SPYCRAFT 101 - Justin Black

Latest Episodes:

100. The Disappearance of Bob Levinson with Barry Meier Jun 19, 2023

Show notes

This week, Justin sits down with Barry Meier. Barry is a veteran reporter who has written for the New York Times and received the 2017 Pulitzer Prize for International Reporting, along with other members of the New York Times staff. He's also the first journalist to bring significant attention to the dangers of abuse of the prescription drug, Oxycontin, with his book Pain Killer, which was first published in 2003. Today, Justin and Barry discuss the story of a former FBI agent turned private investigator named Robert Levinson, who went missing in 2007 while on an assignment on Kish Island in the Persian Gulf, and the years long ordeal his family went through as they sought answers from both the American and Iranian governments.
Connect with Barry:
barrymeierbooks.com
Check out Barry's book, Missing Man, here.
https://amzn.to/3NwlwdJ
Connect with Spycraft 101:
Check out Justin's latest release, Covert Arms, here.
spycraft101.com
IG: @spycraft101
Shop: spycraft-101.myshopify.com
Patreon: Spycraft 101
Find Justin's first book, Spyshots: Volume One, here.
Download the free eBook, The Clandestine Operative's Sidearm of Choice, here.

SLNT
Protect your data and devices. Use code SPYCRAFT101 to save 10% off your order.
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99. Industrial Espionage: The Downfall of a Great American Company with Aaron Stark Jun 12, 2023

Show notes

Today, Justin speaks with Aaron Stark. Aaron served in the US Army as an Apache helicopter pilot, including on two tours in Afghanistan. He finished his term of service teaching at his alma mater, West Point Military Academy, as an assistant professor of economics after completing his Master's in Business administration at Harvard University, and he now works as a chief of staff at a Fortune 500 tech company. Today, Aaron is discussing the story of the Waltham Watch Company, headquartered in Waltham, Massachusetts, and how they were targeted by the Swiss watch industry at a time when Waltham was poised to dominate the global market through its development and use of cutting edge technology, leaving the antiquated Swiss industry far behind. A pair of Swiss spies infiltrated the company in a last ditch effort to save their own nation's failing industry and succeeded beyond anyone's expectations.
Connect with Aaron:
aaronstarkbooks.com
LinkedIn: Aaron Stark
Twitter: @DisruptingTime
Download a free sample of Aaron's book here:
https://disruptingtime.subscribemenow.com/

Check out Aaron's book, Disrupting Time, here.

https://amzn.to/42G6aIN
Connect with Spycraft 101:
Check out Justin's latest release, Covert Arms, here.
spycraft101.com
IG: @spycraft101
Shop: spycraft-101.myshopify.com
Patreon: Spycraft 101
Find Justin's first book, Spyshots: Volume One, here.
Download the free eBook, The Clandestine Operative's Sidearm of Choice, here.

Support the show

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

98. Special Forces Detachment A in Berlin with James Stejskal Jun 05, 2023

Show notes

Today, Justin chats with author, veteran, and former CIA case officer James Stejskal. James enlisted in the US Army in 1973 and served for more than 20 years, including with the now famous Special Forces Detachment A in Berlin in the 1970s and 80s. Among other assignments, he was severely wounded in Somalia in 1992 and medically retired from the Army in 1996, after which he joined the CIA as a case officer, where he spent nearly another 15 years. Now fully retired from government service, James has written several non-fiction books.
Connect with James:
Facebook: James Stejskal Writer
Check out James' book, Special Forces Berlin, here.
https://amzn.to/42ioGqs
Connect with Spycraft 101:
Check out Justin's latest release, Covert Arms, here.
spycraft101.com
IG: @spycraft101
Shop: spycraft-101.myshopify.com
Patreon: Spycraft 101
Find Justin's first book, Spyshots: Volume One, here.
Download the free eBook, The Clandestine Operative's Sidearm of Choice, here.

Support the show

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

97. Defecting from the USSR with Olga Sheymov May 29, 2023

Show notes

This week, Justin chats with Olga Sheymov. Olga has worked in high technology, on arts projects, and as a television producer. Her TV credits include the Long-Running series Russia Today, produced from 1997 until 2015, and Your Source TV among other projects. But long before she began her media career, Olga and her husband Victor Sheymov defected to the US and were smuggled out of the Soviet Union and into the Carpathian Mountains by a team from the Central Intelligence Agency in 1980. Victor was a high ranking member of the KGB and proved to be an incredibly valuable source of information for the US government for years to come, although their relationship with the CIA and FBI encountered many problems, to say the least.
Tower of Secrets: A Real Life Spy Thriller - https://amzn.to/3owC6BD
Tower of Secrets II: Tiebreaker: https://amzn.to/3OF9HUr
Connect with Olga:
olgaarts.com
allegoryofnature.com
Connect with Spycraft 101:
Check out Justin's latest release, Covert Arms, here.
spycraft101.com
IG: @spycraft101
Shop: spycraft-101.myshopify.com
Patreon: Spycraft 101
Find Justin's first book, Spyshots: Volume One, here.
Download the free eBook, The Clandestine Operative's Sidearm of Choice, here.

