1 00:00:07,000 --> 00:00:09,640 Speaker 1: Diversion Audio. 2 00:00:11,800 --> 00:00:16,840 Speaker 2: A note this episode contains mature content and quite graphic 3 00:00:16,880 --> 00:00:20,840 Speaker 2: descriptions of violence and sex that may be disturbing for 4 00:00:20,920 --> 00:00:37,480 Speaker 2: some listeners. Please take care in listening. It's nineteen ninety eight. 5 00:00:38,400 --> 00:00:42,599 Speaker 2: You're in Atlanta for a convention. Let's say it's for 6 00:00:43,080 --> 00:00:47,160 Speaker 2: investment banking or something lucrative but not all that glamorous. 7 00:00:48,400 --> 00:00:51,760 Speaker 2: When your taxi drops you off at the downtown Marriott Marquis, 8 00:00:52,520 --> 00:00:56,400 Speaker 2: there are a few beautiful, charming women standing by the valet. 9 00:00:57,360 --> 00:01:01,280 Speaker 2: They're promoting their club. The hands you a business card 10 00:01:01,360 --> 00:01:04,880 Speaker 2: that gets you free admission to the Gold Club. You've 11 00:01:04,920 --> 00:01:08,920 Speaker 2: heard about this place. It's a strip club. It's an 12 00:01:08,959 --> 00:01:14,720 Speaker 2: Atlanta strip club. Unlike in your hometown, let's say Milwaukee, 13 00:01:15,680 --> 00:01:17,399 Speaker 2: Atlanta strip clubs. 14 00:01:17,640 --> 00:01:19,240 Speaker 3: Are full nudity. 15 00:01:19,720 --> 00:01:23,559 Speaker 2: And you've also heard that this is the club where 16 00:01:23,600 --> 00:01:28,480 Speaker 2: the celebrities go, not just any celebrities. Sure you've heard 17 00:01:28,520 --> 00:01:32,480 Speaker 2: of big name actors and singers frequenting there, but dan 18 00:01:32,560 --> 00:01:36,280 Speaker 2: Aykroyd and Madonna they don't have the star power some 19 00:01:36,319 --> 00:01:40,600 Speaker 2: of their other guests have. And there are definitely the 20 00:01:40,680 --> 00:01:45,200 Speaker 2: Atlanta celebrities who turn up anytime they please. Too Short 21 00:01:45,680 --> 00:01:47,880 Speaker 2: Jermaine Dupree, Andrew Jones. 22 00:01:49,160 --> 00:01:49,880 Speaker 3: But you know, the. 23 00:01:49,840 --> 00:01:53,280 Speaker 2: Gold Club doesn't just cater to hip hop clientele like 24 00:01:53,360 --> 00:01:57,640 Speaker 2: some of the Atlanta spots. You've also heard that some 25 00:01:57,720 --> 00:02:02,400 Speaker 2: celebrities come to Atlanta just to go to the Gold Club. 26 00:02:04,320 --> 00:02:08,400 Speaker 2: You've heard Dennis Rodman goes to the Gold Club, Patrick 27 00:02:08,440 --> 00:02:12,960 Speaker 2: Ewing goes to the Gold Club, Michael Jordan goes to 28 00:02:13,000 --> 00:02:18,160 Speaker 2: the Gold Club. It's professional athlete mecca. The more you 29 00:02:18,200 --> 00:02:22,320 Speaker 2: think about it, the more you have to go. When 30 00:02:22,360 --> 00:02:25,080 Speaker 2: your town car pulls into the drive off of Lindbergh, 31 00:02:25,919 --> 00:02:29,919 Speaker 2: two gold lions pose by a fountain under a Neon Stegn. 32 00:02:31,160 --> 00:02:35,600 Speaker 2: The doorman opens your door, checks your ID the inside 33 00:02:36,080 --> 00:02:40,320 Speaker 2: delivers the girl standing at the front desk, smile and 34 00:02:40,480 --> 00:02:44,760 Speaker 2: strike up a friendly conversation. They ask you what you're 35 00:02:44,800 --> 00:02:48,679 Speaker 2: interested in doing tonight. They're just so easy to talk to, 36 00:02:49,960 --> 00:02:52,480 Speaker 2: not like most women who know how beautiful they are 37 00:02:53,520 --> 00:02:56,880 Speaker 2: you can't tell, but these girls are sizing you up. 38 00:02:57,800 --> 00:03:01,840 Speaker 2: They notice your watch, your shoe, what kind of glasses 39 00:03:01,840 --> 00:03:06,240 Speaker 2: you're wearing, and they especially notice what kind of credit 40 00:03:06,280 --> 00:03:09,320 Speaker 2: card you pass them. When they ask how many gold 41 00:03:09,360 --> 00:03:13,519 Speaker 2: Bucks you'd like to buy, you answer with something innocuous. 42 00:03:14,280 --> 00:03:18,680 Speaker 2: It feels like a champagne night. They agree. A point 43 00:03:18,680 --> 00:03:21,560 Speaker 2: man appears out of nowhere, which is surprising based on 44 00:03:21,639 --> 00:03:25,880 Speaker 2: his sheer size. He walks you past the main stage, 45 00:03:26,040 --> 00:03:30,800 Speaker 2: where other less well heeled patrons sit at tables on 46 00:03:30,840 --> 00:03:35,560 Speaker 2: the main floor, up the diverging staircases that lead to 47 00:03:35,640 --> 00:03:40,520 Speaker 2: a balcony lined with huge windows. If there weren't huge 48 00:03:40,600 --> 00:03:44,560 Speaker 2: security guards in front of every door, you could see 49 00:03:44,640 --> 00:03:48,840 Speaker 2: every bit of what was happening inside. As they stand, 50 00:03:48,960 --> 00:03:53,440 Speaker 2: you can only see silhouettes. Some rooms have just two 51 00:03:53,560 --> 00:03:59,120 Speaker 2: people sitting and talking, some have three in more precarious positions, 52 00:04:00,080 --> 00:04:03,760 Speaker 2: and some seem to have a whole mob. The point 53 00:04:03,760 --> 00:04:07,920 Speaker 2: man opens the door to Champagne Room number seven, the 54 00:04:07,960 --> 00:04:12,480 Speaker 2: biggest and darkest of the VIP rooms. By the time 55 00:04:12,520 --> 00:04:16,760 Speaker 2: you leave before they close, you can barely hail your 56 00:04:16,760 --> 00:04:21,760 Speaker 2: own cab. Your credit card company raised your spending limit 57 00:04:21,920 --> 00:04:25,600 Speaker 2: over the phone when you asked, and even though you're 58 00:04:25,640 --> 00:04:28,440 Speaker 2: tens of thousands of dollars lighter than you were just 59 00:04:28,600 --> 00:04:31,960 Speaker 2: six or seven hours ago, you'll have a hell of 60 00:04:31,960 --> 00:04:36,359 Speaker 2: a story to tell your colleagues if you can remember it. 61 00:04:59,640 --> 00:05:03,400 Speaker 2: Welcome the greatest true crime stories ever told. I'm Mary 62 00:05:03,440 --> 00:05:09,080 Speaker 2: Kay mcbraer. Today's episode, we're calling the Gold Club sex 63 00:05:09,120 --> 00:05:12,560 Speaker 2: in the Champagne Room. I thought this title was a 64 00:05:12,680 --> 00:05:15,880 Speaker 2: hilarious joke until I told it to my husband, who 65 00:05:15,960 --> 00:05:18,360 Speaker 2: is three years younger than I am, and he had 66 00:05:18,400 --> 00:05:23,120 Speaker 2: no idea what I was referencing. Normally, I'll just let 67 00:05:23,200 --> 00:05:26,640 Speaker 2: a joke die when it deserves too, but this one 68 00:05:26,720 --> 00:05:29,080 Speaker 2: is just so perfect that I need to explain it 69 00:05:29,120 --> 00:05:32,720 Speaker 2: in case you're under thirty five. In nineteen ninety nine, 70 00:05:33,360 --> 00:05:39,000 Speaker 2: Chris Rock released a spoof keynote graduating class speech set 71 00:05:39,080 --> 00:05:42,279 Speaker 2: to an R and B rhythm that went I thought viral. 72 00:05:43,440 --> 00:05:46,600 Speaker 2: The key piece of advice and the refrain of this 73 00:05:46,720 --> 00:05:51,160 Speaker 2: slow jam is this, no matter what a stripper tells you, 74 00:05:52,400 --> 00:05:58,279 Speaker 2: there is no sex in the champagne room. None. So 75 00:05:58,440 --> 00:06:02,039 Speaker 2: imagine my surprise when a few years later, a more 76 00:06:02,120 --> 00:06:06,279 Speaker 2: mature friend of mine revealed that actually, there's only sex 77 00:06:06,360 --> 00:06:07,680 Speaker 2: in the champagne room. 78 00:06:08,560 --> 00:06:09,039 Speaker 3: At least. 