1 00:00:09,400 --> 00:00:13,187 Joseph Burke was an experienced criminal. 2 00:00:13,274 --> 00:00:15,667 The squads had developed evidence 3 00:00:15,754 --> 00:00:17,582 that he was planning on committing criminal acts. 4 00:00:19,236 --> 00:00:21,978 I was the undercover coordinator. 5 00:00:22,065 --> 00:00:23,371 But, you know, how do we get to this guy, 6 00:00:23,458 --> 00:00:24,633 how do we make a case? 7 00:00:24,720 --> 00:00:27,723 Out of the blue, he says... 8 00:00:27,810 --> 00:00:29,420 "Mike, I'm broke. 9 00:00:29,507 --> 00:00:30,595 I'll kill people for money." - People for you. 10 00:00:35,557 --> 00:00:37,472 - So now you're looking at potential murder for hire. 11 00:00:42,259 --> 00:00:44,392 - We gotta get him off the street 12 00:00:44,479 --> 00:00:46,481 as soon as humanly possible. 13 00:00:46,568 --> 00:00:52,269 [dramatic music] 14 00:00:52,356 --> 00:00:55,794 - In the FBI, we make a lot of headlines. 15 00:00:55,881 --> 00:00:58,797 ♪ ♪ 16 00:00:58,884 --> 00:01:00,016 Drug busts, 17 00:01:00,103 --> 00:01:02,845 mob stings, 18 00:01:02,932 --> 00:01:04,934 terrorist takedowns. 19 00:01:05,021 --> 00:01:07,110 - Get down! Get down! 20 00:01:07,197 --> 00:01:09,156 - We understand why people want to tell stories about us. 21 00:01:09,243 --> 00:01:10,200 - Mark it. 22 00:01:10,287 --> 00:01:11,984 - Freeze! - FBI. 23 00:01:12,072 --> 00:01:13,682 - FBI! - Action! 24 00:01:13,769 --> 00:01:15,423 - But they don't know the half of it. 25 00:01:15,510 --> 00:01:16,946 [indistinct radio chatter] 26 00:01:17,033 --> 00:01:19,122 What really goes down, 27 00:01:19,209 --> 00:01:21,385 we save that for each other 28 00:01:21,472 --> 00:01:23,779 when we're talking agent to agent. 29 00:01:23,866 --> 00:01:26,477 ♪ ♪ 30 00:01:26,564 --> 00:01:29,741 This is "FBI True." 31 00:01:34,223 --> 00:01:37,097 [tense music] 32 00:01:37,184 --> 00:01:38,794 ♪ ♪ 33 00:01:38,881 --> 00:01:42,493 - Cindy Coppola is a 23-year veteran of the FBI. 34 00:01:42,580 --> 00:01:44,234 She worked on cases that included 35 00:01:44,321 --> 00:01:46,497 organized crime and terrorism 36 00:01:46,584 --> 00:01:49,021 and took part in multinational investigations 37 00:01:49,109 --> 00:01:51,763 into drug trafficking and money laundering. 38 00:01:51,850 --> 00:01:53,809 Coppola finished her career with the Los Angeles division 39 00:01:53,896 --> 00:01:57,116 running two offices, supervising investigations, 40 00:01:57,204 --> 00:01:59,815 and providing undercover security for special events. 41 00:01:59,902 --> 00:02:02,339 [indistinct chatter] 42 00:02:02,426 --> 00:02:05,081 - Mike, it's so awesome to finally meet you. 43 00:02:05,168 --> 00:02:06,822 Thanks for stopping in and having a beer with me today. 44 00:02:06,909 --> 00:02:08,301 - Yeah, thank you for having me. 45 00:02:08,389 --> 00:02:10,347 - Mike McGowan participated 46 00:02:10,434 --> 00:02:12,436 in over 50 undercover operations. 47 00:02:12,523 --> 00:02:14,134 He was the undercover coordinator 48 00:02:14,221 --> 00:02:16,136 at the FBI's Boston office. 49 00:02:16,223 --> 00:02:18,573 McGowan helped infiltrate the Mafia, 50 00:02:18,660 --> 00:02:20,704 drug cartels, and biker gangs. 51 00:02:20,792 --> 00:02:22,098 - You're, like, a legend. 52 00:02:22,185 --> 00:02:24,535 Tell me about your last hurrah 53 00:02:24,622 --> 00:02:26,537 before, you know, retiring. 54 00:02:26,624 --> 00:02:29,540 - In the summer of 2014, 55 00:02:29,627 --> 00:02:31,934 I'm approaching mandatory retirement. 56 00:02:32,021 --> 00:02:34,676 And I'll never forget, I was literally in my office 57 00:02:34,763 --> 00:02:37,418 putting stuff in a box to leave, 58 00:02:37,505 --> 00:02:41,422 and one squad came up and said they wanted to work a case 59 00:02:41,509 --> 00:02:42,727 against Joseph Burke. 