EP 10 - Flying with Princes

Summary

Cocaine Air: Episode 10 - Flying with Princes

Release Date: August 6, 2025

Introduction

In Episode 10 of Cocaine Air, titled "Flying with Princes," host Jonathan Walton delves deeper into the extraordinary life of TJ Dominguez. As the episode unfolds, listeners gain an intimate look into TJ's dual existence as a successful Lamborghini dealership owner by day and a prominent cocaine smuggler by night, affiliated with the infamous Pablo Escobar. This episode offers a blend of high-stakes smuggling tales, personal reflections, and the complexities of balancing a life of crime with family responsibilities.

TJ’s Introduction to Podcasts and Listener Demographics

The episode begins with a light-hearted exchange about TJ's unfamiliarity with podcasts:

• [00:03] Host 1: "Before I came to you about a podcast, did you, did you know what a podcast was?"
• [00:07] TJ Dominguez: "No, I had no idea what a podcast was."

TJ reflects humorously on the unexpected demographics of his podcast's audience:

• [00:12] TJ Dominguez: "You know, one thing I noticed that a lot of women are the ones that are writing in... you would think that it'd be a whole bunch of guys, you know, it's a guy thing really... smuggling, getting shot at airplanes, Lamborghinis..."

Family Life and Personal Struggles

Jonathan Walton sets the stage for TJ's personal life, highlighting the significant impact of TJ's incarceration on his family:

• [01:18] Jonathan Walton: "TJ's two sons are now strapping, handsome, successful men in their 30s. But TJ was serving time behind bars for a lot of their childhood."

TJ opens up about his relationship with his sons and the support from his wife, Veronique:

• [02:00] TJ Dominguez: "When you got arrested?... She said, I don't need all that space, I'm going to move in with your mom... She never went to a party. She would always say, I got nothing to celebrate until my husband comes home."

He emphasizes the unwavering support from his wife:

• [02:49] TJ Dominguez: "My wife supported me. Everybody supported me. They didn't condone it. They didn't agree... The hardest thing I've ever done in life is when we had to say goodbye, he grabbed me around the neck and wouldn't want to go. Really, really tough."

Life Flying the Concorde and Notable Encounters

A significant portion of the episode is dedicated to TJ's experiences flying the Concorde, the supersonic passenger jet, and his unexpected encounters with royalty and celebrities.

Flying the Concorde

TJ shares detailed anecdotes about his frequent flights on the Concorde, highlighting the exclusivity and luxury:

• [08:06] Host 1: "Air France had one. British Airways had one."
• [08:27] Host 1: "Because you could get from New York to London in three and a half hours."

He describes the technical marvels of the plane:

• [09:07] Narrator: "Mach 1, the speed of sound at about 30,000ft."
• [09:20] TJ Dominguez: "And the windows are really small... the airplane grows and expands in flight... it's pretty crazy."

Encounter with the Emperor of Japan's Son

One of the most captivating stories involves TJ unknowingly sitting next to the son of the Emperor of Japan:

• [15:40] Host 1: "So now he's the Emperor of Japan, my buddy."
• [15:42] TJ Dominguez: "That's the guy that I punch in the nose."

TJ recounts the humorous and surreal moment:

• [16:00] TJ Dominguez: "His name is Hirito and I'm Tito. So it's kind of like, oh, that's pretty funny... I learned karate, you know... I threw a punch... It was very good. I said, yeah, control."

Flight with Prince (The Rock Singer)

In another remarkable encounter, TJ unknowingly shares a flight with the iconic musician Prince:

• [16:31] TJ Dominguez: "He's got this purple boa around him... he's dressed in a mechanic outfit with a zipper... platform shoes that are probably eight inches."

Despite his discomfort, TJ chooses not to disrupt the situation:

• [19:14] Host 1: "You can't say that."
• [19:20] TJ Dominguez: "He was putting on a show. With a boa."

Impact of Reagan's War on Drugs

The episode transitions into a critical analysis of the Reagan administration's war on drugs and its unintended consequences on TJ's cocaine smuggling operations:

• [19:30] Narrator: "37 federal agencies are working together in a vigorous national effort... over 10,000 drug criminals were convicted and nearly $250 million of their assets were seized by the DEA."
• [19:53] Host 1: "Paradox of paradoxes. Ronald Reagan's war on drugs helped you sell more cocaine."

TJ explains how increased law enforcement actually benefited his operations by eliminating competition:

• [20:10] TJ Dominguez: "We were very, very good at what we did. I created a division for intelligence... Reagan was fighting the war on drugs... Weed out the amateurs."

He elucidates the market dynamics:

• [21:08] Host 1: "So you started, you started not doing as many trips, you started finding him other pilots to smuggle."
• [21:18] TJ Dominguez: "Instead of having 10 people doing it, now we maybe have four or five. We're controlling more of the market."

Decision to Exit the Cocaine Smuggling Business

As the pressures mount, TJ decides it's time to leave the dangerous life of smuggling:

• [24:07] Host 1: "When they arrested you in April of 1988, you were getting out of the business."
• [24:12] TJ Dominguez: "I had wound down my business and I had made arrangements."