79 00:06:09,440 --> 00:06:12,320 Speaker 2: That's the story behind the Gold Club, which was, for 80 00:06:12,440 --> 00:06:16,360 Speaker 2: most of the nineteen nineties the gold standard of strip clubs, 81 00:06:16,800 --> 00:06:19,320 Speaker 2: and it was in Atlanta, which was the strip club 82 00:06:19,360 --> 00:06:22,920 Speaker 2: oasis of the South. It's the story of some of 83 00:06:22,960 --> 00:06:26,760 Speaker 2: the most beautiful and clever women in the world and 84 00:06:26,839 --> 00:06:30,560 Speaker 2: the men who manipulated them to become accomplices in a 85 00:06:30,640 --> 00:06:35,599 Speaker 2: wide scale mafia funded fraud. I'll tell you all about 86 00:06:35,640 --> 00:06:55,960 Speaker 2: it after this quick break. While I was researching for 87 00:06:56,000 --> 00:07:02,159 Speaker 2: this episode, I found myself growing frustrated, so I thought 88 00:07:02,200 --> 00:07:05,960 Speaker 2: I'd start off by giving a public service announcement, one 89 00:07:06,000 --> 00:07:08,880 Speaker 2: that I find hard to believe anyone needs to hear. 90 00:07:09,480 --> 00:07:12,680 Speaker 2: But here it is. Anyway, when you walk into a 91 00:07:12,720 --> 00:07:18,440 Speaker 2: strip club, you are tacitly agreeing to getting hustled. That is, 92 00:07:18,640 --> 00:07:22,680 Speaker 2: and let me really emphasize this, the whole business model. 93 00:07:23,800 --> 00:07:25,760 Speaker 3: Like I said, I find. 94 00:07:25,600 --> 00:07:28,560 Speaker 2: It difficult to accept that anyone would try to deny 95 00:07:28,600 --> 00:07:31,480 Speaker 2: this fact. I mean, what do you think these girls 96 00:07:31,520 --> 00:07:35,880 Speaker 2: are doing here? This is their job. If they're being 97 00:07:36,000 --> 00:07:38,520 Speaker 2: nice to you and they're making you feel like they 98 00:07:38,640 --> 00:07:43,600 Speaker 2: really actually like you, that means only one thing. They 99 00:07:43,640 --> 00:07:47,440 Speaker 2: are good at their job. And for the people in 100 00:07:47,480 --> 00:07:50,120 Speaker 2: the back or the people not really listening, I want 101 00:07:50,160 --> 00:07:54,280 Speaker 2: to overstate here, when you walk into a strip club, 102 00:07:54,840 --> 00:07:58,840 Speaker 2: you are accepting that whatever services you ask for cost 103 00:07:59,200 --> 00:08:04,080 Speaker 2: what they cost. There's no negotiation. You already said yes 104 00:08:04,440 --> 00:08:08,680 Speaker 2: by asking for it. That said, there are some sketchy 105 00:08:08,720 --> 00:08:14,120 Speaker 2: side hustles, but again you asked for it, and the 106 00:08:14,200 --> 00:08:18,200 Speaker 2: Gold Club was the best in the business. Whenever I 107 00:08:18,280 --> 00:08:21,120 Speaker 2: researched a story that's local to me or that I 108 00:08:21,160 --> 00:08:24,040 Speaker 2: have a very hazy memory of in the news, I 109 00:08:24,080 --> 00:08:28,000 Speaker 2: ask my parents. My mom was a cocktail waitress at 110 00:08:28,000 --> 00:08:30,880 Speaker 2: the R and R Hotels nightclub in the early nineties. 111 00:08:32,120 --> 00:08:34,880 Speaker 2: She never went to the Gold Club herself, but she 112 00:08:35,000 --> 00:08:38,680 Speaker 2: remembers when it was a big deal. She remembers it 113 00:08:38,760 --> 00:08:44,080 Speaker 2: because that's where her customers went after the nightclub, and 114 00:08:44,120 --> 00:08:48,880 Speaker 2: it had a reputation for being the best, classiest, cleanest 115 00:08:49,080 --> 00:08:53,080 Speaker 2: gentleman's club in Atlanta, but it was still a hustle. 116 00:08:54,360 --> 00:08:58,680 Speaker 2: For example, one Gold Club hustle was their hourly rate. 117 00:09:00,160 --> 00:09:03,319 Speaker 2: So remember from the hypothetical story at the beginning, when 118 00:09:03,360 --> 00:09:06,160 Speaker 2: you were escorted up to the champagne room and a 119 00:09:06,200 --> 00:09:10,960 Speaker 2: girl waited for you there. Renting that champagne room cost 120 00:09:11,160 --> 00:09:15,160 Speaker 2: an hourly rate of five hundred two one thousand dollars, 121 00:09:15,280 --> 00:09:19,080 Speaker 2: and you also had the hourly rate of that dancer's time, 122 00:09:20,080 --> 00:09:24,760 Speaker 2: so you were effectively paying two hourly rates. An hour 123 00:09:24,840 --> 00:09:28,080 Speaker 2: with her in the champagne room cost you at least 124 00:09:28,160 --> 00:09:31,240 Speaker 2: two hundred and fifty dollars, although she could name her price, 125 00:09:32,200 --> 00:09:34,600 Speaker 2: and that's if it was just a one on one situation, 126 00:09:35,880 --> 00:09:41,000 Speaker 2: which it often was not. So the meter has started, 127 00:09:41,640 --> 00:09:44,360 Speaker 2: and whether you knew the sticker price or not, any 128 00:09:44,400 --> 00:09:59,439 Speaker 2: fool knows there is a price. Like I said before, 129 00:10:00,240 --> 00:10:02,800 Speaker 2: this is a classy place. So the girl who's keeping 130 00:10:02,840 --> 00:10:08,280 Speaker 2: you company, she's drinking champagne or maybe Kangnac, but it 131 00:10:08,320 --> 00:10:12,320 Speaker 2: ain't the cheap shit. One bottle of champagne costs three 132 00:10:12,400 --> 00:10:15,320 Speaker 2: hundred and fifty dollars, and that was if it was 133 00:10:15,360 --> 00:10:19,760 Speaker 2: on the low end. If she wanted Jerebone, that could 134 00:10:19,800 --> 00:10:23,439 Speaker 2: have been thousands per bottle. And you probably wouldn't get 135 00:10:23,440 --> 00:10:25,920 Speaker 2: out of the place with just one bottle. I mean 136 00:10:26,640 --> 00:10:30,360 Speaker 2: that's only about four glasses, and you're not going to 137 00:10:30,400 --> 00:10:33,280 Speaker 2: be in the champagne room for less than an hour, right, 138 00:10:33,480 --> 00:10:38,600 Speaker 2: I mean think about the implications. Anyway, So these girls, 139 00:10:38,640 --> 00:10:43,600 Speaker 2: they're hustlers and they don't drink that champagne. They get 140 00:10:43,640 --> 00:10:46,400 Speaker 2: a kickback for every bottle they sell you. They take 141 00:10:46,400 --> 00:10:48,920 Speaker 2: a sip and they pour the rest into a potted 142 00:10:48,960 --> 00:10:53,040 Speaker 2: plant or straight into the carpet. The documentary about the 143 00:10:53,040 --> 00:10:56,560 Speaker 2: Gold Club, which is also titled Sex in the Champagne Room, 144 00:10:57,000 --> 00:10:59,760 Speaker 2: has several of the women who worked at the Gold 145 00:10:59,760 --> 00:11:03,960 Speaker 2: Club saying flat out that they did this and that 146 00:11:04,040 --> 00:11:08,679 Speaker 2: they had those carpets cleaned constantly. They laugh when they 147 00:11:08,720 --> 00:11:12,160 Speaker 2: admit that it was the most expensive carpet in Atlanta. 148 00:11:13,200 --> 00:11:16,319 Speaker 2: So while these girls are running the game on you, 149 00:11:16,320 --> 00:11:20,600 Speaker 2: you're matching them drink for drink, which means you're getting drunker, 150 00:11:21,120 --> 00:11:25,200 Speaker 2: but they are staying the same. All of this is 151 00:11:25,320 --> 00:11:29,600 Speaker 2: completely legal. It's part of the game which you agreed 152 00:11:29,600 --> 00:11:33,440 Speaker 2: to play the moment you walked in, and it promptly 153 00:11:33,720 --> 00:11:37,360 Speaker 2: does really feel like a game. Everyone who talks about 154 00:11:37,400 --> 00:11:40,439 Speaker 2: having gone to the Gold Club says what a fun 155 00:11:40,520 --> 00:11:44,040 Speaker 2: time it was. Even the women who worked there say 156 00:11:44,080 --> 00:11:47,600 Speaker 2: it was fun. Well, the women who were at the 157 00:11:47,640 --> 00:11:51,760 Speaker 2: top of the employees' hierarchy said so. The others were 158 00:11:52,120 --> 00:11:55,320 Speaker 2: less unanimous in having a fun time, But we'll come 159 00:11:55,360 --> 00:11:59,320 Speaker 2: to that. One of the best dancers was Jacqueline Bush 160 00:12:00,040 --> 00:12:04,280 Speaker 2: stage name was Diva. In the documentary, she talks