHVunllmPsCxWKQLF?si=d2ec467ae79645cc Edit and Produced: Christos Papastefanou Shoutout to our sponsors - Whoop, MDhair, Morgan & Morgan, and Bluechew. - Customize your hair growth treatment with MDhair! Visit https://bit.ly/camp-mdhair - Visit https://Join.whoop.com/Camp for a ONE MONTH FREE TRIAL with Promo Code: CAMP TIME STAMPS : 0:00 Intro 1:13 Bobs Background + Joining FBI + Undercover Work 9:49 Being Accepted to FBI Academy 13:30 How are Agents Selected 17:34 Operation Smoking Dragon + Counterfeit Cigarettes 20:41 How Were Cigarettes Imported? 22:50 Meeting The Informant + Cafe Roma 26:14 Can You Trust Informants? 28:08 Meeting The Bad Guys + Osteogenesis Osteomyelitis 32:00 Re-routing Counterfeits to FBI Warehouse + KGB Mob 43:07 How Much Was a Shipment? + Destroying $250,000 Investment 49:52 Meeting Chen, Jenny, and Michael + Ecstasy + Crystal Meth 55:14 How Bob Stayed Safe + Payments 57:07 Empathy For Criminals? 1:02:35 Circulation of Money and Drugs + Fake Viagra 1:06:44 Finding Stolen Guns + Cambodian Bribe 1:15:50 Chinese Involvement + Chen Chiang Liu 1:19:43 Counterfeit Postage Stamps + Counterfeit Credit Cards 1:24:42 Was Chen Intimidating? 1:26:26 Supernote Investigation + New $100 Bill 1:40:30 North Korean Involvement + Wilson Liu 1:47:27 Casino Money Laundering + Identifying Counterfeit Bills in Court 1:51:42 Obtaining The Supernotes + Ritz Carlton Story 2:01:42 How Were Supernotes Distributed? + Seizing The Money 2:07:36 Was Bob Scared? + Jenny’s Birthday Party + Chen’s arrest 2:14:55 What Classifies as Entrapment? 2:18:09 Building a Meth Lab in North Korea + Bob’s Aliases 2:23:47 Seeing Chen in Court 2:25:46 Bob’s Life After The Arrest + Fake Divorce 2:31:06 Bob’s Preparation For a Case 2:32:39 Outro