'Paid in Full' is a crime drama set in Harlem, New York, in the 1980s. Ace works at a dry cleaning business and frees Mitch. He begins to sell drugs for Lulu, expands his empire, and breaks into the field. However, foes and backstabbing employees conspire against him to plot his downfall!
Is Paying in Full a True Story?
'Paid in Full' is a true story, but it focuses on fictional characters to unravel the stories of Harlem drug dealers Azie "AZ" Faison, Rich Porter, and Alpo Martinez. However, Rico ( a character from the film) is loosely inspired by Alpo Martinez because he also worked in Washington to make drug deals.
Ace is depicted as a small drug dealer who later owned Harlem's largest drug store. Mitch is depicted as a rich porter who was admired for a lifestyle of material wealth.
Rich was said to be making $50,000 a week supplying cocaine to New York. However, his reign came to an end when a rival group infiltrated and kidnapped his brother, William Porter. He was caught and kidnapped for ransom by the kidnappers, who later detained him.
Rich was allegedly shot in the head and chest many times when he was discovered, and no one knows who exactly perpetrated Rich's murder or their motives. William's body was discovered by a guy who was collecting coins on a bicycle path on December 5, 1990.
Alpo Martinez is said to be the murderer of Rich Porter. He was charged with a variety of crimes and decided to become an informant in order to avoid life in prison. The last place anyone expected him to be was New York on October 32, 2021, and he was discovered dead in the city due to his road rage.
Alpo said, 'Yo, Rich, where did you get the coke from from my connect' before his death. He said, 'From there, I knew he was lying.' 'I gave Richard the nod because he was short so he could stand up in the van.' The next thing you heard was two gunshots, bang bang. