Speaker 1: Murder in Miami is a production of iHeartRadio. This week,
Speaker 1: we'll hear more from the charismatic former marijuana smuggler Bobby
Speaker 1: Platshorn on how and why he and Ron Elliott of
Speaker 1: the Coconut Grove Guys crossed paths at the end of
Speaker 1: the Black Tuna era. So the question I had for
Speaker 1: you is, after you and I spoke, Phil mentioned the
Speaker 1: name Ron Elliott, and I did not remember that name
Speaker 1: from your book.
Speaker 2: The Ron you're chasin was really not part of us.
Speaker 2: They threw him in in the end because we tried
Speaker 2: to get him and his partner to do a rescue
Speaker 2: mission after we no longer had airplanes available, But that's
Speaker 2: really all of it. He had nothing to do with us.
Speaker 3: Did you get any read on him when you met
Speaker 3: him in person?
Speaker 2: No. I was told he was an excellent pilot, and
Speaker 2: I didn't really know him. I reached out when that
Speaker 2: plane crashed and Purvis and the other pilots were stuck
Speaker 2: down there.
Speaker 1: Bobby's referencing a crash in Columbia that involved two of
Speaker 1: the Black Tuna Gang pilots. When their plane went down,
Speaker 1: Platschorn was in need of another pilot to attempt a
Speaker 1: rescue mission enter Ron Elliott.
Speaker 2: Well, he had done a number of trips flying two
Speaker 2: I think ASSESSMA for twenty one's doing trips into central Florida.
Speaker 2: And he was using two so that one could be
Speaker 2: a ghost plane and one would be a legitimate check.
Speaker 3: In, so one was like a decoy.
Speaker 2: Yeah, I know, he did a lot of trips. He
Speaker 2: was successful. He was bringing him into I think north
Speaker 2: central Florida.
Speaker 3: And so what did you want him to do for you?
Speaker 2: Go pick up the stranded pilots. I probably offered him
Speaker 2: a couple of hundred brand or something to go pick
Speaker 2: them up, get them out of there, and needed somebody
Speaker 2: who was willing to go down right away. I mean,
Speaker 2: we had to get them out of there. They were
Speaker 2: hiding in the jungle. If the Columbian Army or police
Speaker 2: could find them, then it would be a serious jail
Speaker 2: term for them or a serious expense bailing them out.
Speaker 1: So originally he agreed to do it. But in addition
Speaker 1: to the money, he wanted coke.
Speaker 2: Yeah, I don't remember if it may have been ten.
Speaker 3: Keys, which would have been a lot.
Speaker 2: Yeah, yeah, and that's not a huge shipment, but it
Speaker 2: would have put a lot of money in his pocket.
Speaker 2: But I had no intention of getting involved in the
Speaker 2: coke business. So I made a point of getting a
Speaker 2: hold of my connection in Columbia or Raoul and tell them,
Speaker 2: under no circumstances was any cocaine to go on the plane,
Speaker 2: because at that point it felt like a setup.
Speaker 1: Yeah.
Speaker 3: And so did he rescue the pilots?
Speaker 2: Yes, he did, but he didn't get the coke.
Speaker 3: How did he react to that?
Speaker 2: I don't recall tell you the truth, but I know
Speaker 2: when Fervis got out of the plane, the DEA was
Speaker 2: there waiting for him, and he was waiting to help
Speaker 2: the DEA.
Speaker 1: So you went to all that effort to save him, Yeah,
Speaker 1: and then he turned on you exactly. Thank god you
Speaker 1: didn't put any coke on that plane because if the
Speaker 1: DA was waiting for it.
Speaker 2: Yeah, yeah, it was originally a coke charge in the indictment,
Speaker 2: but they.
Speaker 3: Pulled it out, so it was a setup.
Speaker 2: Yes, it was a setup. I don't know if ron
Speaker 2: Elliott knew it was a setup, but George Fervis certainly knew.
Speaker 3: How did the DA even know to be there?
Speaker 2: They were set up with George. George had been busted
Speaker 2: bringing the shipment into North Carolina. When he got out
Speaker 2: on bail, he needed a place to live and stay
Speaker 2: till his trial, and I let him work at our
Speaker 2: used car lot, which was part of our auction complex,
Speaker 2: so he was around all the time. Then he did
Speaker 2: this airplane trip to Columbia. Plane crashed and we had
Speaker 2: to get them out of there, him and two pilots,
Speaker 2: and we got them out. I felt that was my responsibility,
Speaker 2: even though that wasn't my trip.
Speaker 1: Wow, how did you feel when you found out that
Speaker 1: the DA was waiting and that he turned.
Speaker 2: I was pretty well sure of it before he was back.
Speaker 2: Just all the arrangements for the rescue just had a
Speaker 2: bad feel, and I was pretty sure that.
Speaker 3: They'd be waiting, and you did the right thing.
Speaker 2: I was worried about it, but one thing at a time,
Speaker 2: get them out of Columbia first.
Speaker 1: For more podcasts from iHeartRadio, visit the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts,
Speaker 1: or wherever you get the stories that matter to you.