King of the Con Docuseries Bowing on discovery+

Debuting on discovery+ in the new year, King of the Con is a three-part docuseries about notorious con man Barry Minkow.

A master of reinvention, Minkow’s various scams over the years left a trail of victims in his wake while making him rich. All three parts of King of the Con, which features an interview with Minkow discussing his life and crimes, will be available to stream on discovery+ beginning January 14.

Minkow grew up a whiz kid determined to build a different life from his parents, with dreams of money and success. At 16, he started a carpet cleaning company called ZZZZ Best, which made him one of the youngest self-made entrepreneurs in the nation. Shortly after he took the company public on the New York Stock Exchange, however, it was revealed to be the front for a Ponzi scheme with ties to the mob. Minkow served a lengthy prison sentence, after which he became a pastor of the San Diego Community Bible Church, got married, published a book on his crimes, used his criminal background to help identify other cases of potential fraud and had a movie in the works about his life story. Then, it was revealed he was using his fraud detection work to insider trade while also bilking his congregation of millions of dollars. Minkow, now out of prison and attempting to rebuild his life, is sharing his story.

Produced by The Content Group, King of the Con explores Minkow’s story across four decades. In addition to firsthand accounts from Minkow, it also features his co-conspirators, family and victims.

Jason Sarlanis, president of crime and investigative content at Discovery, said: “What’s so intriguing about Barry Minkow is not how much he stole, but how he was able to get away with his crimes again and again. After failing so publicly with ZZZZ Best, how could he turn right around after leaving prison, build an entirely new life, redeem his reputation and then start all over again with scamming innocent people? King of the Con offers a glimpse inside the mind of one of the most notorious, over-the-top con men to ever exist and a very rare opportunity to hear firsthand from him exactly how he managed to defraud countless people over four decades.”