MELVIN WILLIAMS
Premieres October 17
Some people considered this Baltimore crook a genius because of his extremely high I.Q., but as smart as he was, “Little Melvin” Williams never used his brain power for good. Williams reportedly was the man who brought heroin to Baltimore and oversaw his empire for 30 years. He was smart enough to evade the feds, but one day local police planted a handful of pills in his pocket and brought him down. After serving five years, he exacted his revenge by making millions—but eventually went back to jail. His criminal past inspired the hit HBO series “The Wire.”
THE D.C. SNIPERS
Premieres October 24
John Muhammad, 42, and Lee Boyd Malvo, 17, became internationally known after they engaged in a random killing spree in the Washington , D.C. , area in 2002. Since neither fit the profile of a serial killer, law enforcement officials assumed that there was only one killer and that he was a white male. The story of how Muhammad methodically trained Malvo—a homeless kid in desperate need of a father figure—is one of the most intriguing in this series.
FRANK LUCAS
Premieres October 31
Denzel Washington plays him in the movie, but Frank Lucas plays himself in this version of “American Gangster.” During his heyday, Lucas was one of the most successful drug dealers in the country, grossing up to $1 million a day. He got a little too greedy though and was busted by a detective who eventually became his defense attorney when he agreed to help prosecutors dismantle the operations of his competitors. He discusses why he did what he did for the first time.
FELIX MITCHELL
Premieres November 7
He was considered Oakland , Calif. ‘s first major heroin kingpin. In the late ’70s and early ’80s he reigned supreme in the city that was once the home base of the Black Panther Party. Mitchell always rolled in style-driving expensive foreign cars, wearing the finest clothes and was a popular fixture on the nightclub scene before his conviction and life sentence. He was stabbed to death in his prison cell in 1986.
JEFF FORT AND THE BLACKSTONE RANGERS
Premieres November 14
Jeff Fort led a small group of teens from the Woodlawn section of Chicago, who were subsequently pegged to take part in a federally funded program designed to help gang members enter the workforce. Somehow, Fort was convicted for misuse of funds and sentenced to four years in jail. Upon his release Fort converted to Islam, but was busted again in 1986 for promising to commit acts of domestic terrorism that were to be subsidized by Libyan dictator Moammar Khadafy. He is currently serving an 80-year term.
CHAZ WILLIAMS
Premieres November 21
He was a man with a plan. Charlie “Chaz” Williams was one of the most prolific bank robbers in history, robbing more than 60 banks throughout the country during his reign. He got caught and went to jail, but managed to get his 95-year sentence reduced to 15 years. Once he was released, Williams stayed clean and created Black Hand Entertainment. He is currently managing Foxy Brown, who was recently sentenced to a year in jail for violating the terms of her probation.
AMERICAN GANGSTER is produced by Nelson George, Frank Sinton of A. Smith & Company, Mark Rowland and BET.
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