The Connect- with Johnny Mitchell

Chris Curtis grew up in Orange County, California in area rife with addiction and crime. As a child he was not protected from this reality and in fact was encouraged to be a part of it. Struggling with addiction and turning to a life of crime, Chris ended up getting sentenced to life in prison as a result of California's Three Strikes law. There he found himself in some of the most dangerous institutions in the state. He's on the show to talk about how he ended up getting out of prison with a life sentence, cleaning up and overcoming his addiction, and becoming a mentor of hope for kids just like he was.Go Support Chris!Book: https://www.amazon.com/Orange-County-Dark-Christopher-Curtis/dp/1644565935 IG: https://www.instagram.com/octhedarkside8083/TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@octhedarkside8083 Support the show and get 15% off your Perfect Jean order athttps://www.theperfectjean.nyc/ with promo code CONNECT15Head over to https://hellomood.co/ and use code CONNECT20 at checkout for 20% off your first order PLUS a free 5 count pack of gummies!Join The Patreon For Bonus Content!https://www.patreon.com/theconnectshow Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Barry Minkow is one of the most infamous financial scam artists in American History. By the age of 21 he was running a ponzi scheme worth a billion dollars. He made history by being the youngest person to take a company public with his carpet cleaning business. But what people didn't know was that Barry was using money from the mafia to help fund this business. He ran bank and wire fraud, embezzled money from investors, and much more. Barry was so committed to running scams that he's been convicted more than once- one of these convictions came down WHILE he was helping the feds in fraud cases. He ended serving time in federal prison and turned his life around. He works now with the federal government go after companies that are committing fraud just like he used to.Join The Patreon For Bonus Content!https://www.patreon.com/theconnectshow Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Oscar Castro grew up in New Jersey to a loving family. When he dropped out of high school he immediately got a job and met someone that talked him into being a drug mule for a Colombian organization. As law enforcement began cracking down in Colombia the operations moved to Ecuador. One on pickup Oscar was arrested in Ecuador by Interpol and the DEA. From there he spent 7 years in some of the most horrific jails and prisons in Ecuador where death, drugs, and riots lasting for weeks were common occurrences. He's here to tell us all about his experiences and his journey to turning his life around and wanting to help others avoid going down the path he did as a young man.This Episode Is Brought To You By The Following Sponsors:PRIZEPICKSVisit https://www.prizepicks.com/ or download the app today and use code CONNECT for a first deposit match up to $100!MOODHead over to https://hellomood.co/ and use code CONNECT20 at checkout for 20% off your first order PLUS a free 5 count pack of gummies!Join The Patreon For Bonus Content!https://www.patreon.com/theconnectshow Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Dominick Cicale grew up in the Bronx burrow of New York City. Surrounded by criminal activity he quickly started associating with mafia and eventually became a "Made Man" with the Bonanno Crime Family. Before long he was made a captain and had over 20 soldiers working for him. He was involved in racketeering, illegal gambling, and even murder. After a particular hit went down he ended up cooperating with the Federal Government to help take down other associates, served time in federal prison, and eventually left the life of crime. Today he is a successful business man and living a fulfilling life with his family. He joins the show to tell his incredible story of going into the deepest depths of organized crime and coming out the other side a changed man!Go Support Dom!EG Vodka: https://egvodka.com/ Preorder The Book: https://theperfectcrimefamily.com/ Podcast: @mafiaroundtable Support the show and secure your online data athttps://www.expressvpn.com/CONNECTPOD Join The Patreon For Bonus Content!https://www.patreon.com/theconnectshow Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Garet McLendon shares his story of going from addiction and prison gangs to sobriety and recovery.Step into Summer fun activities with Vessi. Visit vessi.com/connect for an automatic 15% off your first purchase at checkout!Garet grew up in Palmdale CA. At a young age he was exposed to the drugs that were rampant in his community. He quickly found himself not only addicted to drugs, but selling them to support his habit. This life led him to spending time in and out of some of America's most dangerous prisons. While in prison he joined gangs and even became a shot caller. Garet is here to share his stories of not just surviving maximum security prison, but his path to sobriety and recovery and how he's helping others get off drugs and avoid the mistakes and lifestyle choices he made as a young man.Go Support Garet and contact him if you need help with addiction recovery!IG: https://www.instagram.com/garetmclendon/ Join The Patreon For Bonus