about 161 00:12:04,320 --> 00:12:07,400 Speaker 2: her customers taking champagne shots out of her butt crack, 162 00:12:08,440 --> 00:12:11,280 Speaker 2: or the time she made two thousand dollars in one 163 00:12:11,360 --> 00:12:15,680 Speaker 2: night by just letting someone stare at her feet. Another 164 00:12:15,760 --> 00:12:19,480 Speaker 2: star dancer, Baby said she was really nervous to do 165 00:12:19,600 --> 00:12:23,880 Speaker 2: her routine to like a virgin with Madonna actually in 166 00:12:24,000 --> 00:12:28,440 Speaker 2: the audience, But afterward Madonna praised her so much for 167 00:12:28,520 --> 00:12:32,520 Speaker 2: her performance that she'll never forget it. Even the waitresses 168 00:12:32,559 --> 00:12:35,280 Speaker 2: had a good time. They had a game they played 169 00:12:35,280 --> 00:12:39,320 Speaker 2: with each other called name that dancer. They'd imitate a 170 00:12:39,360 --> 00:12:41,960 Speaker 2: dancer's style and make the others guess who it was, 171 00:12:42,040 --> 00:12:46,240 Speaker 2: a sort of sexy charades. The waitresses always wanted to 172 00:12:46,280 --> 00:12:49,679 Speaker 2: serve the champagne room with the highest earners, because if 173 00:12:49,679 --> 00:12:52,880 Speaker 2: the dancer was getting paid, that meant she was getting 174 00:12:52,920 --> 00:12:57,160 Speaker 2: paid too. Because on top of the hourly rate and 175 00:12:57,320 --> 00:13:01,040 Speaker 2: the marked up alcohol, you had to tip, and you 176 00:13:01,160 --> 00:13:05,719 Speaker 2: tipped for every service. Every time they brought a tray 177 00:13:05,800 --> 00:13:09,240 Speaker 2: of shots, every time they converted some of your cash 178 00:13:09,280 --> 00:13:12,959 Speaker 2: to gold bucks, that was another service. But the girls 179 00:13:13,000 --> 00:13:16,560 Speaker 2: who made the most money, they weren't really taking off 180 00:13:16,600 --> 00:13:22,040 Speaker 2: their clothes, at least not for a long time. They 181 00:13:22,760 --> 00:13:29,160 Speaker 2: were good conversationalists. Baby says that part was most of 182 00:13:29,200 --> 00:13:33,520 Speaker 2: the job, sitting with their girlfriends and listening to the 183 00:13:33,559 --> 00:13:37,640 Speaker 2: customer talk. Can you believe he did that? That's amazing, 184 00:13:38,600 --> 00:13:41,080 Speaker 2: or I can't believe your wife treats you like that. 185 00:13:41,080 --> 00:13:41,839 Speaker 3: That's so wrong. 186 00:13:43,000 --> 00:13:46,480 Speaker 2: That's what they'd say, anything to make them feel better, 187 00:13:47,480 --> 00:13:52,319 Speaker 2: because that was the job. See fun or at least funny, 188 00:13:52,920 --> 00:13:56,280 Speaker 2: and time flies. When you're having fun, you're running up 189 00:13:56,320 --> 00:14:08,080 Speaker 2: a tab lightning quick. Well, if you're a regular rich guy, 190 00:14:08,120 --> 00:14:12,360 Speaker 2: you're running up a tab. If you're a celebrity or 191 00:14:12,400 --> 00:14:15,840 Speaker 2: a name with any star power, you don't pay a dime. 192 00:14:17,040 --> 00:14:20,920 Speaker 2: It's kind of genius. That was the owner's idea. Steve 193 00:14:21,040 --> 00:14:24,640 Speaker 2: Kaplan recognized the star power and he capitalized on it. 194 00:14:25,400 --> 00:14:28,320 Speaker 2: What better way to get celebrities to frequent your place 195 00:14:28,760 --> 00:14:31,920 Speaker 2: than to make it free for them. Steve would pay 196 00:14:31,920 --> 00:14:35,800 Speaker 2: the dancer's rates himself. And if you're wondering whether the 197 00:14:35,880 --> 00:14:40,120 Speaker 2: intake from the regular rich guys was enough, Steve made 198 00:14:40,160 --> 00:14:44,680 Speaker 2: it enough. This is where our story veers from completely legal, 199 00:14:44,760 --> 00:14:49,320 Speaker 2: consensual hustle into straight up fraud. You might be so 200 00:14:49,480 --> 00:14:52,040 Speaker 2: drunk that you're not able to sign your own name, 201 00:14:52,920 --> 00:14:56,160 Speaker 2: so they'd sign it for you. Naturally, that didn't fly 202 00:14:56,280 --> 00:15:00,920 Speaker 2: for long. Soon credit card companies required not only a signature, 203 00:15:01,040 --> 00:15:04,320 Speaker 2: but a thumb print to prove identity as well. And 204 00:15:04,360 --> 00:15:07,680 Speaker 2: this was on those old school card readers, the non 205 00:15:07,720 --> 00:15:10,360 Speaker 2: electric kind, where you'd have to make an imprint with 206 00:15:10,440 --> 00:15:13,920 Speaker 2: that slide over imprinter thing to supply the carbon copy. 207 00:15:15,120 --> 00:15:19,200 Speaker 2: In the documentary, one waitress admitted to the fraud outright. 208 00:15:20,400 --> 00:15:23,800 Speaker 2: She said, basically, it was a way for the entertainers 209 00:15:23,840 --> 00:15:26,920 Speaker 2: to get paid via credit card. So you come in, 210 00:15:27,560 --> 00:15:30,520 Speaker 2: you buy ten thousand dollars in gold bugs. You have 211 00:15:30,560 --> 00:15:32,960 Speaker 2: a surcharge for the gold bugs, and then you have 212 00:15:33,040 --> 00:15:35,840 Speaker 2: your beautiful gold bugs ladies who want at least twenty 213 00:15:35,880 --> 00:15:39,400 Speaker 2: percent as well, So everybody was making money. It was 214 00:15:39,520 --> 00:15:42,760 Speaker 2: just crazy. And then you'd take back the card, scan 215 00:15:42,880 --> 00:15:45,160 Speaker 2: the credit card, and then there was a camera you 216 00:15:45,200 --> 00:15:47,280 Speaker 2: had to sign in front of and you had to 217 00:15:47,320 --> 00:15:48,200 Speaker 2: do a thumb print. 218 00:15:48,720 --> 00:15:49,320 Speaker 3: She laughs. 219 00:15:50,160 --> 00:15:52,840 Speaker 2: I remember I had one friend and she would actually 220 00:15:52,880 --> 00:15:54,640 Speaker 2: on some of them. If the guys were too drunk 221 00:15:54,640 --> 00:15:57,160 Speaker 2: to sign their credit card, she would actually sign their 222 00:15:57,200 --> 00:16:00,640 Speaker 2: credit card and put her toe print on the She 223 00:16:00,680 --> 00:16:04,200 Speaker 2: can't finish her sentence for laughing. And this is what 224 00:16:04,280 --> 00:16:08,560 Speaker 2: the club owner, Steve, instructed them to do. He didn't 225 00:16:08,600 --> 00:16:12,880 Speaker 2: instruct every employee to do that though. These directives were 226 00:16:12,920 --> 00:16:17,080 Speaker 2: reserved for a select few and if he found out 227 00:16:17,200 --> 00:16:21,000 Speaker 2: what you did, you'd go into the coded book of violations. 228 00:16:22,240 --> 00:16:25,480 Speaker 2: The violations were always listed under the employee's stage name, 229 00:16:26,040 --> 00:16:29,680 Speaker 2: and next the book listed the offense that was committed, 230 00:16:30,360 --> 00:16:34,120 Speaker 2: but they never used incriminating words. They used code names 231 00:16:34,120 --> 00:16:38,960 Speaker 2: to indicate acts of prostitution. Weirdly, they used the names 232 00:16:39,000 --> 00:16:44,000 Speaker 2: of professional basketball players to distinguish between oral sex, intercourse 233 00:16:44,040 --> 00:16:45,160 Speaker 2: and lesbian sex. 234 00:16:46,120 --> 00:16:47,320 Speaker 3: They also used. 235 00:16:47,080 --> 00:16:51,520 Speaker 2: Code words to describe illegal drug activity, so the violation's 236 00:16:51,560 --> 00:16:56,359 Speaker 2: book entries read like this charity was caught by Dakota 237 00:16:56,840 --> 00:17:01,080 Speaker 2: committing a Scottie Pippen in gold Room too. The book 238 00:17:01,160 --> 00:17:04,760 Speaker 2: also typically listed how the club punished the dancer's offense 239 00:17:04,920 --> 00:17:09,560 Speaker 2: if they did. Steve often find his employees for these offenses. 