Owen Hanson’s life took a wild turn from college athlete to drug kingpin. His story caught the attention of Mark Wahlberg, who produced a documentary series about him.
The series, called “Cocaine Quarterback: Signal-Caller for the Cartel,” tells how Hanson, a former football player at the University of Southern California, built a huge drug business and how it all fell apart.
After college, Hanson teamed up with a Mexican drug lord, hoping to get rich quickly through crime. But when his money laundering plan lost the cartel a lot of money, he found himself in trouble with both the cartel and the FBI.
Hanson was arrested in 2015 during an FBI operation. He admitted to racketeering and drug conspiracy and was sentenced to over 21 years in prison in 2017. He also had to give up $5 million worth of things, including gold, cars, watches, and houses.
So, what is Owen Hanson doing now? Let’s take a look at his life after his drug empire was shut down.
Hanson, originally from California, played football at USC. He told The Mob Museum that he started selling drugs on campus to fit in with the other students.
His small drug business grew into a big one as he mixed with rich celebrities, athletes, and gamblers. He was dealing cocaine, methamphetamine, ecstasy, and heroin in several countries and running a sports betting website.
Hanson said he was once known as “O-Dog” and enjoyed the high life in Las Vegas. He claimed he made $1 million a day from his drug and gambling business.
According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Hanson led a violent group called “ODOG” that used threats and force to control their customers.
One example of this violence was when a gambler named R.J. Cipriani lost $2.5 million of Hanson’s money while playing blackjack. Cipriani was working with the FBI and lost the money on purpose, which led to Hanson’s arrest.
After losing the money, Hanson threatened Cipriani, poured fake blood on his parents’ graves, and sent videos of executions to his family.
Hanson has never revealed who he worked for, but he said he was working for “the most infamous cartel in the world.”
In March 2024, Hanson was released from prison early, after serving less than seven years of his sentence. The reason for his early release was described as “extraordinary and compelling.”
Cipriani offered Hanson a free apartment for six months to help him adjust back to society.
Since getting out of prison, Hanson has started a protein bar company using a recipe he created while in prison. He said that going to prison saved his life and that he feels better than ever now.
Hanson is still on parole.