Content!https://www.patreon.com/theconnectshowSpotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6mc4qAxpztC6D20wzeS91C Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Myron Gaines is the well known and very controversial host of the Fresh And Fit Podcast. What a lot of people don’t know is before he became a famous podcaster and fitness coach, he was a special agent with Homeland Security. After attending Northwestern University, Myron started working with HSI in Loredo, Texas. He was involved with Mexican Cartel stings, wiretaps, undercover operations, and immigration. He joins the show today to tell all about his time as a federal agent, how that field ACTUALLY works, and ultimately that caused him to leave.Go Support Myron's Channels!Fresh And Fit Podcast: @FreshFitMiami Fed Reacts: @FedReacts This Episode Is Brought To You By The Following Sponsor:PRIZEPICKS! Head over to https://www.prizepicks.com/connect and use promo code CONNECT for a first deposit match up to $100!Support the show and visit https://www.dietsmoke.com/FREE to try Diet Smoke gummies.Join The Patreon For Bonus Content!https://www.patreon.com/theconnectshow Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Steve James learned the power of money at a young age. In rural Georgia during the 1950s he discovered the basics of business by watching his grandfather hustle ranchers for cattle. He took these lessons and applied them to crime. By the age of 13 he was smuggling in pot from Panama and became the main distributer in his town. He continued scaling his business which eventually led to him trafficking seeds from Afghanistan and starting the first indica grows on the island of Jamaica. He's here to tell us all about his life story; crime, addiction, betrayal and a federal case that landed him the crosshairs of the FBI.Go Support Steve!Website: https://indicathebook.com/ Book On Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Indica-Steven-Person-Marijuana-Jamaica-ebook/dp/B09HHNSM4ZThis Episode Is #Sponsored By MANDO!Control Body Odor ANYWHERE with @shop.mando and get $5 off off your Starter Pack (that’s over 40% off) with promo code MITCHELL at www.shopmando.com! #mandopod Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Matthew Cox shares the details that led to him becoming one of the most wanted men in America by the FBI and the Secret Service. He started as an honest insurance salesman and quickly found himself committing fraud as a mortgage lender. It wasn't long before he found himself creating and stealing identities, forging real estate documents, opening credit lines, faking deaths and borrowing more than 11 million dollars from banks all across the country.Go Support Matt!IG: https://www.instagram.com/insidetruecrime/ TikTok: tiktok.com/@matthewcoxtruecrime YouTube: @InsideTrueCrime FaceBook: https://m.facebook.com/MatthewCoxTrueCrime/ Book: https://www.amazon.com/Shark-Housing-Pool-Matthew-Cox/dp/B0851KBYCF Art: https://www.etsy.com/shop/CoxPopArt This Episode Is Brought To You By The Following Sponsor:RocketMoney! Visit https://www.rocketmoney.com/connect and stop wasting your money TODAY!Join The Patreon For Bonus Content!https://www.patreon.com/theconnectshow Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Understanding multi-layered news like government corruption is easier with Ground News. Go to https://ground.news/theconnect to get 30% off their unlimited access Vantage plan.Jeff Turner is a brilliantly talented designer and printer. Little did he know that those skills would help feed a drug addiction by printing some of the most realistic counterfeit bills that the Secret Service has ever seen. He has been described as the Picasso of counterfeit money. Jeff joins the show to detail how he taught himself the art of printing fake money, the rise of his scam, and the moment he was caught by the federal government and sent to prison. His work was so legendary that the Feds praised him for his sophistication and even had him film tutorials for them on his process. Today he is running a legitimate printing business, sober and being a positive influence for his kids!Go Support Jeff!IG: https://www.instagram.com/j.turner727/ Website: https://graphicalwarehouse.com/ YouTube: @jeffreypatrickturner Join The Patreon For Bonus Content!https://www.patreon.com/theconnectshow Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Matty Boy hails from California’s Bay Area. As a young kid he was exposed to the criminal life by his parents who were both affiliated with the Hell’s Angels and CA prison gangs. It wasn’t long before he joined the life and started selling huge amounts of meth. In this time he started a street gang called FAIM- Family Affiliated Irish Mafia. This path sent him straight to federal court where he was looking at potentially life in prison. He’s here to talk about his life in the criminal world, starting a white prison gang, and how he turned his life around and started his new chapter as a well known rapper!Go Support Matty Boy!IG: https://www.instagram.com/mattyboy1417/ YouTube: @mattyboymusic4020 This episode is sponsored by PRIZEPICKS! Head over to https://www.prizepicks.com/connect and use promo code CONNECT for a first deposit match up to $100!Join The Patreon For Bonus Content!https://www.patreon.com/theconnectshow Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices