Bad Cops | 4. The Man Behind the Curtain

Summary

The Burden | Season 7: Bad Cops
Episode 4: The Man Behind the Curtain
Date: July 14, 2026
Host: Jessica Lussenhop (BBC World Service)

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Episode Overview

This episode pulls back the curtain on the criminal conspiracy that rotted Baltimore’s Gun Trace Task Force (GTTF) from the inside. The spotlight lands on Donnie Stepp—a former bail bondsman and prolific drug dealer—whose unlikely partnership with GTTF’s “Golden Boy,” Sergeant Wayne Jenkins, helped power one of the most audacious corruption scandals in recent law enforcement history. Through candid interviews and chilling anecdotes, host Jessica Lussenhop reveals how a decorated cop became a key supplier in the city’s underworld, and how Stepp’s evolving conscience threatened to bring the whole operation down.

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Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. Introducing Donnie Stepp and the Nature of His Crimes

• Who is Donnie Stepp? (03:27)
  • Stepp describes himself as “just an interesting guy that unfortunately found myself in a pretty bad situation.”
  • Fresh out of prison, wearing an ankle monitor, Stepp discusses the conditions of his house arrest.
  • Quote: “It's better than sitting inside of a federal penal institution. So I'll take the ankle bracelet.” (04:16)
• Life of Crime (04:32)
  • A career drug dealer, Stepp’s latest conviction: conspiracy involving crack, heroin, cocaine, MDMA, and more.
  • Admits Motivation: “Greed. When I testified about greed, it was the truth, and none of it was worth it.” (04:53)

2. The Card Game Connection: Where Cops and Criminals Rub Elbows

• Genesis of the Police-Dealer Partnership (05:17–06:00)
  • Stepp’s introduction to Jenkins and other officers at illegal card games.
  • These games were environments where cops bragged openly about street exploits, offering Stepp an “insight into the mindset of the police department.”
  • Quote: “These unbelievable stories that are true.” (06:00)

3. Jenkins & Stepp: From Acquaintances to Criminal Partners

• Rekindling Old Ties (08:08–08:48)
  • Jenkins was the younger brother of a friend Stepp grew up with—“They were well known within our neck of the woods.”
  • By the time of the card games, Stepp was running Double D Bail Bonds and selling high-level narcotics with connections to Colombian and Dominican cartels.
• The Conspiracy Begins (09:28)
  • On a drive to the casino, Jenkins feels Stepp out: “He asked me if I knew people that could take the drugs...that was how the conspiracy was originated.”
  • Jenkins—celebrated for street busts—now becomes Stepp’s major supplier, providing confiscated drugs at rock-bottom prices.
  • Quote: “He didn’t realize he was sitting next to probably one of the biggest dealers in Baltimore County.” (10:16)

4. The Mechanics of Corruption: How Stolen Drugs Moved from Evidence Room to Streets

• Overflowing Storage (10:48–12:11)
  • Jenkins supplied so much product—often more than Stepp could move.
  • Drugs included cocaine, heroin, crack, MDMA, and large amounts of marijuana; “I had chests and safes that were just full of marijuana. The whole house was [full]…I can’t take no more.” (11:21)
• Profitable Pricing (12:11–12:45)
  • Jenkins’ prices destroyed the competition: a $40,000 kilo of cocaine cost Stepp only $15,000.
  • Stepp’s cartel suppliers became suspicious: “Don't get me wrong. You cross them, they'll kill you.” (12:58)
  • Jenkins joked: “You could actually have more...narcotics here than the evidence room in Baltimore City Police Department.” (12:58)
• Brazen Operations
  • Step describes walking into police HQ to pick up drugs, wearing a tac vest and gun, even posing for photos to send as excuses for being late.
  • Memorable Moment: Jenkins gives Stepp police gear for a selfie to fool his girlfriend. (14:26–14:58)

5. Behind the Facade: Jenkins’ Double Life and Unchecked Power

• No Fear of Consequence (15:13)
  • Jenkins made Stepp feel the GTTF was “untouchable...they basically ran the city.”
• Freddie Gray, Civil Unrest, and More Stolen Drugs (15:13–17:30)
  • After Freddie Gray’s death and the resulting chaos, Jenkins stole two bags full of prescription meds from looted pharmacies and delivered them to Stepp.
  • Quote: “He’s delivering pharmacies to you. I mean. I mean, there’s not too many people that can do that, but he could.” (16:57)
  • The duo Google-stamped the pills to identify saleable goods—most valueless, but the Viagra sold well.

