The Burger Bar Boys: 6. Breaking Bad

Despite the landmark trial of 2004-05 leading to several convictions for the murder of Charlene and Letisha - the gang murders in the city continued. What more could be done to tackle the violence?In the final episode in the series, we look at how a combination of one man’s brilliant gang mediation and West Midlands police’s Operation Ventara slowly started to turn the tide and begin the process of restoring peace to the city of Birmingham. At the same time as the police were making inroads into dismantling the Burger Bar Boys’ operation in the city, the gang’s ambitions had begun to stretch to neighbouring cities – even as far as Aberdeen. The absence of crack cocaine and lack of rivals in other cities made spreading their net wider an easy task, but law enforcement continued to fight back.We’ll hear from an undercover police officer who was sent into Northampton to join the city’s Burger Bar Boys offshoot there, and how developments in ballistics allowed police to trace the movement of guns like the MAC-10 as they were passed around the country from one gang member to another.We conclude the series by looking at where things stand now in the city. What became of the convicted gang members, and how the Burger Bar Boys name still echoes around the streets of Handsworth to this day. We will hear how the families who lost loved ones feel as they reflect on the events of the last few decades, and how back in the Burgers’ home territory of Handsworth, there is at last some optimism.New episodes are released on Fridays. If you’re in the UK, listen to Gangster: The Burger Bar Boys first on BBC Sounds. bbc.in/40W5ChzPresenter – Livvy Haydock Series Producer – Hayley Mortimer Technical Producer – Nicky Edwards Producer – Patrick Kiteley Researcher – Megan Jones Archive Researcher – Nicola Han Fixer in Jamaica – Nick Davies Journalism Assistant – Tim Fernley Commissioning Executive – Louise Kattenhorn Assistant Commissioners – Lorraine Okuefuna and Natasha Johansson Editor and Executive Producer – Carl Johnston

Om Podcasten

Former boxing champion and proud Evertonian Tony Bellew delves into the brutal world of football hooliganism. At its height in the 1970s and 1980s, it was labelled ‘the English Disease,’ a time when violence on the terraces was as much a part of the game as a half-time Bovril. Bellew hears from those who lived for the trouble, the men and women whose Saturdays weren’t complete without a brutal punch-up.He speaks to the innocent victims caught up in the mayhem, the families of those who lost their lives at the hands of thugs, and the undercover police officers who risked everything to infiltrate some of England’s most notorious firms.He also explores how government crackdowns, tougher laws, and the introduction of all-seater stadiums helped bring an end to widespread hooliganism.Presenter: Tony Bellew Series Producer: Emma Forde Producer: Patrick Kiteley Technical Producer: Nicky Edwards Development Producer: Holly Clemens Production Co-ordinator: Ellie Dover Assistant Commissioner: Lorraine Okuefuna & Sarah Green Commissioning Editor: Louise Kattenhorn Editor and Executive Producer: Carl Johnston