1 00:00:12,240 --> 00:00:16,040 Speaker 1: For over a year now, we've been chasing Vasilis Palio Costas. 2 00:00:16,760 --> 00:00:20,919 Speaker 1: We've sent reporters to communist enclaves and anarchists controlled islands. 3 00:00:21,400 --> 00:00:25,520 Speaker 1: We've talked to police and prime ministers, and we've spent 4 00:00:25,760 --> 00:00:30,840 Speaker 1: hours with Vasilis's mentor, Costa Samadas, just trying to decipher 5 00:00:30,880 --> 00:00:34,200 Speaker 1: our good thieves past. But as much as we've learned 6 00:00:34,200 --> 00:00:38,599 Speaker 1: about Vasilis, the man remains just out of reach at 7 00:00:38,600 --> 00:00:42,480 Speaker 1: this point in our story. He's still more of a myth. 8 00:00:43,600 --> 00:00:46,360 Speaker 1: And the thing is we might be falling for the 9 00:00:46,440 --> 00:00:49,800 Speaker 1: romance of his tail a little too hard, playing into 10 00:00:49,840 --> 00:00:52,520 Speaker 1: the very image that Vasilis has spent the last few 11 00:00:52,560 --> 00:00:58,400 Speaker 1: decades carefully constructing. Here's a section from his autobiography where 12 00:00:58,440 --> 00:01:02,520 Speaker 1: Vasilis writes about himself and the difference between him and 13 00:01:02,640 --> 00:01:03,600 Speaker 1: common criminals. 14 00:01:04,440 --> 00:01:09,280 Speaker 2: Between the crocodile and an eagle lies the abyss. Both 15 00:01:09,319 --> 00:01:13,240 Speaker 2: are predators, Yet no song has ever been written about 16 00:01:13,280 --> 00:01:18,840 Speaker 2: a crocodile. It's a matter of esthetics and grace. How 17 00:01:18,920 --> 00:01:23,040 Speaker 2: can a poet be inspired by a carnivore that lies 18 00:01:23,120 --> 00:01:26,120 Speaker 2: in murky waters waiting for its prey. 19 00:01:28,600 --> 00:01:34,200 Speaker 1: Vasilis is an eagle flying high above it all manifesting 20 00:01:34,280 --> 00:01:38,560 Speaker 1: his own destiny, a majestic predator of style and grace, 21 00:01:39,040 --> 00:01:43,200 Speaker 1: and one he thinks that should be immortalized in poetic verse. 22 00:01:44,440 --> 00:01:46,559 Speaker 1: But what if our good Thief is a little more 23 00:01:46,880 --> 00:01:50,040 Speaker 1: crocodile than he'd like the world to believe. What if 24 00:01:50,080 --> 00:01:52,960 Speaker 1: there's a gaping hole in this narrative he's stitched together 25 00:01:53,000 --> 00:01:57,760 Speaker 1: for himself, and our glorious eagle is soaring on Stolen 26 00:01:57,840 --> 00:02:04,000 Speaker 1: Valor from Kaleidoscope and iHeart Podcasts, I'm Miles Gray and 27 00:02:04,040 --> 00:02:27,679 Speaker 1: this is the good Thief on on chapter one, You're 28 00:02:27,680 --> 00:02:33,799 Speaker 1: in luck, lads. In some ways, this story has always 29 00:02:33,880 --> 00:02:38,600 Speaker 1: been a family drama. From the beginning, Vasilis looked up 30 00:02:38,600 --> 00:02:42,200 Speaker 1: to his big brother. His love and admiration for Nicos 31 00:02:42,240 --> 00:02:45,480 Speaker 1: is what drew him to a life of crime, and 32 00:02:45,520 --> 00:02:48,960 Speaker 1: in many ways it makes sense. Vasilis and Nicos come 33 00:02:49,000 --> 00:02:53,160 Speaker 1: from a close knit family. There are five Palocosta siblings, 34 00:02:53,560 --> 00:02:56,320 Speaker 1: and with the exception of Vasilis, they all seem to 35 00:02:56,360 --> 00:02:59,519 Speaker 1: be living in or near that house we visit it 36 00:02:59,600 --> 00:03:04,800 Speaker 1: outside Tricola, a house that George learned is under frequent surveillance. 37 00:03:05,280 --> 00:03:07,720 Speaker 1: Here's George, according to Vasilis. 38 00:03:07,720 --> 00:03:10,480 Speaker 3: E FROMIU the police officer we met earlier in the series. 39 00:03:10,639 --> 00:03:15,680 Speaker 3: The family was apparently full of scoundrels. He told us 40 00:03:15,800 --> 00:03:19,079 Speaker 3: they never worked. He called them freeloaders, that they used 41 00:03:19,080 --> 00:03:21,080 Speaker 3: to drink all day, and they lived on the money 42 00:03:21,120 --> 00:03:28,800 Speaker 3: that Nicos and Vasilis stole. In a weird way, it 43 00:03:28,880 --> 00:03:31,919 Speaker 3: seems that Nikos and Vasilis are the family's success story, 44 00:03:32,440 --> 00:03:35,360 Speaker 3: while the other siblings never really amounted to much. The 45 00:03:35,440 --> 00:03:38,720 Speaker 3: pair were out robin banks partially to help mom and 46 00:03:38,800 --> 00:03:40,040 Speaker 3: dad make ends meet. 47 00:03:41,120 --> 00:03:44,240 Speaker 1: Which tracks right. I mean. Part of the reason we're 48 00:03:44,280 --> 00:03:48,520 Speaker 1: obsessed with Vasilis, Nicos and Costa Samaras is because they're 49 00:03:48,560 --> 00:03:52,800 Speaker 1: so concerned with being moral criminals. And in his book, 50 00:03:53,280 --> 00:03:56,920 Speaker 1: Vasilis is very clear about where he draws those lines. 51 00:03:57,680 --> 00:03:59,920 Speaker 1: He writes how his conscience won't allow him to sell 52 00:04:00,120 --> 00:04:04,320 Speaker 1: drugs or guns, enter another person's house to steal, he 53 00:04:04,360 --> 00:04:07,120 Speaker 1: won't snitch or sell his friends out. He goes on 54 00:04:07,360 --> 00:04:10,880 Speaker 1: and on. The list of don'ts is actually much longer 55 00:04:10,920 --> 00:04:13,920 Speaker 1: than that. But then he pivots to what he's allowed 56 00:04:13,960 --> 00:04:14,200 Speaker 1: to do. 57 00:04:15,120 --> 00:04:19,880 Speaker 2: What do my morals allow me to do? Only bank robberies, 58 00:04:20,600 --> 00:04:25,159 Speaker 2: abducting rich people, and being part of a revolution toward 59 00:04:25,240 --> 00:04:29,040 Speaker 2: the more just world. World, World World. 60 00:04:29,240 --> 00:04:31,839 Speaker 1: It's that last one that will get him in trouble. 61 00:04:37,320 --> 00:04:41,160 Speaker 1: Cut to nineteen ninety nine. Vasilis is driving a stolen 62 00:04:41,200 --> 00:04:44,760 Speaker 1: car down the old National Highway in central Greece. He's 63 00:04:44,760 --> 00:04:47,520 Speaker 1: been living off the money he made on the Hydaglu kidnapping, 64 00:04:48,120 --> 00:04:51,359 Speaker 1: but he has to be careful. Right now there's a 65 00:04:51,440 --> 00:04:54,680 Speaker 1: million euro bounty out for his capture and the cops 66 00:04:54,720 --> 00:04:58,360 Speaker 1: are on high alert. It's occurred to Vasilis that maybe 67 00:04:58,400 --> 00:05:01,080 Speaker 1: he'd be safer if he left the cut or ran 68 00:05:01,120 --> 00:05:05,920 Speaker 1: away to some anonymous island, but that isn't him. Vasilis 69 00:05:06,000 --> 00:05:09,000 Speaker 1: can't stop thinking about the corrupt society he lives in. 70 00:05:09,839 --> 00:05:12,800 Speaker 1: He dreams about living in a more just world. So 71 00:05:13,200 --> 00:05:17,279 Speaker 1: instead of fleeing, Vasilis puts his energy into making a statement. 72 00:05:18,000 --> 00:05:20,960 Speaker 1: There's a new high security prison being built nearby, and 73 00:05:21,000 --> 00:05:24,000 Speaker 1: he's irritated because people have just allowed it to happen. 74 00:05:24,880 --> 00:05:28,440 Speaker 1: It's yet another jail in their backyard, yet another correctional 75 00:05:28,440 --> 00:05:31,720 Speaker 1: institution that will be overcrowded with petty criminals instead of 76 00:05:31,760 --> 00:05:35,479 Speaker 1: the wealthy tax jets and dirty politicians who really belong there. 77 00:05:36,240 --> 00:05:40,360 Speaker 1: Vasilis thinks maybe an explosion could make the area's residents react. 78 00:05:41,400 --> 00:05:45,679 Speaker 1: It's dramatic, but he's a revolutionary. He wants to shake 79 00:05:45,800 --> 00:05:49,680 Speaker 1: society out of its lull. So he's driving around trying 80 00:05:49,720 --> 00:05:52,640 Speaker 1: to secure the dynamite and shore up his plans. When 81 00:05:54,800 --> 00:05:57,240 Speaker 1: he gets stuck behind a truck with both its brake 82 00:05:57,360 --> 00:06:02,760 Speaker 1: lights out. The weather's dismal gets gray, rainy. Traffic is 83 00:06:02,800 --> 00:06:09,520 Speaker 1: stopping go, then everything starts moving again. Vasilis presses the 84 00:06:09,560 --> 00:06:12,000 Speaker 1: gas for a brief second, he takes his eye off 85 00:06:12,000 --> 00:06:15,360 Speaker 1: the road. When he looks up, he's about to crash 86 00:06:15,400 --> 00:06:19,039 Speaker 1: into the truck. Vasilis cuts the wheel, but his tire 87 00:06:19,120 --> 00:06:22,119 Speaker 1: slip below him. He pumps the brakes, but the car 88 00:06:22,360 --> 00:06:26,760 Speaker 1: won't stop. It slides off the road. Everything's a blur. 89 00:06:27,240 --> 00:06:30,320 Speaker 1: The car tumbles down the embankment and lands in a ditch, 90 00:06:30,480 --> 00:06:40,360 Speaker 1: hitting bottom car minutes pass Vasilis takes a deep breath 91 00:06:40,360 --> 00:06:44,479 Speaker 1: and checks himself. He's not injured, but he is banged up. 92 00:06:45,200 --> 00:06:47,680 Speaker 1: He reaches into the back seat and grabs his briefcase. 93 00:06:48,279 --> 00:06:53,279 Speaker 1: It's full of grenades, guns and money. Then he crawls out. 94 00:06:53,480 --> 00:06:56,240 Speaker 1: He climbs up the embankment and stumbles onto the road. 95 00:06:57,120 --> 00:07:00,279 Speaker 1: When he reaches the top. The cops are already there, 96 00:07:00,760 --> 00:07:04,200 Speaker 1: ready to help, so there's a small crowd of onlookers 97 00:07:05,160 --> 00:07:08,760 Speaker 1: right now. The police are friendly, but Vasilis knows it's 98 00:07:08,800 --> 00:07:10,760 Speaker 1: a matter of time before they run his plates and 99 00:07:10,800 --> 00:07:15,920 Speaker 1: discover the car is stolen. His mind races. Then he 100 00:07:16,000 --> 00:07:18,920 Speaker 1: scans the people who got out to help. They've all 101 00:07:19,000 --> 00:07:22,480 Speaker 1: left their vehicles unattended, and at least one car is 102 00:07:22,520 --> 00:07:26,760 Speaker 1: off with its keys still in the ignition. Vasili sprints 103 00:07:26,800 --> 00:07:30,000 Speaker 1: to the vehicle. He opens the door, sits down, and 104 00:07:30,080 --> 00:07:37,040 Speaker 1: turns the key. The engine doesn't start. Within seconds, Vasili's 105 00:07:37,080 --> 00:07:40,600 Speaker 1: is on the ground, his face pinned to wet pavement, 106 00:07:40,960 --> 00:07:44,200 Speaker 1: his hands and cuffs. That's when he tells the police 107 00:07:44,400 --> 00:07:45,000 Speaker 1: the good. 108 00:07:44,800 --> 00:07:49,680 Speaker 2: News are in luck. 109 00:07:50,680 --> 00:07:52,880 Speaker 4: You've got Carsback. 110 00:08:08,960 --> 00:08:15,080 Speaker 1: Chapter two, Warehouse of Bodies. It isn't long before Vasilis 111 00:08:15,080 --> 00:08:18,320 Speaker 1: has been thrown in a solitary holding cell. It's cold 112 00:08:18,400 --> 00:08:20,560 Speaker 1: and damp. Vasilis is shivering. 113 00:08:21,240 --> 00:08:24,760 Speaker 2: I was alone listening to the sounds of prison for 114 00:08:24,840 --> 00:08:31,120 Speaker 2: quite some time. They were creepy, full of terror, incompatible 115 00:08:32,040 --> 00:08:39,520 Speaker 2: with human life. What collective hopes, what dreams legitimize the construction, 116 00:08:39,880 --> 00:08:42,600 Speaker 2: the existence, the operation of such places. 117 00:08:44,360 --> 00:08:48,000 Speaker 1: If Vasilis didn't think much of prisons before. This doesn't help. 118 00:08:48,400 --> 00:08:52,760 Speaker 1: This place is Corrida Lo's prison complex, a maximum security 119 00:08:52,920 --> 00:08:57,679 Speaker 1: hell hole Greece's Alcatraz. A prison guard we interviewed called 120 00:08:57,720 --> 00:09:03,240 Speaker 1: it a warehouse for bodies. For the next three hours, 121 00:09:03,360 --> 00:09:06,360 Speaker 1: Vasilis tries to stay warm by pacing back and forth. 122 00:09:06,960 --> 00:09:10,560 Speaker 1: Then the cell door swings open. A man appears in 123 00:09:10,600 --> 00:09:13,720 Speaker 1: the entrance way. He has a salt and pepper beard, 124 00:09:13,960 --> 00:09:20,000 Speaker 1: thick black eyebrows, dark circles below, sunken eyes. Vasilis recognizes 125 00:09:20,040 --> 00:09:25,719 Speaker 1: the face. It's the prisons infamous warden, andonis out of Andinos, 126 00:09:26,360 --> 00:09:28,760 Speaker 1: and he wants a closer look at this so called 127 00:09:29,120 --> 00:09:32,600 Speaker 1: robin hood of Greece. He steps into the cell, followed 128 00:09:32,600 --> 00:09:36,839 Speaker 1: by a number of guards, all gripping nightsticks. It's all theater, 129 00:09:36,960 --> 00:09:41,320 Speaker 1: Vasilis tells himself. They talk out of Andinos tries to 130 00:09:41,320 --> 00:09:47,640 Speaker 1: intimidate him. Vasilis plays it cool, maybe too cool. The 131 00:09:47,679 --> 00:09:53,920 Speaker 1: warden gets angry. Suddenly Vasili stumbles backwards. The warden pushed 132 00:09:54,000 --> 00:09:59,720 Speaker 1: him or maybe punched him. Vasili seethes he can't help himself. 133 00:10:00,440 --> 00:10:02,800 Speaker 1: He charges the ward and grips the collar of his 134 00:10:02,920 --> 00:10:05,560 Speaker 1: jacket and just as He's about to pin his neck 135 00:10:05,600 --> 00:10:11,800 Speaker 1: against the wall. The guards swarm. Vasilis's arms are overpowered. 136 00:10:12,200 --> 00:10:15,040 Speaker 1: The guards jerk his hands high above his head and 137 00:10:15,120 --> 00:10:18,959 Speaker 1: with his body exposed, night sticks rain down on his ribs, 138 00:10:19,120 --> 00:10:24,920 Speaker 1: his legs, his face. The prison floor drips red. When 139 00:10:24,960 --> 00:10:29,120 Speaker 1: the beating finally stops, blood streams out his nose. His 140 00:10:29,280 --> 00:10:33,920 Speaker 1: cheeks are swollen, His rib cage throbs with each breath. Soon, 141 00:10:34,600 --> 00:10:43,840 Speaker 1: Vasilis is dragged to his new home in cell ninety three. 142 00:10:46,040 --> 00:10:50,400 Speaker 1: These allegations of brutal prison beatings play an important part 143 00:10:50,440 --> 00:10:54,600 Speaker 1: in Vasilis's story, This idea that the state abuses its power. 144 00:10:55,320 --> 00:10:58,920 Speaker 1: It's one of Vasilis's main motivations for robbing banks and 145 00:10:58,920 --> 00:11:00,880 Speaker 1: blowing up prison cons instruction sites. 146 00:11:01,840 --> 00:11:05,920 Speaker 2: When judges announce their verdicts, they don't mention that the 147 00:11:05,960 --> 00:11:11,280 Speaker 2: prison sentences they so lavishly hand out will be accompanied 148 00:11:11,800 --> 00:11:19,679 Speaker 2: by constant torture. I'm not exaggerating. Blood on the floor, 149 00:11:19,720 --> 00:11:27,199 Speaker 2: the walls, the dirty blankets, blood everywhere, faces swollen, bruised 150 00:11:27,679 --> 00:11:33,840 Speaker 2: and deformed from having suffered severe injuries. Tortured bodies curled 151 00:11:33,920 --> 00:11:37,720 Speaker 2: up inside sheets for weeks, unable to even use the 152 00:11:37,760 --> 00:11:43,000 Speaker 2: bathroom on their own stacked up souls, abandoned in chambers, 153 00:11:43,320 --> 00:11:47,040 Speaker 2: with no future, with no hope. 154 00:11:47,240 --> 00:11:51,600 Speaker 1: The description is horrific, but Vasili's clearly has an agenda here, 155 00:11:51,960 --> 00:11:54,680 Speaker 1: and we wanted to do a little fact checking, so 156 00:11:54,720 --> 00:11:56,079 Speaker 1: we put Christina on the case. 157 00:11:57,000 --> 00:11:59,679 Speaker 5: We started by reaching out to the warden out of 158 00:11:59,679 --> 00:12:02,640 Speaker 5: ad We wanted to give him a chance to react, 159 00:12:02,960 --> 00:12:05,560 Speaker 5: but when we tracked him down, he was a kurt. 160 00:12:06,160 --> 00:12:11,960 Speaker 5: He called these allegations categorically false, and then he told 161 00:12:12,000 --> 00:12:13,880 Speaker 5: us that he didn't want to take part in any 162 00:12:13,960 --> 00:12:17,640 Speaker 5: kind of production about Polo Costas, which makes sense. I mean, 163 00:12:17,920 --> 00:12:21,080 Speaker 5: Vasilis has embarrassed him over the years. 164 00:12:22,040 --> 00:12:25,520 Speaker 1: So we found somebody else who knew Vasilis while he 165 00:12:25,640 --> 00:12:38,280 Speaker 1: was in Corilla Loos. A social worker named Nicolas Couluris. 166 00:12:34,200 --> 00:12:38,559 Speaker 5: Has worked at Coridalos for years. He also acknowledged that 167 00:12:38,640 --> 00:12:44,240 Speaker 5: this kind of prison violence happened. He said prisoners have 168 00:12:44,320 --> 00:12:49,320 Speaker 5: complained about a quote violent reception ritual upon entering the prison. 169 00:12:49,920 --> 00:12:52,960 Speaker 5: It sent a message you will sit tight and behave 170 00:12:53,400 --> 00:12:56,800 Speaker 5: or you won't have a good time here. He adds 171 00:12:56,840 --> 00:12:59,800 Speaker 5: that this was not standard procedure. It was more something 172 00:12:59,840 --> 00:13:02,400 Speaker 5: to onto VIP criminals. 173 00:13:02,400 --> 00:13:04,480 Speaker 4: If you will Cordio. 174 00:13:07,840 --> 00:13:11,920 Speaker 5: When a big name prisoner arrives, the entire prison goes 175 00:13:11,960 --> 00:13:15,319 Speaker 5: on high alert. Kuluis Is saying that they have all 176 00:13:15,360 --> 00:13:19,360 Speaker 5: these discussions about where he'll be placed and how he'll 177 00:13:19,400 --> 00:13:22,960 Speaker 5: be guarded, and this often leads to negotiations with the 178 00:13:23,040 --> 00:13:26,800 Speaker 5: celebrity prisoner, like if you cooperate, we'll put you in 179 00:13:26,840 --> 00:13:29,760 Speaker 5: a nicer cell with some fresh air and the sunlight, 180 00:13:30,040 --> 00:13:34,679 Speaker 5: or we're gonna assign you an easy prison job. Apparently 181 00:13:35,160 --> 00:13:37,000 Speaker 5: this is what happened with Vasilis. 182 00:13:41,400 --> 00:13:44,280 Speaker 1: Vasilis writes about that in his book, that the prison 183 00:13:44,360 --> 00:13:47,120 Speaker 1: warden kept trying to strike a deal with him, but 184 00:13:47,200 --> 00:13:52,760 Speaker 1: Vasilis always said no, because basically what Aravandinos was asking 185 00:13:52,840 --> 00:14:09,120 Speaker 1: him to do was to snitch. Chapter three, Big Brother's Shadow. 186 00:14:11,120 --> 00:14:14,000 Speaker 1: In the late nineties, the Paliocostos brothers had made a 187 00:14:14,080 --> 00:14:18,520 Speaker 1: name for themselves their robberies, their getaways. But it turns 188 00:14:18,520 --> 00:14:21,800 Speaker 1: out it was Nicos, not Vassilis, who got most of 189 00:14:21,840 --> 00:14:26,520 Speaker 1: the spotlight. Now, maybe it's because Nicos was the big brother, 190 00:14:27,000 --> 00:14:29,320 Speaker 1: or maybe it's because he was usually the one behind 191 00:14:29,360 --> 00:14:33,360 Speaker 1: the wheel during those daring car chases. Regardless, it was 192 00:14:33,480 --> 00:14:36,880 Speaker 1: Nicos who first became famous for evading police, and it 193 00:14:36,960 --> 00:14:40,480 Speaker 1: was Nicos who locals first lauded as the do getting banded. 194 00:14:41,640 --> 00:14:44,960 Speaker 1: Vasilis had a reputation too, but he was always riding 195 00:14:44,960 --> 00:14:49,480 Speaker 1: his brother's coattails, and when Vasilis got arrested, his brother's 196 00:14:49,480 --> 00:14:54,360 Speaker 1: shadow only grew. Suddenly. Any mystique Vasilis had as a 197 00:14:54,400 --> 00:14:58,320 Speaker 1: slippery bandit, a thief who could evade the police, had 198 00:14:58,360 --> 00:15:02,240 Speaker 1: disappeared when the longer he sat in jail, the more 199 00:15:02,280 --> 00:15:08,520 Speaker 1: famous Nicos became. In two thousand and six, the newspaper 200 00:15:08,640 --> 00:15:13,080 Speaker 1: Kati Mehdi Ni wrote that Nikos Paliokostas embodies the popular 201 00:15:13,160 --> 00:15:17,280 Speaker 1: myth of the good hearted bandit a zorro. The same year, 202 00:15:17,560 --> 00:15:21,200 Speaker 1: another newspaper dubbed him the robin Hood of the forests 203 00:15:21,240 --> 00:15:26,120 Speaker 1: of the Pindus. Year by year, his legend grew. Bloggers 204 00:15:26,160 --> 00:15:30,960 Speaker 1: began comparing Nkos to famous revolutionaries and resistance fighters. Stories 205 00:15:31,000 --> 00:15:34,960 Speaker 1: about his generosity spread across internet forums. By two thousand 206 00:15:34,960 --> 00:15:38,640 Speaker 1: and six, an ABC News article had called Nicos the 207 00:15:38,720 --> 00:15:43,560 Speaker 1: country's most wanted man. Vasilis, on the other hand, was 208 00:15:43,600 --> 00:15:47,640 Speaker 1: basically an afterthought. One newspaper from the time dubbed him 209 00:15:48,040 --> 00:15:52,080 Speaker 1: the little One. All of this had us wondering have 210 00:15:52,200 --> 00:15:57,720 Speaker 1: we been chasing after the wrong guy. A few months ago, 211 00:15:57,800 --> 00:16:00,920 Speaker 1: our team was interviewing a police officer in the one 212 00:16:00,920 --> 00:16:04,200 Speaker 1: who insisted on remaining anonymous, and in the middle of 213 00:16:04,280 --> 00:16:05,920 Speaker 1: the conversation, he says. 214 00:16:06,400 --> 00:16:09,200 Speaker 5: Do you want to meet the original Greek Robin Hood? 215 00:16:10,600 --> 00:16:15,360 Speaker 1: So of course Christina and George were like, uh yeah. 216 00:16:15,400 --> 00:16:18,720 Speaker 5: And twenty four hours later, we're standing in front of 217 00:16:18,800 --> 00:16:23,440 Speaker 5: Nikos Polo Coostas's house, at least we think it's his house. 