I Was A Skinhead In LA County Jail – Then I Hunted Drug Cartels In Mexico

Dave Franke grew up in California and was pulled into the skinhead gang lifestyle by identity belonging and survival. That path took him through some of the hardest jails and prisons in California — where violence politics and racial tension defined every day. Then he did something almost nobody does. He renounced the skinhead lifestyle completely questioned everything he thought he believed and rebuilt his life from scratch. And then he went to Mexico and worked alongside law enforcement in operations targeting drug cartels. In this episode of Locked In with Ian Bick, Dave tells the complete story — from the school fight that changed everything to gang life to juvenile hall to facing an attempted murder charge in LA County Jail to questioning his identity inside prison to sobriety and Malcolm X opening his mind to eventually becoming a Mexican agent training police and running cartel hunts with special forces. This is one of the most extraordinary transformation stories we have ever told on this show. #LockedInWithIanBick #RealStories #PrisonStories #TrueCrime #CartelStories #SurvivorStory #ChangeYourLife #StreetToStrength Thank you to BRUNT & PRIZEPICKS for sponsoring this episode: Brunt: $10 Off @BRUNT with code LOCKEDIN at https://www.bruntworkwear.com/lockedin #bruntpod Prizepicks: Visit https://prizepicks.onelink.me/LME0/IA... and use code IANBICK and get $50 in lineups when you play your first $5 lineup! Connect with Dave Franke: Website: www.davefranke.com YouTube:    / @fusilautomaticoligero   Hosted, Executive Produced & Edited By Ian Bick: https://www.instagram.com/ian_bick/?h... https://ianbick.com/ Timestamps: 00:00 California Skinhead to Cartel Hunter in Mexico — Dave's Complete Story 02:56 Growing Up With Family Struggles and Moving Across States 06:39 Culture Shock — From Iowa to LA and Learning to Survive on the Streets 09:46 Teen Dreams First Trouble and the Path Toward Violence That Followed 13:48 Gang Life Juvenile Hall and the Skinhead Mentality That Took Hold 20:41 Proving Himself Through Violence and Earning Street Respect 26:11 Facing an Attempted Murder Charge in LA County Jail 34:34 Life Inside One of America's Toughest Jails and What Survival Required 43:05 Surviving the System and the Questions That Started Forming About His Identity 52:18 Tattoo Stories Regret and the Moment Real Change Started 01:01:00 Sobriety Malcolm X and What Opening His Mind Actually Felt Like 01:07:00 Trying to Join the Military and the Work Ethic That Emerged From That Attempt 01:16:00 Heading to Mexico — Manufacturing Violence and the Opportunity That Changed Everything 01:24:00 Becoming a Mexican Agent and Training Police in Cartel Operations 01:33:01 Inside Cartel Hunts and What Life Alongside Mexican Special Forces Really Looked Like 01:44:42 Racism Trust and What Living on the Edge in Mexico Actually Required 01:53:01 Coming Home Law School Purpose and What Redemption Actually Looks Like 01:58:00 His Life Now — The Reinvention and Lessons He Wants the Next Generation to Hear 02:03:37 Final Reflections Gratitude and the Power of Change That Defined His Entire Journey