60 00:02:42,814 --> 00:02:44,816 ♪ ♪ 61 00:02:44,903 --> 00:02:47,732 - Joseph Burke is a notorious criminal from Boston 62 00:02:47,819 --> 00:02:49,821 and a known associate of organized crime boss 63 00:02:49,908 --> 00:02:51,692 Whitey Bulger. 64 00:02:54,478 --> 00:02:56,219 - He's from Charlestown. 65 00:02:56,305 --> 00:02:59,309 It's a very violent, small part of Boston. 66 00:02:59,396 --> 00:03:02,834 Charlestown is the ground zero for bank robbers. 67 00:03:02,921 --> 00:03:04,401 - Robbery in Charlestown-- 68 00:03:04,488 --> 00:03:05,968 - Modern day Bonnie and Clyde 69 00:03:06,055 --> 00:03:07,361 wanted for bank robberies. 70 00:03:07,448 --> 00:03:09,276 - Considered armed and dangerous. 71 00:03:09,363 --> 00:03:12,148 - Burke went to federal prison for a bank robbery. 72 00:03:12,235 --> 00:03:14,846 But the squads had developed evidence 73 00:03:14,933 --> 00:03:18,415 that he was already planning on committing criminal acts 74 00:03:18,502 --> 00:03:20,896 when he was released from jail. 75 00:03:20,983 --> 00:03:23,333 He was ready to go back into the game. 76 00:03:23,420 --> 00:03:26,075 - So did they have any inside informants from the jail, 77 00:03:26,162 --> 00:03:28,382 or way there any information 78 00:03:28,469 --> 00:03:30,819 that he's talking to people on the outside? 79 00:03:30,906 --> 00:03:32,299 Phone calls... - Yeah, yes. 80 00:03:32,386 --> 00:03:34,083 - To know that he might be still committing crimes, 81 00:03:34,170 --> 00:03:35,606 even though he's in jail. - Yeah, we have-- 82 00:03:35,692 --> 00:03:38,914 as you know, we have a nice pipeline into the jails. 83 00:03:39,001 --> 00:03:40,916 - Sure. - Calls are recorded. 84 00:03:41,003 --> 00:03:42,352 But, you know, how do we get to this guy, 85 00:03:42,439 --> 00:03:43,571 how do make a case? 86 00:03:43,658 --> 00:03:45,050 I was the undercover coordinator. 87 00:03:45,137 --> 00:03:47,401 So we submitted a proposal 88 00:03:47,488 --> 00:03:49,272 in order to have an undercover operation. 89 00:03:49,359 --> 00:03:51,187 And I said, if you're gonna do an undercover operation, 90 00:03:51,274 --> 00:03:54,451 you can't use a junior agent. 91 00:03:54,538 --> 00:03:57,280 You need to have an experienced agent handle it. 92 00:03:57,367 --> 00:03:59,326 And I probably shouldn't have said that, 93 00:03:59,413 --> 00:04:01,153 because the ASAC turned around 94 00:04:01,241 --> 00:04:03,243 and basically said, well, you do it. 95 00:04:03,330 --> 00:04:05,462 - Just days from retirement, 96 00:04:05,549 --> 00:04:07,943 McGowan agrees to take on the undercover role. 97 00:04:10,424 --> 00:04:13,383 McGowan and the FBI soon learn that Burke is looking 98 00:04:13,470 --> 00:04:17,039 to leverage his criminal past for a big payday. 99 00:04:17,125 --> 00:04:20,521 - We learned information that, while in prison, 100 00:04:20,608 --> 00:04:25,265 Burke had drafted a story about his life. 101 00:04:25,352 --> 00:04:26,831 And he was interested in publishing 102 00:04:26,918 --> 00:04:28,877 a book and maybe a movie. 103 00:04:28,964 --> 00:04:31,619 - So he wants to be famous for his criminal activity? 104 00:04:31,706 --> 00:04:34,143 - Immediately, I was like, this is it. 105 00:04:34,230 --> 00:04:36,667 So we're dealing with the people on the outside. 106 00:04:36,754 --> 00:04:40,062 He has minions and family and associates 107 00:04:40,149 --> 00:04:43,370 all getting ready for his release. 108 00:04:43,457 --> 00:04:47,025 And so the plan is to become this Hollywood investor. 109 00:04:47,112 --> 00:04:49,201 [funky music] 110 00:04:49,289 --> 00:04:52,074 - But McGowan must first sell his new undercover persona 111 00:04:52,161 --> 00:04:55,164 to Burke's inner circle. 112 00:04:55,251 --> 00:04:56,470 - Before he got out of jail, 113 00:04:56,557 --> 00:04:59,255 we actually asked his associates, 114 00:04:59,342 --> 00:05:01,736 hey, we don't know this Charlestown place. 115 00:05:01,823 --> 00:05:03,433 Can you take us and show us around? 