218 00:16:26,640 --> 00:16:29,080 Speaker 5: And to make sure that you remember where we've left. 219 00:16:28,960 --> 00:16:34,760 Speaker 3: The car, the cops scribbled down these vague directions on 220 00:16:34,800 --> 00:16:37,400 Speaker 3: how to get here, something about a two story house 221 00:16:37,560 --> 00:16:40,200 Speaker 3: on the outskirts of Tricola, across from a school. He 222 00:16:40,240 --> 00:16:43,160 Speaker 3: said Nichos has been living on the house arrest. He 223 00:16:43,200 --> 00:16:45,560 Speaker 3: didn't promise he'd talked to us, but he said we'd 224 00:16:45,560 --> 00:16:46,360 Speaker 3: find him here. 225 00:16:47,280 --> 00:16:51,200 Speaker 5: The house we're looking at is off white, bare wooden shutters, 226 00:16:51,680 --> 00:16:55,480 Speaker 5: thick blankets on the clotheslines. I'm trying to make note 227 00:16:55,520 --> 00:16:58,320 Speaker 5: of all the details, but my heart is pounding like 228 00:16:58,360 --> 00:17:01,680 Speaker 5: it's about to explode from my chest. And just as 229 00:17:01,720 --> 00:17:07,480 Speaker 5: I go to ring the doorbell, a woman appears, like 230 00:17:07,560 --> 00:17:10,960 Speaker 5: out of nowhere from the second floor balcony. She's middle 231 00:17:10,960 --> 00:17:15,879 Speaker 5: aged with short, straight brown hair and pale skin, and 232 00:17:16,359 --> 00:17:18,400 Speaker 5: she's staring down at us. 233 00:17:19,520 --> 00:17:23,000 Speaker 3: That's when we realized this is definitely whether Balo Coosta's 234 00:17:23,000 --> 00:17:27,520 Speaker 3: family lives. The woman is Nios and Vasilis's sister, Cosanvina. 235 00:17:28,200 --> 00:17:32,160 Speaker 3: We try chatting with her, but she's very, very cagy. 236 00:17:32,960 --> 00:17:35,639 Speaker 3: We ask if Nichos is inside. She tells us he is. 237 00:17:36,000 --> 00:17:39,760 Speaker 3: He's napping, you know, taking a siesta. She's not happy 238 00:17:39,800 --> 00:17:42,879 Speaker 3: with us for being there. She says Nikos has no 239 00:17:42,960 --> 00:17:43,840 Speaker 3: interest in talking. 240 00:17:45,200 --> 00:17:48,040 Speaker 5: We were expecting to hear something like that, so before 241 00:17:48,080 --> 00:17:51,760 Speaker 5: we arrived, we wrote a letter, a letter explaining who 242 00:17:51,800 --> 00:17:55,639 Speaker 5: we are, why we're here, and what we're doing. We 243 00:17:55,720 --> 00:17:58,679 Speaker 5: labored over this thing, making sure that every word was 244 00:17:59,080 --> 00:18:02,880 Speaker 5: just right. We explained that we're not with the mainstream 245 00:18:02,960 --> 00:18:08,240 Speaker 5: TV stations, which have a reputation for being sensationalist in Greece. 246 00:18:08,800 --> 00:18:12,160 Speaker 5: We told them that we're here to get Nikosa's side 247 00:18:12,200 --> 00:18:15,399 Speaker 5: of the story. So we pull out the letter and 248 00:18:15,720 --> 00:18:18,880 Speaker 5: I'm worried that Cosladna won't take it, but she does. 249 00:18:19,600 --> 00:18:22,640 Speaker 5: She comes down from the balcony and takes it, promising 250 00:18:22,720 --> 00:18:25,920 Speaker 5: that She's going to give it the Nikos and then well, 251 00:18:26,240 --> 00:18:27,960 Speaker 5: she shuts the door in our face. 252 00:18:38,800 --> 00:18:42,720 Speaker 1: This whole episode got us thinking how much of Vasilis's 253 00:18:42,760 --> 00:18:48,199 Speaker 1: legend was actually built on Nikos's story. 254 00:18:48,240 --> 00:18:54,280 Speaker 3: Meno, that's Dimitris, a film professor who works on a 255 00:18:54,280 --> 00:18:57,840 Speaker 3: documentary about the brothers. Like us, Dimitris went up into 256 00:18:57,880 --> 00:19:01,240 Speaker 3: the mountains in search of the brother's hider. He told 257 00:19:01,320 --> 00:19:04,280 Speaker 3: us that the Silis was more on the anti authoritarian 258 00:19:04,320 --> 00:19:06,879 Speaker 3: side of things, more of the anarchist, but it was 259 00:19:07,000 --> 00:19:11,840 Speaker 3: Nicos who was the original social bandit. He said that 260 00:19:11,960 --> 00:19:15,040 Speaker 3: Nikos modeled himself after the bandits who called trick Lahoe 261 00:19:15,200 --> 00:19:17,959 Speaker 3: in the days of York, these old school outlaws who 262 00:19:18,000 --> 00:19:21,400 Speaker 3: were non violent, justice oriented, and that it was Nikos 263 00:19:21,520 --> 00:19:25,040 Speaker 3: at first who took inspiration from these role models, and 264 00:19:25,080 --> 00:19:30,280 Speaker 3: this really made locals love him. He said that in 265 00:19:30,320 --> 00:19:33,719 Speaker 3: the villages south of the Pindus Mountains where Nichos was hiding, 266 00:19:33,960 --> 00:19:38,639 Speaker 3: incredible stories were circulating about how Nicos was helping shepherds, 267 00:19:38,960 --> 00:19:45,440 Speaker 3: the bedridden, the elderly. The whole region supported him. 268 00:19:45,480 --> 00:19:48,320 Speaker 1: The more we looked into it, the more we realized 269 00:19:48,440 --> 00:19:51,919 Speaker 1: that if Vasili's had charitable qualities, it's because he was 270 00:19:51,960 --> 00:19:55,560 Speaker 1: doing what so many younger siblings do. He was copying 271 00:19:55,560 --> 00:19:59,480 Speaker 1: his big brother. One source who didn't want to be recorded, 272 00:19:59,640 --> 00:20:04,199 Speaker 1: told team that, frankly, Vasilis was just tagging along. He 273 00:20:04,320 --> 00:20:07,320 Speaker 1: was the family hot head. Nkos, on the other hand, 274 00:20:07,760 --> 00:20:11,400 Speaker 1: was the thoughtful one, the altruistic one, the one who 275 00:20:11,440 --> 00:20:16,159 Speaker 1: preached nonviolence. And the thing is, Vasilis doesn't deny this 276 00:20:16,240 --> 00:20:18,760 Speaker 1: last part. Here's how he puts it in his book. 277 00:20:19,440 --> 00:20:23,200 Speaker 2: It was Nikos who, while being chased by police officer 278 00:20:23,240 --> 00:20:26,800 Speaker 2: in Katerini, said let's not kill him. It would be 279 00:20:26,880 --> 00:20:30,439 Speaker 2: a shame. It was him who told me not to 280 00:20:30,440 --> 00:20:34,560 Speaker 2: empty mi kalashnikov on the three plain clothes officers who 281 00:20:34,640 --> 00:20:38,760 Speaker 2: cornered us during a car chase outside Edisa. There are 282 00:20:38,920 --> 00:20:42,480 Speaker 2: countless stories that testify to the good nature of a 283 00:20:42,520 --> 00:20:45,960 Speaker 2: man who never used the power endowed to him by 284 00:20:45,960 --> 00:20:49,640 Speaker 2: his gun as a means to control, let alone kill. 285 00:20:51,160 --> 00:20:54,480 Speaker 1: Vasili says, if he was ever truly cornered, if it 286 00:20:54,560 --> 00:20:58,880 Speaker 1: meant his life, he'd shoot without question, but not Nikos. 