Whale Hunting

How did the Ghetto Superstar rapper Pras Michel become locked in an international financial fraud case — and did his AI-loving lawyer stitch him up?

In the first episode of Whale Hunting, investigative reporters Tom Wright and Bradley Hope dive into the unbelievable true story behind the conviction of rapper Pras Michel for money laundering, illegal lobbying, witness tampering and campaign finance violations. With Pras now back in the news with an unconventional legal appeal, Tom and Bradley discuss the rapper’s entanglement with the notorious Jho Low, from their first encounter in high end nightclubs to the pair’s efforts to manipulate the Trump administration. An intriguing tale of how money and influence can intertwine in incredible, sometimes shocking, ways.

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This week on Whale Hunting, Tom Wright is joined by Simon Willis, journalist and host of new podcast, The Professor. The series unravels the story of William Veres, an art dealer charged with running an art trafficking ring linked to the Sicilian Mafia. With a 20-year prison sentence looming, Veres has a daring plan to win the favor of prosecutors – he’ll solve the coldest case in the history of art crime: the theft of Caravaggio’s Nativity. In this episode of Whale Hunting, Simon and Tom discuss the hidden world of art trafficking and organized crime that is exposed in The Professor, and its shadowy connections with the Italian establishment. Plus, Simon explains what it was like to navigate the still-treacherous world of Mafiosi while reporting this story.

If you’d like to listen to the show, search for The Professor in your favorite podcast app, or visit www.brazen.fm/the-professor.

For more information and to subscribe to the Whale Hunting, visit whalehunting.projectbrazen.com.

This week on Whale Hunting, Tom Wright and Bradley Hope dive into the life and works of legendary spy novelist John le Carré. After le Carré’s death in 2020, a new documentary and biography were released this autumn, revealing previously hidden elements of the author’s personal life. Was he really the spy he claimed to be – or were his stories of deceit and duplicity inspired by his other secrets? Tom and Bradley discuss le Carré’s life, how recent revelations might affect the legacy of his books, and whether biographies of powerful people can ever really tell the full story.  Mentioned in this episode: John le Carré, a 2015 biography by Adam Sisman: bloomsbury.com/uk/john-le-carré-9781408849446  The Secret Life of John le Carré, a biography by Adam Sisman: profilebooks.com/work/the-secret-life-of-john-le-carr The Pigeon Tunnel, a new documentary by Errol Morris: imdb.com/title/tt28486633 The Secret Life of John le Carré by Adam Sisman review, from The Guardian: theguardian.com/books/2023/oct/15/the-secret-life-of-john-le-carre-by-adam-sisman-review  How John le Carré’s serial adultery shaped his spy novels, from The Washington Post: washingtonpost.com/books/2023/10/23/secret-life-john-le-carre-adam-sisman-review/ For more information and to subscribe to the Whale Hunting newsletter, visit whalehunting.projectbrazen.com.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week on Whale Hunting, Bradley Hope is joined by Alex Finley, former CIA operations officer and author of the Victor Caro book series. While researching her third book, Victor in Trouble, she discovered a newfound interest in the superyachts of the ultrawealthy – including Russian oligarchs – and began to investigate further into this murky world. In this episode, Alex and Bradley discuss the problems with seizing sanctioned yachts, why real-life spycraft is about relationships, not car chases, and how there are some surprising similarities between the work of journalists and spooks.  For more information and to subscribe to the Whale Hunting, visit whalehunting.projectbrazen.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It’s been more than nine months since Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich was wrongfully detained on espionage charges. Just a few weeks ago, Putin rejected an American offer for a prisoner swap to help free him. But how did we get here?  This week on Whale Hunting, we’re running a special episode on Evan’s story. This episode originally aired in May 2023, just weeks after his arrest. Unfortunately, little has changed since his detention began. He remains imprisoned in Moscow’s infamous Lefortovo prison, awaiting trial. In this special episode, you’ll hear from those close to Evan — his friends, newsroom colleagues, even his former soccer coach — about his shocking arrest, efforts to bring him home, and how he became the journalist he is today. To support the campaign for Evan’s release or send him a message of support, visit http://www.freegershkovich.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