116 00:05:03,520 --> 00:05:05,696 Again, because we knew that if we could 117 00:05:05,783 --> 00:05:08,003 convince them we were the real deal, 118 00:05:08,090 --> 00:05:09,744 that Joe would probably bite. 119 00:05:09,831 --> 00:05:12,224 And he did. - Yep. 120 00:05:12,312 --> 00:05:14,575 - So we came out as if we're coming from LA. 121 00:05:14,662 --> 00:05:20,232 We ended up getting a huge town car. 122 00:05:20,320 --> 00:05:22,409 I brought a young undercover with me 123 00:05:22,496 --> 00:05:24,324 who posed as a writer. - Sure. 124 00:05:24,411 --> 00:05:29,285 - And we went with five of his boys and associates, 125 00:05:29,372 --> 00:05:31,418 and they took us to Charlestown. 126 00:05:31,505 --> 00:05:35,378 [tense music] 127 00:05:35,465 --> 00:05:37,249 I've worked in Boston all my life. 128 00:05:37,337 --> 00:05:39,861 I know every street in Charlestown. 129 00:05:39,948 --> 00:05:41,950 But we had to make as if we didn't know 130 00:05:42,037 --> 00:05:44,518 anything about it. 131 00:05:44,605 --> 00:05:46,737 My undercover writer is their age. 132 00:05:46,824 --> 00:05:48,783 - Sure. - So he forms a relationship 133 00:05:48,870 --> 00:05:49,740 right off the bat with them. 134 00:05:49,827 --> 00:05:51,699 And we drive around for, 135 00:05:51,786 --> 00:05:53,265 you know, an hour or two. 136 00:05:53,353 --> 00:05:55,485 He's all over them, and they love him. 137 00:05:55,572 --> 00:05:57,792 - Yeah, you tag teamed it. - Burke's boys, 138 00:05:57,879 --> 00:05:59,402 they bought it hook, line, and sinker. 139 00:05:59,489 --> 00:06:02,710 ♪ ♪ 140 00:06:02,797 --> 00:06:04,929 - It isn't long before they reach out to McGowan 141 00:06:05,016 --> 00:06:08,106 and arrange a call with the convict. 142 00:06:08,193 --> 00:06:09,586 Burke is interested in arranging 143 00:06:09,673 --> 00:06:11,327 a movie and book deal. 144 00:06:11,414 --> 00:06:14,548 - So I said, you know, when you get out, Joe, 145 00:06:14,635 --> 00:06:16,593 here's the number, get in touch. 146 00:06:16,680 --> 00:06:17,899 - I can make it happen. 147 00:06:17,986 --> 00:06:20,815 - And within 24 hours of his release, 148 00:06:20,902 --> 00:06:22,120 he had reached out for us. 149 00:06:22,207 --> 00:06:24,296 So it was all set before he got out. 150 00:06:24,384 --> 00:06:26,124 We set up a personal meeting. 151 00:06:26,211 --> 00:06:28,431 I'm all dressed up. I'm playing the part. 152 00:06:28,518 --> 00:06:30,564 We rent a suite at a hotel. 153 00:06:35,351 --> 00:06:37,135 - What was your first impression of Burke? 154 00:06:37,222 --> 00:06:38,702 - I've dealt with a lot, a lot of bad guys. 155 00:06:38,789 --> 00:06:41,618 But his eyes scared the shit out of me. 156 00:06:41,705 --> 00:06:44,055 Right? 157 00:06:44,142 --> 00:06:47,450 He had these evil eyes, these demented looking eyes. 158 00:06:47,537 --> 00:06:50,018 I never got within reaching distance. 159 00:06:50,105 --> 00:06:51,976 I didn't want him ever to grab me by the neck. 160 00:06:52,063 --> 00:06:53,848 The purpose of an undercover meet, 161 00:06:53,935 --> 00:06:56,546 other than staying alive for the next one... 162 00:06:56,633 --> 00:06:58,592 - Yep. - Is you wanna set up 163 00:06:58,679 --> 00:07:00,071 the next meet. - Yeah. 164 00:07:00,158 --> 00:07:02,073 So you just wanna build report? - Pretty much. 165 00:07:02,160 --> 00:07:03,597 - You just wanna get to know him, right? 166 00:07:03,684 --> 00:07:05,163 - We hit it off that first day. 167 00:07:05,250 --> 00:07:07,601 And then to end that meeting, I said, 168 00:07:07,688 --> 00:07:10,604 well, again, if you're in LA, look me up. 169 00:07:10,691 --> 00:07:12,475 And he did. - And he did. 170 00:07:21,266 --> 00:07:23,268 - Burke takes the bait and arrives in LA 171 00:07:23,355 --> 00:07:25,880 with one of his associates. 