One of the most feared cartels ever caught out by rookie FBI agent after simple mistake
One of the most feared cartels in the world was taken down by a rookie FBI agent working on his very first case.
If it sounds like the far-fetched plot of a TV show, that's because it is. It just so happens that it's also true, and it's what Apple TV+'s hottest new true crime docuseries is all about.
Cowboy Cartel is a four-part series which will absolutely grip you, and in a cartel-esque way... force you to binge-watch it in one sitting.
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It's the answer to all our questions of 'what to watch after Narcos, and Narcos: Mexico' - which executive producer Eric Newman also worked on.
It follows the FBI's money laundering case against the infamous Los Zetas - a Mexican cartel that was probably the most violent gang to ever run.
They would massacre civilians, police, journalists - pretty much anyone who spoke their name.
The group was formed of soldiers trained by the US Armed Forces with the intent of having them take down cartels in Mexico, but instead of doing so, they were corrupted and joined Los Zetas.
Speaking about the criminal organization, Dan Johnstone, one of two directors of Cowboy Cartel, told UNILAD: "Like most people, I knew about them because of their violence and their propensity for violence - absolutely over the top violence.
"Even seeing movies like Sicario, you know that those sort of actions are based on stories about this cartel."
While the ruthless leaders of Loz Zetas, Miguel and Omar Treviño Morales, are currently locked up, their barbarous roots still hold strong with Castor Fernandez, the docuseries' other director, who admitted to being on edge since shooting.
When asked whether he fears repercussion from them, he replied: "Well, [considering] the people involved, I think there's always concerns. I would be lying if I said I didn't pull over more often and let cars behind me pass."
So, how does a rookie FBI agent take down a military-trained cartel group?
Through horse racing - or more specifically, quarter-horse racing.
Back in 2010, a 22/1 outsider called Mr Piloto won the biggest race in the sport and banked $1 million for the horse's owner, José Treviño Morales - who people at the time thought was just an honest, hard-working bricklayer from North Dallas.
That is, everyone but Scott Lawson - an FBI agent who was on his first posting in Laredo, a town in Texas on the Mexican border.
While the agency linked Jose to his brothers Miguel and Omar, it was Lawson who decided to follow the money.
"He listened to his gut, and not the voices around him, and he was willing to be wrong in order to be right - and it paid off for him in a major way," Fernandez told UNILAD.
Hailing from a small rural town in west Tennessee, Lawson was chosen to convince Tyler Graham, a rancher who was unknowingly doing business with the cartel, to become an informant for the FBI.
Graham and Lawson were both country boys, in their 20s and liked horses, so he explained it was easy for them to relate to each other.
So, what was the simple mistake that would bring an end to Miguel and Omar's merciless reign?
Mixing business and pleasure - something that were always warned of. It was ultimately their passion for racing which was their downfall.
The pair loved a flutter themselves, and they discovered that they could launder their drug money through the horses - but to do so they'd need 'legitimate' businessmen, as well as a face for the operation - their own brother.
There is so much more to this incredibly powerful story which was delicately placed together by Fernandez and Johnstone - who so easily could have told it through the glorifying of violence carried about by Miguel and Omar's wicked gang.
Cowboy Cartel is available to stream now on Apple TV+, and it's a watch that we'd certainly recommend.
Topics: Drugs, Mexico, Texas, True crime, Film and TV
Joe Yates