240 00:17:09,840 --> 00:17:13,560 Speaker 2: Sometimes he fired them outright. He would rehire them, but 241 00:17:13,600 --> 00:17:16,520 Speaker 2: then the employee would be subjected to a fine maybe again. 242 00:17:17,680 --> 00:17:21,160 Speaker 2: The last thing the book listed was what management did 243 00:17:21,160 --> 00:17:26,919 Speaker 2: with the drugs and whether their police officers were on duty. 244 00:17:26,960 --> 00:17:30,240 Speaker 2: It also listed which gold room the officers were camped, 245 00:17:30,480 --> 00:17:39,640 Speaker 2: and if the policemen were given free services. That's when 246 00:17:39,680 --> 00:17:43,359 Speaker 2: the business became not so fun, both for the customers 247 00:17:43,440 --> 00:17:46,760 Speaker 2: and the staff. Sure, you could get paid a lot 248 00:17:46,840 --> 00:17:49,280 Speaker 2: if you were at the top, but if you weren't, 249 00:17:49,880 --> 00:17:52,840 Speaker 2: you could actually come out at a deficit. If you 250 00:17:52,880 --> 00:17:56,480 Speaker 2: failed to earn two hundred dollars dancing for tips, then 251 00:17:56,600 --> 00:17:59,160 Speaker 2: you actually owed Steve at the end of the night. 252 00:18:00,240 --> 00:18:03,240 Speaker 2: And if you didn't sling enough bottles of champagne, any 253 00:18:03,320 --> 00:18:07,640 Speaker 2: bottles below your quota came out of your paycheck. Naturally, 254 00:18:07,680 --> 00:18:10,359 Speaker 2: the rules were not the same for everyone in the 255 00:18:10,400 --> 00:18:15,960 Speaker 2: strip club hierarchy. Steve's Girls operated on a completely different 256 00:18:16,000 --> 00:18:20,560 Speaker 2: set of rules. The term Steve's Girls wasn't necessarily a 257 00:18:20,640 --> 00:18:24,359 Speaker 2: term of endearment. Some employees used the term in a 258 00:18:24,400 --> 00:18:28,000 Speaker 2: derogatory way and some were just matter of fact about it, 259 00:18:28,240 --> 00:18:32,240 Speaker 2: but the definition was the same. Steve's Girls were the 260 00:18:32,280 --> 00:18:37,080 Speaker 2: group of employees who were allowed to commit prostitution, used drugs, 261 00:18:37,440 --> 00:18:42,840 Speaker 2: and inflate credit card expenses. Rather than being punished, Steve 262 00:18:43,160 --> 00:18:47,280 Speaker 2: rewarded them. It meant that you were on call. Steve 263 00:18:47,320 --> 00:18:50,760 Speaker 2: would call you into a celebrity's gold room, and you 264 00:18:50,800 --> 00:18:55,520 Speaker 2: would do whatever that celebrity suggested, and then Steve would 265 00:18:55,560 --> 00:18:58,520 Speaker 2: pay you based on what you did and for how long. 266 00:18:59,480 --> 00:19:03,520 Speaker 2: Even the leader of Steve's Girls, Jacqueline Bush, whose stage 267 00:19:03,560 --> 00:19:08,440 Speaker 2: name was Diva admits in that documentary that quote lines 268 00:19:08,680 --> 00:19:13,919 Speaker 2: were crossed. According to Mark Sewell's memoir about investigating the case, 269 00:19:14,600 --> 00:19:21,880 Speaker 2: Jacqueline quote unofficially handled, manipulated, and assigned approximately twelve dancers 270 00:19:21,880 --> 00:19:25,639 Speaker 2: and waitresses during the night shift to the best and 271 00:19:25,720 --> 00:19:30,240 Speaker 2: most lucrative Gold rooms. But from the beginning, the federal 272 00:19:30,280 --> 00:19:34,040 Speaker 2: prosecuting attorney decided he did not want to charge any 273 00:19:34,080 --> 00:19:38,199 Speaker 2: of the dancers with prostitution. He viewed the club employees 274 00:19:38,240 --> 00:19:43,360 Speaker 2: who participated in prostitution as victims, not offenders. They were 275 00:19:43,800 --> 00:19:48,000 Speaker 2: quote victims of a strip club caste system that allowed 276 00:19:48,040 --> 00:19:53,040 Speaker 2: wealthy club owners to become wealthier. The whole organized crime 277 00:19:53,080 --> 00:19:58,040 Speaker 2: squad agreed unanimously with his decision, which I think is 278 00:19:58,080 --> 00:20:03,040 Speaker 2: pretty cool even progress. That solidarity is probably how the 279 00:20:03,160 --> 00:20:09,040 Speaker 2: FBI team converted so many employees into informants. I should 280 00:20:09,040 --> 00:20:12,360 Speaker 2: remind our listeners that sex work is and was very 281 00:20:12,400 --> 00:20:16,760 Speaker 2: much illegal in Georgia, and everyone knew it. Yet prostitution 282 00:20:16,920 --> 00:20:20,880 Speaker 2: at the Gold Club occurred in four different ways. Here's 283 00:20:20,920 --> 00:20:25,200 Speaker 2: what Mark Sewell says in his memoir of the investigation. One, 284 00:20:25,760 --> 00:20:30,360 Speaker 2: the prostitution was arranged, endorsed, and financed by Steve Kaplan, 285 00:20:30,520 --> 00:20:36,080 Speaker 2: or the club management. Two club management allowed big spenders 286 00:20:36,119 --> 00:20:41,919 Speaker 2: to pay for prostitution. Three Steve's girls were allowed to 287 00:20:41,960 --> 00:20:48,960 Speaker 2: commit prostitution without caplain's approval and with impunity. Four employees 288 00:20:49,000 --> 00:20:53,119 Speaker 2: committed prostitution of their own volition, but without the approval 289 00:20:53,200 --> 00:20:57,960 Speaker 2: of the club's management. If caught, the employee would likely 290 00:20:58,040 --> 00:21:03,880 Speaker 2: be fired, re hired, and find in short, every time 291 00:21:03,920 --> 00:21:09,760 Speaker 2: an employee engaged in prostitution, the club profited. Of course, 292 00:21:09,800 --> 00:21:16,199 Speaker 2: the customers equivocated. In the documentary, one employee says the 293 00:21:16,280 --> 00:21:19,040 Speaker 2: game was to convince a high roller or baller to 294 00:21:19,119 --> 00:21:21,520 Speaker 2: go to a gold room with you, buy a bottle 295 00:21:21,560 --> 00:21:24,960 Speaker 2: of champagne, spend hours and hours with you in there, 296 00:21:25,080 --> 00:21:27,760 Speaker 2: without regard for his family or his credit card bill. 297 00:21:28,680 --> 00:21:31,640 Speaker 2: And then they'd go into a private room and they 298 00:21:31,720 --> 00:21:34,440 Speaker 2: just bought a dance. But if sex happens, they thought 299 00:21:34,840 --> 00:21:38,560 Speaker 2: that's because she liked me. Now, listeners, we know that's 300 00:21:38,600 --> 00:21:41,960 Speaker 2: not true. But people tell themselves what they want to hear. 301 00:21:43,160 --> 00:21:46,800 Speaker 2: And you're probably wondering, on top of prostitution and credit 302 00:21:46,840 --> 00:21:51,800 Speaker 2: card fraud, how was the mafia involved. I'll tell you 303 00:21:51,840 --> 00:22:13,239 Speaker 2: all about it right after the break. It was the 304 00:22:13,240 --> 00:22:17,400 Speaker 2: mafia involvement that got the attention of the FBI. Atlanta 305 00:22:17,480 --> 00:22:21,000 Speaker 2: law enforcement knew that Steve Kaplan was suspected of having 306 00:22:21,000 --> 00:22:27,400 Speaker 2: mafia ties. Specifically, Steve bought protection from the Gambino crime family, 307 00:22:27,600 --> 00:22:32,160 Speaker 2: including John Gottie. The FBI couldn't figure out how much 308 00:22:32,240 --> 00:22:35,840 Speaker 2: money Steve was actually making, even though it was recognized 309 00:22:35,880 --> 00:22:39,639 Speaker 2: as the highest grossing strip club in Atlanta. But in 310 00:22:39,720 --> 00:22:43,600 Speaker 2: order to build the case, the FBI needed information, so 311 00:22:43,640 --> 00:22:47,320 Speaker 2: they had to develop some informants. Much of the time, 312 00:22:47,720 --> 00:22:50,520 Speaker 2: the FBI would place an undercover agent in the mix. 313 00:22:51,680 --> 00:22:55,159 Speaker 2: This wasn't really an option for this case though. They 314 00:22:55,160 --> 00:22:58,520 Speaker 2: couldn't have a woman undercover