He shares his motivations for leaving:

• [27:35] TJ Dominguez: "Because I met Veronique and I wanted to do what my dad told me, what it was all about. Having a family and having children."

TJ outlines his plans for a legitimate life, emphasizing his existing wealth and business acumen:

• [28:14] TJ Dominguez: "I own 12 businesses. I own the biggest dealership in the world... I have the biggest cell phone company in South Florida."

Arrest and Its Aftermath

Despite his efforts to exit, TJ's past catches up, leading to his arrest:

• [30:30] Host 1: "So you started not doing as many trips, you started finding him other pilots to smuggle."

At the time of his arrest, TJ reveals he left a substantial amount of cocaine in the Bahamas, which leads to significant losses:

• [30:44] Jonathan Walton: "And at the time of his arrest, TJ has some unfinished business in the Bahamas."
• [31:08] Host 1: "You had 5 million, like buried in the ground?"
• [32:23] TJ Dominguez: "I have $5 million and a house buried over there."

Post-Prison Life and Hidden Fortunes

Post-incarceration, TJ navigates a new life, attempting to legitimize his wealth while safeguarding his remaining assets:

• [31:07] Jonathan Walton: "TJ's tons of coke was worth hundreds of millions of dollars."
• [32:18] Host 1: "But you're getting that energy like you're playing, but the person you're playing is yourself."

TJ discusses his efforts to transition into legitimate businesses and the challenges therein:

• [32:23] TJ Dominguez: "I have $5 million and a house buried over there."
• [32:37] Host 1: "And just where is all that money today? Find out on the next episode of Cocaine Air."

Notable Quotes

• [02:37] Host 1: "And this was April 1988. You got busted."
• [12:33] TJ Dominguez: "I'm the kind of guy that you pay money to go to the movies to see because you can't live my life."
• [20:00] Host 1: "How could that be true? They're marshaling billions of dollars, dozens of agencies, to go after cocaine."

Conclusion and Cliffhanger

The episode concludes with a suspenseful note about the whereabouts of the buried money, setting the stage for future revelations:

• [32:55] Jonathan Walton: "To see some incredible photographs documenting TJ's life, go to cocainair.com..."
• [32:44] TJ Dominguez: "That was just for an emergency case that something drastic happened. I needed to get my hands on a couple of million dollars."

Listeners are left eagerly anticipating the next episode, which promises to uncover the fate of TJ's hidden fortune.

Final Thoughts

Episode 10 of Cocaine Air masterfully intertwines high-octane smuggling adventures with deeply personal narratives, painting a vivid portrait of TJ Dominguez's tumultuous life. From luxurious Concorde flights and unexpected royal encounters to the gritty realities of the drug trade and the pursuit of legitimacy, this episode offers a comprehensive look into the complexities of a life lived on both sides of the law.

For more insights and untold stories, subscribe to Cocaine Air and visit cocainair.com.

Transcript

[Host 1]

Before I came to you about a podcast, did you, did you know what a podcast was?

[TJ Dominguez]

No, I had no idea what a podcast was.

[Host 1]

And now you're Mr. You're Mr. Spotify all over it.

[TJ Dominguez]

You know, one thing I noticed that a lot of women are the ones that are writing in, you know, and I, I find that really amusing because you would think that it'd be a whole bunch of guys, you know, it's a guy thing really. You know, smuggling, getting shot at airplanes, Lamborghinis, you know, foreign.

[Jonathan Walton]

I'm Jonathan Walton and this is cocaine air. The T.J. dominguez story, episode 10 Flying with Princess.

[TJ Dominguez]

I'm finding that I'm actually pleased to see some of the comments that some of these women are writing. And I'm not talking about anything romantic, just a view, the fact that they take the time and they're analyzing it.

[Jonathan Walton]

The Cocaine Air podcast has made TJ's life public in a way that he could have never imagined. His past is now present.

[TJ Dominguez]

So I buried that for a long time. I didn't want to talk about my past. My own two sons, I've never had, never sat down with them to talk about my past.

[Jonathan Walton]

TJ's two sons are now strapping, handsome, successful men in their 30s. But TJ was serving time behind bars for a lot of their childhood.

[TJ Dominguez]

They had no idea. They knew that I was in prison. It was no secret. But whatever they knew, either my ex wife told them, which by the way, I have to give a shout out from the point of view, or kudos to my wife. She was the first to come and visit and the last to leave. And she closed down my house and moved in with my mom.

[Host 1]

When you got arrested?

[TJ Dominguez]

Yeah, and I had a beautiful big house, you know, and she said, I don't need all that space, I'm going to move in with your mom. And my mom had a very nice home, so she moved in with my mom. She never went to a party. And when people would invite her to even go to a family gathering party, she would always say, I got nothing to celebrate until my husband comes home. And she stood by my side. She was, I think 18 or 19 years old. So for the record, people that say, too young, too old, too this, too that, let me tell you, if they're going to two time you, it'll happen in jail or out of jail. When they're good, they're good. When the heart's in the right place, no mountain can move it.