6. “I’ve Got a Monster”: How the Task Force Targeted Big Scores

• The “Monster” System (17:49–18:16)
  • A “monster” was a narcotics dealer ripe for big money and drugs. Jenkins bragged about these scores.
• The Oree Stevenson Robbery (18:16–22:10)
  • Jenkins’ team arrested Stevenson, then called Stepp to rob Stevenson's house before police officially entered.
  • Stepp declined to actually do the break-in, unnerved by Jenkins’ risk-taking and by seeing a child at the house.
  • He watched Jenkins and the GTTF execute the burglary, then accepted bricks of cocaine through his car window afterwards.
  • Quote (Donnie Stepp): “He looked like Santa Claus. His vest is protruded...It was impressive to get that much inside a police vest.” (21:22)
  • Jenkins short-changed Stepp—eight kilos missing: “My math tells me there's eight missing. I was kind of disappointed… looking at a million-dollar street value.” (22:10)

7. Growing Anxiety and Recording Evidence

• Stepp’s Fears Mount (22:22–23:41)
  • After years of frenetic, increasingly dangerous schemes, Stepp begins surreptitiously documenting their activities—on his phone—as insurance.
  • Stepp sets boundaries: “I just told him point blank I’m not doing [burglaries]...I stopped going with him.”
  • Quote: “He was pitching many different capers and jobs. I told him I'm not into the burglaries. I'm not doing them.” (22:43)
  • Realized it was “trouble and knew it.”

8. The Breaking Point

• Stepp’s Epiphany (25:14–26:08)
  • By early 2017, Stepp watches Jenkins party on a dance floor, realizing the cop is not invincible—“too eccentric, too volatile, too dangerous...I had to get away from him.”
  • Cliffhanger Quote: “All of a sudden I get a phone call and my heart…just went boom.” (26:08)

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Motivation for Crime:
  “When I testified about greed, it was the truth, and none of it was worth it.”
  — Donnie Stepp (04:53)

• On size of Jenkins’ smuggling:
  “You could actually have more…narcotics here than the evidence room in Baltimore City Police Department.”
  — Wayne Jenkins to Donnie Stepp, relayed by Stepp (12:58)

• On Jenkins’ audacity:
  “He was delivering pharmacies to you…there’s not too many people that can do that.”
  — Donnie Stepp (16:57)

• On refusing to cross certain lines:
  “I told him point blank I'm not doing them [burglaries]…even though my criminality is not right...just certain things that I just don't cross over into.”
  — Donnie Stepp (22:43)

• On Jenkins’ unpredictability:
  “He was just too eccentric, too volatile, too dangerous. I mean, it's just that simple. I could see it after I got further into the conspiracy where I had to get away from him.”
  — Donnie Stepp (25:49)

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Important Segment Timestamps

• 03:27 – Donnie Stepp introduces himself and life on house arrest
• 04:53 – Stepp articulates remorse; admits “greed” was the driver
• 06:00 – Card games with Baltimore city cops, “unbelievable stories that are true”
• 09:28 – The origin of Stepp and Jenkins’ conspiracy partnership
• 10:48–12:11 – Describes the overwhelming supply of stolen drugs
• 14:26 – The “undercover” selfie incident at police HQ
• 15:13–16:57 – Jenkins’ actions during the Freddie Gray unrest; stealing pharmaceuticals
• 17:49–18:16 – Explaining the slang “monster”
• 19:08–22:10 – The Oree Stevenson robbery and Jenkins’ Santa Claus moment
• 22:43 – Stepp’s decision to start surreptitiously recording operations
• 25:49 – The realization Jenkins is a grave threat, and the partnership must end

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Tone & Style

The episode leans heavily into the gritty, confessional candor of its subjects. Jessica Lussenhop’s narration is probing but empathetic, giving Stepp room to detail both the mechanics and moral consequences of his criminal partnership. The episode is rich in vivid, first-person anecdotes highlighting the blurred lines between protectors and predators in Baltimore policing.

