Wild Bill - The Cartel Hitman - P1

Summary

Podcast Summary

Podcast: What I Survived
Host: Jack Laurence
Episode: Wild Bill – The Cartel Hitman – Part 1
Date: March 31, 2026

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Overview:

In this gripping episode, Jack Laurence dives into the life and transformation of William Dathan Hulbert, better known as "Wild Bill," who went from an all-American upbringing to infamy as a cartel hitman and, eventually, a prison chaplain in Panama. Through direct interviews with Bill—recorded via WhatsApp from a maximum-security cell—Jack unravels the events, decisions, and moral junctions that led Bill down his notorious path, offering candid insights and first-hand accounts into a world rarely seen.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Introduction to Wild Bill

• Jack sets the scene, discussing the phenomenon of American fugitives fleeing justice by escaping abroad, particularly to Central and South America. He introduces William Dathan Hulbert—now known as "Wild Bill"—as one of the most infamous, who fully admits to his crimes unlike other guests Jack has interviewed.
  Quote:

  "Everyone I've spoken to so far has denied any wrongdoing. Whereas Bill fully admits to his crimes." (Jack Laurence, 04:39)

2. Wild Bill’s Background: An Unexpected Start

• Bill shares that he grew up in a wholesome, rural Christian environment in western North Carolina, with a normal, hardworking childhood and no history of abuse, trauma, or early violent tendencies.
  Quote:

  “I had a really normal upbringing... I never did any of that stuff… cookie-cutter American life.” (Wild Bill, 08:06)

• He managed bees on his family’s farm, played football, and went to “Redneck Tech”—Blue Ridge Community College—studying agriculture.
  Memorable Moment:
  The contrast between his seemingly idyllic past and the man he would become.

3. Early Criminal Enterprises

• Bill admits to having an entrepreneurial streak that edged into illegality, starting with selling stolen goods, cable TV "black boxes," and eventually forging driver’s licenses in college.
  Quote:

  “Certainly illegal, but right on the edge of being illegal, but also socially acceptable… I sold stolen equipment—I didn't steal it myself, but I sold stolen equipment.” (Wild Bill, 09:50)

• He describes nearly being caught by the State Bureau of Investigation, only to talk his way out by leveraging his legitimate business fronts.

4. Downfall: Divorce and the Breaking Point

• After starting a family young and running several successful businesses, everything crashed following his divorce in 2004.
• Bill identifies his unfair family court experience—where he was jailed for contempt due to an impossible payment order and denied access to his children—as the emotional trigger that propelled him into a life of crime.
  Quote:

  "If they want a criminal, I'm going to show them the best damn criminal there is. And that's what I did." (Wild Bill, 15:02)

5. On the Run: Escaping the US

• Bill details acquiring large sums of money “through means he can’t fully discuss” and his strategic, multi-country escape by boat and plane, evading authorities at each turn.
  Quote:

  "I couldn't make enough fake IDs… I knew that I was really short for the world, you know. It wasn't going to be long before the authorities caught up with me." (Wild Bill, 16:12)

• He finds Costa Rica to be the safest haven, blending into a bustling international community on the Caribbean coast.

6. Immersing in Costa Rica’s Criminal World

• Bill describes his life in the expat surf town of Puerto Viejo de Talamanca, living with Italian exiles and working out of the Arecife bar—initially enjoying himself, but soon entangled in local violence.
• He recounts an early violent confrontation:
  • Witnessing Italian friends threatened by armed men, Bill calmly intervenes, disarms a gunman after knocking him out, and shoots him in the kneecap as a warning, impressing and frightening those around him.
    Quote:

    "I hit him as hard as a human being can be hit in the face… snatched the pistol right out of his hand… just shot him in the kneecap. 'Plow.'" (Wild Bill, 24:00)

7. Induction into Organized Crime

• Bill is soon recruited by a smuggling boss (unnamed for legal reasons), running a trafficking operation transporting Chinese migrants by sea after they’re offloaded from container ships—establishing his first steps into cartel work. Quote:

  “I picked up a job running the leg from Bocas del Toro, where they were housed... to Jamaica.” (Wild Bill, 25:13)

8. Transition to Violence and Killing

• The episode closes with the promise that, in the next part, Bill will detail his first kill—claimed to be in self-defense—marking his full transformation into a professional killer. Teaser Quote:

  “He comes back and tries to tackle me… the deck was wet and I slipped… and he fell on top of me.” (Wild Bill, 26:28)

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On childhood normality vs. future violence:
  "A lot of people want to talk about how killers burn frogs and, you know, tortured dogs. I never did any of that stuff, you know... I grew up a really normal existence as a kid."
  – William Dathan Hulbert (Wild Bill), 08:06

• On the pivot point of his life:
  "If they want a criminal, I'm going to show them the best damn criminal there is. And that's what I did."
  – Wild Bill, 15:02

• On violence and his entry into the criminal underworld:
  "Violence, physical violence, is not something that even remotely bothers me at all or scares me. It's something very natural for me."
  – Wild Bill, 21:09

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Timestamps for Important Segments

• 02:14 – Bill introduces himself and his criminal background
• 08:06 – Bill describes his upbringing
• 09:50 – Early illegal hustle: cable boxes and fake IDs
• 14:05 – The custody battle that “broke” him
• 16:12 – Fleeing the US; evading law enforcement
• 18:47 – Detailed account of international escape
• 20:46 – Life and first violent confrontation in Costa Rica
• 25:13 – Smuggling job with the cartel
• 26:28 – Teaser for the first kill (to be discussed in Part 2)

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Tone & Style

The episode is candid, darkly compelling, and at times grimly humorous—anchored by Bill’s surprisingly matter-of-fact, self-effacing storytelling and Jack’s thoughtful, empathetic narration. The interplay between shock at Bill’s life choices and his oddly relatable beginnings gives the episode its emotional punch.

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Next Episode Preview

The story continues as Wild Bill recounts his first kill, the escalation of his criminal activities, and the journey toward his present role as a prison chaplain—a transformation from notorious hitman to minister behind bars.

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For more details or to explore Wild Bill’s written account of prison life, check the show notes.

Transcript

[Jack Lawrence]

Hello Legends. Before we get into the episode, just a quick heads up if you have completed Season one of what I Survived. Firstly, thank you for the incredible support for the show and all the lovely comments. I truly appreciate it. I'm madly working on season two which will be out for you very soon. In the meantime though, I have just dropped listed as Season two in what I Survived a previous show that I created a couple of years ago called Wanted. The entire show is there for you to binge while you wait for season two of what I Survived.

[William Dathan Hulbert (Wild Bill)]

ACAST Powers the World's best Podcasts. Here's a show that we recommend

[Paige Desorbo / Hannah Burner / Christy / Kelly]

hey guys. Welcome to Giggly Squad, a place where we make fun of everything but most importantly ourselves. I'm Paige Desorbo. I'm Hannah Burner. Welcome to the Squad. Giggly Squad started on Summer House when we were giggling during an inappropriate time. But of course we can't be managed so we decided to start this podcast to continue giggling. We will make fun of Pop Cult News. We're watching Fashion Trends Pep Talks where we give advice, mental health moments and games and guests. Listen to Giggly Squad on ACAST or wherever you get your podcasts.

[William Dathan Hulbert (Wild Bill)]

ACAST helps creators launch, grow and monetize their podcasts everywhere. Acast.com if they want a criminal, I'm gonna show them the best damn criminal there is. And that's what I.

[Jack Lawrence]

Each year, thousands of people facing trial or incarceration in the United States will flee. Some simply across state borders. Others will head for safe havens in other countries they may have family ties to or that have no extradition treaty with the United States. However, for those wanting an easier to reach country to hide, they'll head north for Canada or try their luck in the warmer climates of Central and South America, hoping to disappear among the crowds and live out their days on white sandy beaches. And that's exactly what the man known as Wild Bill would do.

[William Dathan Hulbert (Wild Bill)]

I'm 43 years old. I was Central America's most celebrated and sought after assassin, hitman, professional killer from 2006 until 2010. I was arrested in 2010. I'm serving 46 years for Kentucky Homicide inside the most dangerous prison in the Western Hemisphere. In that prison, I'm also the prison's chaplain. I've been here for 13 years in prison. I'm recording this from inside a super maximum security cell block in La Nueva Jolla Prison in Panama.

[Jack Lawrence]

My name's Jack Lawrence. Welcome to Wanted.

[Poetic Narrator]

I'm a wanderer of the soul. Before the end, I plan to behold But I know I'll lose myself along the way. What's gone is gone. What's past is past. Let me leave what belongs in the past.

[Jack Lawrence]

So it was after chatting with Chad Hauer that I began to do some more research in the world of wanted people, looking up stories of men and women who have been on the run from authorities. And it was while reading through these different stories that I came across William Dathan Hulbert or Wild Bill. Now, unlike Chad, Wild Bill is a man who's guilty of some very serious crimes.

[William Dathan Hulbert (Wild Bill)]

They were America's most wanted fugitives. That is until Monday.

[Jack Lawrence]

A couple who lived in Asheville is

[William Dathan Hulbert (Wild Bill)]

being detained in Nicaragua, accused in a string of killings in three different countries.

[Paige Desorbo / Hannah Burner / Christy / Kelly]

They're also facing a laundry list of charges in the US from stolen cars to a high speed chase and fraud.

[Jack Lawrence]

Sifting through articles with headlines such as American Accused of Panama Serial Killings Catching Wild Bill, the End of a Killing Spree, and An Incarcerated Hitman's Life behind bars. It all painted a pretty dark picture of a man who is now supposedly a prison chaplain.

[Paige Desorbo / Hannah Burner / Christy / Kelly]

Authorities believe this wild haired man is a chameleon of sorts, changing his look and name in every new city. Authorities have dubbed him Wild Bill, but for the first time in years, they have him right where they want him, in handcuffs.

[Jack Lawrence]

Talking to people incarcerated for murder is nothing new for me with the show One Minute Remaining. I've spoken to multiple men and women who have been convicted of the crime. However, this one was different, as everyone I've spoken to so far has denied any wrongdoing. Whereas Bill fully admits to his crimes,

[William Dathan Hulbert (Wild Bill)]

a man has now confessed to the murder of a St. Petersburg woman in Panama. The Panamanian authorities now say William Hobert admitted to killing her and at least four other people.

[Jack Lawrence]

The other major difference with this story compared to the incarcerated men and women that I speak with was the location. Over my time interviewing incarcerated men and women in the United States, I become pretty good at tracking them down and getting in touch with them. However, Bill is incarcerated in Panama. How on earth do I reach someone in a Panamanian prison? Well, their Facebook page, of course. Okay, so after doing a little bit of digging around and some investigation, while Bill has a Facebook page, of course, as you do. Okay, let's click on and see what we've got here. Called Friends of Brother Bill, see if we can get accepted into the group. So we've been accepted into the group. So now all it remains for me to do is send a message to this Facebook group and see who responds. It wasn't long till I got a response from the man himself. Okay, so I have a message. Hey, bro, it's me, Bill. Tell me about your show. Sounds awesome. Looking forward to speaking with you. It looks like we're on. But just how do we arrange that, I wondered. Well, using his mobile phone, of course. Here he is. Hey, man.

[William Dathan Hulbert (Wild Bill)]

What's up, brother?

[Jack Lawrence]

How you doing, Jack, mate? I am. I'm very well, my friend. I'm very well. So the first time Bill and I caught up, as I'm sure you can imagine, the signal from inside a Panamanian prison wasn't the best. Was there any, you know, violence involved? Obviously you're involved with some pretty heavy people and that sort of stuff. Did you ever find yourself in a situation that got a bit out of control? We were dealing with these. These mafia types and all the rest of it, and it's a very dangerous world to be involved in. So was there any times in that period? So how do we fix that? I thought, well, WhatsApp messaging, of course. So with the help of modern technology from inside a jail cell in a third world country, this is the story of the man they call wild. Now, you might be thinking a man known as Wild Bill, having been arrested for quintuple homicide and working as a hitman, must have had something traumatic happen to him in his early years. I mean, that's the normal MO Right, for someone who'd go on to commit these types of crimes. However, Bill says that couldn't be further from the truth.

