Secrets of the Hells Angels: Where is Jay Dobyns now?
A&EFollowing the premiere of A&E’s Secrets of the Hells Angels, you might be wondering: where is undercover agent Jay Dobyns now? Here’s what we know.
There’s plenty of true crime to dig into on streaming this month, and the same can be said for cable TV. Over the weekend, A&E dropped the first episode of its deep dive into the Hells Angels.
The eight-part documentary series explores how the world-famous motorcycle club descended into chaos, detailing everything from drugs and rival bike wars to a plot to assassinate Rolling Stones frontman Mick Jagger.
One of the key figures in Episode 1 is Jay Dobyns, the ATF (Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives) agent who infiltrated the Arizona Hells Angels between 2001 and 2003. Here’s everything you need to know about where he is now.
Secrets of the Hells Angels: Where is Jay Dobyns now?
After working as a special agent for the ATF for more than 25 years, Jay Dobyns retired in January 2014. He’s now a best-selling author and public speaker, living with his wife, Gwen, and their daughter and son, Dale and Jack, in the US.
Dobyns’ life could have looked very different, having nearly lost his entire family after joining Operation Black Biscuit, the ATF’s undercover investigation into the Arizona Hells Angels.
Taking on the alias “Jaybird” Davis, Dobyns told Fox News Digital that he never tried to convince the Hells Angels that he was an experienced biker as they would’ve figured out he was lying.
“I portrayed myself as this gangster who was trying to be part of their world,” he said. “It kept my story very close to the truth. I portrayed myself as a gun runner and a debt collector, not as a biker.”
Living a double life had a strain on his relationship with his family. Dobyns continued: “I put a massive amount of battle damage on my wife and kids. My regret, my failure, the shame that I continue to carry today is that I put my job in front of my family.
“At the time, I tried to justify it to myself, saying anybody who does undercover work and treats it like a hobby, treats it like a gimmick, ends up hurt or dead. You have to be all in. You have to allow that world to consume you because you’re never off.”
When his identity was discovered by the criminal biker gang, Dobyns’ life was at risk, as were the lives of his wife and kids. In 2008, four months after the location of his home was revealed, their Tucson home was set on fire. Although all of them managed to escape unscathed, it was far from the only death threat.
“Those threats, although not necessarily as prevalent today as they were a few years back, I’m still cautious,” he added. “I don’t live my life in fear. I’m not trying to hide… I’m telling the truth. I’m not going to run or hide from the truth either.”
Dobyns has written numerous books about his experiences infiltrating the Hells Angels, including No Angel: My Harrowing Undercover Journey to the Inner Circle of the Hells Angels and Catching Hell: A True Story of Abandonment and Betrayal.
You can learn more about Dobyns’ story in Secrets of the Hells Angels, with new episodes airing every Sunday on A&E. For more true crime, check out all the documentaries coming out this month. And you can find more TV shows to add to your watchlist here.