How can journalists, activists, dissidents and even lawyers and business leaders protect themselves from the threat of private surveillance? That’s the question we’re looking to answer this week on Whale Hunting, with a special interview from our archives. Back in 2022, Whale Hunting host Bradley Hope took a look into the hidden world of private surveillance – a world he’s gotten to know personally in his work investigating corruption over the years. To find out more, he spoke with an industry insider – codenamed Oscar Zero – who has dedicated her career to this kind of work. They met at a restaurant in London, where she explained how she got into private surveillance, and the ways in which this shadowy practice is employed by oligarchs, intelligence services and the ultra-rich all over the world. Plus, if you’d like to watch Bradley try and outwit Oscar Zero and her surveillance team, head to Brazen’s YouTube channel, where you can find our documentary, Hidden Worlds, following the action. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Leonard Francis executed a naval corruption scheme like no other – plying admirals and officers with booze, parties and prostitutes in return for lucrative navy contracts. His story involves sexual kompromat, a daring escape to Venezuela, and now, a prisoner swap with a suspected money launderer. But how did Whale Hunting host Tom Wright discover this shocking scoop? And what was it like spending so much with a powerful criminal and master manipulator like Leonard Francis? In this episode, Tom and co-host Bradley Hope discuss the Fat Leonard case, navy cover-ups, and the tricky task of interviewing fraudsters.  For more information and to subscribe to the Whale Hunting newsletter, go to whalehunting.projectbrazen.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

If there’s one thing dictators and autocrats hate, it’s transparency. If they got it their way, they’d step onto private jets and vanish from all oversight. Luckily, people like Emmanuel Freudenthal are paying attention – even at 30,000 feet. This week on Whale Hunting, Bradley Hope is joined by Emmanuel, an investigative journalist and a director at Dictator Alert, a project that aims to illuminate the shadowy dealings of dictators and autocrats by tracking their private jets. Together, they discuss what can be gained from following the ultrawealthy across the skies – and what more privacy-conscious crooks are doing to stay out of sight.  You can find out more about Dictator Alert at dictatoralert.org, or support the project at patreon.com/dictatoralert. Make sure you subscribe to the Whale Hunting newsletter at whalehunting.projectbrazen.com for the latest Mystery Flights updates. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Yaroslav Trofimov is a seasoned war correspondent whose career spans the tumultuous events of the early 21st century, from Iraq to Afghanistan and the frontlines in Ukraine. This week on the Whale Hunting podcast, Yaroslav joins host Tom Wright to take a deep dive into his war reporting career – including his latest work, a new book titled ‘Our Enemies Will Vanish’. The book chronicles the first year of Ukraine’s war with Russia, a conflict that’s closer to home than ever before for Yaroslav, who grew up in Kyiv. Together, Tom and Yaroslav discuss his experiences jumping from the fall of Kabul to the grey zones of eastern Ukraine, what it’s like to report under artillery fire, and Yaroslav’s prognosis for the war as it enters its second full year.  To find out more about ‘Our Enemies Will Vanish’, visit Yaroslav’s website at yarotrof.com. You can also follow him on Twitter at @yarotrof. For more, make sure to follow the podcast – and you can subscribe to the Whale Hunting newsletter at whalehunting.projectbrazen.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