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Summary Wrap-Up

This chapter paints an explosive, granular portrait of how systemic police corruption can root itself in personal desperation, opportunism, and unchecked power. Donnie Stepp’s perspective as the Gun Trace Task Force’s criminal confidant puts listeners on the inside of an operation where greed, arrogance, and impunity reigned—until paranoia, guilt, and fear began to unravel the alliance. The episode ends on a cliffhanger, setting up Stepp’s pivotal role as witness and—potentially—whistleblower.

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For more on the unraveling of the Gun Trace Task Force—and what comes next—stay tuned for the next installment of The Burden: Bad Cops.

Transcript

[Ben Nadifaffrey]

Thirty years ago, an island off Manhattan almost brought down New York City.

[Podcast Narrator/Promoter]

Who will you trust? Your friends and neighbors? Who will you trust? The people five miles overseas.

[Ben Nadifaffrey]

This is a story about neighbors turning on each other and what happens when a forgotten place decides it's had enough.

[Commercial/Ad Voice]

But we're not stopping, are we?

[Ben Nadifaffrey]

Listen to revisionist history. The Staten island problem on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

[Podcast Host/Advertiser]

A quick reminder, all episodes are available now with a subscription. To subscribe, go to True Crime Clubhouse on Apple podcasts. It's just $2.99 a month, half the price of a cafe latte. Please follow us on Instagram, TikTok and YouTube. Orbitmediaf.

[Jessica Lussenhop]

Previously on Bad Cops. FBI agent Erica Jensen is months into an investigation of the Gun Trace Task Force, a unit of the Baltimore Police Department that she now believes is corrupt to the core. But the warning signs have been there for some time. Years earlier, Gary Brown was stopped in his car by a couple of cops, and $11,000 disappeared from his trunk.

[Commercial/Ad Voice]

I was robbed by Baltimore City Police.

[Jessica Lussenhop]

So he made a complaint, banged on the door.

[Commercial/Ad Voice]

The police took my money.

[Jessica Lussenhop]

And later, one of the cops who stopped him is asked to join an elite plainclothes unit, the Gun Trace Task Force. Over the years, similar complaints are made about the other officers from the squad, but none of them stick. And money's not the only thing going missing when these officers are on duty. There's another major player in the crimes of the Gun Trace Task Force. He's not a cop, but he's more tangled up in this conspiracy than anyone realizes.

[Donnie Stepp]

I'd already been into the drug game for, you know, the majority of my life. I was more of a cocaine dealer, and that was my expertise.

[Jessica Lussenhop]

He's gonna take us down a rabbit hole. Deep into the double life of Sergeant Wayne Jenkins.

[Ben Nadifaffrey]

Jessica.

[Jessica Lussenhop]

I'm Jessica Lussenhop, and this is Bad Cops from the BBC World. The true story of Baltimore's Gun Trace Task Force, Part four. The man behind the curtain. Test, 1, 2, 1, 2. Test, test, test. I'm sitting in an office building just outside of Baltimore across from a man I've been trying for ages to get to talk to me. I feel like this has kind of been a long time coming. I feel like we've been talking about doing this for what, like, three years?

[Donnie Stepp]

Yeah, it's been. It's been quite a while. It's been a journey, though.

[Podcast Narrator/Promoter]

You.

[Donnie Stepp]

You have no idea what the legal steps that me and my attorneys had to take coming through all this. So good thing for my friend Marshall Hensley here that he decided to keep fighting with me all the way through. And that's why we're sitting here today in this office.

[Jessica Lussenhop]

Tell me your name and introduce yourself however you'd like to.

[Donnie Stepp]

I'm Donnie Stepp. Just an interesting guy that unfortunately found myself in a pretty bad situation.

