Fidel Castro: Trouble in Paradise
Jun 21, 2026 · 49 min · 15 segments
When a bomb goes off on a south Florida street, it bears all the hallmarks of a Cuban expert. Castroland is going international. As exiles flock to Miami, Fidel sets off on a globe-trotting mission…
Nicholas GriffinGuest
Michael BustamanteGuest
Rick MoralesGuest
Rogelio MartinezGuest
Peter KornbluhGuestIt's August the 21st, 1967, the dark early hours of the morning.
Moonlight shines down upon Biscayne Bay, the narrow estuary that separates the beach from the bulk of the city.
There's a ripple in the otherwise still water.
A diver emerges to the surface, a man in his late 20s.
He clambers onto dry land, then walks briskly towards a cluster of nearby buildings.
A few moments later, he arrives in a quiet, ordinary-looking residential street.
He approaches a house.
As silently as he can, he breaks into the garage.
Once inside, the man plants two small objects, time bombs set to detonate at 3:45 this very morning.
The devices in place, he makes a quick exit.
This is Ricardo Morales, AKA Monkey Morales, one of the most notorious men in Miami, a city overflowing with notorious men.
On behalf of lethal warring mobsters, Morales spreads explosive mayhem across South Florida.
Tonight is his latest job.
This one isn't over money or power, it's sexual jealousy.
A certain mafioso has his eyes on a rival's wife.
It's fallen to Morales to shake up the rival, let him know that his card is marked.
At 3:45 on the dot, there's a violent explosion.
[explosion] Tremors ripple through the entire neighborhood.
Alarm and panic sweep the street.
When the emergency services arrive, they find the smoldering front exterior of the house is wrecked, but miraculously, nobody's been hurt.
When investigators examine the scene, they wonder if this hadn't been the precise plan.
If so, this is the work of someone who really knows what they're doing, which is true enough.
Morales isn't just some street thug with access to explosives.
He's honed his skills over years, first as a member of the Cuban secret police, then under the tutelage of the CIA, with whom he's been trying to eliminate his nemesis, Fidel Castro.
In a variety of ways, it seems Cuba's dictator is having a growing influence around the world.
Castro-land is going international.
From the Noiser Podcast Network, this is part eight of the Fidel Castro story.
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It's August the 21st, 1967, the dark early hours of the morning.
Moonlight shines down upon Biscayne Bay, the narrow estuary that separates the beach from the bulk of the city.
There's a ripple in the otherwise still water.
A diver emerges to the surface, a man in his late 20s.
He clambers onto dry land, then walks briskly towards a cluster of nearby buildings.
A few moments later, he arrives in a quiet, ordinary-looking residential street.
He approaches a house.
As silently as he can, he breaks into the garage.
Once inside, the man plants two small objects, time bombs set to detonate at 3:45 this very morning.
The devices in place, he makes a quick exit.
This is Ricardo Morales, AKA Monkey Morales, one of the most notorious men in Miami, a city overflowing with notorious men.
On behalf of lethal warring mobsters, Morales spreads explosive mayhem across South Florida.
Tonight is his latest job.
This one isn't over money or power, it's sexual jealousy.
A certain mafioso has his eyes on a rival's wife.
It's fallen to Morales to shake up the rival, let him know that his card is marked.
At 3:45 on the dot, there's a violent explosion.
[explosion] Tremors ripple through the entire neighborhood.
Alarm and panic sweep the street.
When the emergency services arrive, they find the smoldering front exterior of the house is wrecked, but miraculously, nobody's been hurt.
When investigators examine the scene, they wonder if this hadn't been the precise plan.
If so, this is the work of someone who really knows what they're doing, which is true enough.
Morales isn't just some street thug with access to explosives.
He's honed his skills over years, first as a member of the Cuban secret police, then under the tutelage of the CIA, with whom he's been trying to eliminate his nemesis, Fidel Castro.
In a variety of ways, it seems Cuba's dictator is having a growing influence around the world.
Castro-land is going international.
From the Noiser Podcast Network, this is part eight of the Fidel Castro story.