agent employed at a strip club, 315 00:22:59,480 --> 00:23:02,280 Speaker 2: and they couldn't have a man undercover agent posing as 316 00:23:02,280 --> 00:23:06,919 Speaker 2: a goalroom client because of the illegal, unethical activities so 317 00:23:07,119 --> 00:23:10,879 Speaker 2: many big spenders engaged in, and if a man was 318 00:23:10,920 --> 00:23:13,720 Speaker 2: employed at the club, he'd likely be a low level 319 00:23:13,760 --> 00:23:18,000 Speaker 2: higher and he wouldn't get them anything juicy. So they 320 00:23:18,040 --> 00:23:24,800 Speaker 2: targeted the current employees, specifically the dancers. A significant minority 321 00:23:24,880 --> 00:23:28,040 Speaker 2: of the employees had priors, so they looked for the 322 00:23:28,119 --> 00:23:32,280 Speaker 2: dancers with the felonies. They did this because a lack 323 00:23:32,320 --> 00:23:36,040 Speaker 2: of cooperation with law enforcement can be viewed as a 324 00:23:36,119 --> 00:23:41,640 Speaker 2: violation of probation. Of course, the investigators needed help finding 325 00:23:41,680 --> 00:23:47,320 Speaker 2: those employees. One employee, whose pseudonym was Heidi, worked at 326 00:23:47,359 --> 00:23:51,560 Speaker 2: the club's front desk doing administrative work. She called the 327 00:23:51,600 --> 00:23:55,640 Speaker 2: Atlanta FBI switchboard on her own just after she quit 328 00:23:55,680 --> 00:24:01,040 Speaker 2: her job to report numerous crimes. Listed crimes she had 329 00:24:01,080 --> 00:24:07,199 Speaker 2: witnessed as tax fraud, credit card fraud, public corruption, and prostitution. 330 00:24:08,760 --> 00:24:12,239 Speaker 2: She'd be a great informant, but the FBI had to 331 00:24:12,280 --> 00:24:15,600 Speaker 2: convince her to return to her job. It took some 332 00:24:15,720 --> 00:24:19,280 Speaker 2: doing to convince her, but she was hired back almost immediately. 333 00:24:20,600 --> 00:24:25,000 Speaker 2: So now Heidi was drawing two paychecks, one from the 334 00:24:25,000 --> 00:24:28,560 Speaker 2: Gold Club itself and one from the FBI as an informant. 335 00:24:28,600 --> 00:24:31,359 Speaker 2: I just thought you might want to recognize the hustle 336 00:24:31,400 --> 00:24:35,840 Speaker 2: here too. Heidi smuggled out a list of current employees, 337 00:24:36,480 --> 00:24:39,040 Speaker 2: and the agents listed the new names, as well as 338 00:24:39,119 --> 00:24:43,760 Speaker 2: other identifying data about the employees. What they really needed, though, 339 00:24:44,520 --> 00:24:47,720 Speaker 2: one of their informants said, was the house mom's binder. 340 00:24:48,840 --> 00:24:52,520 Speaker 2: Pretty Much everyone knows that strippers use stripper names. They 341 00:24:52,600 --> 00:24:55,920 Speaker 2: do this both to increase their sex appeal, because apparently, 342 00:24:56,119 --> 00:25:00,160 Speaker 2: Dakota is a sexier name than Beth and to protect 343 00:25:00,160 --> 00:25:05,399 Speaker 2: their identities against talkers. Not to mention, the Gold Club 344 00:25:05,560 --> 00:25:08,840 Speaker 2: was becoming known in Atlanta as a mob owned brothel, 345 00:25:09,960 --> 00:25:12,760 Speaker 2: so even though a dancer might be proud of her profession, 346 00:25:13,920 --> 00:25:17,440 Speaker 2: some were growing embarrassed to say that they worked there. 347 00:25:27,080 --> 00:25:31,040 Speaker 2: What the FBI needed to develop their informants were their 348 00:25:31,080 --> 00:25:34,520 Speaker 2: real names, and what they needed for that was the 349 00:25:34,560 --> 00:25:39,480 Speaker 2: house mom's binder. Typically, a house mother is a former 350 00:25:39,600 --> 00:25:43,040 Speaker 2: dancer who is past her dancing prime, and she's usually 351 00:25:43,400 --> 00:25:47,720 Speaker 2: between forty and sixty years old. She knows the game, though, 352 00:25:48,240 --> 00:25:52,160 Speaker 2: and her expertise is put to work hiring new dancers 353 00:25:52,240 --> 00:25:55,879 Speaker 2: and making sure they have the right permits. She also 354 00:25:55,960 --> 00:26:00,679 Speaker 2: makes the schedule for dancers, shooter girls, and waitresses, and 355 00:26:00,760 --> 00:26:04,600 Speaker 2: in her binder, the house mom writes the employee's stage 356 00:26:04,680 --> 00:26:08,880 Speaker 2: name on the front of their work permit. On March eighteenth, 357 00:26:09,119 --> 00:26:14,119 Speaker 2: nineteen ninety nine, the FBI rated the club. At four am, 358 00:26:14,600 --> 00:26:19,000 Speaker 2: it was closing time, but that didn't mean anything. The 359 00:26:19,000 --> 00:26:22,920 Speaker 2: club never booted higher rollers just because their shift was ending, 360 00:26:24,040 --> 00:26:28,919 Speaker 2: which meant customers, dancers, and managers were all still present. 361 00:26:30,200 --> 00:26:33,480 Speaker 2: Some of the waitresses and shooter girls were still cashing out, 362 00:26:33,680 --> 00:26:37,040 Speaker 2: and much of the time, the Gold Club didn't actually 363 00:26:37,080 --> 00:26:41,320 Speaker 2: close their doors till six am. That raid is when 364 00:26:41,359 --> 00:26:44,560 Speaker 2: the FBI confirmed that the Gold Club was probably the 365 00:26:44,640 --> 00:26:48,480 Speaker 2: highest earner for the Gambino family. I always thought the 366 00:26:48,560 --> 00:26:51,920 Speaker 2: raid happened at the end of an investigation to cinch 367 00:26:52,000 --> 00:26:55,200 Speaker 2: the case, but it seems like this one happened right 368 00:26:55,200 --> 00:26:59,320 Speaker 2: in the middle. The raid allowed the FBI to confiscate 369 00:26:59,320 --> 00:27:02,720 Speaker 2: the house mom's binder as well as boxes of waitress tickets. 370 00:27:04,040 --> 00:27:07,919 Speaker 2: They were the receipts of every credit card transaction that 371 00:27:08,040 --> 00:27:11,639 Speaker 2: happened at the Gold Club for the past three years. 372 00:27:12,920 --> 00:27:15,919 Speaker 2: This hard evidence would later be used to prove that 373 00:27:16,080 --> 00:27:19,920 Speaker 2: quote the credit card fraud was not simply the work 374 00:27:19,960 --> 00:27:24,879 Speaker 2: of renegade employees, but a team effort between select dancers, 375 00:27:25,200 --> 00:27:30,439 Speaker 2: select waitresses, and most of the club management. The handwritten 376 00:27:30,480 --> 00:27:34,399 Speaker 2: notes on the waitresses tickets also included the names of 377 00:27:34,480 --> 00:27:40,440 Speaker 2: celebrities and frequent customers along with their Gold Room locations. 378 00:27:40,560 --> 00:27:44,080 Speaker 2: Other tickets included the word compt and the names of 379 00:27:44,160 --> 00:27:48,760 Speaker 2: police officers. And while the raid proved a success as 380 00:27:48,800 --> 00:27:54,040 Speaker 2: far as document reconnaissance, what proved even more important was 381 00:27:54,080 --> 00:27:59,640 Speaker 2: the search of Steve Kaplan's corporate warehouse. Seventy five banker's 382 00:27:59,640 --> 00:28:03,199 Speaker 2: box is full of financial records were seized in New 383 00:28:03,280 --> 00:28:06,280 Speaker 2: York and driven back to Georgia to be used as 384 00:28:06,359 --> 00:28:22,679 Speaker 2: court evidence. They set about combing through evidence, both on 385 00:28:22,800 --> 00:28:27,120 Speaker 2: paper and trying to develop informants. While the agents were 386 00:28:27,160 --> 00:28:30,920 Speaker 2: tracking down the girls on felony probation, they came across 387 00:28:30,960 --> 00:28:36,520 Speaker 2: women all across the lifestyle spectrum. They ranged from women 388 00:28:36,560 --> 00:28:40,520 Speaker 2: who lived in trailer parks with bruised faces to residents 389 00:28:40,560 --> 00:28:44,760 Speaker 2: of four hundred thousand dollars upper middle class homes. As 390 00:28:44,800 --> 00:28:48,560 Speaker 2: I mentioned earlier, people on probation have to comply with 391 00:28:48,640 --> 00:28:53,440 Speaker 2: law enforcement. When asked, one woman who was in between 392 00:28:53,480 --> 00:28:57,920 Speaker 2: those two socioeconomic statuses, said that she saw her friend 393 00:28:57,960 --> 00:29:01,320 Speaker 2: giving an athlete oral sex and one the Gold Rooms. 