From Bad Things On The Streets: To Healthy Treats: The Owen Hanson Story

What happens when a surfer kid from California becomes the leader of a multi-million dollar criminal empire, loses everything, and then creates a revolutionary protein ice cream business from inside a federal prison cell?

When I sat down with Owen Hanson, I knew I was about to hear one of the most extraordinary comeback stories I’d ever encountered. The man sitting across from me had just 30 days left in a federal halfway house, but his story began years earlier when a construction worker’s son from Redondo Beach found himself rubbing shoulders with millionaires at USC, and desperately trying to fit in.

From Beach Volleyball to Bookmaking Empire

Owen’s descent into the criminal underworld started innocently enough. After losing his six-figure job during the recession, he turned to his father for help. “I went to my father and begged him to make me his Italian friend that was a bookmaker,” Owen told me. What began as simple sports betting quickly escalated into something much more dangerous.

The turning point came when Owen impressed a high-roller who couldn’t believe he paid out winnings on a Monday. That customer turned out to be connected to one of the most infamous cartels in the world. “He couldn’t believe I paid him on a Monday and he was so impressed the way I ran my business. He wanted to do business with me,” Owen recalled.

Soon, Owen was trafficking tons of cocaine into Australia using ingenious methods, from wine bottles filled with liquid cocaine to chocolate delivery trucks in New Jersey. His USC connections proved invaluable, including a fraternity brother whose family owned a chocolate company. The money was intoxicating for a young man who had grown up watching his father struggle financially.

The $3.2 Million Nightmare That Changed Everything

The glamorous lifestyle came crashing down when a money launderer in Australia lost $2.5 million of cartel money in a single day at the casino, and then called the police out of panic. Owen found himself owing the cartel $4 million instead of the original amount lost.

At just 26 years old, Owen made a decision that would define his character. He flew to Mexico to face the cartel boss directly. “I told him listen, I lost your money and I’m responsible. I told him it wasn’t me but I put my face on the line here and I’m going to pay you back,” Owen explained. The boss’s response was chilling: “You don’t owe me 3.2 million. You owe me four million now, and you work for the cartel.”

For the next four years, Owen lived under constant surveillance from both the FBI and the cartel, knowing his days were numbered. The stress led to heavy drug and alcohol abuse as he desperately tried to pay back his debt while evading federal agents who were closing in.

Prison Cell Innovation: From Mop Bucket to Market

After receiving a 21-year sentence (later reduced), Owen could have wallowed in despair. Instead, he channeled his entrepreneurial spirit into something remarkable. While earning his Master’s degree in prison, Owen discovered something amazing when his cellmate suggested adding rock salt to his protein shake to make it colder.

“I came back from my workout and the thing was frozen. I was like, wait a minute here. This is no good. He said, just try it, man. I took a spoon to it. It was like protein ice cream. I said, this is insane,” Owen remembered.

What started as a happy accident became a thriving prison business. Owen was soon selling protein ice cream for $15 per serving to fellow inmates, sometimes making more money in a week than the prison guards. But his vision extended far beyond the prison walls.

Working with his cellmate who paid a guard $5,000 for a phone, Owen documented his ice cream-making process in videos, creating content he knew would be priceless for his eventual comeback. Now, just 30 days from release, Owen has partnered with a manufacturer who believed in his story and is launching California Ice Protein, set to be in 100 stores by summer.