True Crime Historian

Nazis Invade AmericaEpisode 464Jump to Ad-Free Safe House EditionIn the summer of 1942, the war was supposed to be a distant conflict. But that illusion shattered when German U-boats, the predators of Operation Drumbeat, brought the fight to the American home front, sinking ships within sight of Long Island. This episode dives into the extraordinary story of Operation Pastorius, Hitler’s audacious plan to cripple the “Arsenal of Democracy.”Eight German agents—all fluent in English and trained in sabotage—landed on American beaches carrying a staggering $175,000 in cash and their most terrifying weapon: the disguised coal torpedo. Their mission: to blow up aluminum plants, railways, and bridges, and sow terror across the nation.The entire operation, however, pivoted on a foggy beach encounter with an unarmed 21-year-old Coast Guardsman, John Cullen, and the stunning betrayal of the mission's leader, George John Dasch. His self-surrender to the FBI exposed the entire plot, leading to a frantic manhunt and the c