394 00:29:02,000 --> 00:29:05,160 Speaker 2: The agent asked her how she could be sure that's 395 00:29:05,200 --> 00:29:09,160 Speaker 2: what she saw. She looked at him incredulously and said, 396 00:29:09,920 --> 00:29:12,600 Speaker 2: I have given enough blowjobs in the Gold Club to 397 00:29:12,720 --> 00:29:17,320 Speaker 2: know what one looks like. The FBI doesn't prosecute prostitution. 398 00:29:18,280 --> 00:29:22,320 Speaker 2: It's a state crime unless it's an interstate trafficking situation, 399 00:29:23,080 --> 00:29:27,320 Speaker 2: which would qualify it as FBI jurisdiction. But that's not 400 00:29:27,360 --> 00:29:31,160 Speaker 2: what happened here. As Mark Sewell states in his memoir, 401 00:29:31,720 --> 00:29:37,840 Speaker 2: as expected, most athletes do not willingly cooperate with investigations 402 00:29:37,840 --> 00:29:43,160 Speaker 2: that may criminally implicate or publicly embarrass them. With large 403 00:29:43,160 --> 00:29:47,320 Speaker 2: sums of money come the ability and proclivity to hire 404 00:29:47,360 --> 00:29:51,840 Speaker 2: the best attorneys to help mitigate in athlete's criminal exposure 405 00:29:52,360 --> 00:29:58,320 Speaker 2: and embarrassment. They offered immunity from prosecution in exchange for 406 00:29:58,440 --> 00:30:07,280 Speaker 2: truthful testimony, and they interviewed many athletes Jalen Rose, Larry Johnson, 407 00:30:07,960 --> 00:30:14,680 Speaker 2: Charles Oakley, Terrell Davis, Antonio Davis to Kim Bab Mutombo. 408 00:30:15,000 --> 00:30:19,040 Speaker 2: There were many more. The one that I was personally 409 00:30:19,120 --> 00:30:21,840 Speaker 2: surprised and the most disappointed to see on the list 410 00:30:22,000 --> 00:30:26,480 Speaker 2: was my beloved five time All Star center fielder Andrew Jones. 411 00:30:27,680 --> 00:30:30,920 Speaker 2: I mean that sweetie Pie signed my Atlanta Braves hat 412 00:30:30,960 --> 00:30:34,440 Speaker 2: outside my doctor's office when I was a kid. This 413 00:30:34,600 --> 00:30:37,040 Speaker 2: is completely irrelevant, but Andrew Jones was one of my 414 00:30:37,160 --> 00:30:40,200 Speaker 2: very first crushes who was not a fictional character. I mean, 415 00:30:40,760 --> 00:30:43,440 Speaker 2: how could you not love a baseball player who played 416 00:30:43,520 --> 00:30:46,440 Speaker 2: dance hall music as his walk up and grinned that 417 00:30:46,480 --> 00:30:49,680 Speaker 2: boyish smile every time he hit a home run. This 418 00:30:49,760 --> 00:30:52,160 Speaker 2: is when chipper Jones had been playing Crazy Train for 419 00:30:52,200 --> 00:30:54,440 Speaker 2: fourteen years or some shit, and it wasn't even a 420 00:30:54,440 --> 00:30:57,920 Speaker 2: clip of the guitar riff. Okay, after a quick google, 421 00:30:58,320 --> 00:31:01,160 Speaker 2: Andrew Jones is only eleven years older than me, so 422 00:31:01,760 --> 00:31:04,400 Speaker 2: it wasn't even that outrageous of a crush. I mean, 423 00:31:05,160 --> 00:31:08,280 Speaker 2: that was within my range of datability when I was dating. 424 00:31:08,400 --> 00:31:10,400 Speaker 2: I'm not saying we could have had a life together 425 00:31:10,440 --> 00:31:13,760 Speaker 2: in the year two thousand, but I mean logistically we 426 00:31:13,920 --> 00:31:16,840 Speaker 2: could have had a life together later. To be fair, 427 00:31:16,920 --> 00:31:20,400 Speaker 2: I'm very happy with my choices. No sliding doors, mischances, 428 00:31:20,480 --> 00:31:25,440 Speaker 2: nagging up my mind, etc. Unfortunately, for Patrick Ewing, he 429 00:31:25,520 --> 00:31:28,840 Speaker 2: became the face of the Gold Club athletes, and it 430 00:31:28,960 --> 00:31:32,040 Speaker 2: seems like that was the case, mostly because he was 431 00:31:32,080 --> 00:31:36,480 Speaker 2: seven feet tall and that made him quite memorable. The 432 00:31:36,560 --> 00:31:41,280 Speaker 2: FBI agent also said that every professional athlete he interviewed 433 00:31:41,360 --> 00:31:46,000 Speaker 2: during the investigation was quote humble and honest to a fault, 434 00:31:46,720 --> 00:31:53,840 Speaker 2: probably even embarrassed, every athlete except Dennis Rodman, surprising no 435 00:31:53,920 --> 00:31:58,800 Speaker 2: one anyway, I'm not sure why they thought it necessary 436 00:31:58,840 --> 00:32:01,800 Speaker 2: to pursue these testsmonies, unless it was just to get 437 00:32:01,840 --> 00:32:04,880 Speaker 2: more attention on the case from the press. Considering that 438 00:32:04,920 --> 00:32:08,280 Speaker 2: they couldn't or at least wouldn't prosecute on any of 439 00:32:08,280 --> 00:32:12,720 Speaker 2: these charges. At least the FBI wouldn't. The State of 440 00:32:12,760 --> 00:32:17,120 Speaker 2: Georgia could, but to my knowledge they did not. Professional 441 00:32:17,160 --> 00:32:20,920 Speaker 2: athletes also had everything comped as a rule, so that 442 00:32:21,040 --> 00:32:25,240 Speaker 2: seemed like a dead end too. The FBI also does 443 00:32:25,280 --> 00:32:29,560 Speaker 2: not investigate rape cases, and I'll tell you more about 444 00:32:29,560 --> 00:32:51,880 Speaker 2: that after this break. One important part of this trial 445 00:32:52,080 --> 00:32:55,800 Speaker 2: that didn't get much press then was the alleged rape 446 00:32:55,800 --> 00:32:59,960 Speaker 2: that occurred inside the Gold Club's limousine in nineteen ninety seven. 447 00:33:01,400 --> 00:33:05,680 Speaker 2: Tony Boutina was the limousine driver from nineteen ninety four 448 00:33:05,760 --> 00:33:11,280 Speaker 2: to ninety seven. He picked up VIP celebrities. They were 449 00:33:11,640 --> 00:33:19,200 Speaker 2: usually professional athletes, but sometimes they were Gambino family captains. 450 00:33:19,560 --> 00:33:21,960 Speaker 2: Two years later, Tony had left the Gold Club on 451 00:33:22,040 --> 00:33:25,320 Speaker 2: bad terms, which likely helped him decide that he'd work 452 00:33:25,360 --> 00:33:29,240 Speaker 2: with the FBI. On a night in September of nineteen 453 00:33:29,320 --> 00:33:34,280 Speaker 2: ninety seven, Tony picked up a dancer under the pseudonym Amy. 454 00:33:34,880 --> 00:33:37,920 Speaker 2: She was in good spirits when she arrived, but she 455 00:33:38,040 --> 00:33:40,560 Speaker 2: was reluctant to take the ride when she thought it 456 00:33:40,560 --> 00:33:44,920 Speaker 2: would be just The manager Russell Basil and her behind 457 00:33:44,920 --> 00:33:48,880 Speaker 2: the partition, and she didn't know that Russell had already 458 00:33:48,920 --> 00:33:52,400 Speaker 2: gotten a box of condoms from Tony, which Tony kept 459 00:33:52,440 --> 00:33:55,920 Speaker 2: on hand as part of the job. Russell told Amy 460 00:33:56,080 --> 00:34:00,240 Speaker 2: other people would be joining them, but they didn't. The 461 00:34:00,280 --> 00:34:04,600 Speaker 2: limousine rocked during the whole ride. When they returned to 462 00:34:04,640 --> 00:34:07,680 Speaker 2: the club, Amy was very upset. As she got out 463 00:34:07,720 --> 00:34:11,320 Speaker 2: of the limousine, she told her house mom that Russell 464 00:34:11,360 --> 00:34:14,359 Speaker 2: had raped her. Then she got her boyfriend to pick 465 00:34:14,400 --> 00:34:17,719 Speaker 2: her up from the club. Russell had the gall