[Host 1]

Yeah. And this was April 1988. You got busted.

[TJ Dominguez]

And for the record, her name is Veronique.

[Host 1]

We can give a shout out to Veronique. So Veronique stood by you for years like an angel.

[TJ Dominguez]

My wife supported me. Everybody supported me. They didn't condone it. They didn't agree. The ones that worried me were my two boys, you know, because kids sometimes can be cruel, you know. Oh, yeah, Daddy's in prison, you know, and I know it had to have been very hard, and I know that because, I mean, I don't want to get all choked up. But my. My wife would bring my boys to visit. The one boy and boy. I tell you what, the hardest thing I've ever did in life is when. When we had to say goodbye, he grabbed me around the neck and wouldn't want to go tough. Really, really tough.

[Jonathan Walton]

TJ's sons are all grown up now, and they're married with kids and careers. And TJ is a grandfather.

[Host 1]

And how many grandkids do you have now?

[TJ Dominguez]

I got five.

[Host 1]

Five grandkids?

[TJ Dominguez]

Yeah. They're all unbelievable. They're all postcard kids, you know?

[Host 1]

Yeah, I saw the pictures on the wall. It's beautiful. It really is like a Macy's catalog.

[TJ Dominguez]

Good DNA.

[Host 1]

Good DNA.

[Jonathan Walton]

But TJ's sons are his perpetual pride and joy. He dotes on them endlessly.

[TJ Dominguez]

They're just great, great kids, you know, and they do. They. They've done a lot of great stuff in their own right.

[Host 1]

And you're close to your. Your. Your sons.

[TJ Dominguez]

Very close to them.

[Host 1]

You guys talk every day.

[TJ Dominguez]

Every day. And we do a lot of what's up? Pictures, back and forth videos problem I have with a podcast. I did what I did, and I live with it. Right. So it's a cross that I bear. I get that. But I didn't want this to cross over to them, Right. So they have a different last name, which is the maiden name of my. Of my. My wife. One of my sons got drafted by Buffalo Savers. Hockey player. He led the nation in scoring and all that kind of crazy stuff, and then the other one also, and he didn't lead the nation. But let me tell you, he doesn't fall far behind him. And he's the more daring one, the smaller one.

[Jonathan Walton]

When I had initially contacted TJ about doing this podcast a couple years ago, he checked with his boys first.

[TJ Dominguez]

I went and I asked them, I've got an opportunity of doing this and doing that. How do you guys feel about it? Because that would be my only concern, you know? And then they say, hey, listen, dad, something that you did. I never talked to them about this. They knew I was in prison, so it was no secret, but they didn't know if it was because of why I was in prison. I don't know what. My ex wife, the mother of the children, she didn't like sugar coating anything. I just don't know how much she told them because it was not a topic that I wanted to engage in anyway. You know, prison is something that I didn't talk about.

[Host 1]

So your kids heard the podcast. What's. What's the reaction?

[TJ Dominguez]

The reaction is I have one that's a sheriff. He's a policeman.

[Host 1]

Your son is a sheriff?

[TJ Dominguez]

Yeah, he's sharing it with his other fellow officer.

[Host 1]

He's proud.

[TJ Dominguez]

Well, I'm surprised of that.

[Host 1]

And you shouldn't be.

[TJ Dominguez]

Yeah, the jury's out on that. I don't even know how to address it. I can only repeat what he told me. And I said, why would you share that with them? And aren't, you know, doesn't that kind of put you, like, in a difficult situation? He goes, no. He says, they think you're super cool. They even said, your dad is really, really cool. Our dad is boring. He said, can you make arrangement? We'll fly down to Florida and meet this guy. He's amazing.

[Host 1]

Well, no, his fellow officers are fans.

[TJ Dominguez]

Yeah. Oh, yeah, yeah. One's an EE agent, The other one's an officer.

[Host 1]

Oh, my God.

[TJ Dominguez]

Now that we're condoning this, and I.

[Host 1]

Don'T even know how they're getting. That's what I tell people. It's like, I'm not. I'm just trying to explain how you got here and what happened as a result. Like, this is the truth of, you know, you never meant to become a drug smuggler. That was never your plan. You've pled guilty. You did your time. And it just sounds like a hellish existence. All those years going from prison to prison.

[TJ Dominguez]

It wasn't just prison to prison. People think this and that, but let me tell you, I did hard time.

[Host 1]

That sounds like it.

[TJ Dominguez]

I did hard time.

[Jonathan Walton]

The life of a cocaine smuggler making millions of dollars every week. His grand, TJ would fly to Europe all the time because a lot of his money was stashed in Switzerland. And he'd also visit the Lamborghini factory in Italy frequently. And when TJ flies to Europe, he doesn't fly in a regular plane. He takes the Concorde.

[Host 1]

One of the things I missed out on in life, I never got to take the Concorde.

