Locked Up Abroad

23-year old Iraqi soldier Latif Yahia is summoned to meet with Saddam Hussein. He’s a near-exact physical match for his son, Uday, who demands Latif become his body double. Latif is given no choice, and trains to walk, talk, and behave exactly like his new master. Latif knows his only chance at survival is a daring escape to freedom in Turkey. Support us by supporting our sponsors! See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Australian teacher Tim Schrader goes to Bangkok to teach English. He loves his job but isn’t making enough to pay for the lifestyle he enjoys. He takes a job smuggling heroin from Bangkok to the U.S, but he’s set up, caught with more than a hundred times the amount that would garner a death sentence in Thailand. Support us by supporting our sponsors! See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Tabitha Richie is juggling her last year of college and being a single mother. She lets loose one night, and tries cocaine. She’s soon addicted and a shadow of her former self. She’s desperate to change, and accepts an offer from friends to stay in Bogota and get clean. She’s soon betrayed by the friends she thought she knew so well. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Susan Haglof and her husband Medhat are desperate to be parents. The agency doesn’t give them any official paperwork but the joys of parenting take over. When Susan wants to take the child, Marko, on a trip to the U.S. to visit her mother, she and Medhat are convicted of human trafficking and thrown in an Egyptian jail. Support us by supporting our sponsors! See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Stephen Comiskey takes his dream job as a nurse in Saudi Arabia. He doesn’t realize that, as a gay man, he risks execution if he’s discovered. After eight months, he’s lonely and strikes up a relationship with a British man there. When it ends, he’s dating again. This time he gets involved with a Saudi man, which has serious consequences. Support us by supporting our sponsors! See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Ruthie Lambert was deep in the abyss of a midlife crisis, debt and foreclosure on her home when friends suggest that she can make a quick $10,000 by bringing drugs back from Peru. The appeal of easy money brings her back again and again. After a few successful jobs she decides it’s time to get out, but agrees to one more trip, where her luck finally runs out.  Support us by supporting our sponsors! See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Army Veteran Kim Hood soon realizes that her trip to Thailand with her friend, Lisa Taylor, was a coverup for Lisa to smuggle heroin.Sentenced to death in a squalid Thai prison, a betrayed Kim wonders if she will ever see home again. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Mark Wedeven was adopted by an American couple when he was a baby. Upon graduating college he wanted to find his birth family, so he planned a trip to his native Colombia. He and his friends begin their journey through Colombia, ignoring all warnings, which lead to harrowing consequences that Mark can’t help but feel responsible for. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Two young British backpackers, Tom Hart Dyke and Paul Windor and searching for orchids and adventure when they’re kidnapped by Colombian Guerrillas as they try to cross the notoriously dangerous Darien Gap. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Zara Whitaker grew up in poverty in South London. When she gets pregnant at 18 she’s desperate for a way to provide for her family. She’s offered a trip to Barbados to smuggle drugs back to the UK. Once there, she finds out she’s pregnant with her second child, but she’s in too deep to get out now. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Greg Williams’ life was turned upside down in 1996. Seeking a new start and greater meaning he agreed to go Manilla as a missionary. Soon after arrival he is kidnapped by terrorists with connections to Al Qaeda, and he begins a terrifying journey home. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Jackie Nichols grew up in Los Angeles in the mid-1970s. While working at a nightclub in LA, she had a chance to work at a club in Japan. A vacation to nearby Nepal turned into a job smuggling hashish back into Tokyo. More jobs followed. Jackie was caught, and her trip back to freedom turned into a profound journey of self-discovery. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

In 2004, 20-year Navy veteran Roy Hallums was working as a contractor in Iraq. A routine trip to the office turned into a fight for his life when 20 armed Iraqi insurgents stormed the compound and took him and his colleagues hostage. He was sealed in an underground room. This is how he survived. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Canadian war correspondent Scott Taylor covered Iraq for many years, frequently crossing paths with Turkish journalist Zeynep Tugrul. They entered dangerous territory, believing their history and contacts would keep them safe. They were captured, and their courage and bond kept them both alive. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Jeremy Khinoo had a happy life: girlfriend, child, and a good job. When his girlfriend left him out of the blue, he didn’t know where to turn. He joined a friend smuggling steroids over the US border from Mexico, but Jeremy pushed his luck one too many times. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

In the 1970s, Chicago Outfit enforcer Frank Cullotta led one of the largest organized crime syndicates in the U.S. In 1978, FBI agent Dennis Arnoldy led the investigation that eventually brought Frank down. In this story, Frank shares secrets from his life in the mob and the jewelry heist that brought it all to an end. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Scott Campbell joins his estranged father, Lockie, on a trip through China on the Silk Road, hoping to reconnect. He soon discovers that Lockie intended for Scott to be his partner in taking 20 kilos of illicit drugs into the country. An unexpected turn brings their relationship to a new level in the end. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Samuel Leibowitz lived a cloistered life in his religious community until he was lured into the dangerous underworld of drug smuggling. Samuel quickly rises through the ranks and become a major drug kingpin in Brazil. A devastating event throws his world for a loop, but it’s still not enough for him to walk away. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

South African couple Debbie Calitz and Bruno Pelizzari decided to follow their dreams and sail the world. After a stop in Tanzania and getting robbed of all their money and supplies, they accept an offer from a wealthy businessman that they hope will get them home. What follows is 20 months of imprisonment, and the ultimate test of endurance and their love. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Season Two of Locked Up Abroad will be available on this feed starting August 4th. You can also hear all of Season Three exclusively on Wondery+ now. Listen to Locked Up Abroad and all your Wondery favorites early and ad free by joining Wondery+ in the Wondery App today : https://wondery.app.link/sdZJLT05n8 See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

An audio adaptation of the National Geographic TV series. Hosted by Jim Clemente (host of the true crime podcast Real Crime Profile as well as the CBS documentary on Jon Benet Ramsey). Produced by Raw TV Ltd for National Geographic Channels. © 2015 NGC Network International, LLC and NGC Networks US, LLC. All rights reserved. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.