When Colin McLaren was an undercover cop (in real life) he infiltrated the Australian Mafia. He went undercover for two years, posing as a dodgy art dealer who was able to launder money. The mafia was drawn to McLaren's undercover persona as they saw some use in him. McLaren was able to ingratiate himself with the mafia and he went on to purchase vast amounts of drugs; cocaine and cannabis from the mafia. He also got into major conspiracies to import a plane load of pure cocaine and cannabis with the mafia. This resulted in the end of his operation and the ring leader of the mafia - the actual Australian Godfather - was arrested, along with 10 others bosses and hangers on. It is the biggest undercover sting in Australian law enforcement history. McLaren's undercover role is often compared to that of Joe Pistone, a cop in NYPD who, posing as a dodgy jewel thief Donnie Brasco, infiltrated the Bananno and Colombo families of the NYC mafia. McLaren has always held Joe Pistone in the highest regard for his undercover work. Both men have never met. Pistone's undercover work was in the late 1970s. McLaren's was in the 1990s. Both men have had, at times, been in hiding to avoid repercussions from the mafia.
