In this episode, we talk about the assassin-for-hire economy in the Philippines — how organized networks of contract killers operate, what it costs to buy a life, and why political targets are especially at risk. We cover the July 2008 killing of two Bahaghari rap group members, the infamous 1983 assassination of opposition leader Benigno Aquino, and firsthand accounts from targets like retired police Colonel Wally Sombero. We explore how middlemen and masterminds control the operations, how firearms are sourced or made, and why poverty keeps the pipeline of killers full. The episode also looks at government crackdowns, nationwide gun bans, black market access to weapons, and how private armed groups fuel a killing-for-hire industry that's quietly embedded in the country’s political and criminal landscape.

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In this episode, we talk about the hostage situation that unfolded when three college-age friends from Bakersfield headed to their remote family cabin in the California hills. We break down how a man named Benjamin Ashley, armed and delusional, ambushed them on private land, held them at gunpoint, and later murdered a retired dentist. We cover the fifteen-day manhunt that followed, the DNA evidence police used to ID the suspect, and the tactical shootout that ended it all. This is the story of a planned summer getaway that turned into a survival test with real casualties.

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In this episode, we talk about Liverpool’s long history of gang violence, from the brutal murder of Richard Morgan by the Cornermen in 1874 over a sixpence, to Curtis Warren’s £40 million heroin operation in the 1990s. We cover how the city’s docks turned it into a global smuggling hub, how economic collapse fueled the rise of the Liverpool Mafia, and how Warren became one of Interpol’s most wanted men. We break down the public outrage, the failures of law enforcement, the rise of organized drug trafficking, and the operations that finally brought Warren down.

Join us on Apple Podcasts or Patreon to explore all topics covered by the National Media Archive:

• Power & Influence
• Luxury & Prestige
• Wealth & Finance
• Erotic Audio
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• Crime & Corruption (True Crime)
• Knowledge & Ideas
• History & Legacy
• News, Culture & Society
• Technology & Innovation
• Exploration & Wonder