The "Mr. Big" Sting: The Cases, the Killers, the Controversial Confessions

by Mark Stobbe

How the police create an imaginary criminal gang to trick homicide suspects into a confession and a prison cell There are people in prison who got away with murder until they told the boss of a powerful criminal gang all about it. When the handcuffs were snapped on, the killers learned they'd been duped -- that "Mr. Big" was actually an undercover police officer. These killers ended up with lots of time to think about how tricky police can be. In this captivating book, we learn why Mr. Big is so good at getting killers to confess -- and why he occasionally gets confessions from the innocent as well. We meet murderers such as Michael Bridges, who strangled his girlfriend and buried her in another person's grave. Bridges remained free until he told Mr. Big where the body was buried. We also meet people like Kyle Unger, who lied while confessing to Mr. Big and went to prison for a crime he did not commit. The "Mr. Big" Sting is essential reading for anyone interested in unorthodox approaches to justice, including their successes and failures. It sheds light on how homicide investigators might catch and punish the guilty while avoiding convicting the innocent.

Genres: True Crime, Nonfiction, Audiobook

264 pages, Paperback

Published September 28, 2021

Reviews

[Valerity (Val) · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a book about a system that Canadian RCMP use on their worst of the worst cases that seem unsolvable. After creating a Mr. Big set up, they attempt to get the suspect to confess to the crime to a fake crime boss. They lie to the suspect to lure him into wanting to join the gang. It covers different serious cases, and shares how often the Mr Big Stings do work. Other countries like Australia have implemented the same method to catch criminals too. Very well researched and written. An interesting police procedural read. Advance electronic review copy was provided by NetGalley, author Mark Stobbe, and the publisher.

[Sydney · Rating 3 out of 5]

The start of “The Mr. Big Sting” immediately draws you in, with a ton of different cases being described one after another. The book is informative and well-researched, but the writing gets pretty dry at times. I knew of the “Mr. Big” operation, but this book goes in-depth into how the operation is planned, various strategies, and countless cases that this was used in to coerce criminals into admitting guilt. The author dives into pros and cons, including how flawed the system is in some of these false confessions. Overall an interesting book but hard to get through due to the writing style. Thank you to ECW Press for my gifted copy!

[Ryan Barry · Rating 2 out of 5]

The RMCP (Royal Canadian Mounted Police) have been using the ‘Mr Big’ technique for decades. Over a hundred people “got away with murder” until an undercover police officer (AKA ‘Mr Big’) tricked them into confessing. Mark Stobbe’s brilliantly researched book (he has some personal experience too), gives great insight into the policing tactics of ‘Mr Big’, high-profile cases. Quite a few of the cases covered also look at when the sting practice didn't work at all. It’s a subjective narrative that sets out its stall right at the beginning of the book.

Within the book's pages, we meet murderers such as Michael Bridges, who strangled his girlfriend and buried her in another person's grave! Bridges remained free until he told ''Mr. Big'' where the body was. We also meet people like Kyle Unger, who lied while confessing to ''Mr. Big'' and went to prison for a crime he did not commit. The "Mr. Big" Sting is essential reading for anyone interested in unorthodox approaches to justice, including their successes and failures. It sheds light on how homicide investigators might catch and punish the guilty while avoiding convicting the innocent.

The ''Mr.Big'' sting also looks at how the practice has been used across the world. Some particularly interesting cases have occurred within the USA, UK, and Australia. Some success, some not, but Mark Stobbe goes into great detail to explain the pitfalls and successes of this seemingly coercive sting operation.

If I lived in Canada, I'd enjoy this even more I think. I'd be interested in reading further follow-up books that cover cases across the globe. A great read for any true crime fans.