172 00:07:25,967 --> 00:07:27,272 It's clear to McGowan 173 00:07:27,359 --> 00:07:29,927 the ex-con has stars in his eyes. 174 00:07:30,014 --> 00:07:31,842 - You could tell they were very interested 175 00:07:31,929 --> 00:07:33,714 in the Hollywood scene. 176 00:07:37,021 --> 00:07:41,548 I had the ability to get access to studio lots, 177 00:07:41,635 --> 00:07:43,463 in this particular case, Warner Brothers. 178 00:07:43,550 --> 00:07:44,725 - Sure. 179 00:07:48,511 --> 00:07:50,295 - Brought him to a writing room. 180 00:07:50,382 --> 00:07:52,080 All the scripts were up on the wall, 181 00:07:52,167 --> 00:07:54,125 the notes, the index cards. 182 00:07:54,212 --> 00:07:55,344 - Nice. 183 00:07:58,478 --> 00:08:00,436 - I took him to the right restaurant. 184 00:08:00,523 --> 00:08:02,917 They saw some people I wanted them to see. 185 00:08:03,004 --> 00:08:04,832 Just painted a picture for them. 186 00:08:07,748 --> 00:08:09,663 It's all a façade. - Of course. 187 00:08:09,750 --> 00:08:11,186 But he doesn't know that, you know? 188 00:08:11,273 --> 00:08:12,666 - Not at that point. - Not--[laughs] 189 00:08:12,753 --> 00:08:13,623 Not at that point. 190 00:08:15,582 --> 00:08:18,367 - One month later, a turning point in McGowan's case. 191 00:08:20,630 --> 00:08:23,851 He meets with Burke back in Boston. 192 00:08:23,938 --> 00:08:25,548 What the criminal doesn't know 193 00:08:25,635 --> 00:08:27,507 is that it's in a controlled setting 194 00:08:27,594 --> 00:08:30,422 with FBI surveillance cameras recording everything. 195 00:08:45,220 --> 00:08:46,569 - Okay. Mm-hmm. 196 00:09:00,714 --> 00:09:02,716 - And then he tells me-- 197 00:09:02,803 --> 00:09:05,545 out of the blue, he says, 198 00:09:05,632 --> 00:09:07,155 "Mike, I'm broke." 199 00:09:16,556 --> 00:09:18,340 - He then tells me, "You know, Mike, 200 00:09:18,427 --> 00:09:19,602 you know a lot of rich people." 201 00:09:31,222 --> 00:09:34,138 - And he literally motions a shooting motion. 202 00:09:34,225 --> 00:09:37,185 He's basically saying, "I'll kill people for money." 203 00:09:37,272 --> 00:09:38,969 - Wow. - All right? 204 00:09:39,056 --> 00:09:40,928 - So now you're looking at potential murder for hire? 205 00:09:41,015 --> 00:09:42,973 - That changes the investigation. 206 00:09:43,060 --> 00:09:46,194 The violent changes everything. If you know-- 207 00:09:46,281 --> 00:09:50,067 because what's to prevent him from going out the next day, 208 00:09:50,154 --> 00:09:51,678 hitting an armored car, killing a guy, 209 00:09:51,765 --> 00:09:54,637 and then we find out the FBI knew about it the day before? 210 00:09:54,724 --> 00:09:56,770 My job at that point as an FBI agent 211 00:09:56,857 --> 00:10:01,078 is to deescalate any potential acts of violence. 212 00:10:01,165 --> 00:10:02,863 - Sure. - So I warn him, 213 00:10:02,950 --> 00:10:04,865 explicitly, don't do this. 214 00:10:04,952 --> 00:10:07,607 Joe, don't do anything stupid. 215 00:10:07,694 --> 00:10:09,870 Don't go out and do anything 216 00:10:09,957 --> 00:10:11,611 because it's gonna fuck up your movie. 217 00:10:28,410 --> 00:10:31,500 - Unsure how to proceed after Burke's murderous offer, 218 00:10:31,587 --> 00:10:35,547 McGowan and his team regroup. 219 00:10:35,635 --> 00:10:39,987 Incredible, but there still isn't enough to arrest Burke. 220 00:10:40,074 --> 00:10:41,423 - Because, you know, there's such a thing 221 00:10:41,510 --> 00:10:44,078 as the First Amendment, people can say anything they want. 222 00:10:44,165 --> 00:10:46,297 So now we're scrambling and the pressure is on. 223 00:10:50,737 --> 00:10:53,478 - The FBI collectively made the decision 224 00:10:53,565 --> 00:10:58,266 that I was gonna specifically ask Joe to murder an FBI agent, 225 00:10:58,353 --> 00:11:00,616 because we gotta get him off the street 226 00:11:00,703 --> 00:11:02,487 as soon as humanly possible. 227 00:11:02,574 --> 00:11:04,664 We're like, okay, who are we gonna murder? 