Whisper in the Shadows
Welcome to ‘Whispers in the Shadows’, your gateway into the nerve-wracking work of undercover policing. The true stories of a real-life undercover cop. I’m Michael Bates, an ex-undercover police officer, and this was my reality for over two years. If your fascinated by the truth that lies beneath crime shows, if you hunger for the real-life stories that leap beyond the boundaries of fiction, ‘Whispers in the Shadows’ is here to satisfy your curiosity. From infiltrating drug syndicates to living a double life, every episode uncovers a thrilling true story that pitted me against the face of danger. Don’t miss out on the chance to step into my shoes and experience what it takes to walk the thin line between law and crime. Subscribe to ‘Whispers in the Shadows’ and join me, as we delve into the gritty world of undercover policing.
Whisper in the Shadows
Risk and Redemption in the Shadows
Have you ever walked a mile in the shoes of an undercover cop? I'm Michael Bates, and I'm peeling back the veil on the pulse-pounding world of covert police operations. My latest podcast episode plunges you into the heart of the action, where I share the intense strategy and stomach-churning risks that come with the territory. Every moment is a high-wire act of maintaining trust and gathering irrefutable evidence against criminals, all while keeping a razor-sharp focus on safety. From the edgy brother duo notorious for their sexual aggression to the critical role of trusted contacts like Betty, these are the stories that don't make the six o'clock news.
Wrapping up the episode, "Whisper in the Shadows" isn't just a podcast—it's a gathering place for the brave men and women who've navigated a world shrouded in darkness. I extend an open invitation to my fellow former covert operatives and undercover officers to join the conversation and add their voices to the chorus of unsung heroes. We celebrate the camaraderie that carries us through the aftermath of high-stakes operations and the personal sacrifices made in the line of duty. So, tune in, subscribe, and brace yourself for a journey into the shadows where truth is often stranger and more thrilling than fiction.
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Hello and welcome to my podcast Whisper in the Shadows the true story of a real-life undercover cop. I'm Michael Bates and I was a police officer for 15 years in one of the country's state police forces. I was also an undercover cop for over two years, and all the episodes of this podcast are my true stories of what it's really like to be an undercover cop. Rather, I was Michael Bates, so full disclosure Michael is not actually my real name. It was my COVID identity I used on most of my operations.
Speaker 1:Everyone has a notion of what undercover policing is all about, whether you think they are a narc, a COVID operative, a dog or an undercover cop. Most people seem to confuse plainclothes police with being undercover. There is a very big difference, though. Most plainclothes police don't wear a uniform, so they aren't as obtrusive in public. Being covert is completely different, though. You become immersed in the world of your targets. When you're a police officer, part of your role is to investigate crimes. This means you try and find evidence to prove the person you have arrested has committed that crime. Now, this evidence can consist of physical, verbal, video and witnesses. When you're an undercover police officer, though, you are the evidence and you are the reason someone gets convicted of the crimes. That is both exciting and dangerous. So why don't we get on with the next episode? Welcome back to Whisper in the Shadows podcast. I hope you're enjoying the true stories of my journey as an undercover cop.
Speaker 1:Last week I had the near miss with Alphonse and buying drugs in my apartment, which was recorded as well as the buy, where I thought my controller was someone going to roll me. During this, betty had been pushing me to do a buy from the brothers. Now we had had discussions and there was an agreement to buy gear from them, but it had just never happened. There are probably a lot of reasons why, but I think the main reason was I didn't want to put myself in a situation where I was alone with them. Given their relationship with Betty, they both believed I was Betty's boy toy, so it wouldn't be a stretch for them to want to try and get some of this ass, so to speak. This was going to put me in an uncomfortable position where I may have to physically resist their advances. Now I may be making light of it here, but it was a genuine concern that ran through my mind. I mean, look at it like this Both had a sexual relationship with Betty where they were the dominant person. They treated her as their toy. I was Betty's toy, supposedly somewhat submissive, albeit a top like them and not a bottom. But everyone knows the statistics of female abuse. I would suggest that the rates in the gay community are somewhat higher, with even less being reported for a multitude of reasons, many of which are a very poor reflection of society and therefore policing in general. But I was not going to put myself in a situation where I could become a possible victim for this or any other job. My well-being on that front was more important than catching some drug dealer Now.
Speaker 1:Early in the following week I was at Betty's place and was discussing how I was going to buy gear from them. I decided it was going to be at her place, either with one or both of them. I explained why and Betty just laughed it off. But there there was something that said I was probably right. I didn't take it any further, but I did say she could talk to me if she wanted to. The look was enough and sometimes you just know. Anyway, we agreed to do the buy at her place.
