I recently had the privilege of meeting Andrew Young, the prosecutor behind Operation Trojan Shield, one of the most creative and impactful undercover operations ever carried out by the U.S. Department of Justice.
The podcast Dark Wire tells the story in gripping detail, walking listeners through the creation of a fake encrypted phone company that gained the trust of major criminal organizations worldwide, without them realizing they were handing over evidence directly to law enforcement.
After listening to the podcast, I reached out to Andrew to hear more about the operation firsthand. Among other things, our conversation revolved around the importance of understanding motive. Whether you’re investigating criminal networks or unraveling financial fraud, why people do what they do is often the key to uncovering how they did it.
At Intellex Forensics, that concept is central to our work. Behind every falsified invoice, every shell entity, and every questionable transaction, there’s a story, often driven by pressure, opportunity, or rationalization. We’re trained to spot the red flags and follow the financial breadcrumbs that others miss.
Hearing Andrew explain how his team built trust with global criminals through a fabricated communications platform was surreal. It reminded me of the financial illusions we confront in forensic accounting, where numbers are altered to mislead, not inform. We may not deal in wiretaps, but we do spend our days untangling stories that don’t add up.
What stood out most was Andrew’s openness in sharing not only the strategy behind the operation but also the human side of the work. The success of Operation Trojan Shield wasn’t just a result of bold planning, it was built on patience, calculated risk, and a deep understanding of behavior. Those same qualities are essential in forensic accounting as well.
In both worlds, truth is often buried beneath layers of deception. And in both, great investigations rely on the same foundation: curiosity, integrity, and the courage to get to the bottom of things