How FBI Undercover Agents Actually Work | Authorized Account | Insider

Known as the "Hillbilly Donnie Brasco," FBI agent Scott Payne risked his life to expose violent neo-Nazi cells threatening national security, including the KKK and biker gangs. Payne began his law enforcement career at the Greenville County Sheriff's Office in South Carolina, where he worked for five years as a uniform patrol officer and a vice and narcotics investigator. He signed up for the FBI in 1998 and was assigned to the New York, San Antonio, and Knoxville field offices, working against drug trafficking, human trafficking, and domestic terrorism. In 2005, he went undercover with the Outlaws Motorcycle Club in Massachusetts. In 2017, he helped arrest a white nationalist who planned an attack on a synagogue. In 2019, he embedded himself with US extremist groups as part of an FBI investigation to avert a mass shooting planned by a white nationalist group called The Base. Payne talks to Business Insider about undercover protocol, creating legends, whether agents use burner phones, the ethics of undercover work, and surveillance techniques. He also voices his opinions on changes to the FBI since he started and what the future holds for the agency's leadership. Since leaving the service in 2021, he has become a professional speaker with Eradicate Hate. He is the author of "Code Name: Pale Horse: How I Went Undercover to Expose America's Nazis." For more: @ScottPayneBigCountry https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Code-Name-Pale-Horse/Scott-Payne/9781668032909 00:00 - Intro 00:36 - The Outlaws 04:28 - A Close Call 14:15 - The Base 26:37 - The Persona 30:28 - The Training 35:33 - Crooked Cops 41:16 - Myrtle Beach 45:54 - Emotional Ties 48:50 - The Trials 50:50 - The Future 52:54 - The Aftermath 55:36 - Credits Insider's mission is to inform and inspire. Visit our homepage for the top stories of the day: https://www.businessinsider.com/ Insider on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/insider Insider on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/insider Insider on Twitter: https://twitter.com/thisisinsider Insider on Snapchat: https://www.snapchat.com/discover/Insider/2708030621 Insider on TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@insider How FBI Undercover Agents Actually Work | Authorized Account | Insider