Speaker 1:Betty called the older brother, yakov, on loudspeaker and agreed to meet him at her place the following evening. The good thing about it being on loudspeaker was I could easily record it. Recording phone conversations or any conversation was never the easiest thing to do. I have spoken about the issues of wearing tape recorders, especially placing them in your jocks, both from burns through to targets grabbing your crotch to see if you were wearing a wire. I still don't know how she knew that was where the tapes were usually hidden, but nonetheless recording telephone calls was always the most difficult. That is because you couldn't always have your phone on loudspeaker At the time. The law also said that a recording was inadmissible if the recording device was attached or touching the phone itself. We developed ways of being able to record telephone calls without the need to contact to the phone, but still it was very difficult to do this in the open. It was even more difficult when you're driving.
Speaker 1:Now I know I said I wasn't going to tell you anyone else's stories, but this is one that was given as a do not try this at home example during our training, but also shows the absurdity of undercover policing. Now, allegedly there was a UC who, during his job, had a target who was actually blind. So the UC would go to the target's house and do deals with him. Now I'm not sure how that all worked, but he did buy a lot of drugs. This one day he had to drive the target to his supplier to get more drugs. This was how trusted he had become. It was a relatively long drive on a major arterial highway. The UC and the target engaged in general conversation and then the target started talking about his business and that of the larger parts of the syndicate for want of a better descriptor. He belonged to.
Speaker 1:The UC had his trusty tape recorder in his car just in case he needed to use it on a buy at some stage. Now, in those days these things weren't rechargeable. They ran ran on finite life batteries. I usually kept a pack of batteries both in my car glove box and also around my safe house. So here they are driving along the highway, the UC and the blind target. The UC decides hey, this is pretty good information he's given me and also pretty incriminating. I should probably record it. So he pulls out his tape recorder there in the car. As they are driving along, he is asking questions and the target is answering him Apparently he was actually talking into the tape and then putting questions and the target is answering him. Apparently he was actually talking into the tape and then putting it toward the target, not unlike how journos use their phones these days to record the conversation. What that must have looked like to other people on the road is anyone's guess, but he got the entire conversation recorded. He was lucky he hadn't been seen by anyone he was dealing with, because that would have been hard to explain away. Not unlike the time he was seen by another target talking on his phone. The target watched him set up the way we recorded it and then have the phone call and then take it all apart. He was asked by that target and the UCF opted off, as the target must have been mistaken and given an excuse of what he really saw. I'm pretty sure that brought dealings with that target to an abrupt end.
Speaker 1:Okay, so back to the brothers. The deal was set up and Betty had decided she was going to be there but not be there, if that makes sense. She was going to let me use her premises, but she was going to excuse herself from the actual proceedings, which was fair enough. I was going to buy half an ounce this time just to see how the gear was and then make regular one ounce buys every three or four days. Well, that was a story I'd come up with. I go home and I call my controller and tell him that the buy was set up for the following evening. That night I went home, my real home, and spent some quality time there.
Speaker 1:The next morning I headed into the covert safe house office and then into the city to meet up with my controller in the drug squad. My controller and I talked through the deal and all the possibilities. Now, these guys were of eastern European descent, as in, born overseas and migrated when they were young due to the conflict in their country. They were hard men from a culture where showing you were a man was ingrained, so there was always a concern of them being violent to prove a point. And then I had my other concerns. My controller decided he would ride shotgun for this buy and he parked nearby just in case he got them. Rather, we got the money together, all $50 and $100 notes photocopied and signed for Last minute contingencies were made. Then I took off home with the money for a nana nap. It was a tough life being undercover after all.
Speaker 1:Later that afternoon I make sure everything is set up for the meet. I give Betty a call and talk her through how I wanted the buy to happen and she was on board. I touch base with my controller, who was still in the office, and let him know that I was going to go around to Betty's at about 7pm. I was meeting Yakov at 7.30 and was planning on doing the buy pretty quick, smart and not staying long. Well, that was what I thought the plan was, and you all know me and plans. So I go and grab some dinner near by to Betty's and then rock around to her place. My controller calls me as I'm arriving to say he was in the area. I was going to call him as Yakov arrived so he could be close by, and by arrive I mean knocking on the door, sophisticated hey.