[Jessica Lussenhop]

Donnie Step is 55 years old. He's got this perfectly bald head and a short, light colored beard. He's wearing a huge gold cross on a chain and a T shirt that says Believe. His lawyer is sitting to my right, listening in, making sure his client doesn't say anything that could get him into trouble. Well, more trouble. Anyway. Donnie Stepp got out of prison six months ago. When we meet, he's on a strict schedule. He's wearing an ankle monitor, and he's got to get back home by midday or he'll break the conditions of his house arrest. Is it annoying? Like, can you take it off ever?

[Donnie Stepp]

No, I wouldn't suggest it. I have feeling that we could end up back in front of the court. So you have to sleep, shower everywhere. It comes with you. It's better than sitting inside of a federal penal institution. So I'll take the. I'll take the ankle bracelet.

[Jessica Lussenhop]

Donnie Stepp's been in and out of prison since he was a kid, mainly for drugs. And his most recent conviction was for his role in a drug conspiracy, possession with intent to distribute crack, heroin, cocaine, mdma, and other controlled substances. When I ask him why he did it, he doesn't hesitate.

[Donnie Stepp]

Greed. When I testified about greed, it was the truth, and none of it was worth it. Now, looking back, I just didn't realize how much damage. And for that, I'm extremely remorseful and I'm sorry. And that's a part of the story that I hope that you also convey is just how. How sorry I truly am.

[Jessica Lussenhop]

This particular chapter in Step's Life begins around 2011, when he gets an invite to an underground card game, and he just can't say no to a game of cards.

[Donnie Stepp]

I've been alleged to have a gambling problem. As my attorney rolls his eyes, he would say allegations.

[Jessica Lussenhop]

But anyway, pretty much all of what Donnie Stepp's about to tell me is what he told the FBI and a jury. I can't independently verify everything he says, but at this card game, we know that a bunch of the regular players were Baltimore city cops who just couldn't help bragging about their exploits on the streets.

[Donnie Stepp]

I got to hear the stories and the different things that were going on in the city and we would gamble and play cards. So that was. It was just a unique insight, I guess, into the mindset of the police department and the operational things that were going on. I would hear about that. These unbelievable stories that are true.

[Jessica Lussenhop]

Step loved to hear about these high profile arrests and drug busts. One of the loudest storytellers and a regular fixture at these games was Wayne Jenkins, the future leader of the Gun trace Task force, the unit leading the city's fight against illegal weapons.

[Commercial/Ad Voice]

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[Donnie Stepp]

Refreshers contain caffeine.

[Ben Nadifaffrey]

Thirty years ago, an island off Manhattan almost brought down New York City.

[Podcast Narrator/Promoter]

Who will you trust your friends and neighbors? Or will you trust the people five miles overseas?

[Ben Nadifaffrey]

This is a story about neighbors turning on each other and what happens when a forgotten place decides it's had enough.

[Commercial/Ad Voice]

We reached for a feeling that exists in this city. But we're not stopping, are we?

[Ben Nadifaffrey]

I'm Ben Nadifafry, and for my new series on revisionist history, I took a deep dive into Staten Island's attempt to secede from New York city in the 1990s and what it all has to do with the politics of resentment that dominate America today. Listen to revisionist the Staten island problem on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

[Jessica Lussenhop]

Donnie Stepp had gone to school with members of the Jenkins family. He'd known them for decades.

[Donnie Stepp]

Wayne was the little brother of a friend that I went to school with, a friend that I known. And we'd run around together and everything. So they were well known within our neck of the woods.

[Jessica Lussenhop]

But around the time they were playing cards together, Stepp hadn't seen Jenkins for years. Donnie Stepp had been trying to straighten out his life. He got married and had a daughter. He worked in real estate and then started up his own bail bond company, Double D Bail Bonds. But things started to slip at the time of the card games.

[Commercial/Ad Voice]

He.

[Jessica Lussenhop]

He was addicted to gambling, and he'd also started dealing drugs. And this wasn't small time, Step says he was dealing directly with Colombian and Dominican cartels.

