The Jordan Harbinger Show
1111: Jay Dobyns | Undercover with the Hells Angels Part One
Tue, 04 Feb 2025
How did former ATF agent Jay Dobyns spend years undercover with the Hells Angels and live to tell the tale? Listen to this two-parter to find out! [Pt. 1/2] What We Discuss with Jay Dobyns: Jay Dobyns was shot and nearly killed just four days into his ATF career, but rather than quitting, he used this experience to build credibility and learn valuable lessons about how quickly situations can turn violent in law enforcement. The ATF's undercover program was considered elite among law enforcement agencies, with ATF agents being particularly skilled at getting "down in the weeds" of criminal investigations due to their backgrounds in local law enforcement rather than specialized fields. Jay explains that successful undercover work is like being a salesman where "the product is me" — it requires building genuine trust and relationships while knowing you'll eventually have to betray that trust, making it psychologically challenging work. To establish credibility in criminal circles, Jay and his team would create elaborate "street theater" — staged criminal scenarios with other undercover agents that allowed suspects to witness what appeared to be real criminal activity rather than just hearing stories about it. Here, we learn how complex and sophisticated undercover work can be, highlighting valuable lessons about building trust and credibility through actions rather than words — and there's much more to come in part two later this week! And much more — be sure to hear the second half of this conversation here later this week! Full show notes and resources can be found here: jordanharbinger.com/1111 And if you're still game to support us, please leave a review here — even one sentence helps! Consider including your Twitter handle so we can thank you personally! This Episode Is Brought To You By Our Fine Sponsors: jordanharbinger.com/deals Sign up for Six-Minute Networking — our free networking and relationship development mini course — at jordanharbinger.com/course! Subscribe to our once-a-week Wee Bit Wiser newsletter today and start filling your Wednesdays with wisdom! Do you even Reddit, bro? Join us at r/JordanHarbinger!See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
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Those groups are inherently paranoid. They're paranoid for a reason. That paranoia keeps them out of prison. They're traditionally untrusting groups of people. So how do you build that trust? For me, I was a salesman. That's the way I looked at my job. I was a salesman. My product was me.
Welcome to the show. I'm Jordan Harbinger. On The Jordan Harbinger Show, we decode the stories, secrets, and skills of the world's most fascinating people and turn their wisdom into practical advice that you can use to impact your own life and those around you.
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