287 00:20:59,280 --> 00:21:03,439 Speaker 1: Nikos was so if cornered, he'd rather give up or 288 00:21:03,520 --> 00:21:09,080 Speaker 1: be killed instead. But despite his nonviolent nature, Nicos was 289 00:21:09,119 --> 00:21:13,560 Speaker 1: a wanted man. In the early two thousands, Nicos Paliocostas 290 00:21:13,720 --> 00:21:19,160 Speaker 1: was declared Greece's public Enemy number one. Before long, he'd 291 00:21:19,160 --> 00:21:23,399 Speaker 1: cracked Interpol's top ten most Wanted criminals list. As the 292 00:21:23,440 --> 00:21:27,840 Speaker 1: pressure to find him increased, Greece activated its counter terrorism 293 00:21:28,000 --> 00:21:31,720 Speaker 1: unit and charged its toughest officers with hunting Nicos down. 294 00:21:32,960 --> 00:21:36,960 Speaker 5: So I'm going to step in here to explain. It 295 00:21:37,160 --> 00:21:40,520 Speaker 5: might sound a bit excessive for Greece to send a 296 00:21:40,680 --> 00:21:45,520 Speaker 5: rabid anti terrorism unit after a kind hearted robber with 297 00:21:45,560 --> 00:21:49,320 Speaker 5: a knack for giving away his loot, but it makes 298 00:21:49,320 --> 00:21:51,800 Speaker 5: a little more sense if you know a few things 299 00:21:51,800 --> 00:21:53,320 Speaker 5: about the country's history. 300 00:21:53,960 --> 00:21:54,320 Speaker 1: Kiryo. 301 00:21:56,640 --> 00:22:00,439 Speaker 4: Immediately after the follow the junta, Greece was severely tested 302 00:22:00,440 --> 00:22:01,400 Speaker 4: by terrorists. 303 00:22:02,800 --> 00:22:06,800 Speaker 2: That's there is Economo Astnomia. 304 00:22:07,119 --> 00:22:10,480 Speaker 4: I was an officer at the Atlantic Police. I dealt 305 00:22:10,520 --> 00:22:13,400 Speaker 4: with state security for decades. 306 00:22:13,480 --> 00:22:18,480 Speaker 5: Economo helped lead Greece's anti terrorism efforts. It was an 307 00:22:18,520 --> 00:22:21,920 Speaker 5: around the clock job. After the fall of the right 308 00:22:21,960 --> 00:22:26,200 Speaker 5: wing junta in nineteen seventy four, Greece became a hub 309 00:22:26,400 --> 00:22:30,560 Speaker 5: for left wing activism, and in some cases these anti 310 00:22:30,560 --> 00:22:33,240 Speaker 5: state attitudes became extreme. 311 00:22:33,640 --> 00:22:36,440 Speaker 1: Forment adaptation Menda, the Riast. 312 00:22:36,240 --> 00:22:39,200 Speaker 4: Took advantage of the climate against the ary, the police, 313 00:22:39,480 --> 00:22:42,520 Speaker 4: and those they believed sided with the junta. They thought 314 00:22:42,600 --> 00:22:46,240 Speaker 4: this was the moment for a greater revolution, the moment 315 00:22:46,280 --> 00:22:50,080 Speaker 4: to overthrow capitalism and the bourgeoisie and to impose their 316 00:22:50,119 --> 00:22:51,240 Speaker 4: own system. 317 00:22:51,600 --> 00:22:54,960 Speaker 5: The most infamous of these terrorist groups was the seventeenth 318 00:22:54,960 --> 00:22:59,080 Speaker 5: of November, named after the date when police massacred forty 319 00:22:59,160 --> 00:23:04,640 Speaker 5: students during a protest. In response, the group plotted assassinations, 320 00:23:04,880 --> 00:23:09,720 Speaker 5: planted bombs, targeted government officials. It even assassinated a CIA 321 00:23:09,800 --> 00:23:13,920 Speaker 5: agent and members of the US embassy. Ambassador Tom Miller 322 00:23:14,000 --> 00:23:16,400 Speaker 5: told us how one time he went to the American 323 00:23:16,440 --> 00:23:19,879 Speaker 5: Embassy and was shocked to find a six foot rocket 324 00:23:19,880 --> 00:23:24,680 Speaker 5: smoldering in it. Curtsey of the seventeenth of November. Long 325 00:23:24,720 --> 00:23:30,000 Speaker 5: story short, This terrorist group had Greek authorities on edge, 326 00:23:30,760 --> 00:23:34,080 Speaker 5: and the main way they funded their activities was through 327 00:23:34,160 --> 00:23:35,360 Speaker 5: bank robbery. 328 00:23:36,320 --> 00:23:39,600 Speaker 1: Which is how Nicos and Vasili's Paliocosis got tied up 329 00:23:39,640 --> 00:23:43,960 Speaker 1: with the anti terrorism police. Basically, the brothers fit the 330 00:23:44,000 --> 00:23:49,480 Speaker 1: profile anti government sympathies. Check always carrying around machine guns 331 00:23:49,480 --> 00:23:55,560 Speaker 1: and explosives. Check targeting the rich and powerful, Check robbing banks, 332 00:23:55,960 --> 00:24:00,200 Speaker 1: Check cops looked at these facts and concluded, Hey, these 333 00:24:00,200 --> 00:24:03,560 Speaker 1: guys might be terrorists too. But the more they eluded 334 00:24:03,560 --> 00:24:07,800 Speaker 1: these high level police, the more their legend grew. It 335 00:24:07,840 --> 00:24:10,720 Speaker 1: was like the papers were looking for Robinhood characters to 336 00:24:10,840 --> 00:24:14,199 Speaker 1: root for, and they found them in these two. But 337 00:24:14,280 --> 00:24:17,520 Speaker 1: once Vasilis landed in jail, all of that attention turned 338 00:24:17,560 --> 00:24:20,920 Speaker 1: to Nicos. By two thousand and six, he had spent 339 00:24:21,119 --> 00:24:24,639 Speaker 1: sixteen years dodging the police. He was the one with 340 00:24:24,720 --> 00:24:29,639 Speaker 1: the money, the ideology, the respect, and perhaps most importantly 341 00:24:29,680 --> 00:24:33,359 Speaker 1: to Vasili's, Nicos was the one with all the fame. 342 00:24:41,880 --> 00:24:51,400 Speaker 1: Chapter four odd jobs for Vasilis Paliocostas, the hardest part 343 00:24:51,480 --> 00:24:55,160 Speaker 1: of being locked up was the isolation. For those keeping track, 344 00:24:55,520 --> 00:24:58,199 Speaker 1: this is his second time in prison, and by this 345 00:24:58,359 --> 00:25:02,040 Speaker 1: point he has escaped once before. By two thousand and six, 346 00:25:02,119 --> 00:25:05,680 Speaker 1: he was back at Kridallos and for the most part alone. 347 00:25:06,320 --> 00:25:08,560 Speaker 1: Aside from one furry friend. 348 00:25:09,359 --> 00:25:14,520 Speaker 2: My only companion was Tarzan, I pampered ginger cats that 349 00:25:14,720 --> 00:25:19,119 Speaker 2: enjoyed my food and protection inside the wing. She was 350 00:25:19,160 --> 00:25:21,399 Speaker 2: the only one I'd really miss if I happened to 351 00:25:21,440 --> 00:25:22,000 Speaker 2: clear off. 352 00:25:23,119 --> 00:25:26,520 Speaker 1: Vasilis also had a human cell mate, and not just 353 00:25:26,600 --> 00:25:30,760 Speaker 1: one The prison was suffering from overcrowding. At times there 354 00:25:30,800 --> 00:25:33,760 Speaker 1: were five or six guys to one hundred square foot cell. 355 00:25:34,840 --> 00:25:37,320 Speaker 1: The thing about Vasilis, though, is that he had been 356 00:25:37,359 --> 00:25:40,160 Speaker 1: trained years ago to find the silver lining in these 357 00:25:40,200 --> 00:25:44,160 Speaker 1: sorts of things, and he quickly found one. Like Sure, 358 00:25:44,200 --> 00:25:48,720 Speaker 1: the prison was stuffed uncomfortable, but those same conditions made 359 00:25:48,760 --> 00:25:53,840 Speaker 1: the prisoners harder to control. The wardens maintained power by 360 00:25:53,880 --> 00:25:57,919 Speaker 1: handing out favors to informants, but as the prison population exploded, 361 00:25:58,480 --> 00:26:01,199 Speaker 1: it became harder for officials to keep their old promises. 362 00:26:01,640 --> 00:26:05,560 Speaker 1: Snitches became less loyal, and with this wave of new inmates, 363 00:26:05,920 --> 00:26:08,840 Speaker 1: it became harder for even the most reliable informants to 364 00:26:08,920 --> 00:26:12,000 Speaker 1: keep tabs on everyone. Vasilis got a couple new cell 365 00:26:12,119 --> 00:26:16,400 Speaker 1: mates and gain new connections to the world outside. Slowly 366 00:26:16,920 --> 00:26:20,399 Speaker 1: he got comfortable bouncing around escape ideas. But if they 367 00:26:20,400 --> 00:26:23,359 Speaker 1: took a fretsaw to the bars on their window, what 368 00:26:23,440 --> 00:26:25,960 Speaker 1: if some friends on the outside knocked down the outer wall. 369 00:26:26,600 --> 00:26:30,919 Speaker 1: These weren't just fantasies. Vasilis actually got extremely close to 370 00:26:31,000 --> 00:26:33,840 Speaker 1: plotting a breakout where guys on the other side would 371 00:26:33,840 --> 00:26:38,359 Speaker 1: destroy the prison wall with explosives and yes, rocket launchers, 372 00:26:39,080 --> 00:26:41,280 Speaker 1: but he ended up calling it off at the last minute. 373 00:26:41,640 --> 00:26:45,800 Speaker 2: I would spend two pointless years in Corina Loss, making 374 00:26:45,960 --> 00:26:50,960 Speaker 2: escape plans that never materialized, having officers constantly searched my cell. 375 00:26:52,000 --> 00:26:54,520 Speaker 1: Vasilis was too well monitored to escape on his own. 376 00:26:55,000 --> 00:26:57,919 Speaker 1: He needed more freedom to move around the prison. And 377 00:26:57,960 --> 00:27:00,439 Speaker 1: then he remembered the welcome he got to Krida Los, 378 00:27:00,960 --> 00:27:05,240 Speaker 1: and he remembered being offered a deal. So after years 379 00:27:05,240 --> 00:27:10,399 Speaker 1: of enduring the torture and pushing offers away, he finally accepted. 380 00:27:11,200 --> 00:27:12,200 Speaker 4: Simfornifik. 381 00:27:12,800 --> 00:27:16,600 Speaker 3: Couluris actually remembers this deal. Officials made an agreement that 382 00:27:16,640 --> 00:27:19,400 Speaker 3: he would be assigned a specific job as a jail 383 00:27:19,880 --> 00:27:23,280 Speaker 3: and this job would require him to freely move around 384 00:27:23,280 --> 00:27:26,960 Speaker 3: different prison areas. His first job, it turns out, was 385 00:27:27,000 --> 00:27:29,080 Speaker 3: to be the chief cleaner of his prison wing. 386 00:27:30,960 --> 00:27:34,880 Speaker 1: According to both Kouluris and Vasilis, the job got him 387 00:27:34,920 --> 00:27:38,640 Speaker 1: extra time out of his cell, and as chief cleaner, 388 00:27:39,119 --> 00:27:43,879 Speaker 1: it met managing other inmates. Over time, Vasilis was making 389 00:27:43,920 --> 00:27:48,080 Speaker 1: more and more connections. There was your Ghosts, the homicidal 390 00:27:48,080 --> 00:27:53,200 Speaker 1: mafioso Costas, the cop killer Spiros, the bank robbing terrorist, 391 00:27:53,840 --> 00:27:57,120 Speaker 1: and Vasilis's network expanded even more when he became one 392 00:27:57,119 --> 00:27:58,959 Speaker 1: of the prison's first aid assistants. 393 00:27:59,760 --> 00:28:01,880 Speaker 3: This his new job paced him in a new wing 394 00:28:02,080 --> 00:28:06,199 Speaker 3: of the prison, a much cushier part of Goidalos, and 395 00:28:06,320 --> 00:28:10,919 Speaker 3: since medical emergencies can happen anywhere, Vasilis was given pretty 396 00:28:10,920 --> 00:28:15,240 Speaker 3: liberal access to different parts of the prison, including the 397 00:28:15,320 --> 00:28:19,600 Speaker 3: central courtyard. When we talked with Gloris, he didn't say 398 00:28:19,680 --> 00:28:22,920 Speaker 3: outright that this was a mistake, but it was kind 399 00:28:22,920 --> 00:28:29,399 Speaker 3: of clear that in retrospect it was. Ye, he said, 400 00:28:29,720 --> 00:28:32,720 Speaker 3: with this new freedom to move around, the prison accidentally 401 00:28:32,760 --> 00:28:45,800 Speaker 3: handed Vasilis a ticket to escape. 402 00:28:50,240 --> 00:28:52,920 Speaker 1: Chapter five phone a friend. 403 00:28:55,120 --> 00:28:58,000 Speaker 2: Escaping by helicopter wasn't something that just dawned on me. 404 00:28:58,640 --> 00:29:01,040 Speaker 2: I'd been working on it since I was first imprisoned, 405 00:29:01,320 --> 00:29:04,280 Speaker 2: but never came this close to putting it into practice. 406 00:29:05,280 --> 00:29:08,160 Speaker 1: Vasilis shared his plans with a handful of prisoners, but 407 00:29:08,240 --> 00:29:10,960 Speaker 1: he had trouble finding people who could truly think outside 408 00:29:11,000 --> 00:29:14,280 Speaker 1: the box. Usually when he mentioned the plan, he was 409 00:29:14,320 --> 00:29:17,280 Speaker 1: greeted with dumb stairs. Where are you going to find 410 00:29:17,320 --> 00:29:20,440 Speaker 1: a hardened criminal with a pilot's license? They'd always say, 411 00:29:21,200 --> 00:29:25,280 Speaker 1: where were the idealists? The dreamers hungry for freedom? The 412 00:29:25,320 --> 00:29:26,640 Speaker 1: inmates with imagination. 413 00:29:27,440 --> 00:29:30,200 Speaker 2: The people around here are willing to sell and be sold, 414 00:29:30,560 --> 00:29:34,320 Speaker 2: to buy and be bought. An armed man without morals 415 00:29:34,520 --> 00:29:38,000 Speaker 2: is just a criminal. There's a difference between a criminal 416 00:29:38,080 --> 00:29:38,880 Speaker 2: and an outlaw. 417 00:29:40,000 --> 00:29:47,000 Speaker 1: Vasilis was looking for a fellow outlaw. One day, while 418 00:29:47,000 --> 00:29:49,240 Speaker 1: he was getting comfy in a new cell, a kid 419 00:29:49,280 --> 00:29:51,360 Speaker 1: came up to him, a twenty eight year old from 420 00:29:51,360 --> 00:29:56,160 Speaker 1: Albania named Alquette Risaii. Vasilis looked him up and down. 421 00:29:56,960 --> 00:30:00,000 Speaker 1: The guy was young, could barely grow a full mustache, 422 00:30:00,680 --> 00:30:04,520 Speaker 1: but Vasilis knew his reputation. The kid was rumored to 423 00:30:04,560 --> 00:30:08,440 Speaker 1: be a hit man. Vasilis told him point blank. 