The spellbinding tale of an epic international manhunt for a psychopathic con artist who stole dozens of identities and millions of dollars while exploiting the dreams of artists from Hollywood, Jakarta, London and beyond. Blending years of deep reporting with distinctive, powerful prose, Scott C. Johnson's unique true crime narrative recounts the tale of the brilliantly cunning imposter who carved a path of financial and emotional destruction across the world. Gifted with a diabolical flair for impersonation, manipulation, and deception, the Con Queen used his skill with accents and deft psychological insight to sweep through the entertainment industry. Johnson traces the origins of this gender-bending criminal mastermind and follows the years-long investigation of a singularly determined private detective who helped deliver him to the FBI. Described by one victim as a "crazy, evil genius," the Con Queen brazenly worked in an evolving, borderless world in which our notions of gender, identity, and sexuality are undergoing profound changes, helping enable one of the most elaborate scams to ever hit Hollywood. The Con Queen is the perfect criminal, committing the perfect crime for our time. But for what purpose? And with what motive? Johnson first broke the story of the Con Queen for The Hollywood Reporter and led the coverage of this intricate story. His unparalleled access to sources, including exclusive interviews with victims and investigators, and never-before-heard audio footage of the Con Queen, brought global attention to the scam and spurred law enforcement to act. But the story took a truly unique turn when Johnson ventured out of Covid restrictions to search for the Con Queen himself. Embarking on a journey that took him from Los Angeles to the United Kingdom and, finally, to Jakarta, Johnson came face-to-face with the mastermind and uncovered the truth about one of the most compelling and disturbing criminal minds in recent history. Despite decades of experience as a foreign correspondent and war reporter, nothing prepared Johnson for the bizarre experience of following the Con Queen's exploits-and for what chasing the story ultimately revealed about himself and his own troubled family history.

Current and emerging United States Army doctrine places great emphasis on the concepts of strategic responsiveness and force projection to meet the National Security Strategy requirements. The use or potential use, of landmines significantly increases the lethality of the Army force during deterrence and combat operations, and enhances survivability. In essence, with the use of landmines, the U.S. Army achieves an economy of force that in effect increases the U.S. Army's agility, versatility and ability to deploy. Smaller more deployable Army forces such as the medium brigade and light units can generate more combat power by using the effects provided by landmines integrated with other combat systems. However, in order to use landmines worldwide, the U.S. must move, store, or reposition landmines in, through, or to the theater and area of operations prior to, concurrently, or in conjunction with the deploying Army force. Movement of forces, material, and equipment across international borders and into sovereign nations requires the permission of those nations, or a conscious decision to violate international laws and conventions regarding sovereignty. The Convention on the Prohibition of the Use, Stockpiling, Production and Transfer of Anti-personnel Mines and their Destruction - also known as the Ottawa Landmine Treaty - has the potential to place severe limits on the United States ability to deploy forces. The Ottawa Landmine Treaty (OLT) prohibits signatory countries from using, developing, producing, acquiring, stockpiling, or transferring anti-personnel landmines. As more countries sign and ratify the OLT, and create internal laws that enforce it, the number of countries that will allow a force that trains, plans, and intends to employ anti-personnel landmines as a matter of course to enter, pass through or over its sovereign territory has the potential to significantly decrease. The location, national strategy, and strategic alliances of non-signatory countri

The potential for urban combat grows more plausible and probable as the world's population migrates toward cities and adversaries attempt to minimize the technological advantage of the U.S. military. Both emerging doctrine and the development of a full spectrum medium weight force - known as the Interim Brigade Combat Team (IBCT) - provide ample evidence that the U.S. Army acknowledges this increased potential for military operations in urban terrain (MOUT). Mobility and the dismounted infantry assault are the IBCT's two key operational capabilities. Since the IBCT provides an early entry combat force capable of decisive action to the war-fighting CINC, it must be capable of conducting immediate decisive, shaping and sustaining operations in urban terrain with its organic assets and capabilities. Both decisive and shaping operations require maneuver - an element of combat power, however without mobility, the IBCT cannot maneuver. The IBCT's ability to conduct mobility operations tasks is directly linked to its mobility, ability to maneuver and capability to conduct decisive operations in urban terrain. This leads to the question: Does the IBCT have the capability to conduct the tactical mobility operations required to meet the demands of decisive offensive operations in urban terrain? This monograph reviews emerging U.S. Army doctrine, existing and emerging mobility assets and tactics, techniques and procedures (TTP), and the IBCT organization and employment concept to determine the organic mobility capabilities of the IBCT. A review of recent MOUT operations, lessons learned, and the emerging urban environment provide visibility of the mobility requirements of the IBCT and the environmental restrictions urban terrain places on a force. Next, the monograph analyzes the IBCT's organic mobility capabilities to determine their applicability to urban environment by assessing the feasibility, acceptability, and suitability of using the mobility capabilities in the emerg