[William Dathan Hulbert (Wild Bill)]

So I grew up in the mountains of western North Carolina in a very rural environment. Very good, wholesome, you know, country Christian environment. I had a really normal upbringing. You know, a lot of people want to talk about how killers burn frogs and, you know, tortured dogs. I never did any of that stuff, you know, And I grew up a really normal existence as a kid. And just like every other, you know, redneck kid from western North Carolina, I grew up hunting and fishing. And I remember my father teaching me how to drive a car. Or when I was 10 years old, I could drive a tractor and plow a field when I was 11 and was expected to do so by the time I was 13 or 14, I was managing hundreds of stands of bees. That was my job on the farm, was managing the bees. And so I was a beekeeper. So I grew up a very rural existence. I grew up very athletic. Played American football through the shot put and discus and track. Just to have something to do in the off season, really. Cookie cutter American life. Studied agriculture at A place called Blue Ridge Community College, which in those days was called Blue Ridge Technical Institute. And we called it Redneck Tech because pretty much everybody that went there was just looking for a trade or something. So I pulled down an associate's degree in agriculture from Redneck Tech there in western North Carolina, in a little town called Hendersonville.

[Jack Lawrence]

So Bill was living the all American life, doing the normal things most young kids his age were doing. However, he does admit that even from a young age, he had a, shall we say, entrepreneurial spirit.

[William Dathan Hulbert (Wild Bill)]

For 16, I learned how to make these little black boxes that beat the cable. You know, everything was cable back in those days. And we made little analog black boxes that would give you pay per view and HBO and all the other channels for free. I made them in the basement of my grandfather's house and would sell them for $200 a piece, which was a considerable amount of money in 1995. You know, I was always doing something, always involved in some sort of a. Certainly illegal, but right on the edge of being illegal, but also socially acceptable. I sold stolen equipment. I didn't steal it myself, but I sold stolen equipment. I did all kinds of stuff, you know.

[Jack Lawrence]

So Bill had his scams running here and there, which would continue into his college years when he branched out into forging documents.

[William Dathan Hulbert (Wild Bill)]

So I remember when I was in college, I dated this chick that was a librarian, and she had access to this machine that made, like, library cars. And I reset it up to make actual North Carolina driver's licenses. So if you wanted to buy a fake ID because you couldn't drink until you were 21, you could go to college when you're 18, but you couldn't drink. And all the college kids want to go party in the club, you know. And so if you wanted to buy a fake id, what you do is you bring me your driver's license, and I would scan it, and what I would do is just change the date, the birthday, and to make you just a little bit older, and then make you a driver's license. Now, if a North Carolina state trooper pulls you over and you give him that fake driver's license, he's going to run that driver's license, and that driver's license is going to come back good, because the only thing different on it is the birthday. And it's very unlikely that anybody's gonna catch the birthday, you know, So, I mean, like you, I literally made fake driver's license that were real driver's licenses based on your actual id. I would just bump back for Instance, I was born in 1979. I would just bump mine back until I was 21. I'd be like 77 and so, or 76, whatever it needed to be. And so these are actual. I made like really, really good replica copies and would sell for $200 apiece as well,

[Jack Lawrence]

It's fair to say. Bill was no choir boy and he says he did, in fact, almost get caught at one stage.

[William Dathan Hulbert (Wild Bill)]

That sort of thing came natural to me and I used to sell stolen, heavy, heavy equipment, making a great deal of money back in those days. Almost got caught once doing that as well. Got some machines confiscated and I had to do a really good play acting job for the sbi, the State Bureau of Investigation, that I didn't know they were stolen, that I had bought them. I was so afraid I was going to jail, you know. But I got out of it and I weaseled my way out of it because I had all these legitimate businesses running and nobody would ever think that, you know. Well, anyway, so, I mean, like I say, being honest, I was always a bit of a bad guy, but just right there on the edge of it, you know, not just on the edge of it making money, but not doing anything terribly, terribly wrong.

[Jack Lawrence]

So illegal. Yes. The early warning signs of a cartel hitman in the making. Possibly not. Bill would also start a family very early in life. And again, it all started out pretty well. He was making good money and supporting his little family.

[William Dathan Hulbert (Wild Bill)]

Then I went to college and knocked up this chick and ended up getting married. I don't want to talk a whole lot about my family because I'll leave my family, you know, out of these things. And so we ended up getting married. And during that time I was married to my first wife. I opened several businesses. One, I had a landscaping business that was very successful, actually. It was a moneymaker. We did really well. I built a large house, a large luxurious house, a five bedroom house on the family farm in Saluda there and moved my little family there. Had three kids, a wife. You know, I was really young. I was only about 23, 22, 23 years old and had all that going. And then I partnered with another guy on the gym. When I got divorced, everything kind of fell apart. I got divorced in 2004 and everything kind of fell apart.

[Jack Lawrence]

Bill says he's often asked what happened. What was the moment that made him snap from doing a few dodgy deals and some fake IDs to becoming a wanted fugitive, escaping the US and becoming a hitman? Well, it all stems, he says, from his custody battle with his former wife.

[William Dathan Hulbert (Wild Bill)]

When I went to court, the judge told my ex wife that she had to give me the kids every two weeks. And they told me that I had to pay this enormous amount of money every month. I mean, enormous amount of money. It was like $3,000 a month. I didn't even make $3,000 a month back then. And my lawyer advised me, said, don't pay it, because if you pay it, the judge that shows that you can pay, he said, send her what you think is just, and then we'll go back to court. So that's what I did. Then she didn't send me the children. In response, she said, well, if you're not going to pay, I'm not going to give you the kids. And so when we went to court, the judge gave her a $20 fine of contempt for not sending me the children. And I was waiting on my $20 fine, my $20 fine for contempt. And he said, and you get two weeks in jail. And it put me in prison for two weeks. Like, what? For contempt for not. He's like, yeah, you didn't pay. I'm like, I didn't pay because I couldn't pay. And he says, I don't believe that. And so. And so forth. And so I be. I got really angry and said some ugly things in the courtroom and told the judge what I actually thought. And my lawyer's like, shut up, shut up, shut up. You know, and so I. My lawyer says to the judge, says, let him serve it on the weekends so he can work. And so the judge says, fine, two weeks in jail, but you gotta serve it on the weekends. Shit, two weeks in jail, 14 days serving on the weekends. You know, that's a lot of weekends. Like two months dragging it out. So we go outside, and I told my lawyer his name was Bill Gardo. And I told Bill Gardo, I said, look here, man, I said, it's been nice knowing you. I'm leaving. And he said, what? I said, I'm leaving. I said these words, and I remember them, and it's like something really famous, you know, in my life. And I said, if they want a criminal, I'm going to show them the best damn criminal there is. And that's what I did.

[Jack Lawrence]

The world was about to see just how wild, Wild Bill could be as he embarks on a crime spree. In fact, it's a crime spree. He still can't go into too much

[William Dathan Hulbert (Wild Bill)]

detail about some of the statute of limitations hasn't run out on it yet, and I want to avoid being prosecuted for it. But I amassed an enormous amount of money in the United States with plans of leaving the United States, exiting the United States, which I did. I had about $350,000 in cash, and I decided to go to Central America. And the reason I decided I got hot as well. I was the police. Several times I evaded the police and I knew that, you know, it was just a matter of time. I couldn't make enough fake IDs, I couldn't make them fast enough to change identities. And I knew that I was really short for the world, you know. It wasn't going to be long before the authorities caught up with me.

[Jack Lawrence]

Things in America had now reached fever pitch. It was getting far too hot for Bill to stick around. And it was time to leave. Bill was wanted.

[Poetic Narrator]

I'm a wanderer of the soul before the end I plan to be whole But I know I'll lose myself along the way what's gone is gone what's past is past Let me leave what belongs in the past.

[William Dathan Hulbert (Wild Bill)]

And so I had been on vacation with my mistress in 2003. I say mistress, that's not really an accurate word because I didn't ever start a relationship with this woman until I was separated from my ex wife. I was actually separated from my ex wife. I wasn't the dog that I am today. Back in those days, I was actually pretty, you know, I was pretty loyal, actually. And I began a relationship with a young woman who was my secretary at the gym. And she and I went off on a little rendezvous to Costa Rica for a weekend once. And it was only the first time I'd ever been out of the country. And I really enjoyed it. And so when I became a real full time, 100% boss to the wall criminal, she decided to come with me.

[Jack Lawrence]

So Bill has a destination, but there's still the slight issue of just how to get there. I mean, if you're a wanted fugitive, you can't just pop down to your local travel agent, get a couple of tickets on a commercial flight and head out at JFK or lax.

[William Dathan Hulbert (Wild Bill)]

And so I got out of the United States through, through Fort Lauderdale. Flor. Let's say I borrowed. I borrowed someone's sailboat and skipped across to the Bahamas. From the Bahamas, I stayed there for about a week, but I didn't really feel like the Bahamas was a safe place because it's so close to the United States and there are like FBI offices in the Bahamas. And so I grabbed a plane to The Cayman Islands. And from the Cayman Islands, I took a private plane. I was in the Cayman Islands for about three days and realized that this is not the place for me because everything is so expensive. And so I'm carrying on my person $500,000 in cash. And this is before all that airline security shit that they have today, you know. And so. So I chartered a private plane from the Cayman Islands to Cancun. And then from Cancun, I grabbed. I grabbed a taxi, took me to the border, and we crossed into Belize. From Belize, I went to El Salvador, from El Salvador to Costa Rica. And I thought that jumping around, bing, bing, bing, bing, bing, jumping around would have been really too much for the authorities. And that proved to be the truth. It was too much for the authorities. They lost me. They couldn't find me. So I disappeared again into Costa Rica. And from there, I set up my new life.

[Jack Lawrence]

Costa Rica. It borders the Caribbean Sea to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west, with Nicaragua to the north and Panama to the south. This stunning Caribbean port welcomes over 1.55 million tourists each year, including cruise ship passengers who are whisked off to the jungle for fun adventures. However, it's a place where locals try to be home by dark and police patrol with high caliber guns in the face of soaring drug violence. In fact, Costa Rica last year logged a record 657 homicides. The bloodshed is being blamed on the drug business that runs rife in the country. And it wasn't long before Wild Bill would find himself right in the thick of the drug world in Costa Rica.

[William Dathan Hulbert (Wild Bill)]

I lived in a place in Costa Rica that was probably one of certainly the happiest times of my life. I lived in this place called Arecife. Areecife was a little bar in a place called Puerto Viejo de Talamanca, which is in the Limon province of Costa Rica on the Caribbean ocean. It was an international community because Puerto Viejo de Talamanco had exploded as a surfing place. So all these hippie surfers came from all over the world, not just the United States. They came from England and Germany and Italy. And it was an international community that was popping. I mean, there were more foreigners in the town than there were actually locals. So in that place, I lived with these Italian boys in a place called Aresife. At Areecife, many things happened. There were three fellows. Mario Lalo y Pietro. Lalo was this big guy. He was about the same size I was, and he was kind of fat because he was the cook. And he cooked so good. He really did cook good. And then Mario ran the operation and Pietro was the bartender. Arrecife, which means in Italian and Spanish, the reef, like a coral reef, was right on this big coral reef on the beach, right on the beach. And it was. There was an open air restaurant. And I would go in the evenings to there and eat every night. And these Italians adopted me. And this is how it happened. One day I went there every day for about three weeks. And I got to know them very well. And I ran a tab. I asked them to run me a tab. And I would just pay them every week instead of having to bring cash there every time because I was spending so much money there. Well, one day I was sitting there eating with my girlfriend and I looked up and Mario was pushed over in the corner by these three dark skinned fellows who were screaming at one, screaming at him, and one was waving a pistol around. Now, I had worked my whole life and things like bouncing. I was a bouncer at a bar. I was a repo man. I used to repossess cars. So like, violence, physical violence, is not something that even remotely bothers me at all or scares me. It's something very natural for me. And I noticed these three men were pushing Mario, my good friend, who's been so good to me, around into the corner. And so I watched this for a moment. And I watched the one man had a pistol and he would wave it wildly in the air. And you could tell he didn't know what the hell he was doing with the pistols. And so I walked over in that direction and Mario looks at me and he shakes his head no, like, don't come over here, don't come over here. And I just continued to walk. And the other fellows who turned out to be Colombians looked at me thinking that I was like a stupid tourist, which I was a stupid tourist. But they didn't understand what I had in mind. And so I said and in Spanish, donde esta albano? But I said it, like really poorly because I spoke poor Spanish. Where is the bathroom? And the Colombian says to me, hey, get the fuck out of here, you know, go on, shoo, shoo, gringo. And so I smiled and continued to walk. And he said, didn't you hear me? And I hit him as hard as I could hit anybody, I've ever hit anybody in my whole life. I mean, I hit him as hard as a human being can be hit in the face. I hit him square in the nose, facing, you know, and with the same instant Just snatched the pistol right out of his hand because he had it kind of down by his side. I just reached and snatched the pistol out of his hand and. And chambered around. Ching Ching was a little black, rusty ass 9 millimeter pistol. The other three boy Colombian boys, eyes got really big. And so the guy laying on the ground starts screaming. He says, I'm gonna kill you, gringo. Blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. And so I just shot him in the kneecap plow. I gave him one through the knee. And then he screamed, bloody murderer. And he's like rocking back and forth on the ground. And I told the other two boys, I said, scoop his ass up and get him the fuck out of here. So that's what they did. They scooped him up and they threw him back in this little pickup truck and drove away. And Mario's looking at me very, very nervously holding that pistol. And I ejected the magazine from the pistol, unchambered the round that was in it, and handed Mario the pistol stock first. And he took the pistol from me, and I gave him the magazine. I said, keep this because you might need it. And he's like, thank you, Bill. Thank you, Bill. Thank you. Thank you. You know, he's an Italian guy. He speaks perfect English, but he was an Italian guy from Milan. And it turned out that these three guys were like bank robbers and shit like that. And they were also bad guys on the run. You know,

[Jack Lawrence]

It was while he was staying with his Italian friends that he would meet his next employer.

[William Dathan Hulbert (Wild Bill)]

And I don't want to say his name because anybody can find out this information and wants to look. But a man came in who owned a smuggling operation, But I don't like to talk about. I don't want to, you know, mention people that I've killed because this man I did end up killing later, and he had a smuggling operation in which that Asian people, primarily from China, would pay money to be smuggled into the United States. And they came in on container ships, in a container. After the container ship passed through the Panama canal, they'd be smuggled off of the ship and up the Caribbean coast. They would go to Jamaica. From Jamaica on to, I don't know, Texas, Florida, Alabama, somewhere there. So through the Gulf of Mexico. So I picked up a job running the leg from. From Bocas del Toro, where they were housed. In Bocas del Toro, I would pick up. I picked up the leg from Bocas del Toro, Jamaica.

[Jack Lawrence]

And that's all we've got time for. But coming up in our next episode, while Bill gets himself involved in the smuggling business and this is where he would have to kill for the first time, he says, in self defense.

[William Dathan Hulbert (Wild Bill)]

So he comes back and tries to tackle me and I moved to step out of the way but I slipped on the deck was wet and I slipped and I fell back on my back and he fell on top of me.

[Jack Lawrence]

If you want to find out more about the man who was once Central America's most infamous hitman and now a serving Christian minister in a Panamanian prison, Bill has written a book about his experiences inside Central America's prison system, the details of which are in the show notes of this episode I'm a wanderer

[Poetic Narrator]

of the soul before the end I plan to behold But I know I'll lose myself along the way what's gone is gone what's past is past Let me leave what belongs in the past.

[William Dathan Hulbert (Wild Bill)]

ACAST powers the world's best podcasts. Here's a show that we recommend.

[Paige Desorbo / Hannah Burner / Christy / Kelly]

Hey, it's Christy and I'm Kelly. You might remember us as the OG Partners in Crime from Dance Moms. Well, this is this is Back to the Bar, the podcast where we drag out every insane, chaotic and iconic moment from the show. We're spilling the tea, calling out all the BS and sharing stuff you definitely didn't see on tv. New episodes drop every week, and yes, we're laughing through the drama for once. Follow grab a drink and join us as we go back to the bar.

[William Dathan Hulbert (Wild Bill)]

ACAST helps creators launch, grow and monetize their podcasts everywhere. Acast.com.