Mr Untouchable

Leroy ‘Nicky’ barnes was the drug king of Harlem, the black godfather who flooded New York with heroin and broke the stranglehold of the Mafia. He rose from penniless junkie to multi-millionaire businessman, using a seven-man board of directors, The Council, to deliver tons of dope to the city’s streets. He drove the fastest cars, sported the sharpest suits and kept a string of glamorous women, while his ability to elude the cops gave him the nickname ”Mr Untouchable.”

But in 1977, at the height of his powers, an undercover operation toppled his rithless empire and Barnes was jailed for life. Eventually, he turned state’s evidence, helped convict scores of leading gangsters and won his release in 1998. Now in the Witness Protection Programme, hisidentity and location are secret. This is his extraordinary story.

What they said:

‘There is no denying that Mr Untouchable is as graceful as it is gruesome.’
The Daily Telegraph

‘Pulsates with the criminal street life it depicts so well.’
Publishers Weekly

‘Packs all the wallop of a Jay-Z album.’
Entertainment Weekly

‘Brutal, scorching … as vicious, graphic and
entertaining as anything out there.’
Kirkus Reviews

NICKY BARNES was convicted of narcotics conspiracy in 1977 by the nation’s first anonymous jury. His subsequent cooperation with the U.S. Government served to indict over fifty major drug traffickers. Released in 1998, he is currently in the Federal Witness Protection Program.

Tom Folsom is a producer and director of documentary films. His work has appeared on A&E, MSNBC & Showtime. He lives in NYC.