O'DONOGHUE: No O'DONOGHUE: They were all involved in drugs and taken down by the DEA SAMIA: dumb I would never fuck around with that shit O'DONOGHUE: They got greedy and stupid

Three months later, on December 20, 2014, The New York Times revealed to the world what O'Donoghue and others on the inside had figured out: Paul Le Roux was in the custody of the DEA, and for the previous year he'd been working to bring down his own organization.

Samia and Stillwell's turn to “get brought into this shit” wouldn't arrive until seven months later, on the morning of July 22, 2015. Stillwell was out picking up some supplies for new holsters at the hardware store. On the way to his office, he was pulled over by a local sheriff and arrested. When the sheriff brought him to the county lockup, he was placed in an interrogation room. Samia was already at the station, having been lured with a question about his gun permits.

Two federal agents stepped into the room with Stillwell and in- troduced themselves as special agents Eric Stouch and Thomas Cindric from the DEA. “We work for the Special Operations Divi- sion out of Virginia,” Stouch said, “and we're assigned to work investigations primarily overseas. For several years now we've been conducting an investigation that led us to you.” They read Stillwell his rights, and after he declined to ask for a lawyer, began asking questions about his 2012 trip to the Philippines. At first, Stillwell claimed to be shocked by their insinuations, saying he'd only traveled to Manila, his first trip out of the country, to unwind with Samia.

But gradually the agents began to tell him drips of what they knew, and what they claimed Samia had already told them. “David, David,” Stouch said. “I understand you're kind of blown away by the circumstances right now. Take a deep breath here, all right? You're a professional. You make holsters, you do it well. We're