[Jonathan Walton]

Oh, yeah, the Concorde was a supersonic passenger jet that was in service from the 1970s to the early 2000s. British Airways used them, as did Air France. Flying at more than 1300 miles an hour, nearly twice the speed of sound, the Concorde could get you from New York to London in three and a half hours, as opposed to the nearly eight hours it takes a regular commercial flight.

[TJ Dominguez]

I wish you a safe and pleasant upward journey and thank you for choosing the British Airways Concorde.

[Jonathan Walton]

But when Runway debris causes an Air France Concorde to suddenly burst into flames shortly after takeoff from Charles de Gaulle airport In July of 2000, the world's.

[TJ Dominguez]

Most prestigious aircraft crashes. More than 100 people are dead.

[Jonathan Walton]

The Concorde gets retired from service in 2003. Forever. The days of the Concorde.

[Host 1]

Air France had one. British Airways had one.

[TJ Dominguez]

Well, it's the same airplane. It was backed by Air France and British Air. Oh, 14 planes that were built by Airbus and they would share them. Well, what it was, was they each took seven.

[Host 1]

Okay, so there are 14 concords total.

[TJ Dominguez]

Yeah.

[Jonathan Walton]

How do you know all this?

[TJ Dominguez]

Because I flew a goddamn thing probably twice a month sometimes.

[Host 1]

Because you could get from New York.

[TJ Dominguez]

To London in three and a half hours.

[Host 1]

Three and a half hours. Because now regularly it's what, 7, 8.

[TJ Dominguez]

10, or 11, depending on the winds.

[Host 1]

And back then tickets are like $12,000 each.

[TJ Dominguez]

Crazy tickets.

[Host 1]

Which is the equivalent of like 30,000, $40,000 in today's money for a plane ticket. But you're getting there super fast.

[TJ Dominguez]

I've had a lot of great experiences in the Concorde. And because I think it's either 112 or I think it's around 112 passengers, it's two rows.

[Host 1]

It's narrow, very narrow.

[TJ Dominguez]

And there's. And there's no first class, second class. It's one class Concorde class. Now we quickly go supersonic, passing through.

[Narrator]

Mach 1, the speed of sound at about 30,000ft.

[TJ Dominguez]

The airplane grows and expands in flight, I think like 12, 13, 14 inches. I'm just going off.

[Host 1]

Like the metal stretches.

[TJ Dominguez]

Yeah, yeah. Tremendous feat of engineer.

[Host 1]

Oh, yeah.

[TJ Dominguez]

And, and, and the windows are really small and, and you know, the plane's going to expand. So this thing's got to flex and allow. So there's window glasses fall out when you're doing 1400 miles per hour, you know, so it's pretty crazy. So. Yeah. And then the airplane is very flexible on the ground. It goes like this. Like a noodle, actually. Yeah. You see the floor? Floor kind of like.

[Host 1]

You see the floor Move during.

[TJ Dominguez]

Well, it's not like quicksand, but yeah, it's a plane. It's long and it's like a long noodle, you know. And you will actually see a flexing on the floor.

[Host 1]

It reminds me of like those skyscrapers. There's one in la, the Intercontinental. It's built to sway.

[TJ Dominguez]

Oh, yeah, yeah.

[Host 1]

The whole building sways with the wind.

[TJ Dominguez]

And you know, beyond that, it's also built with a break point so the whole building doesn't go down. Yeah, at a certain point it'll snap off. So if you're up in there, guys, take up base jumping. Let's explore the events that shaped the Middle Ages.

[Claire]

Honestly, Claire, I didn't finish the research, but I did switch to T Mobile with their new Family Freedom offer.

[TJ Dominguez]

That's not how we tell the story.

[Claire]

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[T Mobile Ad]

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[Jonathan Walton]

Keep in mind, everyone flying on the Concorde is super rich. They're the people who can afford to spend $35,000 in today's money on a single ticket. So just know that whoever is sitting beside you on the Concorde could be someone really important.

[TJ Dominguez]

I'm sitting next to the Asian guy. I guess it would be the proper thing to say now, guys from Japan, I want to be correct. You know, it's like, I don't know, I used to say. Or, or.

[Host 1]

But you can't say that.

[TJ Dominguez]

Yeah, right.

[Host 1]

Asian. Yeah, Asian. Asian is.

[TJ Dominguez]

