He did it just as big as me, the Curry brothers, Maserati Rick whoever you want to name.. "Johnny [Curry] placed a call to Gil, put it on speaker. White Boy Rick is also a grandfather of six grandchildren. Fact-checking the White Boy Rick movie reveals that the FBI agents portrayed by Jennifer Jason Leigh and Rory Cochrane are not directly based on real people, though they were inspired by the agents who handled Wershe as an informant. No. Hes healthy. He was born into an average family that lived in an area on the east side of Detroit. This garnered him street cred in their eyes and in the ensuing months, he grew even closer to them. Voice quavering, Rick Wershe Jr., who as a teen in 1980s Detroit was painted as a murderous drug kingpin, dabbed his eyes recalling one of the last conversations he had with his father, who he'd . -Detroit Free Press. "I think helping the FBI with Operation Backbone was the biggest mistake of my life," says Wershe, "because it created enemies I couldn't even imagine." Keisha Wershe is known for being the girl of renowned street pharmacist Richard Wershe Jr. Richard Wershe Jr. is an American street pharmacist and a former witness for the Federal Bureau of Investigation. His information helped uncover one of the biggest corruption cases in police history. Finally, in July 2020, he was released from care in Florida after completing his sentence with proper conduct credits. 7 facts about the 14-year-old FBI informant", "White Boy Rick's Parole Hearing and Drug War Lessons Unlearned", "Here's Where White Boy Rick Is Now, Years After His FBI Involvement", Rick Wershe Jr. released from prison after more than 30 years, "Former informant 'White Boy Rick' sues FBI for $100m", "See Matthew McConaughey fail tragically as a dad in exclusive 'White Boy Rick' trailer", "Eminem Set to Play White Boy Rick in Starz's 'Black Mafia Family', https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Richard_Wershe_Jr.&oldid=1139467193. Rick Wershe Jr. in court, shortly after his arrest. Their chief of homicide, Inspector Gilbert Hill, deliberately diverted the investigation away from the gang leader, Johnny Curry. He needed protection, and he needed money. Who is George Osborne's fiance Thea Rogers? I don't agree I committed the crime that I was convicted of.". Dawn says that when her dad discovered Rick had $50,000 in drug money, he wanted Rick out of the drug business. Starring Matthew McConaughey, Richie Merritt, Eddie Marsan, Copyright 2023 HistoryvsHollywood.com, CTF Media, White Boy Rick Documentary & Related Videos, Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile. Rick Wershe's Charity Food Drive - Summer 2018. YouTubes privacy policy is available here and YouTubes terms of service is available here. He was a kingpin. He vouched for an undercover FBI agent who posed as his supplier from Miami. He was born into an average family that lived in an area on the east side of Detroit. Wershe Sr. had initially contacted the FBI to seek their help with his daughter, who, by then, had a severe drug problem. They went down and met, and he said he gave Gil ten grand to cover up the kid's murder." According to the White Boy documentary, he did go to stay with his mother for the eighth grade when he was 13, but he didn't get along with her new husband and he was still in contact with his dad. Richard was born into a working-class family in a neighborhood on Detroit's east side. Rick Wershe Jr. began to see the corruption when a 13-year-old boy was shot by the Curry Gang and the Detroit police did nothing about it. The parole board was well-aware of the Matthew McConaughey movie, which had been filming in Las Vegas the night before the hearing. Free Richard Wershe Jr. Albums. He commented that on the night of his 1987 arrest, police officers seized thirty-four thousand dollars of his cash. Later in 2020, he was awarded credits for proper conduct. The Curry brothers, Leo 'Big Man' Curry and Johnny 'Lil Man' Curry, were twins. After spending 32 years incarcerated, Wershe was released from prison in Florida, on July 20, 2020 having completed his sentence with credits for good behavior. His connection with the Curry family immensely helped him in his pursuit to gather more and more information on the drug activities in his neighbourhood and the city at large. Moreover, in one of the interviews with WXYZ, Michelle said that everything went as planned and that Richard was happy, healthy, excited, and emotional. It was back in 1987 that Richard was caught having more than eight kilograms (18 pounds) of cocaine. Rick went out in mink coats wrapped up with a belt made of solid gold and a diamond-encrusted Rolex on his wrist. "I don't know what other words to use, not the way it was.". document.getElementById("ak_js_1").setAttribute("value",(new Date()).getTime()), Victoria Persinger Wiki, Biography, Age, Spouse, Net Worth, Fast Facts, Jeremy Hartwell Wiki, Biography, Age, Spouse, Net Worth, Fast Facts. Wershe says that the FBI barely scratched the surface of how deep the corruption ran, and releasing