228 00:11:04,751 --> 00:11:06,317 - [laughs] Yeah. - And it didn't-- 229 00:11:06,404 --> 00:11:08,929 it took me 30 seconds and I knew who I wanted to use. 230 00:11:09,016 --> 00:11:11,105 A very experienced undercover. 231 00:11:11,192 --> 00:11:14,717 We arranged to have a party on a boat. 232 00:11:14,804 --> 00:11:17,459 [funky music] 233 00:11:17,546 --> 00:11:19,679 ♪ ♪ 234 00:11:19,766 --> 00:11:22,725 This is where I introduce my undercover business partner 235 00:11:22,812 --> 00:11:24,379 and the murder victim. 236 00:11:24,466 --> 00:11:26,555 I tell the agent, I don't care what you do, 237 00:11:26,642 --> 00:11:28,252 just piss Burke off. 238 00:11:28,339 --> 00:11:30,864 He's an incredible undercover, 239 00:11:30,951 --> 00:11:32,953 and you will despise him in 30 seconds. 240 00:11:33,040 --> 00:11:34,606 - [laughs] - He has that ability. 241 00:11:34,694 --> 00:11:36,043 - All right, well, that's good. So you got the right guy. 242 00:11:36,130 --> 00:11:39,220 - Yeah, perfect. It was a role made for him. 243 00:11:39,307 --> 00:11:42,876 So we have some female undercovers on the... 244 00:11:42,963 --> 00:11:44,007 - As extras, yeah. - Party. 245 00:11:44,094 --> 00:11:45,400 - At the yacht. 246 00:11:45,487 --> 00:11:47,184 - My business partner comes on, 247 00:11:47,271 --> 00:11:51,841 and he just--he just goes after these female agents. 248 00:11:51,928 --> 00:11:56,367 He said things that you wouldn't say on TV. 249 00:11:56,454 --> 00:11:58,456 - No, so he called them a bunch of names, and they-- 250 00:11:58,543 --> 00:12:00,284 did they say anything back? - Whores, everything. 251 00:12:00,371 --> 00:12:01,808 - Yeah. - You know, "You ever made 252 00:12:01,895 --> 00:12:04,071 a dollar that wasn't made on your back?" 253 00:12:04,158 --> 00:12:04,636 You know, just-- - Yeah, all that-- 254 00:12:04,724 --> 00:12:06,334 [laughs] Jeez. 255 00:12:06,421 --> 00:12:08,075 - But Joe Burke flips his wig right away. 256 00:12:08,162 --> 00:12:09,729 - 'Cause he doesn't know. - And he starts 257 00:12:09,816 --> 00:12:12,862 to jump over the table to attack this guy. 258 00:12:12,949 --> 00:12:16,692 And I literally have to grab Burke and pull him away. 259 00:12:16,779 --> 00:12:18,476 I have to spend pretty much the rest of the day with him, 260 00:12:18,563 --> 00:12:20,522 calming him down 261 00:12:20,609 --> 00:12:23,307 so that Joe doesn't go and do anything crazy. 262 00:12:25,440 --> 00:12:27,485 - McGowan keeps Burke under control 263 00:12:27,572 --> 00:12:29,879 and carefully plans his next move. 264 00:12:32,621 --> 00:12:36,016 - I'm gonna ask him to murder my business partner. 265 00:12:36,103 --> 00:12:38,670 But I just can't say I wanna kill him 266 00:12:38,758 --> 00:12:39,976 'cause he insulted the girls. 267 00:12:46,635 --> 00:12:49,333 We come up with, my business partner has now 268 00:12:49,420 --> 00:12:53,163 anonymously reported me to the IRS... 269 00:12:53,250 --> 00:12:54,991 - Shit, okay. - Who has frozen my assets. 270 00:12:55,078 --> 00:12:58,473 And now all of my funding is cut off. 271 00:12:58,560 --> 00:13:01,737 I made Joe buy me lunch 'cause I can't pay for it. 272 00:13:01,824 --> 00:13:04,305 This was the first time I was asking somebody 273 00:13:04,392 --> 00:13:06,611 to commit a murder for me. - Murder for you. 274 00:13:06,698 --> 00:13:08,004 - So what's the plan now? 275 00:13:12,661 --> 00:13:15,011 I tell Joe, my business partner snitched 276 00:13:15,098 --> 00:13:17,622 to the IRS, and now I'm screwed. 277 00:13:17,709 --> 00:13:20,756 And I'm screwed, Joe, which means you're screwed. 