I have to learn a whole new language right when I come home. Asian. So. But he's really a nice guy and he's sitting next to me and we're side by side. The seats are small and there's two over there and two over here and you have the walkway. Back in those days they didn't close the cockpit. Right. So you got the engineer you got a couple, two, three people up there and really great airplane. I loved it. I'm sitting here next to this guy, and so I introduced myself. He introduces himself to me, and his name is Hirito and I'm Tito. So. Tito Ito. So it's kind of like, oh, that's pretty funny. Where are you from? He says, I'm from Japan. So I said, oh, Japan. I said, I learned karate, you know, and he spoke kind of broken English. So now I'm speaking broken English back then. So you can understand me, right? It's really funny. I shouldn't even talk like that. Dumb. But anyway, I am karate from Okinawa, which is an island. And that's the scrolls of paper that I was taught by, you know, when I met Shimiboku, which is my sensei from Okinawa. So I got a little connection there, you know. I even learned how to count in Japanese and all this kind of stuff. Years and stuff. Guys got like three or four cameras on them, right? Little cameras. Typical tourists you expect to come from, you know, cameras were really a popular thing in Japan. You got the Nikon or whatever, you know. So. So I say, yeah, karate. So I go, boom. I throw a punch. I stop it right on his nose, right? Just touch his nose. It was, ah, very good. I said, yeah, control, you know, I. I love, you know, martial arts from Okinawa, you know, and we're bonding. Oh, let's take a picture. Okay, let's take a picture. Ito. So now, hey, Stuart, is. Can you take a picture of Tito and Ito? So, so we're there. I got my arm around Ito, you know, and so we're there like this, snap, snap, snap. Taking some pictures. Okay, okay. And it wasn't back in the day of cell phones or anything like that. Send me the copies. No, no, these are real cameras. So, okay, you're going to get off here. Yeah, well, I'm going to continue to Miami. The Concorde, when it flew back down, it would stop off the leg in Washington, D.C. and then it went to. To Miami, onto Miami. Well, it flew two days a week, Thursdays and Tuesday. So I said, well, I'm gonna continue to Miami. Okay, Ito. Okay, get a hug. We hug each other. Okay, I love you, Ito. Okay, bye. Bye. So I get off the plane. When you're on the Concorde, you're in transit. You don't deploy, you deplane. But here's how the deplane thing works. You're in the middle of the tarmacs out there. Concorde pulls off to the side, and this bus Comes up and it races itself up because the Concorde is really, really high. And it just hooks up to the door of the Concorde. So now you deplane to stretch your legs. This is really like maybe not even. Not even business class. Seats are pretty damn small. So now I get off the airplane and this bus is laid out like a club. You got like a center horseshoe, good looking stewardesses. They're passing out the bubbly stuff. Whatever you want to drink, you know, Concord class. And so I go and get myself, you know, a drink. And I'm. And it's all bus windows. The whole bus is full of windows. So you're looking at the whole airport, you know, you're in transit. And so I'm leaning back and I've got my drink in my hand. And as I'm leaning back, I see a motorcade pull up, right? So I said, okay, cool, you know, and I see two, three motorcycles in front, couple motorcycles in back. And I see the big black limo with flags on the hood. So I look at the flag and I said, got the Japanese flag on there. And Ito's getting in the limo. What's Ito doing getting in that limo? So I said, stewardess, come here a sec. I said, what's my buddy Ito doing getting in the limo? And she goes, don't you know who that is? I said, yeah, my buddy Ito. He goes, no, that's the Emperor's son, which is now today the Emperor of Japan, the emp.

[Host 1]

So now he's the Emperor of Japan, my buddy.

[TJ Dominguez]

That's the guy that I punch in the nose. And we're taking pictures together. Hiro, or something like that is his name. As the new era dawned in the land of the rising sun, Emperor Naro was gearing up for his formal ascension.

[Host 1]

Have you talked to him since?

[TJ Dominguez]

No, I mean, I never. I lost touch with him.

[Host 1]

I'm sure he'd remember you.

[TJ Dominguez]

Well, hell, I mean, how many people on an airplane could have punched you in the nose?

[Host 1]

Stop at the nose.

[Jonathan Walton]

God. TJ was actually sitting beside the then prince, now Emperor of Japan, and he had no idea. And then on another flight, not the Concorde, just first class of a regular airline, TJ discovers his seatmate is another super important person, A cultural icon, really. But TJ has no idea.

[TJ Dominguez]

Good afternoon, this is your captain speaking with. So I'm sitting there and they have. I have. They sit me next to this other guy. Guy. Well, the other guy that I'm with, he's got, you know what a boa is? A feather Kind of like long thing, you know, this thing is like 10ft long. He's got this purple boa around him, and he's dressed, like, in a mechanic outfit with a zipper right in the front, and it's purple. Guy's a little weird, right? And he's got platform shoes that are probably eight inches. Well, I'm not really feeling comfortable because the guy's not even talking. He's, like, really kind of weird. So he. Excuse me. So he's gonna go to the bathroom or something, right? So he goes to the bathroom. So I say, stewardess, come here. I said, who's the weirdo that you sent me down to? Can you move me? And she goes, I don't know yet. I don't know if there's gonna be. You know, the seats are booked and this and that. So I said, well, who is this guy? And she goes, well, that's Prince. So having had the experience of Ito, who is the son's emperor, to the son, I'm the emperor of Japan. I say. And I say this really very naive. I say to the stewardess, okay? He said, prince. Prince of what country? And she goes, country? What are you talking about? He's Prince. I said, yeah, I heard that. Prince of what country? She's not a country prince. You know, the singer. Purple Haze, Purple Rain, Pay for whatever. Oh, that. So I sat with him for about three and a half hours. Talk very.

[Host 1]

In first class, heading to Minneapolis.

[TJ Dominguez]

And I didn't know who he was.

[Host 1]

So did you talk to him after?

[TJ Dominguez]

Talk to very little.