Speaker 1:I go upstairs and down the outside veranda of the park and it's passing a couple of the strippers I knew who were heading back into work. I knock on Betty's door and wait. A couple of minutes later I knock again. Now Betty's place isn't that big, so it's not like she wouldn't have heard me, nor would she have had far to go to the door. Another few minutes pass by and I was about to knock again when the door cracks open.
Speaker 1:Betty peers out from behind the door, then opens it slightly wider. Oh, it's only you. She said yeah, of course. Who else would it be? Why are you hiding? I asked it doesn't matter, I thought you were someone else. Come in, darling, she said. Betty had a smile on her face, but it was a fake one. Something had happened and she wasn't as out there as she normally was. We walk inside and she puts her head out the door before closing it to do a quick look up and down the balcony Again, not like her.
Speaker 1:Do you want to tell me what's wrong? I asked no, nothing, just some guy who was harassing me. She replied Betty, you look kind of upset. Do you still want to go through with this deal? I asked yes, of course It'll be fine, nothing to worry about. She replied. I wasn't really convinced, but she had her Betty smile on and had composed herself.
Speaker 1:Have you heard from Yarko? I asked her. Yes, both he and Bogdan are coming Now, slightly alarmed. I said wait, said wait, what? Both of them? That isn't what we agreed with Yarko. I said no, I know, but they both wanted to be here for the first one, she said matter-of-factly.
Speaker 1:It was now nearly 7 20 pm, which meant they would be here soon, most likely early. I didn't want to risk calling my controller about this, but I was also a little anxious. Then came the knock at the door. Fuck, I said to myself under my breath. Here we go. Betty said to me Wait, give me a second before you open the door, I said. I then got out my phone and called my controller. They're here, I said. Both of the brothers yes, I know, I saw them arrive. My controller replied you all. Good, yeah, I will be, I said and hung up the phone. Okay, let them in, I said to Betty. She greeted the brothers at the door and told them I was waiting in the lounge room. I was sitting in one of the extra chairs opposite where Betty usually sat waiting for them. I had my money in my jacket pocket and no recording device this time around. I think it became a bit of a ritual or a superstition for me that I didn't record first buys. A bit like when footballers don't wash their lucky DTs, except probably not as gross.
Speaker 1:Yarko and Bogdan saunter into the living room with Betty behind them. Yarko, bogdan. I said with a nod Michael, how are we? Yarko asked Good, good, eager to do this deal and get the gear out to my customers so they can tell me it is good and we can make this a regular thing. I said, looking him in the eyes, let's sit at the table, it will probably be easier. I said so you're not going to test it? Bogdan asked.
Speaker 1:Now, this was what I wanted to try and not have happen, placating both of the brothers with my answers. One, I could convince, but if the other one even slightly didn't believe me, then that was going to cause all sorts of issues, as blood is thicker than water. Now, I had never and did never try any of the product I was buying. I knew very well where that could lead, both in a legal sense ie in the court and allegations as well as health wise. How am I going to talk my way out of this one? I thought to myself.
Speaker 1:As we sat down, I eyed Bogdan up to see if I could get a measure of him. He was clearly the younger brother and probably trying to prove himself to his big brother, as happens the world over. I didn't need that shit tonight. No, I'm doing a lot of driving tonight to see customers at different clubs, so I don't want to do something and get pulled over whilst I'm holding. I said to him, you know what I mean. Seems a bit strange.
Speaker 1:Bogdan said as he sat down how do you know Betty? Again, he asked. I looked at Yarko. I mean really, we're going to do this. I said to him, ignoring his little brother. Looking at his little brother, yarko nodded. It's all right, betty trusts him, so should should we? And there was the crux of it. Bogdan didn't trust me, an outsider who had lobbed up and waving himself into their business. I mean, he was right. Of course they shouldn't have trusted me. I was a narc, an undercover cop. But that was the game we all played, wasn't it? But the little exchange made me definitely want to get out as soon as I could.
Speaker 1:Betty excused herself and said she had something to she had to do. Now. That was the plan all along, but it made me feel even more anxious. I tried not to show it and was being a little bit showy, or maybe even flamboyant with them to cover it. Do you have the money? Yarko asked. I do, indeed. I replied and made a show of pulling it out and unfolding it. Put it on the table in front of me Again. If it was going to go wrong, this is when it would be the point of exchange.
Speaker 1:Money and drugs can do strange things to rational people, let alone people who probably use a little too much of their own product. And I am hoping you have the gear. I asked yes, we do. Yarko said, nodding to Bogdan. With that, bogdan produces the reason we were all there. Well, the reason I was there, they were there for the money, obviously.
