India Uniform Nine: Secrets From Inside a Covert Customs Unit

Description

Mark Perlstrom is no stranger to money laundering, drug smuggling and crooked firms. In the early 1980s he started working for HM Customs and was quickly thrown in the deep end, joining Operation C-Chase, an undercover investigation that penetrated Pablo Escobar's mighty Medellin cartel, brought down the corrupt BCCI bank and stopped London's gangs from moving their ill-gotten gains around the capital. As part of the new, secret, anti-money-laundering squad, the Uniforms, high-speed car chases, bugging homes and spying on targets was day-to-day business. Told by a true insider and revealing never-before-told-secrets of the industry, India Uniform Nine lays bare the intense rivalry between crime-fighting organisations which leads to corruption, chaos and some scarcely believable antics in the covert world. And how Mark's own operation was nearly scuppered by a US Customs bungle.

Mark Perlstrom joined the civil service in 1983, starting in the Ministry of Defence and moving to HM Customs. This is his first book. Douglas Wight is an author, ghostwriter and journalist. His recent titles include Son of Escobar, Against My Will and Amazon number 1-bestseller The Bad Room.

An excellent read. The author has been there and got the t-shirt, so it's completely authentic in feel and style. He was instrumental in the success of the case and was at significant personal risk during the operation and, more importantly, still lives with that risk. -- Cameron Addicott, author of The Interceptor From the very start of India Uniform Nine, Mark Perlstrom takes us on a fascinating journey inside the world of Customs investigations. From drug trafficking, money laundering and VAT fraud to the internal politics of working with the police, security services and corrupt colleagues along the way. An eye-opening and entertaining read throughout. -- Matt Calveley, author of Cops and Horrors