[Host 1]

And what kind of. And did. He was. He whispered a lot.

[TJ Dominguez]

He's not very talkative.

[Host 1]

No, he's not. He's really not, you know, but we were okay.

[TJ Dominguez]

I didn't even ask to move afterwards.

[Host 1]

Yeah.

[TJ Dominguez]

Because he was okay. And I didn't want to insult him, right. Because I thought that if I moved, he might take that. Not that I really give a damn, but I didn't want to make him feel like, well, he's moving because I'm not a few. He feels uncomfortable next to me. There's nothing uncomfortable about him. I just thought he was a little weird. With a purple outfit, purple boa, purple platform shoes, boots.

[Host 1]

I mean, he's not trying to lie low like, oh, there's nothing.

[TJ Dominguez]

This guy was.

[Host 1]

He was putting on a show.

[TJ Dominguez]

Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah.

[Host 1]

With a boa.

[TJ Dominguez]

Who has a boa that's this big around. Listen, Jonathan, this thing was this big around.

[Host 1]

If you board a plane with a.

[TJ Dominguez]

Boa 10t boa, it wasn't like a little. Yeah, it was like an anaconda with this guy I.

[Host 1]

Who's guy.

[TJ Dominguez]

Who's the weird guy that's next to me. And she goes, prince. Prince of what country? I feel kind of stupid when I said that afterwards. She goes, not a country.

[Host 1]

Well, I mean, no, but in your defense, you had the EO experience.

[TJ Dominguez]

Yeah. So I thought, well, another prince. Another prince from some place. I mean.

[Jonathan Walton]

So while TJ is rubbing shoulders with literal and figurative princes in the 1980s, President Ronald Reagan's war on drugs is heating up.

[Narrator]

37 federal agencies are working together in a vigorous national effort. And by next year, our spending for drug law enforcement will have more than tripled. Last year alone, over 10,000 drug criminals were convicted and nearly $250 million of their assets were seized by the DEA, the Drug Enforcement Administration.

[Host 1]

Paradox of paradoxes. Ronald Reagan's war on drugs helped you sell more cocaine.

[TJ Dominguez]

Absolutely.

[Host 1]

How could that be true? They're marshaling billions of dollars, dozens of agencies, to go after cocaine. In particular, how did it help your business?

[TJ Dominguez]

The way I looked at it, we were very, very good at what we did. I created a division for intelligence to survey them, find out about them, what they were up to. I created a transport division on land, I created a security division, which then advised me radios, better communication. Well, a lot of these guys that were out there, they were like, you know, hit and miss type thing. So I consider them to be amateurs. Guys that are out there, let's go make a fast buck. You know, I got a guy, a friend of mine's got an airplane. I got another guy that's got a boat. Let's go. Hit it. So we considered ourselves that elite. What Reagan was doing was fighting the war on drugs. Yeah. The rest of the son of a bitches, after all, was too much, you know, too much cocaine out there in the street. It's going to lower the price, get weed out the amateurs. That was our view on things.

[Host 1]

Weed out the amateurs. So that made the cocaine. So the amateurs are getting busted.

[TJ Dominguez]

Yeah.

[Host 1]

And that makes your cocaine more valuable. That's right, because now you're one of the only games.

[TJ Dominguez]

Instead of having 10 people doing it, now we maybe have four or five. What happens? We're controlling more the market, and. And that's the way we looked at it. I mean, I wasn't going out and arresting anybody. I'm not a cob, I'm not an agent. I don't give a damn about that. But, yeah, bring in more agents, make it harder you know, weed out the amateur. These guys are flying in, balls to the wall, you know, on a speedboat. I've got surveillance team on the coast. You know, I'm becoming a real master at what I do. Let's explore the events that shaped the Middle Ages.

[Claire]

Honestly, Claire, I didn't finish the research, but I did switch to T Mobile with their new Family Freedom offer.

[TJ Dominguez]

That's not how we tell the story.

[Claire]

Well, I'm writing a new chapter. By leaving AT&T and creating a turning point with T Mobile, they paid off my family's four phones up to $3200 and gave us four new phones on the house.

[TJ Dominguez]

History in the making.

[T Mobile Ad]

Introducing Family Freedom, our lowest cost. To switch our biggest family savings all on America's largest 5G network. Visit your local T Mobile location or learn more@t mobile.com familyfreedom.

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[Jonathan Walton]

And something I did not know about cocaine. The price can be extremely volatile.

[TJ Dominguez]

I've seen cocaine, a kilo of pure cocaine, which I didn't want to put it out there at that time because I would go through too much trouble to sell a kilo of cocaine in Miami for $9,000. Yeah, but I've also seen cocaine for $78,000 a kilo, a kilo.

[Host 1]

Then, like the stock market, it goes.

[TJ Dominguez]

Up, it goes down.

[Host 1]

You buy low, you sell high.

