Discover the real story of Efraim Diveroli and David Packouz, the “stoner arms dealers” from Miami Beach whose 2007 weapons contracts inspired the movieWar Dogs.
WhenWar Dogspremiered in 2016 , its true - life tale of two gunrunners who struck it rich when they were no older than your middling fraternity boy seemed downright inconceivable . But the true story ofWar Dogsis actually even more amazing than the motion-picture show let on .
In 2007 , 21 - year - old arms bargainer Efraim Diveroli and his 25 - yr - one-time partner David Packouz succeed $ 200 million worth of government contracts for their fledgling society AEY . And they were not shy about establish off their newfound riches .
Efraim Diveroli oozed excess from every pore . The nerveless shirt , the new car , the surefooted swagman all shouted “ easy money . ” After all , he was still a nestling and he ’d already made a name for himself as a gunrunner who crossed the area and amassed a small hazard , which he positively sleep together to flaunt .
Rolling StoneThe two young men behind the story ofWar Dogs: David Packouz, left, and Efraim Diveroli, right.
Rolling StoneThe two immature world behind the chronicle ofWar Dogs : David Packouz , left , and Efraim Diveroli , proper .
presently , his luck would grow exponentially and his trade would stretch from Miami to China , Eastern Europe , and warfare - torn Afghanistan . He had it all , but miss it just as apace — all before he could legally buy a drink .
This is the true story ofWar Dogsand Efraim Diveroli , a tale that ’s even more outlandish than Hollywood made it seem .
Public DomainThe true story behindWar Dogssaw arms dealers Efraim Diveroli (pictured in the mugshot above) and David Packouz win $200 million worth of weapons contracts when they were only in their twenties.
How Efraim Diveroli Got Into Guns At A Young Age
In many mode , Efraim Diveroli ’s future itinerary was not a surprise . As a shaver , he delighted in pushing boundary and develop rule — sempiternal clowning , alcohol , marijuana .
“ I loved it and went potent on the good herb for the next ten - plus years , ” heremembered . And his streak for pushing for greater and greater highs extended from one green into another : money .
And what brought him money was guns . Since he was a teenager , Diveroli had been exposed to arms and ordnance store while working for his uncle in Los Angeles at Botach Tactical .
NYPostEfraim Diveroli’s mugshot.
The younger Diveroli and his father , Michael Diveroli , ultimately decided to take object at arm lot on their own when they realized there were lucrative government contract to be scooped up . The sr. Diveroli incorporate AEY ( carry from the initials of the Diveroli children ) in 1999 . Efraim Diveroli after became an military officer at 18 and then president by 19 .
Diveroli ’s AEY started small by collar Union contracts that bigger troupe were n’t interested in . He drafted an old Quaker from synagogue , David Packouz , to help with the complicated contracts , and another childhood pal , Alex Podrizki , took on the on - the - ground operations abroad . The troupe operated mostly out of a Miami flat , mean the overhead was minimal , which made their bids smaller , and this was precisely what the American government wanted .
The True Story OfWar Dogs
Public DomainThe true story behindWar Dogssaw arms trader Efraim Diveroli ( pictured in the mugshot above ) and David Packouz gain $ 200 million worth of weapon contract when they were only in their twenties .
The Bush administrationbegan to prioritizesmaller contractors to supply arms and ammo . Diveroli ’s society was thus the thoroughgoing provider .
Diveroli ’s appeal and sentiment made him idealistic for these situation , as did his relentless drive and contest . Those same trait made him apt to lose focus on the big flick , however .
Packouzremembered :
“ When he was trying to get a deal , he was entirely convincing . But if he was about to lose a softwood , his voice would start judder . He would say that he was running a very small business , even though he had millions in the bank . He state that if the hatful fell through he was going to be ruined . He was buy the farm to lose his menage . His wife and tiddler were run to go hungry . He would literally cry . I did n’t recognize if it was psychosis or act , but he absolutely believe what he was saying . ”
Diveroli was driven by a winner - takings - all mentality : If he did n’t take the air away with everything , there was no point . Packouz painted the picture of a piece for whom winning was n’t enough , he also wanted someone to lose .
“ If the other hombre is happy , there ’s still money on the table , ” Packouz recalled . “ That ’s the type of cat he is . ”
It was May 2007 and the war in Afghanistan was by all accounts blend ill when Diveroli arrogate his greatest chance to win . AEY underbid the nearest competition by around $ 50 million and managed to sign up a $ 300 million sleeve declaration with the Pentagon . The gas ball carrier toasted their good fortune with a fair amount of bubbly , which Diveroli was just hardly able-bodied to drink legally , and cocaine . Then they dumbfound down to business to source the treasured AK47s .
The heights of this declaration did n’t last long , though . The young men had trouble ascertain the promise goods and finally turned to contraband Formosan supply .
Efraim Diveroli ’s propensity for fudging the rules came through . They repackaged the arm into plainer container , off any taint of Formosan characters that would negate their rootage . AEY finally delivered these illegal products to the government .
The Dramatic Downfall Of Efraim Diveroli And David Packouz
state of war Dogscaptured the drama of this mad speculation , buttook liberty with a few facts . Packouz and Podrizki were folded into the same character . likewise , Ralph Merill , their financial backer of Mormon backcloth who had also function in arms manufacture , was rewritten as a Judaic ironical cleanser . The reckless trek that the moving-picture show version of Diveroli and Packouz embarked on from Jordan to Iraq never happened — though the two were certainly daring , they were not suicidal .
But , for the most part , the truthful story behindWar Dogswas there , peculiarly in Diveroli ’s exclusive - minded ambition , as played by Jonah Hill .
According to Packouz , Efraim Diveroli became gradually more difficult to forge with and even accused the AEY president of withhold money from him . Packouz flipped on his former mate to the Feds , but Diveroli play down Packouz ’s part in the company and arrogate that he was merely “ a part - meter employee … who only closed one very low deal , with my help , and dropped the ball on a dozen others . ”
NYPostEfraim Diveroli ’s mugshot .
Nonetheless , the lifetime of break away rules captivate up to Diveroli . In 2008 , he pleaded shamefaced to faker and confederacy to defraud the US government . He was 23 years old .
“ I have had many experiences in my myopic life , ” Diveroli said before Judge Joan Lenard in royal court , “ I have done more than most the great unwashed can dream of . But I would have done it differently . All the ill fame in my industry and all the upright times — and there were some — can not make up for the damage . ”
Before he could even be doom , Diveroli could n’t aid himself but palm a few piece in the meantime . Upon his sentencing , for which he was already attach to receive four years in prison , he make a further two years of supervised release .
His partners received lesser penalization for cooperating with the investigation . True to his personal mark , Diveroli continued to wheel and deal while in jail and looked for shorter prison metre and more power . As he explained to his father :
“ The only way for one Gallus gallus to leave the farm is for another volaille to total in … If [ this guy ] has to go to prison for life sentence so that I can get one twelvemonth off my sentence … that is what is get going to bechance ! ”
Since then , Diveroli has n’t stayed clear of the law . He sue Warner Bros. for defamation inWar Dogsbut the lawsuit was throw away out . Then he became entangled in a court engagement with the man who co - authored his memoir , Once a Gun Runner . Diveroli also started a medium company name Incarcerated Entertainment .
In all , he seems to be doing well for himself as of late . According to former AEY investor Ralph Merrill , Efraim Diveroli “ lives in a condo with a locked gate , ” and drives a BMW .
After this look at Efraim Diveroli and the true story of War Dogs , see out more behind - the - movie true story for fascinating characters likeLee IsraelandLeo Sharp .
