Pin Kings
ESPN's 16-part Pin Kings tells the true-crime story of two friends turned sworn enemies in South Florida's drug trade in the 1980s and '90s. Alex DeCubas and Kevin Pedersen were undefeated, state-champion, All-American wrestlers on their Miami high-school team. They were photographed together in Sports Illustrated. Then Colombian cocaine upended their lives. Hosted by Brett Forrest and Jon Fish and named best podcast by New York Festivals, Pin Kings delves deeply into the deadly exploits of Kevin and Alex. Devastated by personal tragedy, Alex falls into the trade. Drugs destroy Kevin's wife and family, and he pledges his life to avenging what traffickers have taken from him. Once brothers, each man grows to detest what the other stands for, but their lives and families cannot be disentangled. In their cutthroat worlds, Alex and Kevin can trust only each other. In a sweeping narrative that spans the 1970s to now, from Miami's drug-charged growth, through the War on Drugs, and into the present, as aging drug runners muse on greed, regret, the adventures of youth, and the lasting power of brotherhood, Pin Kings breaks new ground in ESPN storytelling.
Archived Podcasts
Trailer: Introducing 'Pin Kings': 5/2/23
ESPN's 16-part narrative audio series Pin Kings tells the true-crime story of two friends turned sworn enemies in South Florida's drug trade in the 1980s and '90s. Alex DeCubas and Kevin Pedersen were undefeated, state-champion, All-American wrestlers on their Miami high-school team. They were photographed together in Sports Illustrated. Then Colombian cocaine upended their lives. Hosted by Brett Forrest and Jon Fish and named best podcast by New York Festivals, Pin Kings delves deeply into the deadly exploits of Kevin and Alex. Devastated by personal tragedy, Alex falls into the trade. Drugs destroy Kevins wife and family, and he pledges his life to avenging what traffickers have taken from him. Once brothers, each man grows to detest what the other stands for, but their lives and families cannot be disentangled. In their cutthroat worlds, Alex and Kevin can trust only each other. In a sweeping narrative that spans the 1970s to now, from Miamis drug-charged growth, through the War on Drugs, and into the present, as aging drug runners muse on greed, regret, the adventures of youth, and the lasting power of brotherhood, Pin Kings breaks new ground in ESPN storytelling.
Episode 1: Off The Mat, Off The Grid: 5/2/23
Pin Kings is a 16-episode podcast that tells the story of two All-American high school wrestlers, teammates and friends who end up on the opposite side of the War on Drugs. In Episode One you meet Alex and Kevin.
Episode 2: From Farm To Table: 5/2/23
Pin Kings is a 16-episode podcast that tells the story of two All-American high school wrestlers, teammates and friends who end up on opposite ends of the War on Drugs. In Episode Two: Learn why a submarine is being constructed in Bogota, nearly 300 miles off the ocean.
Episode 3: The Straight Arrow: 5/2/23
In Episode Three we meet Kevin, the self-made wrestler whose work ethic made him a state champion but still wasn't enough to please the one person who matters most to him.
Episode 4: The Wildcard: 5/2/23
In episode four, Alex, the natural athlete meets a new friend who introduces him to wrestling, and eventually another endeavor he becomes really good at, too.
Episode 5: Contraband: 5/2/23
Episode five explains why Colombia is the capital for producing cocaine, and how the profit margins led to the growth of drug cartels and the birth of the smuggling business.
Episode 6: The Coach: 5/2/23
In Episode Six we meet Barry Zimbler, Palmetto High's Hall of Fame wrestling coach and the source of Alex and Kevin's All-American careers, camaraderie, and rivalry.
Episode 7: College: 5/2/23
In Episode Seven, Alex excels at the University of Georgia while Kevin struggles at West Point. Their hometown Miami is changing and Alex goes back and fits right in with the scene.
Episode 8: El Tigre: 5/2/23
In episode eight, Alex loses his biggest supporter and his life begins to go off the rails. Then a friend introduces him to something new, something dangerous.
Episode 9: Zip Six: 5/2/23
Alex starts stealing drugs from drug traffickers. This puts his life in danger, but also leads to the opportunity that would put him at the top of the smuggling trade.
Episode 10: Bimini and Beyond: 5/2/23
Just 50 miles off the Florida coast, the Bahamas were the perfect spot for the last step in Colombian cocaine smuggling. Alex finds out the Coast Guard was aware of this, too.
Episode 11: Nowhere To Hide: 5/2/23
Kevin leaves the Army to care of his wife. She's hooked on crack cocaine. His life crumbling, he files for divorce. One night he's home with the barrel of a gun in his mouth.
Episode 12: Hard Time: 5/2/23
Meet Jim Burke, the cop, and Paul Pelletier, the prosecutor, who combined to track down Alex using an informant and the U.S. government's War on Drugs to get the job done.
Episode 13: Chasing The Chameleon: 5/2/23
Kevin joins the DEA and gets word of a big investigation. Alex begins to get worried and flees the country through Mexico. He eventually makes it to Rio de Janeiro.
Episode 14: Back To Work: 5/2/23
Alex is in the mountains of Colombia, held hostage. He's still running his U.S. smuggling operation and begins rotating between cartels, ultimately working for Pablo Escobar.
Episode 15: Wash and Dried: 5/2/23
Kevin is close to making a major bust. He's infiltrated a Colombian cartel through a DEA sponsored money-laundering operation. He doesn't know it, he's cleaning Alex's cash.
Episode 16: So Miami: 5/2/23
In Episode 16, So Miami, we come full circle. Kevin returns to this wrestling roots in Miami. And he makes a stunning decision.
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