[TJ Dominguez]

And back in the 80s, there was nothing coming in through California or Texas. Everything came in through Florida. Nobody was working the West Coast. So that meant that for cocaine to hit Denver or, or la, it had to come in through here and then travel through here across everyone. Every time I went through overstate or if you didn't speak Spanish, it just went up another 2,000. The days, they were crazy days, and it was party atmospheric. And life was a lot simpler back then, believe it or not.

[Jonathan Walton]

It's a lot more fun too, especially for tj. He had so much money and was running so many other profitable businesses simultaneously that in 1988, he started to put cocaine smuggling in the rearview mirror.

[Host 1]

When they arrested you in April of 1988, you were getting out of the business.

[TJ Dominguez]

Yeah, I had wound down my business and I had made arrangements. Pablo and them didn't Want me to quit?

[Host 1]

Because you know, you told Pablo I want out. And what did he say?

[TJ Dominguez]

Yeah, I told him. I said, you know, I've had it. And at one time, Jonathan, I would have done this smuggling thing for even no money. And I have to tell you, I started out for 14 million for the sugar mill. And then I got caught up in the whole excitement, the whole adrenaline of things. I got caught up in it. I actually lived it, loved it and enjoyed it because it was a thrill to go out there. I don't do drugs, so maybe it was a drug feeling, this adrenaline and rush. Being on the D ocean, the boats jumping up and down, looking at the moon, looking at the stars, the wind hitting you in the face. There was a certain amount of romance that went with this whole thing, you know, like the real true Pirates of the Caribbean. What these guys were feeling then, I'm feeling now. And what am I doing? We're beating the best system in the world. The defense line of the United States is the best defense line in the world. We're beating them and we're getting it through. That alone was a thrill to just beat all these people, you know, and you're bouncing in there, man. It's such a thrill to sit there. Being a 40 something foot speedboat. And you don't go 100 miles per hour like you would see in a movie. You're going 30, 40, 50 miles per hour, 60 miles per hour. But you're hitting those waves and you're just hitting the top. That boat is in the air. Half of the time is boom, boom. You got to develop grip. You have like a, a death grip on, on you. You can't sit down. If you sit down, you're going to break your back. So you're basically riding, you develop sea legs.

[Host 1]

You go up, down, up, like riding a horse. But it's a boat.

[TJ Dominguez]

Yeah, yeah, yeah. You would roll with it, you know, and your whole thing, because if you, if you don't grip thing right, you're gonna get thrown overboard and then in that night sky, I mean, nobody's gonna find you. There's no flares.

[Host 1]

Sharks will find you.

[TJ Dominguez]

Yeah. Really? Yeah, yeah, yeah. It probably would be the most humane thing because otherwise you're gonna be treading water for a long time. You're gonna be suffering. So you might as well get end it quick.

[Host 1]

Yeah, it's like a real life video game.

[TJ Dominguez]

Oh yeah.

[Host 1]

Like you're flying, but it's real.

[TJ Dominguez]

It's the real real.

[Host 1]

But you get that energy like you're playing, but the person you're playing is yourself.

[TJ Dominguez]

You're on the edge. There's no downtime.

[Host 1]

So that's addictive.

[TJ Dominguez]

It's a hell of a thrill. It's a hell of a ride. And you get caught up in all that. At least I did, you know. And so I would do it even for free. I used to sit, sit there and say, man, look at this. I landed one time in the jungle, and the people that are coming out, they have blow guns, they have no teeth, they're wearing blowing cloth, you know. You were with a History channel, right? I'm sitting there going, damn, man, look where I'm at. And I'm getting and I'm making money and I'm doing this thing. I do this thing for free. I'm dealing with these guys. Yeah, big iron bird, you know, this guy. It was a thrill. It was experiencing things that, like I told one prosecutor, I'm the kind of guy that you pay money to go to the movies to see because you can't live my life. The guy said to me, you got a bad attitude. I said, you bring it on in me.

[Host 1]

This is a prosecutor.

[TJ Dominguez]

Yeah, prosecutor.

[Host 1]

But your lawyer was happy.

[TJ Dominguez]

Yeah.

[Jonathan Walton]

Eventually, TJ has more money than he can ever spend, and all his millions are shrewdly invested, making him even more millions. So he starts pulling back on cocaine smuggling.

[Host 1]

You told Pablo you were getting out.

[TJ Dominguez]

I first told his rip. He had a rip here in Miami. I said to him, and I don't want stuff, you know, I. You know, I want to. I want to quit, you know.

[Host 1]

And why did you want to quit?

[TJ Dominguez]

Because I met Veronique and I wanted to do what my dad told me, what it was all about. Having a family and having children. And that's the one thing that I couldn't buy. I couldn't buy children, you know. And then I was around a lot of beautiful girls, A lot of beautiful girls. But Jonathan, I didn't want just beauty. I wanted DNA. I wanted small town upbringing.

[Host 1]

She lit the spark in you to get out of the business. And what was the plan in your.

[TJ Dominguez]

Mind was having my Lamborghini here and having a little miniature Lamborghini from my future son that she was going to give me her. And I started looking at this other piece of property where he had had a lake on a place called Davie. And I was buying like 20 acres there, and I was going to build a house with the garage with, for my little boy car spot in my Lamborghini in like.