424 00:30:08,960 --> 00:30:13,479 Speaker 2: Plans need people with balls to see them through, and 425 00:30:13,520 --> 00:30:17,120 Speaker 2: they need to care for you personally in a selfless way. 426 00:30:18,120 --> 00:30:21,120 Speaker 2: If you've got people like that, trust me, we'll get 427 00:30:21,160 --> 00:30:22,040 Speaker 2: out of this prison. 428 00:30:23,400 --> 00:30:26,200 Speaker 1: It was just the type of conversation Vasilis had been 429 00:30:26,240 --> 00:30:31,040 Speaker 1: waiting years to have. Finally some hope. So the men 430 00:30:31,120 --> 00:30:35,720 Speaker 1: begin plotting, and Alquette starts pinging friends, who starts scouring 431 00:30:35,760 --> 00:30:39,520 Speaker 1: Athens for helicopter charter companies. If they can find just 432 00:30:39,720 --> 00:30:42,840 Speaker 1: one without a security check, maybe they can sneak weapons 433 00:30:42,840 --> 00:30:47,720 Speaker 1: onto the chopper. And hijacket. A few days later, Alquette 434 00:30:47,720 --> 00:30:59,560 Speaker 1: gets a text The plan is a go. Chapter six, 435 00:31:01,560 --> 00:31:06,520 Speaker 1: The View from Above. Here's where, dear listeners, we get 436 00:31:06,560 --> 00:31:10,280 Speaker 1: back to the story that was in our first episode. 437 00:31:10,360 --> 00:31:13,720 Speaker 1: It's Sunday in June two thousand and six, just a 438 00:31:13,800 --> 00:31:17,720 Speaker 1: few hours before the breakout, and Vasili's fidgets with a 439 00:31:17,800 --> 00:31:22,640 Speaker 1: chain of worry beads what Greeks call a comboloi. It's 440 00:31:22,680 --> 00:31:26,680 Speaker 1: a stress reliever and a good luck charm. Vasilis passes 441 00:31:26,720 --> 00:31:30,920 Speaker 1: the time running the beads through his fingers. Everything is ready. 442 00:31:31,560 --> 00:31:34,440 Speaker 1: Auquette's man has booked a flight with the helicopter company. 443 00:31:34,840 --> 00:31:38,640 Speaker 1: He's coming with reinforcements too, a second hijacker to help. 444 00:31:39,320 --> 00:31:43,520 Speaker 1: They even have an alibi. They're taking a birthday celebration flight. 445 00:31:44,440 --> 00:31:47,120 Speaker 1: The two men board the helicopter in the beachside town 446 00:31:47,160 --> 00:31:50,840 Speaker 1: of Glifada. As they're strapping their seat belts, they make 447 00:31:50,920 --> 00:31:53,960 Speaker 1: friendly chit chat with the pilot, who is unaware that 448 00:31:54,000 --> 00:31:57,560 Speaker 1: the two men are armed with pistols. They're backpacks stuffed 449 00:31:57,600 --> 00:32:02,360 Speaker 1: with grenades. The chop slowly rises into the clouds and 450 00:32:02,440 --> 00:32:06,880 Speaker 1: the trip begins. They trace the turquoise coastline and The 451 00:32:06,880 --> 00:32:10,240 Speaker 1: pilot points out the sites, the mansions of the rich 452 00:32:10,240 --> 00:32:15,200 Speaker 1: and famous, ancient ruins a distant monastery, before pointing the 453 00:32:15,240 --> 00:32:23,680 Speaker 1: craft northwest toward downtown Athens. Within minutes, Coridalos comes into sight. Suddenly, 454 00:32:24,040 --> 00:32:26,960 Speaker 1: the pilot feels the tip of an old Soviet pistol 455 00:32:27,040 --> 00:32:31,000 Speaker 1: pressed against his temple. He hears the words if you 456 00:32:31,040 --> 00:32:36,640 Speaker 1: do anything stupid, you're dead. Vasilis and Alquette have picked 457 00:32:36,640 --> 00:32:40,800 Speaker 1: the right day. Turns out there's a massive rally downtown, 458 00:32:41,080 --> 00:32:44,640 Speaker 1: so there are a lot of helicopters hovering nearby. In 459 00:32:44,680 --> 00:32:47,880 Speaker 1: the prison, Vasilis leaves his cell and walks toward the 460 00:32:47,920 --> 00:32:52,040 Speaker 1: prison yard. Nobody suspects a thing. He has this kind 461 00:32:52,080 --> 00:32:54,520 Speaker 1: of freedom to move, and as he steps into the 462 00:32:54,600 --> 00:32:57,200 Speaker 1: jail yard, he can hear the soft rumble of a 463 00:32:57,280 --> 00:33:02,120 Speaker 1: chopper somewhere over the horizon. Vassilis carries a bag with 464 00:33:02,200 --> 00:33:06,520 Speaker 1: a red cheg Avara flag inside. He meets Alcett and 465 00:33:06,560 --> 00:33:08,840 Speaker 1: the two walk to the center of the yard, take 466 00:33:08,880 --> 00:33:11,680 Speaker 1: the flag out, and planet it smack in the middle. 467 00:33:13,040 --> 00:33:15,960 Speaker 1: Up in the air, the hijackers tell the pilot to 468 00:33:16,040 --> 00:33:19,320 Speaker 1: look for the red flag. A minute or two passes. 469 00:33:19,880 --> 00:33:23,640 Speaker 1: Suddenly the helicopter clears the prison wall and hovers over 470 00:33:23,680 --> 00:33:26,720 Speaker 1: the yard. Clouds of dust kick up into the air, 471 00:33:27,280 --> 00:33:31,200 Speaker 1: wind whips and circles, throwing sand into everyone's eyes. The 472 00:33:31,240 --> 00:33:35,760 Speaker 1: helicopter descends and descends, and the noise grows louder and louder. 473 00:33:36,480 --> 00:33:39,200 Speaker 1: The sound of the rotors bounces off the concrete walls 474 00:33:39,200 --> 00:33:44,520 Speaker 1: and amplifies. Vassily feels the noise of the chopper consume him. 475 00:33:45,040 --> 00:33:48,040 Speaker 1: The prison guards look on. The guards assume that some 476 00:33:48,200 --> 00:33:51,800 Speaker 1: high level politician is putting on a spectacular surprise entrance. 477 00:33:52,520 --> 00:33:55,480 Speaker 1: The helicopter drops until it's just hovering a foot or 478 00:33:55,520 --> 00:33:59,600 Speaker 1: two off the ground. The door is open. Alqtt and 479 00:33:59,640 --> 00:34:04,360 Speaker 1: Vassilat race on. By the time the guards realize what happened, 480 00:34:04,720 --> 00:34:08,360 Speaker 1: Alqutt and Vasilis are already looking down at the rooftops 481 00:34:08,360 --> 00:34:14,919 Speaker 1: of Athens, an eagle's soaring to freedom. The chopper makes 482 00:34:14,960 --> 00:34:17,480 Speaker 1: a bee line out of town, landing next to an 483 00:34:17,480 --> 00:34:20,839 Speaker 1: empty cemetery on the edge of Athens, where the hijackers 484 00:34:20,840 --> 00:34:25,320 Speaker 1: have hidden a pair of stolen motorcycles. Once the helicopter lands, 485 00:34:25,520 --> 00:34:29,560 Speaker 1: Alqutt jumps out and races for a bike, but Vasilis 486 00:34:29,920 --> 00:34:34,040 Speaker 1: takes his time. Rather than run for it, he calmly 487 00:34:34,040 --> 00:34:37,839 Speaker 1: turns to the pilot and reaches into his pocket. Take this, 488 00:34:38,080 --> 00:34:41,680 Speaker 1: he tells the man. He pulls out his COMBOLOI the 489 00:34:41,719 --> 00:34:44,600 Speaker 1: worry beats and hands it to the pilot. 490 00:34:44,920 --> 00:34:46,239 Speaker 2: In a selectical combati. 491 00:34:48,400 --> 00:34:49,359 Speaker 1: It's a collectible. 492 00:34:49,800 --> 00:34:50,960 Speaker 2: I don't need it anymore. 