[Donnie Stepp]

I was already inside the underground in the world, so I had my own connection so I could get anything That I needed delivered.

[Jessica Lussenhop]

As Wayne Jenkins and step get closer, the cop can tell that his new buddy isn't exactly on the straight and narrow. And Jenkins senses an opportunity. One night, they head out to a casino.

[Donnie Stepp]

That was where the conspiracy come together. As we were driving, he was feeling me out. I knew that's what he was doing. He asked me if I knew people that could take the drugs. You know, basically like, if you can do it, you got people that can take this, we can make some money. And I said, yeah, I said, I know a few people. So that was how the conspiracy was originated.

[Jessica Lussenhop]

At this point in his career, Wayne Jenkins is known as a hard charging cop with a reputation for getting drugs off the streets. But he's now entered into a criminal partnership with a major Baltimore drug dealer. Because as a cop doing regular drug busts, Jenkins has access to all kinds of narcotics. And he's offering to be Donny Stepp's supplier.

[Donnie Stepp]

He knew that I had the connection, so I was perfect for him. You know, he didn't realize he was sitting next to probably one of the biggest dealers in Baltimore county, which at the time I was doing rather swell. But I didn't let people know that I was never one that let people know what I was truly doing behind the scenes. For every atom bomb, it takes plutonium, and it takes, you know, it takes. It takes the right elements to make it. And unfortunately, I was a part of those elements.

[Jessica Lussenhop]

Almost as soon as Step agrees, Wayne Jenkins starts showing up at his house at all hours. He has his own key to a storage shed behind Step's house, and he's dropping off all kinds of stuff. As well as cocaine, there's heroin, crack, mdma, and marijuana.

[Donnie Stepp]

I never really dealt marijuana, was more of a cocaine dealer, and that was my expertise.

[Jessica Lussenhop]

Step scrambles to find new customers for all these drugs that Jenkins is bringing him. And pretty soon it's just overwhelming.

[Donnie Stepp]

I mean, I couldn't keep up with him. It was just an abundance of narcotics. Street rips this, that things that weren't making it to the evidence room. I was just shocked. And then he was bringing drugs that just wasn't my cup of tea. I don't deal heroin. I don't like it. It's not my thing. But he would have such an abundance of that that he ended up storing at my place that would just accumulate over years. That was just staggering. I had chests and safes that were just full of marijuana. The whole house was. I was like, oh, my God, I gotta get. I can't take no more. You know what I mean? It's like, even with my connections, I can't move the weight of what he's bringing to me. I just can't do it.

[Jessica Lussenhop]

The shed keeps filling up, and Donnie Stepp starts stashing drugs all over his house, even though he can't keep up with the supply. Wayne Jenkins is giving him drugs for pennies on the dollar. For a kilo of cocaine, Step would pay his usual supply almost $40,000. But with Jenkins, it was just 15,000.

[Donnie Stepp]

I could outdo anybody on the streets with any price. I was business 101. Some people would look at me like, how can you do this? You know, you don't need to know.

[Jessica Lussenhop]

Wayne Jenkins is supplying his friend with so many narcotics that Step's old Dominican and Colombian connections start wondering why he's not coming around around anymore, which is its own potentially dangerous problem.

[Donnie Stepp]

Don't get me wrong. You cross them, they'll kill you. It's just that simple. It'd be like, is everything all right? I mean, like, what's going on? Have you going somewhere else? You know what I mean? And it's like, I can't tell them, you know, like, hey, I got a new supply now coming from the police department. And, you know, I can't say that. Wayne at one point in time, said to me at the house, you know, you could actually have more. More drugs and narcotics here than the evidence room in Baltimore City Police Department.

[Jessica Lussenhop]

If Jenkins came across a really big score, he'd call his friend ahead of time to tell him to be ready.

[Donnie Stepp]

I always knew it was something big. If he would call me on either the burner phone that he had or contact me, and if it was late, tell me to open the garage door, I knew that it was something substantial coming.

