Here at Gentlemen Smugglers, we’re renowned for our unparalleled storytelling prowess. If you’ve been following along with our Journal, you’ve delved into tales of fearless female smugglers, the strategic brilliance of aliases, the smugglers’ boats of choice, and much more. Today, we’re shifting our focus to one of the most crucial facets of keeping any clandestine operation afloat: escaping the law.
Keep reading as we regale you with (just a few) of the daring escapes in Barry “Flash” Foy & Gentlemen Smugglers Lore.
The Decoy
Perhaps the most memorable escape happened in the late 70s, and the whole situation started out strange…
The Smugglers were expecting a shipment from South America. The timing was usually predictable, but this time the shipment arrived a day and a half early. They must have had tailwinds or favorable weather conditions, as it was unusual. Because they were early, the crew couldn’t get in touch with Barry and the rest of the smugglers directly, so they called the Coast Guard, pretending to be shrimpers having trouble contacting the dock to unload their shrimp. The Coast Guard then called one of the smugglers’ girlfriends to tell them the boat had arrived. Barry was asleep at home at 4:00 in the morning when the phone rang…
At the time, he lived in Columbia, South Carolina, which is about 120 miles from Charleston. He jumped in his car around 6:00 AM and rushed down to Charleston. His crew, including some guys from Florida who came to help unload the 30,000 lbs (about 15 tons) of pot, had been in town for a couple of days. They were staying in a cheap hotel near the airport, driving around in a Cadillac, partying, and drawing attention.
The cops were always on the lookout for anything out of place, given the smuggling activity in the area. When he arrived at the hotel around 8:00 AM, there was an unmarked van out front. Barry realized it was the police or possibly US customs. He quickly went across the street to a pay phone and called his crew, warning them that they were being watched. Conveniently, they had a large horse trailer parked out back, ready to transport the weed to the stash house. He told four of the guys to jump in the trailer and head north towards North Carolina. Led by Wille “The Hog” Bauer, they took off and the cops followed right behind them.
At the same time, Barry scrambled to call another local crew. He asked them to find a couple of big trucks and some tarps – it was a lot of work because they had to make many trips without the horse trailer, all the while a gale was blowing with temperatures in the 30’s.
That trailer led the police on a wild chase all the way to North Carolina, then back down to Disney World in Orlando over two days. The craziest part was right when the real load was about to be delivered in McClellanville, SC, a customs patrol Jeep drove right by and kept on going.
If they only knew.
The Disguise
Back then, Barry and his crew stayed a step ahead, monitoring law enforcement before they could monitor them. The next escape is surely one for the record books:
Another Gentlemen Smuggler, Bob “The Boss” Byers, one of Barry’s kingpin partners, had been locked up in Charleston County Jail, apprehended by the feds. One night, a plan was set into motion, led by Bob’s girlfriend, Tammy “Miami Tammy” Lundstedt and $50,000 cash. At 4:00 am, the bribed guard came and opened Bob’s cell, leading him to the back door of the jail. There, an old cop car, an unmarked vehicle, awaited Bob and Tammy. The guard handed him the keys along with a change of clothes – women’s clothes, complete with a wig and makeup.
Disguised, they got into the car and drove straight to a safe house in Tennessee. Just like that, they were gone. It was nothing short of a first-class escape, reminiscent of scenes from “The Dukes of Hazzard” or the classic “Smokey and the Bandit”.
The stolen police car was found at the airport about three days later, but by then, any trail had gone cold. Six months passed before another twist emerged…The guard, living in a backwoods trailer with his wife and daughter, had a drunken fight over the bribe money and when the cops arrived to break up the altercation, the wife spilled the entire story to the officers!
Escaping Canada
There was also that one time Barry escaped at a border crossing in Canada. After they stopped his taxi cab, the officers brought him inside the station because they noticed his open beer can and told him, “You’re not supposed to be drinking.” In true “Flash” style, he proceeded to quickly chug it and put the bottle back in the six-pack. Not amused, the officers took all his luggage out and started questioning him about his Italian suits, asking if he had paid duty on them, since they were marked “Made in Italy.”
Leaving Barry’s girlfriend alone, one officer decided to take Barry upstairs for a thorough search, including a strip search. Barry had nothing on him except a few hundred dollars in his pocket. After the search, they went back downstairs where the officer picked up the landline phone and made a call, giving them his name. Obviously, they were discussing something serious because after a while, the phone rang and the officer, now in a more urgent tone, shouted, “Alright, hurry up.”
Barry asked to use the toilet, and the officer told him it was just outside the door. At that moment, another cop decided to search the cab. They were clearly onto something and were bound to find his passport and stash of cash hidden underneath the seat. Barry then took his chance and slipped out to the side of the building, running into some nearby woods.
He ran for about 300 or 400 yards until he crossed into New York State, trying to catch his breath as the woods sheltered him – but the pursuit continued; he could hear cars and see New York State police with their distinctive blue and yellow vehicles. In his dress clothes, he looked decidedly out of place. Panic set in as he accidentally ran back into Canada.
With dogs hot on his trail, he crossed a cow farm, stepping in cow patties to mask his scent. He then floated down a creek for about an hour until the sun went down. Completely drenched and cold, Barry wandered the country roads, mistakenly thinking he was still in New York until he saw a sign in kilometers, realizing he had to retrace his steps to get back into the States.
After a lengthy journey, he made it back behind the customs house and spent the night in the woods, fashioning a bed out of leaves, and trying to keep warm. The next morning, he awoke to the sound of a bell and saw a cow grazing nearby. Needless to say, he was in a bad state, with torn clothes from the previous night’s escapade.
Desperation set in and hours passed, but finally, a mailman driving an old station wagon appeared. Pretending to be part of a cable crew, Barry told the mailman his wife was pregnant and he needed a ride into town. The mailman obliged and, after finishing his round, dropped him off at a gas station. From there, he hailed a cab straight into New York, leaving a trail of infuriated law enforcement officers, and fuming girlfriend, in his wake.
Stay Tuned for More Unparalleled Storytelling from Gentlemen Smugglers!
As we draw the curtains on this thrilling chapter of Gentlemen Smugglers lore, we hope you’ve been as captivated by these daring escapes as we are in sharing them. Keep following along with our Journal for more enthralling stories, curious insights, and unparalleled sagas that celebrate the art of smuggling and the indomitable will to escape the law.
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