Speaker 1:Bogdan had a clipsial bag with a crystal-like powder that was a pinkish-white colour. Nice, I said Can I jump on that? Yeah, I wouldn't too much, it is pretty good. But you want them coming back? Yarko said I'd do maybe a third chimed in Bogdan. Yeah right, I said. I handed the money to Yarko and I then had to sit there while he counted it out to make sure I had the agreed amount. It took him two goes to get there, but in the end both he and Bogdan were happy.
Speaker 1:Bogdan then slid the bag across Betty's dining room table. Thanks for this, I said. As I scooped it up, a quick examination. I put it straight into my jacket pocket. Well, I think I might have to get home and package this up and get out.
Speaker 1:I said to no one in particular why don't you do it here? Bogdan asked Little shit. I thought to myself. He just wasn't going to let it go, was he? This is Betty's place and I wouldn't put her in that situation. I said but you, bogdan started Bogdan, enough, okay, yarko said to him. Bogdan's face looked ashen as he shut up. I think that is my cue to leave.
Speaker 1:I said Betty, I'm going, darling. I called out. Betty had gotten changed and spruced herself up. She looked immaculate. Whatever was worrying her earlier? She had become a chameleon and put it behind her. How did we all go? She asked I think this is the start of a good business deal. I said I agree, I think we'll be doing a lot of business together from now on. Bogdan replied I'll walk you to the door, betty said. I gave both yakov and bogdan a handshake, took betty by the arm and walked out of the lounge. As we got to the door, I said you certainly scrub up, all right, are you sure everything is okay, cheeky bugger? She replied but yes, I'm fine, darling, don't you worry about me. Okay, I'll call you tomorrow. And with that I left.
Speaker 1:For some reason my pace down the stairs was quicker than usual. I literally ran, walked down the stairs and out to my car. I gave my controller the heads up I'd left and organized to meet him at a place on the other side of town. When we got there we had a quick chat about what had happened during the buy and also about the fact that Bogdan was asking a lot of questions and seemed to be less convinced of who I was. My controller said that he would look into it, but the best thing to do was to call Betty the following day and find out what was said to her. If she thought there was an issue, then we would reassess. Then I handed the drugs over to my controller, who then took them out to be lodged. He was quite happy because we made buys from the major targets we identified and things were moving along.
Speaker 1:Now I didn't think we would get much further than the brothers and we definitely wouldn't get further than Alphonse. No one ever had. There was a possibility of picking up some other bit players, but my gut was telling me that this was who we were going to get. But you just never knew. In this game there was always a surprise twist that you never saw coming.
Speaker 1:Anyway, I headed back to my safe house and decided to have an early night. I got some amazing Chinese food from a little shop close by and settled in and watched a video. Okay, you're right, I didn't watch the video. I did have Chinese, though, and just as I finished came a call that you always dreaded Mate, the boys are going out, are you in Now? I could never say no to that call. That may have something to do with why I got divorced during my time in the police, or it may just be because I was a social animal, or maybe it was because I valued the mates I had during that time and they allowed me to decompress and tell the stories and get all the crap out of our systems.
Speaker 1:Whatever the reason, it turned into a late night at one of the favorite establishments. I won't go into too much detail of what happened, but we ended up at the home of two of the guys still drinking. It was very late and there was a conversation about piercing parts of your body, because I had my nose pierced and one of the guys said he would pierce his foreskin, for a six pack Challenge was accepted on the promise of said six pack, and he duly did that. We all thought it was hilarious. The next morning when we woke, it turned out that during the night it had come out forcefully. He was in a fair bit of pain, as you can imagine, and we all felt so guilty we went and bought him a full carton instead. You can't say we weren't compassionate. I got home eventually, after I'd sobered up enough to drive.
Speaker 1:I called my controller to discuss the events of the previous evening with the brothers and also the piercing incident, and on reflection he was of the same opinion. We didn't think we would get much further. I then called Betty and strangely she didn't answer. There was no such thing as message banks back then, so I left it for an hour or so. I tried again. The call just rang out. Now this was kind of strange, as Betty usually always answered or at the very least called back Another hour or so and I make another call Again, nothing. I called my controller and told him about the calls to Betty. He agreed it was strange, but also reminded me about her medical condition and she might be having treatment. I hoped that was the case.
Speaker 1:I went into the office and was doing some statements and some transcribing. When my controller called me he had managed to speak to Betty and after the previous night she had said she was out. I wasn't sure what that meant. I agreed to go and meet him at my place so we could discuss this more. I get home and he is waiting for me there. We go inside and he basically says that Betty has gotten cold feet.
