I Spent 60% of My Life Behind Bars: Erwin's Story

Two months after leaving prison, Erwin says he was facing 15 new felony charges. In Episode 98 of Honor Among Thieves Podcast, he joins host Nelson Rodriguez Jr. to recount a life shaped by armed robberies, drug dealing, addiction, and repeated incarceration. From committing robberies at 15 to navigating Miami’s streets during the 1990s and 2000s, Erwin shares how his criminal activity escalated—and what it cost him.

Erwin discusses juvenile detention, Dade County Jail, Florida prison, and his years in Miami’s drug trade. He describes selling cocaine and ecstasy, becoming dependent on prescription painkillers, and eventually using heroin. As his addiction consumed his money, he returned to robbery, continuing a cycle of arrests, release, and reoffending. Along the way, he reflects on jailhouse violence, relationships, fatherhood, and the distance his choices created between him and his family.

The conversation also explores the turning point Erwin experienced while incarcerated: a fellow inmate introducing him to the Christian faith. He explains how Bible study and a personal spiritual awakening changed his outlook, discusses his involvement in prison ministry, and shares what redemption means to him today. This episode brings together a firsthand account of Miami crime, the consequences of addiction, and the difficult work of rebuilding a life after prison.

Subscribe to Honor Among Thieves Podcast for more true-crime interviews, federal prison stories, organized crime history, drug-trafficking cases, and raw conversations about consequences and redemption.

This episode is presented for documentary, journalistic, and educational purposes. It does not promote or glorify illegal drug use, drug trafficking, identity fraud, or other criminal activity.

Chapters

00:00 Intro

07:18 Armed Robberies at Just 15 Years Old

16:16 A High-Speed Chase and Arrest in Sweetwater

21:50 County Jail, Release and Repeat Arrests

28:30 Fatherhood, Relationships and Street Life

34:25 Violating Probation and Getting Married in Jail