to 466 00:34:17,840 --> 00:34:21,880 Speaker 2: talk to the boyfriend as he was leaving the parking lot, saying, 467 00:34:22,239 --> 00:34:26,239 Speaker 2: we like to see our girls taken care of. Meanwhile, 468 00:34:26,360 --> 00:34:31,000 Speaker 2: Tony cleaned up the limo. It was a mess. The 469 00:34:31,080 --> 00:34:35,520 Speaker 2: carpet was soaked through with spilled champagne, the ice bucket 470 00:34:35,560 --> 00:34:39,400 Speaker 2: was overturned, and there was a used condom just outside 471 00:34:39,400 --> 00:34:43,520 Speaker 2: the limo's window. Amy told her boyfriend what happened, and 472 00:34:43,600 --> 00:34:47,760 Speaker 2: he immediately called nine to one one. The responding officer 473 00:34:47,840 --> 00:34:51,680 Speaker 2: asked them to return to the club, where they interviewed 474 00:34:51,680 --> 00:34:55,680 Speaker 2: her in the parking lot. The police could not find 475 00:34:55,760 --> 00:34:59,719 Speaker 2: Russell Baseil. He had taken an immediate flight to New 476 00:34:59,800 --> 00:35:05,200 Speaker 2: York on Delta Airlines. Amy completed a rape exam, and 477 00:35:05,239 --> 00:35:09,560 Speaker 2: the officer issued an arrest warrant for Basil. It was 478 00:35:09,600 --> 00:35:16,840 Speaker 2: never executed. The FBI does not investigate rape allegations because 479 00:35:17,120 --> 00:35:22,520 Speaker 2: that's a state violation. The one exception is if the 480 00:35:22,600 --> 00:35:26,960 Speaker 2: rape occurs on federal land, like a Native American reservation 481 00:35:27,520 --> 00:35:33,360 Speaker 2: or a National park. I understand fundamentally the difference between 482 00:35:33,480 --> 00:35:38,600 Speaker 2: state law enforcement and the FBI. A key distinction is 483 00:35:38,640 --> 00:35:42,799 Speaker 2: that FBI cases have to cross state lines. By the 484 00:35:42,840 --> 00:35:46,280 Speaker 2: time of the actual hearing. In two thousand and one, 485 00:35:46,640 --> 00:35:51,400 Speaker 2: the judge had ruled the prostitution charges admissible because Steve 486 00:35:51,520 --> 00:35:55,040 Speaker 2: Kaplan sent a crew of girls to Charleston, South Carolina 487 00:35:55,760 --> 00:35:59,279 Speaker 2: when the Knicks were visiting for an exhibition game as 488 00:35:59,280 --> 00:36:04,040 Speaker 2: a sex Apart to my knowledge, they did not pursue 489 00:36:04,080 --> 00:36:09,720 Speaker 2: the rape charge. Again, I understand that distinction between state 490 00:36:09,800 --> 00:36:13,959 Speaker 2: law enforcement and FBI, and I assume the FBI kind 491 00:36:13,960 --> 00:36:17,160 Speaker 2: of struck that offense from their official case because it 492 00:36:17,160 --> 00:36:20,440 Speaker 2: would be thrown out on those grounds. I get that, 493 00:36:21,560 --> 00:36:24,760 Speaker 2: and yet it does not sit well with me because 494 00:36:24,760 --> 00:36:29,040 Speaker 2: it seems like the crimes against women were just not 495 00:36:29,239 --> 00:36:33,719 Speaker 2: important enough to try, no matter how much I look 496 00:36:33,760 --> 00:36:38,760 Speaker 2: at the reasoning why that wasn't included. I'm still left 497 00:36:38,800 --> 00:36:42,560 Speaker 2: with the facts that credit card fraud and money laundering 498 00:36:43,000 --> 00:36:48,280 Speaker 2: were legally more important than the exploitation of hundreds of women. 499 00:36:49,920 --> 00:36:52,600 Speaker 2: The thing that made the rape allegation eligible in this 500 00:36:52,800 --> 00:36:57,400 Speaker 2: case is that Steve Kaplan and Officer Jack Redlinger of 501 00:36:57,440 --> 00:37:00,880 Speaker 2: the Atlanta Police could be charged on obstruction of justice 502 00:37:01,360 --> 00:37:05,359 Speaker 2: by thwarting complaints of rape and not conducting basic due 503 00:37:05,400 --> 00:37:10,160 Speaker 2: diligence on the report. Steve Caplan met with Tony Bottino 504 00:37:10,640 --> 00:37:13,560 Speaker 2: and told him to concoct a story to state that 505 00:37:13,680 --> 00:37:18,160 Speaker 2: Russell was never in the limo that night. That obstruction 506 00:37:18,280 --> 00:37:23,120 Speaker 2: of justice by Steve Caplan and Officer Jack Redlinger was 507 00:37:23,480 --> 00:37:28,160 Speaker 2: a chief point in the prosecution's case. That and the 508 00:37:28,200 --> 00:37:33,880 Speaker 2: Delta Airlines issue. Steve Caplan had converted two Delta employees, 509 00:37:34,200 --> 00:37:39,719 Speaker 2: Red Coats, into essentially being his lackeys. They could get 510 00:37:39,880 --> 00:37:44,239 Speaker 2: anyone he wanted on any flight he asked for, and 511 00:37:44,280 --> 00:37:48,120 Speaker 2: while Steve Caplan did pay for that privilege, he essentially 512 00:37:48,440 --> 00:37:51,359 Speaker 2: bribed the red Coats, so I don't think Delta saw 513 00:37:51,440 --> 00:37:54,480 Speaker 2: any of that money, and in getting them on the flights, 514 00:37:54,640 --> 00:37:58,279 Speaker 2: the red Coats certainly didn't go through the standard operating procedures. 515 00:37:59,600 --> 00:38:04,640 Speaker 2: They just marched Steve's people onto the plane, sometimes getting 516 00:38:04,640 --> 00:38:09,000 Speaker 2: other passengers to move from their assigned seats. This whole 517 00:38:09,040 --> 00:38:13,399 Speaker 2: delta racket resulted in another charge of fraud. The route 518 00:38:13,440 --> 00:38:17,200 Speaker 2: that prosecutors ultimately chose to pursue was the RICO Act 519 00:38:17,880 --> 00:38:21,279 Speaker 2: because it would lend itself to further investigation in one 520 00:38:21,320 --> 00:38:32,480 Speaker 2: of the biggest crime families in New York, the Gambinos. 521 00:38:34,600 --> 00:38:37,440 Speaker 2: If you need a refresher on how the RICO Act works, 522 00:38:38,000 --> 00:38:42,919 Speaker 2: let me give you a quick summation. The Racketeer Influenced 523 00:38:43,040 --> 00:38:49,120 Speaker 2: and Corrupt Organizations Act was enacted on October fifteenth, nineteen seventy. 524 00:38:49,480 --> 00:38:53,719 Speaker 2: It's a federal law that provides for extended criminal penalties 525 00:38:54,160 --> 00:38:59,000 Speaker 2: performed as a part of an ongoing criminal organization. Without 526 00:38:59,040 --> 00:39:02,120 Speaker 2: going into too much detail, it's a way to snowball 527 00:39:02,200 --> 00:39:05,480 Speaker 2: a bunch of individual charges into a bigger, more serious 528 00:39:05,560 --> 00:39:10,480 Speaker 2: charge of racketeering. One important detail for this case, though, 529 00:39:11,320 --> 00:39:15,800 Speaker 2: is that those found guilty of racketeering must forfeit all 530 00:39:15,960 --> 00:39:21,719 Speaker 2: ill gotten gains and interest from the racketeering activity. To 531 00:39:21,880 --> 00:39:25,800 Speaker 2: be sure, some interesting mafia testimonies came out in court 532 00:39:26,680 --> 00:39:30,880 Speaker 2: For example, one of the defendants was Michael de Leonardo 533 00:39:31,280 --> 00:39:36,120 Speaker 2: or Mikey Scars. Mikey was a longtime mobster and racketeer, 534 00:39:36,840 --> 00:39:40,680 Speaker 2: and John Gibbons, one of the prosecution's witnesses, was a 535 00:39:40,760 --> 00:39:46,000 Speaker 2: confessed torturer and involved in numerous hit missions. But that 536 00:39:46,200 --> 00:39:50,560 Speaker 2: forfeiture of profits is the most relevant aspect of the 537 00:39:50,600 --> 00:39:56,080 Speaker 2: Gold Club trial. Steve Kaplan was a high earning mafia associate. 