[Jessica Lussenhop]

Wayne Jenkins even starts bringing his friend down to Baltimore Police Department headquarters. He tells him, don't worry about it. The other police officers will just assume you're a federal agent walking through the

[Donnie Stepp]

police department with stolen drugs. I mean, I'd be walking by dozens and dozens of officers and getting on the same elevators and stuff with them parked in the SWAT parking lot. And I'm like, okay, I'm coming out with the next shipment from you guys, and you're waving at me.

[Jessica Lussenhop]

You were there actually picking up stuff many times.

[Donnie Stepp]

Be parking inside of headquarters and picking up a shipment.

[Jessica Lussenhop]

One time, Jenkins brings Step to his Baltimore Police department office on a quick errand.

[Donnie Stepp]

The funny thing about that was I was late for dinner, and my phone was blowing up from my Significant other, and, you know, where are you? So he said to me, he goes, here, put this on real quick and tell her that you're working undercover with me.

[Jessica Lussenhop]

Jenkins hands Step a police tactical vest and a gun belt, and he starts taking pictures. I've seen these photos. They're pretty crazy. In one of them, Step's got his hand on the holster of the gun. In another, he's crouched in a shooter's position pointing the gun.

[Donnie Stepp]

We're laughing. We're laughing so hard inside of there. And I go ahead and put this on and we send a text. They're saying, look, I'm busy right now. I can't make it. So it was nothing but us joking around. That's the story behind that.

[Jessica Lussenhop]

Working this way, it made Donnie's Step feel like Jenkins was untouchable, that he and his gun trace task force basically ran the city. It was all reward and no risk. I've long thought of Donnie Stepp as kind of this man behind the curtain. Because of their drug dealing partnership, Step had a front row seat to the double life that Jenkins was leading. And he saw just how blatant he could be when breaking the law. In April 2015, a young black man named Freddie Gray died in police custody. It was a seismic moment in Baltimore's history. His death sparked protests throughout the city and once again put a spotlight on police brutality in the US the day of Gray's funeral, violence and looting broke out. With the Police under attack, Sgt. Wayne Jenkins went into superhero mode. He commandeered a van to rescue officers. The department later gave him a bronze star for bravery. But Donnie Stepp has very different memories of Jenkins from that day. He says that during some of the worst violence, Jenkins showed up with two garbage bags filled with prescription drugs. Andy says Jenkins had stolen these drugs directly from people who were looting pharmacies during the unrest.

[Donnie Stepp]

That's his M.O. that's where he's at. That's what he does. Basically, he was out on the streets. He just didn't walk into the pharmacy himself, I don't believe. But who knows? Anything I know is that he had him.

[Jessica Lussenhop]

This was one of those nights when Jenkins called Step to tell him he's got something really special.

[Donnie Stepp]

He told me to open the garage door, and he had two large bags just loaded in it. You know, I'm just like, what is it? Stuff that's been stolen from the pharmacies. There was so much drugs in one of the bags that it tore and it spilled out. And it really got me nervous because I Have animals and stuff. It was just too much, over the top drugs. I didn't even know what drugs were. I mean, it was just, you know, here you are, he's delivering pharmacies to you. I mean. I mean, there's not too many people that can do that, but he could.

[Jessica Lussenhop]

Jenkins and Step sat together, Googling the stamps and the numbers on all the stolen pills, trying to figure out what they actually had. Most of it turns out to be worthless, except for the Viagra that sold well. But Step knew that what really got Jenkins going were his monsters.

[Donnie Stepp]

I've got a monster. It was one of his slang terms for a major narcotics dealer. So when he would say them words, we all knew what that meant. And to us, it wasn't a nickel, dime show or something like that. It could potentially be millions. So those were the words. Believe it or not, when you're involved in the illegal stuff that you do want to hear because you realize that this could be a significant score in Jenkins mind.

[Jessica Lussenhop]

The term monster described Oree Stevenson perfectly. Stevenson was the guy the task force cops arrested with a load of cocaine and cash in the back of his minivan. And Jenkins was convinced he had a whole lot more back home. So that's where he and his officers headed next.

[Commercial/Ad Voice]

Hey, Sarge.

[Podcast Narrator/Promoter]

Hey.