him meant that the truth might come out. He did what the FBI taught him to do. Most were black and at least a decade older than him. He made his living running scams and selling guns out of his own home. White Boy Ricks new fame changed his life. Cookie Settings/Do Not Sell My Personal Information. When federal agents raided Cathy's townhouse on a Friday afternoon in June 1987, they found Wershe there in bed with her. Rick Wershe Jr Daughter Keisha Morris Photos And Names; . Yes. "My daughter became sick on doing drugs," Richard Wershe Sr. says. RELATED: Richard 'White Boy Rick' Wershe officially free after more than 32 years. Ive lost 30 years of my life, Wershe said during the parole meeting. (He's) happy, healthy and excited (and) emotional. Fathers name is Not Available. "I know that the drugs I sold destroyed peoples lives," Wershe said in 2017. Wershe is a father of two daughters and a son. Yes. He was 17 years old then, at the time. informant at age 14. Dawn Wershe, Richard Wershe Jr.'s sister, sat in a row nearby. Use of and/or registration on any portion of this site constitutes acceptance of our User Agreement, Privacy Policy and Cookie Statement, and Your Privacy Choices and Rights (each updated 1/26/2023). And his father had sold some of them guns. He was just aware of what went on around him in his community, a streetwise kid, and the FBI was willing to pay to find out just how much he was aware of. Though Rick didnt know it, there was a price on his head. Richard Wershe Sr. didnt have any answers but his 14-year-old son, Richard Wershe Jr., knew every name. They gave chase and Wershe got off two shots using the cheap .22 revolver that Dawn had in her purse. 679215 Registered office: 1 London Bridge Street, London, SE1 9GF. Moreover, his father was also an FBI informant and first reported to the police and the federal agency alongside him before going also. Dawn blared her horn to alert Wershe, who came out of the store and got into the passenger seat of the car Dawn was driving. He notices that the gun has details consistent with Egyptian-made AK-47s, unlike the Russian-made ones the dealer claims he's selling. "We were very overwhelmed," she had told WXYZ at the time. However, the allegations did come back to haunt him when he ran for mayor.Gil Hill, who died in 2016 at age 84, had been famous for portraying Eddie Murphy's boss, Inspector Douglas Todd, in three Beverly Hills Cop films. Darlene subsequently moved to the suburbs. Richard Wershe Jr has filed a $100m (73m) lawsuit against former FBI agents and prosecutors, alleging child abuse in connection with his time as an informant. He was locked up at the age of 17, to originally serve a life sentence under a law since ruled unconstitutional. Pretty soon he uncovered a conspiracy that ran through the whole city. The law enforcement to which hes referring are the FBI agents who came to his door for his father in 1984. Having just turned 51 years old, Wershe began a new chapter in life together with his fiance Michelle McDonald, whom he began dating in middle school. The FBI, though, wasnt there to send him to prison. 4 4y View 3 more replies Shonda Fisher Nisley Where is Richard Wershe Jr Now, Kids - Daughter Son . Find out about Keisha Wershe and White Boy Rick Weve definitely figured out that Keisha Wershe is Richard Wershe Jr.s girl. Give Light and the People Will Find Their Own Way. Other Curry gang members arrived to the home before the ambulance and attempted to load Curry into the backseat of a car, possibly to dump him somewhere. Perhaps. The judge, who commented that Wershe looked like the bank robber Baby Face Nelson, went on to say that "as far as the court is concerned, he's worse than a mass murderer." BoogeyMan Ben/YouTubeInspector Gil Hill was a minor celebrity. It took 30 years for Richard Wershe Jr. to win his freedom. In the 1980s, he gained notoriety in the streets of Detroit under the moniker White Boy Rick. While Michigan repealed the 650-Lifer Law that handed Richard Wershe Jr. a life sentence, he was still in prison long after other offenders were released. Even though he was dreading the transport process, Wershe said he wanted to start as soon as possible. He is seen throughout the film dealing firearms on the street and complying with his son's drug activity. While his father did not recognize them, Wershe Jr. did. Matthew McConaughey starred as Richards father, Richard Wershe Sr. More: Former Detroit hitman wants White Boy Rick to be released from prison. However, he was already accustomed to the affluent life that the steady money from the FBI allowed him to lead. Leo was loud and flashy, while Johnny was the clear-headed businessman who didn't use drugs and even avoided being in the same room as the ones he supplied. They controlled the drug operations in Wershe Jr.s neighbourhood in Detroits East Side. Published: July 20, 2020, Deadline Detroit, September 07, 2016, Allan Lengel, Last edited on 15 February 2023, at 08:20, "Newcomer Richie Merritt Lands Title Role in 'White Boy Rick' Opposite Matthew McConaughey", After 32 years behind bars, White Boy Rick Wershe Jr. to be released Monday, ONE-TIME DETROIT SUPER COP GIL HILL DIES OF LUNG DISEASE, FAMED CRIME FIGHTER NEVER SHOOK MURDER COVER-UP CLAIMS, Past Detroit Hit Man Claims Gil Hill Wanted Him To Kill Richard Wershe Jr, "Who is White Boy Rick? The law was overturned but he was rejected as a menace to society by the Michigan Parole Board in 2003, despite (or perhaps because of) having assisted the FBI in the 1990s with a sting unsuccessfully targeting Gil Hill and drawing in the relatives of influential city politicians. After all, Richard Wershe Jr. went to prison when he was only 17 years old. However, her father is available on Instagram under the username @rickwershe_jr and has gained over 24.9K followers. Source: Instagram. Both Wershe Jr. and Dawn chose to live with their father at their small brick house on Hampshire Street at Dickerson Avenue. Wershe Sr. was also known as an illegal arms dealer in the black market. Absolutely. Keisha is out of the social media world. That's a longer discussion. Public DomainRichard Wershe Jr.s 1988 mugshot. Through him, he gained access to the Curry brothers and their lavish lifestyle. Craft, years later, told reporters: I was told to kill White Boy Rick. He regularly spent time with the brothers and they did not suspect a thing. Wershe Jr. first became acquainted with Rudell "Boo" Curry, the younger brother of Leo and Johnny. For other inquiries, Contact Us. One gang lord, B.J. Wershe, the police claimed, was a dangerous cocaine godfather known to his underlings as "White Boy Rick." Starting at 14 years old, Richard worked as an informant for the FBI, passing on intelligence regarding multiple drug traffickers in the city of Detroit during the 1980s. "I'm sorry to tell ya that the legend of White Boy Rick is just not true." As stated in the White Boy documentary, one of those lawyers went on to become one of the officials who petitioned to deny Wershe's chance at parole in 2003, his one and only hearing until 2017. Coleman Young, the Detroit mayor who was allegedly involved in the police corruption scandal exposed by Rick Wershe Jr. September 14, 2018, 1:43 AM by Allan Lengel. Did I do something wrong? After serving 32 years and seven months, Richard "White Boy Rick" Wershe Jr., left Kissimmee, Florida with his head high. Copyright 2020 Scripps Media, Inc. All rights reserved. He was an FBI informant when he was 14 to 16 years old. Hes energetic.". However, after Wershe Jr. became an FBI informant, money began to flow in as they paid him for information. They lived there during a period from the mid 1980s to early 1990s when Detroit and many other major American cities were gaining widespread reputations for crime and violence, largely due to an influx of cocaine and the emergence of the crack cocaine epidemic. Other violent kingpins and enforcers who were convicted under Michigan law were freed years ago. However, she might be dating or might be married and might also have kids. He went as part of Curry's entourage, there to attend the Hearns vs. Hagler boxing match at Caesar's Palace (like in the film, they never got into the match). The film starring Academy Award-winning actor Matthew McConaughey tells the fact-based story of Richard Wershe Jr., a Detroit teenager who became an undercover informant for the FBI during the 1980s and was ultimately arrested for drug-trafficking and sentenced to life in prison. 8 items. He was convicted of possession of cocaine. On paper, they recorded White Boy Ricks tips under his fathers name. While not the central focus, Wershe does appear on the show in a recurring capacity.[17]. View our online Press Pack. She eventually remarried. I was brought into this life by law enforcement, Richard Wershe Jr. reported to Vice, I was taught it, they left me alone, and a year later Im busted and put in jail for life.. He added that Wershe's dad, Richard Wershe Sr., who was played by Matthew McConaughey, was portrayed too positively, almost heroic at times. White Boy Rick is also a grandfather of six grandchildren. Love Island fans' horror as axed Olivia handed power to destroy TWO other stars, Frogmore eviction shows King's drawn a line with Harry, Strictly star bags life-changing EastEnders role as part of new family, Baby's body found after huge search as cops quiz Constance Marten & lover, News Group Newspapers Limited in England No. Click On Detroit/WDIV/YouTubeRick Wershe Jr. in prison. His wife, Cathy Volsan (Mayor Coleman Young's niece), 24, began having an affair with Wershe, then 17. He and his sister subsequently stayed with their father. I don't think so. "Well, they never really say (what drug it is)," Dawn told WXYZ reporter Carolyn Cliffordwhen asked about the drugs. Should he be there for [29] years for the crime he committed? The real White Boy Rick did conspire with major players in the local Detroit drug trade. Inspector Gil Hill was a minor celebrity. The police took White Boy Rick right to the media. 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