Speaker 1:It appears Bogdan was very sketchy about me and was making threats of me being a copper and how he would react. That spooked her to the point where she decided she was out. I could steal with the targets, but she wasn't going to be involved. According to Betty, yarko didn't agree with his brother, but Bogdan was sus. Decision was going to have to be made. Do we deal with Yarko and exclude Bogdan? Was there a risk that Bogdan could turn up during a buy and just how sus was he on me? We had a very frank discussion and my gut feel was we weren't going to get any further. My controller agreed, but it wasn't our decision per se. So he went back to the drug squad officers to have a chat with the inspector.
Speaker 1:The decision was eventually made to close up the op. I didn't have any more contact with the targets and I stayed away from the strip clubs for the time being. I did call Betty but again got no response. The close was planned to happen in a fortnight's time from the decision being made. There was a lot to do between now and then. The main thing was for me to move out of my safe house. To start with. Now, that was a big project in itself, given the state of the place. I had a lot of cleaning I had to do. I could have left it as the lease was in my covert name, but I didn't feel right doing that, or rather my controller didn't feel right doing that.
Speaker 1:The drug squad and surveillance did some more, finding out about where everyone lived and where the targets were going to be raided. Now, remember, I had never been to anyone's house except for the guys I had met at the strip club. Whilst some of this legwork was done, as we were going, the decision came abruptly, which meant these things had to be sped up. The home addresses were eventually verified and places of work etc were also worked out. General schedules ie work were developed, so we knew what time to execute the warrants and also where to ensure we had the best chance of 1. Grabbing the targets and 2. Finding them with drugs and money and whatever else they had. I had no input into any of this, thankfully. I just did up my statements and kept transcribing tapes, so the evidence was there for the knock teams on the day of the raids.
Speaker 1:Not a lot of fun, if I'm being honest, but necessary. Apart from having to attend the office every few days, I didn't really have much to do. It was kind of like a holiday. To be honest, that was one of both the good things and bad things of working undercover. There was a fair amount of downtime, of hurry up and wait, if you will. For someone who was always looking for things to do, that was a little bit of a problem and may have contributed to mischief being gotten into in my personal life. Now, I'm not blaming work for that, but I'm pretty sure if I didn't have as much downtime I possibly wouldn't have been as dumb as I was Now. I can hear you saying to yourselves what the hell? What did he do? It is personal life stuff and to protect those involved, especially my ex-wife, that is all I'm saying.
Speaker 1:So it came time to close the op and do all the raids etc. I had tried to get in contact with Betty, despite the suggestion I shouldn't, without any luck. Apparently, my controller did have contact with her and told her the op was closing on the day. That was the last anyone heard from her. It was a pretty standard closure, to be honest. I wasn't required at all. The various raid teams got all their targets and I think all of the targets made full conversions. In the subsequent interviews I know I didn't have to go to court for any of these targets at all. It was a pretty straightforward op. Even if we didn't get the Mr Biggs, we still got some pretty high level players who were supplying quite a bit of speed into the nightlife scene.
Speaker 1:Now, as I said, I didn't have contact with Betty again. I knew she had cancer but I didn't know just how bad it was at the time of the op. My understanding is that it took its toll and not long after the op closed. That was both good and bad. Good in the sense that she wouldn't have faced any retribution from the targets. Bad because I genuinely liked her. She was a nice person.
Speaker 1:With the political storm that rages over sexuality today, she was just a guy who preferred to be a female. There was no pretension. There was no railing against the machine. There was no. You must accept me, it was. This is who I am, like me or not? Because, darling, I don't give a fuck and your opinion can't hurt me. That is an attitude I've tried and failed more times than succeeded in keeping throughout my life. I wasn't as rocked by Betty's death as I was with Susan's, but still it was sad. But life goes on, and so did my journey as an undercover cop. My next operation would be the last and it was going to be slightly challenging for a few reasons, but that is for next time.
Speaker 1:Thank you for listening to Whisper in the Shadows my true stories of a real-life undercover cop. I hope you've enjoyed that episode. In the next one we'll explore more exciting stories from my operations. Please make sure you subscribe to the podcast so you never miss an episode. Lastly, if you're an ex-COVID operative or undercover police officer, I would love to chat to you about your experiences. Or, if you're feeling dangerous, tell your stories on my podcast. Please get in contact by my email, which is whisperintheshadowspodcast at gmailcom. I look forward to you joining me next time.