When the Sheik of Dubai’s daughters tried to escape their father, world powers turned a blind eye. But investigative reporter Heidi Blake was determined to document their plight. Writing for the New Yorker last year, Heidi unraveled the disturbing story of Emirati princesses Latifa and Shamsa, and how Sheik Mohammed bin Rashid al Maktoum crushed their bid for freedom. This week on Whale Hunting, Bradley Hope speaks with Heidi about reporting this story — now available as a new podcast, The Runaway Princesses — and how it reveals cracks in both British justice and in Dubai’s system of absolute monarchy.  To listen to Heidi’s new podcast, search for The Runaway Princesses in your favorite podcast app. For more from Whale Hunting, make sure to follow the podcast – and you can subscribe to our newsletter at whalehunting.projectbrazen.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The man at the heart of the German Wirecard scandal, Jan Marsalek was once believed to be a straightforward fraudster. Recent reporting, however, has revealed him as a potential Russian intelligence asset. Dan McCrum, investigative reporter for The Financial Times, is well versed with Marsalek’s shadowy ways. Investigating Wirecard saw him tailed by private detectives and smeared with sham allegations of market manipulation before his reporting eventually brought the massive fraud to light. This week on Whale Hunting, host Bradley Hope speaks to Dan on the latest updates about Marsalek’s location, how the Austrian businessman may have ended up embroiled in Russian espionage, and why increasingly few corners of the financial universe remain untouched by dark money.   For more from Whale Hunting, make sure to follow the podcast – and you can subscribe to our newsletter at whalehunting.projectbrazen.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Picture the scene: you’re luxury glamping in the Saudi desert, the darkening sky already awash with stars above you. You’re about to enjoy all the splendour of an evening amongst the Saudi royal court when Johnny emerges from his opulent tent, acoustic guitar in hand. That, I’m afraid, has been the fate of Mohammed Bin Salman’s courtiers in recent months, ever since the pair began their budding bromance. This week, Whale Hunting host Bradley Hope has written an exclusive story on this new friendship for Vanity Fair, and we’ll be unpacking its twists and turns in this episode. Tom Wright quizzes Bradley on the details, including how Johnny and MBS came to meet, his time aboard the crown prince’s yacht, and what their relationship could signal for the future of Hollywood, Saudi Arabia, and the film industry.  To read Bradley’s story for Vanity Fair, ‘Inside Johnny Depp’s Epic Bromance With Saudi Crown Prince MBS’, visit vanityfair.com. For more from Whale Hunting, make sure to follow the podcast – and you can subscribe to our newsletter at whalehunting.projectbrazen.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

How fast can you set up a shell company? We bet Jason Sharman can do it quicker. A Cambridge academic, author, and an expert witness, Professor Sharman is also a founder of the niche sport of time-trialed shell company formation. He’s spent more than a decade studying corruption, money laundering and tax havens, visiting at least 20 so-called treasure islands during his studies. This week on Whale Hunting, host Bradley Hope interviews Professor Sharman on his journey into the world of offshore finance, from his initial curiosity about the power of small states, to his groundbreaking investigations into how dark money shapes the destiny of nations around the world.  For more from Whale Hunting, make sure to follow the podcast – and you can subscribe to our newsletter at whalehunting.projectbrazen.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Most of the time, drug wars happen in the shadows, in underworld deaths and disappearances. But when journalists and lawyers start getting gunned down on the streets of Amsterdam, and burning cars are crashed into newspaper offices — well, you’ve got all the makings of a European narco state. This week on Whale Hunting, host Bradley Hope sits down with Mitch Prothero to discuss the sentencing of the merciless kingpin at the heart of the chaos: Ridouan Taghi. A reporter and host of the podcast Gateway: Cocaine, Murder and Dirty Money in Europe, Mitch has spent years following the explosion of European cocaine markets, giving him a front row seat Taghi’s rise. Together, Bradley and Mitch dig into the details of this story, from the King of Morocco’s role in Taghi’s capture to his mega-trial in ‘ze Bunker’ — and why shows like Narcos no longer capture the reality of modern cocaine trafficking. To discover Ridouan Taghi’s story from the very beginning, search for Gateway: Cocaine, Murder and Dirty Money in Europe wherever you listen to podcasts. For more from Whale Hunting, make sure to follow the podcast – and you can subscribe to our newsletter at whalehunting.projectbrazen.com.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Hollywood movies would have you believe Interpol is something like the world’s police force. The reality is quite different. This week on Whale Hunting, host Bradley Hope talks to Jane Bradley about what Interpol is really for, and the complicated politics at play within its ranks. Jane is the New York Times’ reporter for the UK and along with Pulitzer and Orwell prize nominations, she also holds the accolade of almost being thrown out of Interpol’s last conference for asking difficult questions. She explains more about Interpol’s upcoming elections for a new secretary-general, as well as the organization’s color-coded notice system — and why it’s proven a favorite tool of authoritarian regimes around the world.  For more from Whale Hunting, make sure to follow the podcast – and you can subscribe to our newsletter at whalehunting.projectbrazen.com.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices