Episode Details

In 1984, Mario Portela, the 22-year-old son of a prominent Miami developer, was abducted at gunpoint outside his father's sales office, setting off a joint FBI and Metro-Dade investigation that began as a race to meet a million dollar ransom demand. Painstaking detective work, from a rented sedan with temporary tags and a telling keychain to forensic matches in duct tape and fibers, traced the crime to the de Parias siblings and an accomplice, revealing that the true motive was revenge over a condominium dispute rather than money. Though Mario was already dead by the time his killers were identified, the case ended in life sentences for the perpetrators, including a fugitive recognized years later in Costa Rica by the voice agents had memorized from the ransom calls.

Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/u-s-hidden-crimes--6962513/support.

Got a tip or a case we should investigate? Email us at krimepodcast@gmail.com. We post new episodes every day. Follow and subscribe so you never miss one.

This episode includes AI-generated content.