278 00:13:20,843 --> 00:13:23,759 And instantaneously, 279 00:13:23,846 --> 00:13:26,066 before I even had a chance to ask him, 280 00:13:26,153 --> 00:13:28,372 you know, "I'll kill the guy." 281 00:13:28,459 --> 00:13:30,244 - He just blurts it out? - Yeah. 282 00:13:30,331 --> 00:13:31,898 Right away. Right away. 283 00:13:51,787 --> 00:13:53,528 - If Joe had said, "I'm not doing it," 284 00:13:53,615 --> 00:13:54,877 the case was over. 285 00:13:54,964 --> 00:13:56,400 You know, I got case agents 286 00:13:56,487 --> 00:13:57,793 sitting out in the parking lot listening to this. 287 00:13:57,880 --> 00:14:01,579 Now I'm engaged with him to kill my business partner. 288 00:14:01,666 --> 00:14:03,668 Okay, this gives us an opportunity now 289 00:14:03,755 --> 00:14:07,107 to have another meeting to further the murder 290 00:14:07,194 --> 00:14:09,326 and discuss how he's gonna do it, 291 00:14:09,413 --> 00:14:10,501 where he's gonna do it... - Sure. 292 00:14:10,588 --> 00:14:12,242 - Why--you know, all these things. 293 00:14:12,329 --> 00:14:15,202 - So going into this meeting with him, 294 00:14:15,289 --> 00:14:16,594 you've gotta make sure you're not, like, 295 00:14:16,681 --> 00:14:18,814 entrapping him, right? - No, we actually-- 296 00:14:18,901 --> 00:14:20,424 - That's something the Bureau has to be... 297 00:14:20,511 --> 00:14:22,165 - 100% - You know, careful about. 298 00:14:22,252 --> 00:14:23,775 - The only defense in undercover operations 299 00:14:23,863 --> 00:14:25,299 are entrapment. 300 00:14:25,386 --> 00:14:27,170 You have to understand what entrapment is 301 00:14:27,257 --> 00:14:28,519 and how to avoid it. 302 00:14:28,606 --> 00:14:30,957 So in this case, we put out the feeler, 303 00:14:31,044 --> 00:14:33,220 hey, if you're interested, get in touch with us. 304 00:14:33,307 --> 00:14:35,222 And then we backed away. 305 00:14:35,309 --> 00:14:37,441 And all he had to say was, "Not interested," 306 00:14:37,528 --> 00:14:38,703 and we were done. 307 00:14:38,790 --> 00:14:40,227 - But he didn't, right? 308 00:14:40,314 --> 00:14:42,142 - No, he jumped all over it. 309 00:14:42,229 --> 00:14:44,535 There goes the entrapment. 310 00:14:44,622 --> 00:14:47,103 So I set up a meeting in New York 311 00:14:47,190 --> 00:14:49,497 for about ten days later. - Okay. 312 00:14:49,584 --> 00:14:53,196 - He has me get a hotel room in a fake name. 313 00:14:53,283 --> 00:14:55,633 - Oh, so wait, step back. So the-- 314 00:14:55,720 --> 00:14:59,986 your business partner that Joe wants to kill for you, 315 00:15:00,073 --> 00:15:02,336 he lives in New York, so he's not in the Boston area? 316 00:15:02,423 --> 00:15:04,120 - He's in New York. - He's in New York, okay. 317 00:15:04,207 --> 00:15:06,862 So interstate commerce. - It's exactly interstate-- 318 00:15:06,949 --> 00:15:09,038 - You know, he's coming from Boston-- 319 00:15:09,125 --> 00:15:10,387 - That's exact-- and that's why-- 320 00:15:10,474 --> 00:15:12,041 - That's an awesome charge. 321 00:15:12,128 --> 00:15:14,391 - The murder itself was gonna happen in New York. 322 00:15:14,478 --> 00:15:16,350 He was leaving from Massachusetts. 323 00:15:16,437 --> 00:15:20,615 The interstate aspect is clearly established. 324 00:15:20,702 --> 00:15:24,358 ♪ ♪ 325 00:15:24,445 --> 00:15:25,750 - Burke meets McGowan in New York 326 00:15:25,837 --> 00:15:28,231 with weapons in tow, 327 00:15:28,318 --> 00:15:30,320 a Glock and a Scorpion machine gun, 328 00:15:30,407 --> 00:15:33,367 the tools of a seasoned hitman. 329 00:15:33,454 --> 00:15:36,718 - And then he demonstrated how each weapon-- 330 00:15:36,805 --> 00:15:38,154 you gotta remember, I have to play dumb 331 00:15:38,241 --> 00:15:39,764 like I don't know what he's talking about. 332 00:15:39,851 --> 00:15:41,288 - Like you don't use a weapon, you've never used one. 333 00:15:41,375 --> 00:15:43,290 - Right. And so I made him demonstrate. 334 00:15:43,377 --> 00:15:45,509 He was educating me 335 00:15:45,596 --> 00:15:47,598 on the weapons that he had planned to use. 336 00:16:00,046 --> 00:16:02,570 - I give him a down payment. I give him some cash. 337 00:16:02,657 --> 00:16:05,355 I'm gonna take him to the location 338 00:16:05,442 --> 00:16:07,053 where the murder's gonna be committed. 