A new BBC Sounds podcast, Making of a Fugitive, goes inside the hidden world of fugitives, exploring stories of people who go to extreme lengths to avoid capture by the authorities.
Narrated by Welsh actor Richard Harrington, known for The One That Got Away and Hinterland, the nine-part series features confessions, police chases and insights into how fugitives hide their identities.
The podcast begins with Martin Evans, a small-town conman from south Wales who became an international fraudster and drug dealer.
Evans swindled investors out of nearly a million pounds in an ostrich farm fraud before running an international drugs and money laundering operation. After escaping prison, he was on the run for five years until he was caught.
Another episode features American conman Matt Cox, who committed bank fraud and identity theft worth over 11 million dollars, topping the FBI’s most wanted list in the early 2000s.
He described his time on the run as “awesome” and explained how he created synthetic identities to defraud US banks, even convincing social security to issue numbers to children who did not exist.
The podcast also covers the case of Mohammed Ali Ege, wanted for the mistaken identity murder of Cardiff teenager Aamir Siddiqi fifteen years ago. The series includes an exclusive interview with Aamir’s family, who are still waiting for justice.
Series writer and producer Jayne Morgan said: “We thought we knew these stories having worked on them over the years, but this podcast gives new insights and reveals the extraordinary lengths some go to in order to stay hidden.”
Making of a Fugitive is a BBC Cymru Wales production for BBC Sounds. The first two episodes are out now, with new episodes released weekly.