[Jonathan Walton]

And then what would you do for money?

[TJ Dominguez]

What do you mean what do I do for money? I own 12 businesses.

[Host 1]

So you had enough money to just walk away from the cocaine?

[TJ Dominguez]

I own the biggest dealership in the world.

[Host 1]

So that was bringing in a ton of money.

[TJ Dominguez]

Yeah, well, I didn't really care what it was bringing in because I'm bringing in, I got accounts in Europe.

[Host 1]

Yeah.

[TJ Dominguez]

With millions.

[Host 1]

So you had enough money in your mind you didn't need to, you didn't want to smuggle coke anymore.

[TJ Dominguez]

You know, I don't need any more money. I'm the biggest cell phone company of South Florida. You know, I had, I have a construction business, 120 homes I'm building. Everything around me is paid for. My airplanes are paid for. All these airplanes, there's no loans anywhere. So I had an investment company. I had the bank Jefferson Banks under contract. I was buying them. I had to already pick the board of director and everything for it. I have keys to four cities in the state of Florida. And I was invited for dinner with Reagan. I was a member of the young inner circle Republican party. Now I belong to one party, the Tito party. And I leave all that politic out of my life because they're all a bunch of crooks. They're the ones that should be in prison.

[Jonathan Walton]

Regardless, the fact remains, in early 1988, TJ wants out of cocaine smuggling. But Pablo Escobar and his company of cocaine cohorts are not happy about it. Not at all. And they push back.

[TJ Dominguez]

They asked me, man, you know, what are we gonna do, you know, blah, blah. They made it sound like we, you're our go to guy, you're our money. So I told them. And by the way, before I said anything, I started slowing down the trips. I can't go. I got the plane in the shop, you know, I'm waiting on another engine, I'm doing this, I'm doing that. So instead of doing popping them one a week, I'm not bringing it down to like maybe 22 trips a month. I don't need the cash.

[Host 1]

And then are you getting fill ins for your absences?

[TJ Dominguez]

So that's what I told him. I said, what I'll do is I'll bring in other people. So you guys are not going to miss me, you know, and I'll always be here. The last thing I'm going to do is end this, this relationship on a bad note.

[Host 1]

So you started, you started not doing as many trips, you started finding him other pilots to smuggle.

[TJ Dominguez]

Yeah, yeah.

[Host 1]

And you were getting out of getting Out. And then, knock, knock, agents arrest you.

[Jonathan Walton]

And at the time of his arrest, TJ has some unfinished business in the Bahamas.

[TJ Dominguez]

The day I got arrested, I left a thousand kilos in. Great inaugural.

[Host 1]

Whatever happened to it?

[TJ Dominguez]

I lost him $30 million. Someone took it, I was gone.

[Host 1]

Yeah, I didn't.

[TJ Dominguez]

Come on. Two years later, wow, great. In agua, I left thousand kilos.

[Jonathan Walton]

On the street. That thousand kilos of cocaine is worth hundreds of millions of dollars. I can only imagine what whoever found TJ's ton of coke did with it. Maybe they sold it and made a fortune. Maybe they turned it over to the police. Or maybe they just powdered their nose. Since TJ's been out of prison, he's been rubbing shoulders with some pretty impressive people to trying to get his new business, his new legitimate business up and running. He's been meeting with consultants, investors, stockbrokers.

[TJ Dominguez]

The stock broker guy goes, all right, so listen. So you were in the cocaine business. A lot of people were in the drug business, A lot of people were. Not everybody made zillions of dollars like you. So you know what? You show me you know how to make.

[Jonathan Walton]

And whatever happened to all that money TJ made? He had tens of millions of dollars stashed all over the place in the US and in Switzerland. I'm in TJ's car now. He's driving me around South Florida. We're going to grab breakfast, when he suddenly drops this on me.

[TJ Dominguez]

I have $5 million and a house buried over there.

[Host 1]

You had 5 million, like buried in the ground?

[TJ Dominguez]

Yeah, as a matter of fact, it was in somebody's living room with towel over it. And it was for. For emergencies where I couldn't get the money from Switzerland quick enough over here.

[Jonathan Walton]

And just where is all that money today? Find out on the next episode of Cocaine Air.

[TJ Dominguez]

That was just for an emergency case that something drastic happened. I needed to get my hands on a couple of million dollars.

[Jonathan Walton]

To see some incre. Incredible photographs documenting TJ's life, go to cocainair.com and if you're enjoying Cocaine Air, please hit that share button and text it to your friends and family right now. And if you feel comfortable, leave us a five star review. Reviews really help other listeners find us. Cocaine Air was created, written and executive produced by me, Jonathan Walton for Jonathan Walton Media. Except executive producers Evan Goldstein and the inimitable TJ Dominguez. Audio engineering by me, Jonathan Walton. Sound design and editing for this episode was done by Mike Smith and the Cocaine Air cover art is by Bobby Animation. We've got a lot of fascinating untold stories like cocaine air coming down the pike at Jonathan Walton Media. So subscribe and keep an ear out.

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