538 00:39:57,120 --> 00:40:00,759 Speaker 2: He was looking at fifty million dollars in orfeiture if 539 00:40:00,800 --> 00:40:04,040 Speaker 2: they convicted him on a rico charge. And you're not 540 00:40:04,080 --> 00:40:07,960 Speaker 2: going to believe what actually scared the mafia associates into 541 00:40:07,960 --> 00:40:18,000 Speaker 2: copying a plea. It was a statement from a rube, 542 00:40:18,239 --> 00:40:22,720 Speaker 2: as they called him. In the man's testimony, he told 543 00:40:22,719 --> 00:40:26,000 Speaker 2: a story of blatant credit card fraud in which the 544 00:40:26,040 --> 00:40:29,760 Speaker 2: waitress or dancer continually told him something had gone wrong 545 00:40:30,160 --> 00:40:34,280 Speaker 2: with his credit card transaction, but every charge had gone through. 546 00:40:35,400 --> 00:40:37,400 Speaker 2: He got charged for a tray of shots that the 547 00:40:37,400 --> 00:40:41,040 Speaker 2: waitress spilled, and then they charged him for an upgrade 548 00:40:41,520 --> 00:40:44,520 Speaker 2: when they moved his room because she'd soaked the sofa. 549 00:40:45,760 --> 00:40:49,520 Speaker 2: And this guy was a big spender too. He had 550 00:40:49,560 --> 00:40:52,359 Speaker 2: expected a bill of about ten thousand dollars that night. 551 00:40:53,480 --> 00:40:59,640 Speaker 2: Instead it was twenty eight thousand. He placed numerous disputes 552 00:40:59,640 --> 00:41:04,239 Speaker 2: with the club and American Express. The card company eventually 553 00:41:04,239 --> 00:41:07,680 Speaker 2: paid the bill but closed his account, which I'm imagining 554 00:41:07,719 --> 00:41:10,160 Speaker 2: wrecked his credit since it took him two years to 555 00:41:10,160 --> 00:41:27,839 Speaker 2: get approved for another card. With them, fifteen defendants negotiated 556 00:41:27,840 --> 00:41:31,480 Speaker 2: a plea agreement. Most of them pled guilty to a 557 00:41:31,520 --> 00:41:37,800 Speaker 2: single felony misprision of a felony. Steve Kaplan himself, the owner, 558 00:41:38,239 --> 00:41:43,000 Speaker 2: pleaded guilty to one count of racketeering conspiracy, which quote 559 00:41:43,120 --> 00:41:48,719 Speaker 2: included admission to credit card fraud, tax evasion, and prostitution. 560 00:41:50,160 --> 00:41:53,600 Speaker 2: Steve agreed to pay or forfeit all of the following 561 00:41:54,840 --> 00:41:58,919 Speaker 2: a five million dollar fine to the US government, two 562 00:41:59,080 --> 00:42:03,400 Speaker 2: hundred and fifty thousand dollars in restitution for credit card victims, 563 00:42:04,640 --> 00:42:09,840 Speaker 2: fifty thousand in reimbursement to Delta Airlines, thirty four thousand, 564 00:42:09,960 --> 00:42:14,040 Speaker 2: eight hundred dollars in moldy cash seized during the search. 565 00:42:15,280 --> 00:42:19,560 Speaker 2: But when he closed the Gold Club, Steve also lost 566 00:42:19,600 --> 00:42:24,040 Speaker 2: a guaranteed income of about nine million dollars over the 567 00:42:24,080 --> 00:42:28,160 Speaker 2: course of a year. He would also serve sixteen months 568 00:42:28,160 --> 00:42:32,200 Speaker 2: in prison. He did get to keep fifty million dollars, 569 00:42:32,719 --> 00:42:35,879 Speaker 2: which would be a nice jump start when he got discharged. 570 00:42:37,280 --> 00:42:41,520 Speaker 2: The policeman charged with obstruction of justice had the charges dropped, 571 00:42:42,680 --> 00:42:46,359 Speaker 2: they were only suspended from police duty for a few years. 572 00:42:47,320 --> 00:42:51,279 Speaker 2: Michael de Leonardo, one of the Gambino family's made men, 573 00:42:52,120 --> 00:42:57,160 Speaker 2: later became one of the most famous turncoats in mafia history. 574 00:42:57,480 --> 00:43:01,520 Speaker 2: He sang on the whole Gambino family, including all of 575 00:43:01,560 --> 00:43:05,279 Speaker 2: the newest Gody generation, after they refuse to help him 576 00:43:05,320 --> 00:43:07,359 Speaker 2: out of the charges he was facing in New York 577 00:43:07,600 --> 00:43:11,560 Speaker 2: in two thousand and one. He actually helped to convict 578 00:43:11,680 --> 00:43:15,439 Speaker 2: eighty mafia members during the course of his testimony, and 579 00:43:15,800 --> 00:43:19,840 Speaker 2: one of them was the infamous John Gotti. In his memoir, 580 00:43:20,920 --> 00:43:26,360 Speaker 2: FBI agent Mark Sewell says that quote, many mafia aficionados 581 00:43:26,880 --> 00:43:32,560 Speaker 2: consider Michael de Leonardo the last real mafia cappo. I 582 00:43:32,600 --> 00:43:36,279 Speaker 2: will leave that argument for others to debate, but what 583 00:43:36,360 --> 00:43:39,560 Speaker 2: I do know is that the FBI had the right 584 00:43:39,600 --> 00:43:42,720 Speaker 2: guy in the two thousand and one Gold Club trial. 585 00:43:44,040 --> 00:43:47,920 Speaker 2: This story about Atlanta's Gold Club is action packed with issues, 586 00:43:48,440 --> 00:43:51,320 Speaker 2: and there are a thousand ways of looking at the narrative, 587 00:43:52,120 --> 00:43:54,920 Speaker 2: But the one I choose to highlight. The one that 588 00:43:55,040 --> 00:43:59,320 Speaker 2: fits with the theme of our show is this beautiful 589 00:43:59,320 --> 00:44:04,680 Speaker 2: women hustling and Rubes were pushed to illegitimately overcharge their customers, 590 00:44:05,760 --> 00:44:09,000 Speaker 2: which led to the eventual exposure of credit card fraud, 591 00:44:10,080 --> 00:44:13,840 Speaker 2: and then that led into racketeering charges that, through the 592 00:44:13,960 --> 00:44:17,799 Speaker 2: Rico Act, eventually led to the downfall of the whole 593 00:44:17,840 --> 00:44:23,400 Speaker 2: Gambino crime family. So by the transitive property, one could 594 00:44:23,520 --> 00:44:29,280 Speaker 2: argue that women hustled better than the mafia, and underestimating 595 00:44:29,280 --> 00:44:32,400 Speaker 2: their wiles and taking their loyalty for granted led to 596 00:44:32,440 --> 00:44:36,880 Speaker 2: its demise. At least, the thesis that women run the 597 00:44:36,920 --> 00:44:39,160 Speaker 2: game better is the one I. 598 00:44:39,280 --> 00:45:09,920 Speaker 3: Like to argue. 599 00:45:10,239 --> 00:45:12,960 Speaker 2: Join me next week on the greatest true crime stories 600 00:45:13,000 --> 00:45:17,240 Speaker 2: ever told for our episode, The Real Witches of Macbeth. 601 00:45:18,320 --> 00:45:22,000 Speaker 2: It's a thousand year old story. The trope of three 602 00:45:22,000 --> 00:45:27,160 Speaker 2: witches is ubiquitous throughout history and popular culture, from the 603 00:45:27,239 --> 00:45:29,920 Speaker 2: Three Muses and the Three Fates to the. 604 00:45:29,880 --> 00:45:35,440 Speaker 1: Three Sanderson Sisters. Shakespeare's Weird Sisters just happened to be 605 00:45:35,520 --> 00:45:39,480 Speaker 1: the most iconic, or at least my personal favorite trio 606 00:45:39,640 --> 00:45:40,560 Speaker 1: of magical women. 607 00:45:41,520 --> 00:45:43,520 Speaker 2: I'd like to shout out a few key sources that 608 00:45:43,600 --> 00:45:45,880 Speaker 2: made it possible for me to tell this week's story, 609 00:45:46,560 --> 00:45:51,960 Speaker 2: especially Mark Sewell's memoir investigating America's most notorious strip club 610 00:45:52,520 --> 00:45:57,520 Speaker 2: and the Vice documentary Sex in the Champagne Room. Many 611 00:45:57,600 --> 00:46:00,680 Speaker 2: other sources helped me tell this story, though, so make 612 00:46:00,719 --> 00:46:05,440 Speaker 2: sure you check out our show notes for the full bibliography. 613 00:46:05,600 --> 00:46:08,320 Speaker 2: The Greatest True Crime Stories Ever Told is a production 614 00:46:08,440 --> 00:46:12,640 Speaker 2: of Diversion Audio. I'm Mary Kay McBrayer, and I hosted 615 00:46:12,640 --> 00:46:17,440 Speaker 2: this episode. I also wrote this episode. Our show is 616 00:46:17,520 --> 00:46:22,080 Speaker 2: produced by Emma Demuth. Theme music by Tyler Cash. Executive 617 00:46:22,080 --> 00:46:23,560 Speaker 2: producer Scott Waxman.