Shownotes Transcript
They say a life of crime is a life of constant risk and danger. But what's more dangerous yet is the life of a criminal informant. An informant constantly walks a treacherous tightrope between their crime partners and police officer handlers. Informants have to stay close to get the information they owe the cops. But one wrong move, even the smallest slip-up, could get them killed.
Informants are always criminals. They have to be right. Well, not this time. I'm attorney Marsha Clark, the host of the new true crime podcast, Informants Lawyer X. And in this show, you're going to hear the shocking story of the last person you'd ever expect to become an informant.
The story of Nicola Gabo is one with the kinds of twists and turns you'd only believe if it were absolutely true. She was a high-powered criminal lawyer who represented the most notorious drug lords in Australia, key players in what was known as the Gangland Wars. Nicola sold them out, betraying the very people she'd sworn to defend.
By day, she went to battle for them in court, while by night, she holed up with the cops and spilled all their deepest, darkest secrets. The Lawyer X scandal exploded across international headlines, and Nicola's duplicity put her life and the lives of her children in danger.
This unbelievable edge-of-your-seat thriller will keep you guessing until the very end. I'm about to play you a clip from the first episode of Informant's Lawyer X. Wondery Plus subscribers can listen to the entire series right now exclusively and ad-free. It's 2005 in downtown Brisbane, Australia.
A 34-year-old woman walks out onto the rooftop of a tall building. She moves unsteadily to the roof's edge and stares down at the street below. She sways for a moment, then, reaching into her coat pocket, she pulls out her cell phone. Her hand shakes as she dials a number. A cop with Victoria Police answers. She threatens to jump. After several long, tense minutes, he manages to talk her down.
That woman on the roof, that was Nicola Gabo. She was from a family of legal royalty and the youngest female defense attorney, or barrister as they're called in Australia. In fact, some even thought she was Supreme Court material. So how did she end up here, on the rooftop of a 15-story building, about to jump to her death? I'm Marcia Clark. I spent over 14 years as a prosecutor and defense attorney in Los Angeles.
I was the lead prosecutor in the trial of O.J. Simpson for the murders of his ex-wife, Nicole Brown, and her friend, Ron Goldman. I've handled a lot of high-profile and unusual cases. But then I heard the story of criminal defense attorney Nicola Gabo, and it turned out to be one of the most baffling and bizarre stories I've ever come across. Your lawyer is supposed to be your confidant. It's like talking to your priest or your shrink. You trust them.
And you should. It's their legal and ethical duty to keep your secrets safe. When you tell them something in confidence, they have to take it to the grave. But what if they don't? What if they decide to spill every one of your deepest, darkest secrets to the very last person on Earth you'd want to hear it? In most situations, the consequences might be embarrassing, maybe even professionally harmful.
But in the case of Nicola Gabo, the consequences were nothing short of catastrophic and deadly. Defense attorney Nicola Gabo represented some of the most notorious drug lords in Melbourne, Australia. In the press, she's been called a party girl, a fierce courtroom warrior, and ultimately, the woman who created one of Australia's and perhaps the world's biggest legal scandals.
In Australia, they refer to it as the Lawyer X scandal. The identity of Lawyer X has been suppressed for years now. Nicola Golo is missing piece in the jigsaw. This is the biggest scandal in Australian criminal history without a shadow of a doubt. The barrister had a secret and now the cat's well and truly out of the bag. Turns out the barrister had many, many secrets.
You can listen to all episodes of Informant's Lawyer X exclusively on Wondery Plus. Join Wondery Plus in the Wondery app, Apple Podcasts, or Spotify and get access to this and more Exhibit C true crime shows early and ad-free.