Support the show

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

96. Tradecraft in Private Investigations with Jon and Alex of Fenrir Group May 22, 2023

Show notes

Today Justin sits down with Jon and Alex from Fenrir Group. They're licensed private investigators based in Atlanta, Georgia, who offer a wide range of services, including skip tracing, process, serving bond recovery, and boutique litigation support. Not only have they successfully closed hundreds of cases of all types, but they've also developed a very large online following and have been featured in articles with Vox, Vice, and the Discovery Plus series Secrets, Lies and Private Eyes. This episode is meant to emphasize how much crossover there is between the tradecraft we normally associate with espionage and the tactics and techniques private investigators use on a daily basis in their own line of work.
Connect with Alex and Jon:
fenrir-group.com
Jon's IG: @unique_skillset
Alex's IG: @w.asp
Podcast IG: @wantedpodcast
Connect with Spycraft 101:
Check out Justin's latest release, Covert Arms, here.
spycraft101.com
IG: @spycraft101
Shop: spycraft-101.myshopify.com
Patreon: Spycraft 101
Find Justin's first book, Spyshots: Volume One, here.
Download the free eBook, The Clandestine Operative's Sidearm of Choice, here.

Support the show

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

95. Spying to Fight Apartheid in South Africa with Sue Dobson May 15, 2023

Show notes

Today Justin sits down with Sue Dobson. Sue grew up in Pretoria, South Africa during the apartheid era and witnessed firsthand the brutality and oppression of the government at that time. As a young woman, she decided to take action and join the outlawed African National Congress to do her part to improve the lives of Black South Africans. She was eventually sent to Moscow for nearly a year of training in surveillance, intelligence gathering, and weapons before returning to South Africa as a spy for the ANC. Once there, she lived a cover as an apolitical journalist while building relationships and reporting back to her handler in the ANC. In the end, her cover was blown and she barely escaped the country with her life.
Download a free sample of Sue's book, Burned: The Spy South Africa Never Caught, here: https://burned-suedobson.subscribemenow.com/
Or purchase a copy in paperback or Kindle format here: https://amzn.to/3p9gkUv

Connect with Spycraft 101:
Check out Justin's latest release, Covert Arms, here.
spycraft101.com
IG: @spycraft101
Shop: spycraft-101.myshopify.com
Patreon: Spycraft 101
Find Justin's first book, Spyshots: Volume One, here.
Download the free eBook, The Clandestine Operative's Sidearm of Choice, here.

Support the show

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

94. The Tip of the Spear in the War on Terror with Erick Miyares May 08, 2023

Show notes

Today Justin sits down with Marine Corps and US Army Intelligence veteran Erick Miyares. Erick spent nearly 30 years in the US service, deployed to some of the most dangerous corners of the world. Now that he's transitioned out of the military, he has found a new mission helping members of the very same units he served with face the personal challenges brought on by so many years of unrelenting combat and separation from their families. Today he shares his experiences in the War on Terror, and the effect it had on him, his family, and his fellow service members.
Connect with Erick:
IG: @erick.miyares
LinkedIn: Erick Miyares
Connect with Spycraft 101:
Check out Justin's latest release, Covert Arms, here.
spycraft101.com
IG: @spycraft101
Shop: spycraft-101.myshopify.com
Patreon: Spycraft 101
Find Justin's first book, Spyshots: Volume One, here.
Download the free eBook, The Clandestine Operative's Sidearm of Choice, here.

Support the show

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

93. A Murder Plot Gone Wrong: Secret Experiments, Biological Weapons, and Apartheid May 01, 2023

Show notes

In this solo episode, Justin dives into a failed professional hit on a businessman in Irvine, California in the 1980s. The botched job involved the CIA, FBI, ATF, and the Apartheid government of South Africa and ultimately uncovered a cache of buried machine guns, stockpiles of biological weapons, and a conspiratorial relationship between an American doctor and South Africa's illicit biological warfare program known as Project Coast.
Connect with Spycraft 101:
Check out Justin's latest release, Covert Arms, here.
spycraft101.com
IG: @spycraft101
Shop: spycraft-101.myshopify.com
Patreon: Spycraft 101
Find Justin's first book, Spyshots: Volume One, here.
Download the free eBook, The Clandestine Operative's Sidearm of Choice, here.

Clandestine Laboratories
Your new favorite fragrance is here. I'm partial to Novochoc.
SLNT
Protect your data and devices. Use code SPYCRAFT101 to save 10% off your order.
Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.

Support the show

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

92. MI6 Ensnared in German Counterespionage with Norman Ridley Apr 24, 2023

Show notes

This week Justin sits down with author Norman Ridley. Today they discuss a counterespionage incident that occurred at the beginning of World War II. Two senior members of British Intelligence were ensnared in a German trap in Venlo, Netherlands in November, 1939. This was a devastating blow to MI6, just as the largest war in history was beginning.
Check out Norman's book, The Venlo Sting, here.

https://www.amazon.com/Venlo-Sting-MI6s-Deadly-Fiasco/dp/1636242073
Connect with Spycraft 101:
Check out Justin's latest release, Covert Arms, here.
spycraft101.com
IG: @spycraft101
Shop: spycraft-101.myshopify.com
Patreon: Spycraft 101
Find Justin's first book, Spyshots: Volume One, here.
Download the free eBook, The Clandestine Operative's Sidearm of Choice, here.

15-Minute Cold War
Use your forces to attack opponents and defend yourself in this new card game.
SLNT
Protect your data and devices. Use code SPYCRAFT101 to save 10% off your order.
Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.

Support the show

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

91. North Korean Espionage Apr 10, 2023

Show notes

This week, Justin shares another solo episode. He covers a brief history of espionage and covert operations run by or against North Korea. These stories involve other power players like Russia, Japan, and more.
Connect with Spycraft 101:
Check out Justin's latest release, Covert Arms, here.
spycraft101.com
IG: @spycraft101
Shop: spycraft-101.myshopify.com
Patreon: Spycraft 101
Find Justin's first book, Spyshots: Volume One, here.
Download the free eBook, The Clandestine Operative's Sidearm of Choice, here.

Clandestine Laboratories
Your new favorite fragrance is here. I'm partial to Novochoc.
Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.

Support the show

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

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