136. The Blueprint (Chris & Jeff George)

S10 Ep141: The Mirage (Nikola Motor Company)

Jul 6, 20261h 15mSummary

In this episode of Swindled, the narrative examines the rise and fall of Lordstown Motors and the broader pattern of deception common among electric vehicle startups. The episode details how Lordstown Motors, founded by Steve Burns, promised to revitalize a shuttered General Motors plant in Ohio by producing the Endurance, an all-electric pickup truck. Despite massive claims of pre-orders and support from high-profile political figures, the company’s operations were largely built on hype rather than technical reality. The discussion highlights how Lordstown Motors utilized a SPAC merger to go public, allowing it to bypass the traditional scrutiny of an IPO. The facade finally collapsed following a report by Hindenburg Research, which exposed that the company’s order book was largely fictitious and that its technology was years away from production. The episode draws sharp parallels between Lordstown’s trajectory and that of the Nikola Motor Company, illustrating a disturbing trend where charismatic entrepreneurs leverage buzzwords and aggressive marketing to secure capital for projects that lack fundamental substance, ultimately leaving retail investors to bear the consequences when the mirage fades.

Rerun: The Outbreak (Peanut Corporation of America)

Jun 15, 202655 minSummary

This episode of Swindled examines two major instances of corporate negligence that led to widespread foodborne illness outbreaks in the United States. The narrative begins with the 2011 listeriosis outbreak linked to Jensen Farms in Colorado, where unsanitary conditions and a lack of proper cooling procedures resulted in the deaths of over thirty people. The podcast highlights how the brothers behind the farm were criminally charged, a rare outcome in the food industry, after investigations revealed that contaminated equipment and poor facility management were responsible for the tragedy. The episode further explores the 2008 salmonella outbreak caused by the Peanut Corporation of America (PCA). This section details how PCA president Stuart Parnell systematically ignored health warnings, falsified testing reports, and knowingly shipped products that tested positive for salmonella to maximize profits. Through internal emails and whistleblower testimony, the episode exposes a culture of extreme greed where the safety of the public—including children and the elderly—was sacrificed. Ultimately, the investigation serves as a sobering look at the failures of food safety oversight and the devastating human cost of prioritizing corporate bottom lines over human life.

S10 Ep140: The Ghost Town (Times Beach, Missouri)

Jun 2, 20261h 8mSummary

This episode of Swindled chronicles the harrowing story of Times Beach, Missouri, a town that was essentially wiped off the map due to environmental negligence. The narrative begins at the Shenandoah Stables, where, in 1971, Judy Piot noticed a disturbing pattern of illness and death among her animals and family. It was eventually discovered that the arena floor had been sprayed with waste oil to control dust, a common practice at the time. However, this oil was contaminated with dioxin—a byproduct of chemical manufacturing and one of the deadliest substances known to man. The investigation into the source of the poison exposed how Russell Bliss, a waste oil hauler, had unknowingly—and indiscriminately—sprayed toxic industrial waste across numerous Missouri locations, including the entire streets of Times Beach. Despite federal awareness of the contamination, bureaucratic inaction and a lack of transparency left residents in the dark for over a decade. The crisis reached a breaking point when the EPA finally confirmed the contamination just as a massive, devastating flood submerged the town. Ultimately, the exposure to dioxin forced the total evacuation and permanent abandonment of the community.

S10 Ep139: The Abandoned (Paria diving tragedy)

Apr 30, 20261h 10mSummary

In this episode of Swindled, the podcast examines the harrowing Paria diving tragedy in Trinidad and Tobago, a disaster that serves as a grim reflection of systemic industrial neglect. The narrative traces the history of the nation’s state-owned oil sector, noting that rapid industrial growth consistently bypassed essential safety protocols. This legacy of negligence dates back to a 1985 explosion at a Trintoc facility that killed fourteen men, an incident that remains the deadliest industrial accident in the country's history. The episode focuses primarily on the events of February 2022, when five commercial divers were contracted by Paria Fuel Trading Company to perform maintenance on a subsea pipeline. Due to a catastrophic failure, the men were violently sucked into the pressurized pipe. While one diver, Christopher Budram, managed to escape, his four colleagues were left trapped in the dark, underwater infrastructure. The episode highlights the company’s agonizingly slow response, its refusal to allow civilian rescue attempts, and the bureaucratic indifference that ultimately led officials to abandon the rescue mission in favor of a recovery operation. Through detailed accounts, the podcast illustrates how years of corporate and governmental failure repeatedly sacrificed human lives for the sake of infrastructure and profit.

Rerun: The Verrückt (Schlitterbahn)

135. The Panama Papers (Mossack Fonseca)

Bonus: The Tic Tac Man (Bob McDonnell)

134. The Motherlode (Bre-X Minerals)

133. The Fabulist (George Santos)

Bonus: The Foundation (New Era Philanthropy)