493 00:34:52,239 --> 00:35:04,080 Speaker 1: Then he strolls to his motorcycle and disappears. A few 494 00:35:04,080 --> 00:35:07,759 Speaker 1: months later, with Vasilis on the run, brother Nikos's luck 495 00:35:07,880 --> 00:35:11,719 Speaker 1: finally runs dry. It's September two thousand and six and 496 00:35:11,800 --> 00:35:15,600 Speaker 1: Nikos is speeding around the foothills of Mount Olympus. He 497 00:35:15,640 --> 00:35:19,080 Speaker 1: accelerates through a roadblock and the cops give chase, but 498 00:35:19,160 --> 00:35:21,880 Speaker 1: as he tries to take a curve, the wheel slip, 499 00:35:22,880 --> 00:35:25,840 Speaker 1: slides off the road and the car rolls over onto 500 00:35:25,880 --> 00:35:29,840 Speaker 1: its roof behind him. The police screets to a halt. 501 00:35:30,600 --> 00:35:32,839 Speaker 1: The cops pull out their guns, ready for a fight. 502 00:35:32,920 --> 00:35:38,160 Speaker 1: Ack Slowly Nicos crawls out the window. He's armed, but 503 00:35:38,200 --> 00:35:40,600 Speaker 1: he knows he isn't going to kill these men, so 504 00:35:40,640 --> 00:35:44,320 Speaker 1: he just gives himself up. His streak as the most 505 00:35:44,400 --> 00:35:50,360 Speaker 1: uncatchable man in Greece comes to an end. Nkos is 506 00:35:50,400 --> 00:35:54,160 Speaker 1: sent to a prison in Patras in western Greece. A 507 00:35:54,239 --> 00:35:57,360 Speaker 1: judge finds him guilty of more than a dozen bank robberies, 508 00:35:58,000 --> 00:36:01,400 Speaker 1: combined with the charges for escaping prison and fleeing the police, 509 00:36:01,440 --> 00:36:04,040 Speaker 1: to name a few. He is sentenced to more than 510 00:36:04,120 --> 00:36:09,120 Speaker 1: one hundred and ninety seven years behind bars. And that's 511 00:36:09,600 --> 00:36:13,440 Speaker 1: when everything changes. Suddenly Nicos is the one in jail 512 00:36:13,840 --> 00:36:17,720 Speaker 1: and Vasilis he's the one all the newspapers are talking about. 513 00:36:18,680 --> 00:36:21,879 Speaker 1: The change in reputation is immediate. All the things they 514 00:36:21,920 --> 00:36:26,000 Speaker 1: once said about Nicos, that he's non violent, that he's charitable, 515 00:36:26,120 --> 00:36:29,520 Speaker 1: that he's uncatchable, that gets shifted to his little brother. 516 00:36:30,440 --> 00:36:33,560 Speaker 1: In two thousand and six, the BBC had called Nicos 517 00:36:33,680 --> 00:36:37,239 Speaker 1: a robin hood. By two thousand and nine, the Associated 518 00:36:37,280 --> 00:36:41,400 Speaker 1: Press has given that title to Vasilis. And that's the 519 00:36:41,480 --> 00:36:45,480 Speaker 1: curious thing about the Vasilis Palocosta story. He's a bank robber, 520 00:36:45,680 --> 00:36:49,480 Speaker 1: a kidnapper, a thief, but probably the most important thing 521 00:36:49,520 --> 00:36:53,640 Speaker 1: he ever stole was the title of good thief from 522 00:36:53,680 --> 00:37:14,000 Speaker 1: his older brother. As for Nicos, the glory days are over. 523 00:37:14,760 --> 00:37:18,319 Speaker 1: He's suffering from a cute kidney disease. In twenty twenty one, 524 00:37:18,520 --> 00:37:22,000 Speaker 1: he's released from prison to house arrest on humanitarian grounds. 525 00:37:22,840 --> 00:37:26,080 Speaker 1: Aside from twice a week dialysis appointments, he's not allowed 526 00:37:26,080 --> 00:37:29,319 Speaker 1: to leave the family home outside three Cola. That's why 527 00:37:29,320 --> 00:37:31,680 Speaker 1: the local cops told us, if you want to talk 528 00:37:31,680 --> 00:37:35,600 Speaker 1: to him, just stop by. He's not going anywhere. They 529 00:37:35,600 --> 00:37:38,759 Speaker 1: made it sound easy, but nothing in this story is 530 00:37:38,800 --> 00:37:42,879 Speaker 1: ever that simple. So after Nkos's sister slammed the door 531 00:37:42,960 --> 00:37:46,160 Speaker 1: on George and Christina, they had to call Daphne back 532 00:37:46,200 --> 00:37:48,880 Speaker 1: in Athens and break the bad news. 533 00:37:49,280 --> 00:37:52,920 Speaker 3: She looked like a little bit. She definitely looks guarded, 534 00:37:53,239 --> 00:37:55,360 Speaker 3: but she yeah, yeah, definitely guarded. 535 00:37:55,880 --> 00:37:58,040 Speaker 1: What time did you go to think he was genuinely 536 00:37:58,120 --> 00:37:58,880 Speaker 1: having miss yesta? 537 00:37:59,280 --> 00:38:00,920 Speaker 5: I think so, yeah, I think so. 538 00:38:01,480 --> 00:38:05,160 Speaker 1: Yeah. Maybe it's worth going tomorrow morning before you leave 539 00:38:05,200 --> 00:38:05,560 Speaker 1: as well. 540 00:38:06,440 --> 00:38:08,640 Speaker 5: Maybe we can try. I feel like we're gonna get 541 00:38:08,640 --> 00:38:10,160 Speaker 5: another door shut in our face, but. 542 00:38:11,440 --> 00:38:13,400 Speaker 1: Maybe that we'll have read the letter by then, so 543 00:38:13,480 --> 00:38:15,440 Speaker 1: maybe we'll have a slightly different reactions. 544 00:38:15,560 --> 00:38:29,920 Speaker 6: Perhaps perhaps, Okay, I hope so by thanks guys, next. 545 00:38:29,719 --> 00:38:33,680 Speaker 1: Time on the good thief persistence pays off. 546 00:38:35,040 --> 00:38:35,719 Speaker 2: I feel fear. 547 00:38:37,200 --> 00:38:41,160 Speaker 3: Okay, so we're approaching from the other side, shall we 548 00:38:41,239 --> 00:38:41,959 Speaker 3: drive a little bit? 549 00:38:42,120 --> 00:38:43,640 Speaker 2: Oh? Fuck me? 550 00:38:43,920 --> 00:38:52,520 Speaker 3: Okay, that is actually as well. 551 00:38:54,760 --> 00:38:57,360 Speaker 1: The Good Thief is a Kaleidoscope production in partnership with 552 00:38:57,400 --> 00:39:01,840 Speaker 1: iHeart Podcasts. Gets hosted by me Miles Gray. Our executive 553 00:39:01,840 --> 00:39:07,239 Speaker 1: producers Our mangesh Hetikutur Costas, Linos, oz Waalishan and Kate 554 00:39:07,320 --> 00:39:12,600 Speaker 1: Osborne from iHeart. Executive producers are Katrina Norvel and Nikki Etor. 555 00:39:13,200 --> 00:39:16,440 Speaker 1: Our partners at The Greek Podcast Project. Our executive producer 556 00:39:16,600 --> 00:39:21,640 Speaker 1: Daphne carnisis field producers Christina Bilioni and George Miatis and 557 00:39:21,800 --> 00:39:27,120 Speaker 1: sound designer Nikos Scavenitis. Mary Philip Sandy is our supervising producer. 558 00:39:27,480 --> 00:39:30,520 Speaker 1: Shane McKeon is our producer. The show is written in 559 00:39:30,560 --> 00:39:34,879 Speaker 1: research by Lucas Riley, fact checking by Donya Suleman, sound 560 00:39:34,960 --> 00:39:39,160 Speaker 1: design and mix by Soundboard. This episode featured the voices 561 00:39:39,239 --> 00:39:43,080 Speaker 1: of Yorgo, Scaramihos and Rich Green. Our theme song is 562 00:39:43,120 --> 00:39:47,800 Speaker 1: by Imam Baldi, with additional music by Botany. Finally thanks 563 00:39:47,800 --> 00:39:51,919 Speaker 1: to Will Pearson Connell Byrne, Bob Pittman and John Marynapolis 564 00:40:01,600 --> 00:40:01,719 Speaker 2: SA