[Commercial/Ad Voice]

Come downstairs right quick.

[Jessica Lussenhop]

They about to get it open. In Stevenson's basement, they filmed themselves breaking into his safe full of cash after tossing $100,000 in a bag for themselves. But that's not all Sergeant Jenkins was up to. At some point between arresting Stephenson and busting open his safe, Jenkins called his friend Donnie Stepp and said those four magic words.

[Donnie Stepp]

I've got a monster.

[Jessica Lussenhop]

Jenkins gives him Stevenson's address. He tells him to hurry. There are 10 kilos of cocaine and stacks of cash in the house. He wants his friend to get to the house before they do and take the drugs and money. In other words, rob the place.

[Donnie Stepp]

He wants me to come and extract the money and drugs that he's claiming is there. But you gotta understand, you gotta understand, oftentimes he would exaggerate. He's a live wire and extremely dangerous individual. He claims that he's got a monster. So he wanted me to come to this address, kick in the back door. Nobody's there. You know, it's all simple stuff. He'll hang back. There's nothing to worry about.

[Jessica Lussenhop]

Selling hundreds of thousands of dollars in stolen drugs is one thing, but home invasions and burglaries, that's not really Donny Stepp's line of work. And his friend, Sergeant Jenkins. Crazy risk taking is starting to make him nervous.

[Donnie Stepp]

When you know that you're dealing with a person whose elevator's not clicking on all floors, you know you gotta proceed with caution. So you know, I was torn. It was a paradox in both ways. He's telling me it's simple, just kick the door in and extract it. There's 10 kilograms of cocaine here as soon as you come through the door. Altogether, it's around $1.75 million in drugs and cash.

[Jessica Lussenhop]

Step is not a fan of this plan, but he can't keep himself from thinking about all that money.

[Donnie Stepp]

1.75 has me interested. You know, I'd be lying if I told you I wasn't interested for 1.75 million.

[Jessica Lussenhop]

He jumps in his car and speeds over to Oree Stevenson's house. But when he gets there, he sees somebody at the back door. It's a young boy. It totally spooks him. He's scared that the house could be full of people. So he drives two blocks further up and watches through a pair of binoculars. He sees the gun trace task force arrive with Jenkins directing the whole show. He watches as they enter the house. Eventually he spots Jenkins leaving alone.

[Donnie Stepp]

He looked like Santa Claus. His vest is protruded. As I figured he had all the drugs and all the money on him. I was like, wow, that is impressive to be able to get that much inside of a police vest. He heads to the back of the unmarked car. He pops the trunk. I see him throw the bag in. He gets on the phone. He doesn't realize where I'm sitting. I'm looking right at him. He says, where are you? I'm like, I'm looking at you. He says, don't come up close. He says, shoot straight down that road. I shot down the road. He come flying up behind me with the unmarked car. He pops open the passenger side of my vehicle. At that time, bricks of cocaine start flying into my vehicle. He had the money and drugs. The problem was he just didn't have as much as I thought that he did. I'm looking at him and I'm like, where's the rest of them? You know what I mean?

[Podcast Host/Advertiser]

2.

[Donnie Stepp]

My math tells me there's eight missing. I was kind of disappointed because I realized that, hey, if he gets all that in here, you know, we're looking at a million dollar street value.

[Jessica Lussenhop]

These frantic last minute heists are grinding Step's nerves down. And after five years of this, he's starting to get worried. He's pretty sure their luck is gonna run out soon. And so he starts recording their crimes on his phone. He's not exactly sure what for. He just has this feeling like he needs some extra insurance.

[Donnie Stepp]

I document it in pictures because there's something inside of me that's telling me it's just not adding up, you know? I mean, he's. He's dangerous. You know what I mean? And I know that. I know he's deceptive. I know he's dangerous. He was pitching many different capers and jobs. I told him I'm not into the burglaries. I'm not doing them. I just told him point blank I'm not doing them. Even though my criminality is not right, but just certain things that I just don't cross over into that I'm just not into. He didn't like that. What's wrong with you? Several million dollars. I don't care what's in there, you know, I mean, it's just. It's not worth losing my life or someone else losing their life with a crazy like you coming through the door. So, you know, I had to look at the paradox in many different ways. So I just told him no. And I. I stopped going with him. Like, you know, you don't need me. Do your own gig. I know how heavily involved that I've been for years. And I've been the go to guy to sell millions of dollars in drugs for him. I knew that this is trouble and knew it.