Our Rating


VivaLaBooks Rating -3 / 5

[Thomas Kelley · Rating 4 out of 5]

The start of this book is different then most books in that the first few pages have a paragraph length cases of someone losing their life it briefly describes the situation and moves on to the next one. It makes you wonder were the book is heading. You just need to stick with it and it gets to the main subject of the book which is a Mr. Big Operation. This is a clever situation the Canadian Authorities put together on a case were they need more information on cases that have stalled or they need additional clues. This can be very elaborate like setting a movie scene but this is real life. The author claims that this has been so successful that it has lead to solving of over two hundred murder cases. This has worked so well that Australia and New Zealand have used these methods also. This has it detractors especially defense attorney's who argue that the methods used are not lawful and that is prejudicial to their clients it documents the accused actions as being unsavory. The author goes on to explain and make some compelling arguments that expert witnesses and so called expert methods to obtain evidence is not always reliable. This is a very informative read and to find out how the author learned that Mr. Big exist you will have to read this book.

[Brooke · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think this is an intriguing look at a big sting operation to coerce criminals into admitting guilt. Although this book largely shows how flawed the system actually is.

I appreciated the info into this & liked the bits about the different cases but i would have liked a little more of a flow to it. The start goes with a bang right into different cases nearly listing them after the other but in paragraph form. It lead me to expect the book to be more about cases rather than the intricacies of the whole operation. It could be a bit of an info dump at times.

I also wanted to know more about the authors own experience with this more. It did seem like he had a skewed thought about this sting and that showed in the narrative. I think if you’re a fan of non fiction and a bit of true crime, you’ll find this to be a fascinating read.

[Justine · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very well-researched book that is well-written. I liked how it looked at the strategy from all angles, showing good, bad, and unclear uses of the tactic. He went into it with an actual attempt to evaluate the technique from all angles. It probably helped that he had experienced both sides of the law, which is mentioned on the back cover and then also in the introduction of the book.

Going into the book, one thing that you should know is that there are descriptions of the crimes, to provide you with a clear understanding of what happened. It doesn't linger or goes into unnecessary detail, but you should know it's there.

[Nicola Stevenson · Rating 3 out of 5]

If you have an interest in this method that the RCMP (in particular) use to gain a confession in some cases, this is a really good book to read. It discusses the history of the "Mr Big" setup, how it works, the legalities & ethics for both the police work & in court, as well as the good, the bad & the ugly in terms of case examples. I thought this was well researched & well written. However, I was expecting more of a case-based book, as opposed to the more in depth look at the tactics.

Thanks to ECW Press & NetGalley for the DRC in exchange for an honest review.

[Page]

I was expecting arrest techniques such as in a police proceedural. Not details of the murders. I wasn't expecting to read about the murder of a child that was so heinous I probably won't sleep tonight. I wasn't expecting to feel sick and despair for the human race. I never made it out of the introduction. I know the world isn't all rainbows and gum drops. I'm not Pollyanna. I read a lot of murder mystery. But those books aren't real. I'm not sure what possessed me to pick this book up. It was a mistake I will regret for quite some time.

[Vikki Bullock · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoy reading about real life crime, this book is great for anyone interested in how the real criminals are caught! Sometimes the police are questioned about their investigations and methods of solving a crime, the good and bad are examined in this interesting story.
A must read for those keen to find out how the guilty or not guilty are dealt with.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

[Ron Baumer · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting read on a method used by the RCMP to solve crimes. The author provides an unbiased look at the pro and cons of the practices. There is a good use first hand accounts and stories to make this very interesting.

Thank you to #NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

[J · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hard one to rate. In the end I'm giving it 3.5 rounded up to 4 - the writing itself wasn't great but the topic was interesting and well-researched, and I appreciated that he treated the victims as more important than their murderers. Not enough true crime does that.

[Pete Symenuk · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an interesting look at police tactics,the complexities of the court system in trying to prosecute the guilty & keep the innocent from being wrongly convicted & the many problems with gathering & presenting evidence. A good read !

[Jim Fisher · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great reading for those that like good investigative reporting, judicial matters examined and seeing criminals brought to justice.