339 00:16:11,796 --> 00:16:14,930 We want to do surveillance on the building. 340 00:16:15,017 --> 00:16:17,150 And again, you can't do it in the middle of the day. 341 00:16:17,237 --> 00:16:19,108 So we wait until--I tell him, 342 00:16:19,195 --> 00:16:21,893 you know, we'll go do it in the middle of the night. 343 00:16:21,981 --> 00:16:24,809 Well, Joe tells me he wants to go to the movies. 344 00:16:24,896 --> 00:16:28,683 Okay, so Joe Burke and I go to the midnight movie. 345 00:16:28,770 --> 00:16:30,641 - When's the last time you went to a movie with your wife, 346 00:16:30,728 --> 00:16:32,121 and you're going with the bad guy. 347 00:16:32,208 --> 00:16:33,340 I mean, that's screwed up. 348 00:16:33,427 --> 00:16:34,689 - We go to see "Black Mass." 349 00:16:37,866 --> 00:16:39,694 - Oh, jeez. - And "Black Mass," 350 00:16:39,781 --> 00:16:42,740 for those Boston people, is the Whitey Bulger story. 351 00:16:42,827 --> 00:16:44,394 - Yeah. - Joe used to work for Whitey. 352 00:16:44,481 --> 00:16:47,571 So Joe buys popcorn and sodas. 353 00:16:47,658 --> 00:16:50,357 And we're sitting there, and Joe's now telling me, 354 00:16:50,444 --> 00:16:52,446 in the Whitey Bulger movie, 355 00:16:52,533 --> 00:16:53,925 "Oh, that's true," or "That's not true," 356 00:16:54,013 --> 00:16:54,970 or "This guy did that." 357 00:16:55,057 --> 00:16:56,798 - You can't make this stuff up. 358 00:16:56,885 --> 00:16:58,756 - I remember sitting in that movie theater, 359 00:16:58,843 --> 00:17:02,325 saying, no one would believe this 360 00:17:02,412 --> 00:17:03,631 right now. - Absolutely. No one. 361 00:17:03,718 --> 00:17:05,633 - And I'm like, this is my last case. 362 00:17:05,720 --> 00:17:07,678 I'm sitting in this movie theater... 363 00:17:07,765 --> 00:17:08,940 - Having popcorn. - With a guy 364 00:17:09,028 --> 00:17:10,333 who's gonna kill somebody... 365 00:17:10,420 --> 00:17:11,682 - At midnight. - Eating popcorn. 366 00:17:15,643 --> 00:17:17,949 - It's past 2:00 a.m. 367 00:17:18,037 --> 00:17:20,647 McGowan takes Burke to a building in Queens, 368 00:17:20,734 --> 00:17:22,519 which Burke believes to be the residence 369 00:17:22,606 --> 00:17:24,260 of the business partner. 370 00:17:24,347 --> 00:17:27,611 ♪ ♪ 371 00:17:27,698 --> 00:17:29,352 - So I say, here's where he parks. 372 00:17:29,439 --> 00:17:31,833 This is the door he uses. 373 00:17:31,920 --> 00:17:34,357 You're gonna have to take out that security camera. 374 00:17:34,444 --> 00:17:37,534 We basically do a loop of the building... 375 00:17:37,621 --> 00:17:38,492 - Sure. - You know, pointing out 376 00:17:38,579 --> 00:17:39,536 all the things, you know, 377 00:17:39,623 --> 00:17:41,669 where the murder was gonna occur. 378 00:17:41,756 --> 00:17:45,412 And again, the New York guys and office were great, 379 00:17:45,499 --> 00:17:48,763 because everything I wanted him to see 380 00:17:48,850 --> 00:17:51,766 is magically there. 381 00:17:51,853 --> 00:17:53,594 - But Burke needs a favor from McGowan 382 00:17:53,681 --> 00:17:55,465 before he can execute the murder. 383 00:17:57,728 --> 00:18:01,428 - He tells me that when he used to rob armored cars, 384 00:18:01,515 --> 00:18:04,170 he would use a company in Hollywood 385 00:18:04,257 --> 00:18:06,955 that would provide masks. 386 00:18:07,042 --> 00:18:10,698 And he wanted two masks to resemble African Americans. 387 00:18:10,785 --> 00:18:12,656 At this point, I think we got everything. 388 00:18:12,743 --> 00:18:15,006 But the FBI want one more meeting 389 00:18:15,094 --> 00:18:16,530 to have him handle the mask. 390 00:18:19,533 --> 00:18:21,709 - The mask is delivered to Boston. 391 00:18:21,796 --> 00:18:24,625 Agents capture every moment on camera. 