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[Ben Nadifaffrey]

Thirty years ago, an island off Manhattan almost brought down New York City.

[Podcast Narrator/Promoter]

Who will you trust? Your friends and neighbors? Or will you trust the people five miles overseas?

[Ben Nadifaffrey]

This is a story about neighbors turning on each other and what happens when a forgotten place decides it's had enough.

[Commercial/Ad Voice]

We reached for a feeling that exists in this city. But we're not stopping, are we?

[Ben Nadifaffrey]

I'm Ben Nadifaffrey, and for my new series on revisionist history, I took a deep dive into Staten Island's attempt to secede from New York city in the 1990s. And what it all has to do with the politics of resentment that dominate America today. Listen to Revisionist the Staten island problem on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

[Jessica Lussenhop]

Again, as with the rest of Donnie's Step's story, I have no way to independently check every detail, but it's the same account he gave the FBI and a jury. Sometime in the winter of 2017, they go to a party together. Step is watching Jenkins like a hawk. He gets out his phone and starts secretly filming him on the dance floor. As he's watching him, Step no longer sees Jenkins as this untouchable super cop, and he realizes that he needs to bring this friendship, albeit a very lucrative one, to an end.

[Donnie Stepp]

I could see that something was wrong with him, so I knew that there had to be an end game. He was just too eccentric, too volatile, too dangerous. I mean, it's just that simple. I could see it after I got further into the conspiracy where I had to get away from him.

[Jessica Lussenhop]

I knew it, but it's already too late.

[Donnie Stepp]

All of a sudden I get a phone call and my heart heart just went boom.

[Jessica Lussenhop]

That's next time. You've been listening to Bad Cops from the BBC World Service with me, Jessica Lussenhop. The program was mixed by Neil Churchill, additional mixing by James Beard. The producer is Ben Crichton, and the editor is Richard Varden.

[Podcast Host/Advertiser]

If you're enjoying Bad Cops, make sure to check out season one of the Burden. You'll meet the greatest detective in Brooklyn history. He takes on the worst criminals until one day the criminals take him on. The official language of football is trash talk, late night group chats, memes and unbelievable highlights clips. That's why Boost Mobile brings you our new global connection plan. The first plan ever made for WhatsApp. Get unlimited data, talk and text, international roaming and calls to over 100 countries for just $40 a month. $40 price includes $5 a month autopay discount after 40 gigabytes of premium high speed data speeds will be lowered. Coverage not available everywhere. Visit store or boostmobile.com for details.

[Podcast Narrator/Promoter]

Thanks for joining our first ever support group for puppies by show of pause, who's eaten a computer cable called a dongle?

[Jessica Lussenhop]

I ate a dongle before we had

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[Donnie Stepp]

vet bill they waited for me to poop the dongle.

[Jessica Lussenhop]

You pooped a dongle?

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I pooped a dongle. You pooped a dongle?

[Donnie Stepp]

I pooped a dongle.

[Commercial/Ad Voice]

I pooped a USB stick. Yeah, but he pooped a dongle.

[Podcast Narrator/Promoter]

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[Donnie Stepp]

Save up to 90% at the vet, so you never have to find out if your pup can poop a dongle.

[Ben Nadifaffrey]

Get a'@lemonade.com pet 30 years ago, an island off Manhattan almost brought down New York City.

[Podcast Narrator/Promoter]

Who will you trust? Your friends and neighbors? Who will you trust? The people five miles overseas.

[Ben Nadifaffrey]

This is a story about neighbors turning on each other and what happens when a forgotten place decides it's had enough.

[Commercial/Ad Voice]

But we're not stopping, are we?

[Ben Nadifaffrey]

Listen to Revisionist the Staten island problem on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.