392 00:18:40,728 --> 00:18:42,338 Now the masks have been delivered to me. 393 00:18:42,425 --> 00:18:44,427 Okay, and they're very lifelike. 394 00:18:44,514 --> 00:18:47,430 They were very believable. 395 00:18:47,517 --> 00:18:49,519 So before Joseph Burke arrived, 396 00:18:49,606 --> 00:18:51,086 the case team members made sure 397 00:18:51,173 --> 00:18:53,306 that everything was ready to go. 398 00:18:53,393 --> 00:18:56,222 - [voice distorted] 399 00:19:56,847 --> 00:20:00,764 - So I tell him that my business partner's mother, 400 00:20:00,851 --> 00:20:06,727 like, her 80th birthday is coming up in New York. 401 00:20:06,814 --> 00:20:08,816 And that's how I know the business partner will be 402 00:20:08,903 --> 00:20:11,253 at a certain location in New York. 403 00:20:11,340 --> 00:20:13,690 And so Joe agrees 404 00:20:13,777 --> 00:20:15,779 that we'll kill him on his mother's birthday. 405 00:20:25,006 --> 00:20:26,268 - [laughing] Oh, my God. 406 00:20:26,355 --> 00:20:28,314 - So-- - Can you imagine? 407 00:20:28,401 --> 00:20:29,793 That's horrible. - You know, and-- 408 00:20:29,880 --> 00:20:30,751 - Ruthless. 409 00:20:37,584 --> 00:20:40,674 - Burke basically said, 410 00:20:40,761 --> 00:20:42,806 "I'm gonna--I'll wait till he gets there." 411 00:20:57,517 --> 00:20:59,475 - Oh, shit. - That was his plan. 412 00:20:59,562 --> 00:21:02,217 So he wanted him to know as he was dying 413 00:21:02,304 --> 00:21:04,611 that I had ordered his murder. 414 00:21:32,203 --> 00:21:36,207 - It's the last time McGowan will meet with Joseph Burke. 415 00:21:36,295 --> 00:21:40,386 The US Attorney's Office now has all the evidence it needs. 416 00:21:42,170 --> 00:21:46,435 - We set up the mother's birthday for October 17th. 417 00:21:46,522 --> 00:21:51,092 And I tell Joe that's the day it's gonna happen. 418 00:21:51,179 --> 00:21:55,226 In the meantime, the FBI is securing arrest warrants. 419 00:21:55,314 --> 00:21:56,793 About three days later, 420 00:21:56,880 --> 00:21:59,361 the FBI wanted to make the arrest. 421 00:21:59,448 --> 00:22:04,192 So it was my job on arrest day to make sure Joe was available. 422 00:22:04,279 --> 00:22:11,417 ♪ ♪ 423 00:22:13,810 --> 00:22:17,031 We knew he had an appointment weekly 424 00:22:17,118 --> 00:22:19,903 with his probation officer. - Okay. 425 00:22:19,990 --> 00:22:22,123 - He's not gonna bring a gun to a meeting 426 00:22:22,210 --> 00:22:23,951 with his probation officer. - Probation officer, yep. 427 00:22:24,038 --> 00:22:28,695 - So I tell him that after he meets with probation, 428 00:22:28,782 --> 00:22:30,697 we'll get together for another sit-down 429 00:22:30,784 --> 00:22:33,439 just to make sure he's in Boston. 430 00:22:33,526 --> 00:22:37,573 And like clockwork, he goes to his probation meeting. 431 00:22:43,144 --> 00:22:45,929 The agents were there to arrest him. 432 00:22:46,016 --> 00:22:51,413 ♪ ♪ 433 00:22:51,500 --> 00:22:53,894 - He's probably freaking out, right? 434 00:22:53,981 --> 00:22:55,765 Does he understand why he's getting arrested? 435 00:22:55,852 --> 00:22:57,724 - He doesn't, but our case agents tell him 436 00:22:57,811 --> 00:22:59,203 he was charged with murder for hire. 437 00:22:59,290 --> 00:23:01,989 But when he was arrested, 438 00:23:02,076 --> 00:23:03,904 he consented to an interview. 439 00:23:03,991 --> 00:23:07,516 He told them about me as if I was... 440 00:23:07,603 --> 00:23:09,126 - A bad guy. - A bad guy. 441 00:23:09,213 --> 00:23:11,302 But everything we did was on tape. 442 00:23:11,390 --> 00:23:13,392 He chose to plead guilty. 443 00:23:34,717 --> 00:23:36,893 - I got one last question though. 444 00:23:36,980 --> 00:23:38,895 How do you keep the beer off the mustache? 445 00:23:38,982 --> 00:23:40,331 - You don't. - You don't? 446 00:23:40,419 --> 00:23:42,029 Do you just suck on it later? - It's just like, 447 00:23:42,116 --> 00:23:43,552 put the shirt in the cleaners the next day.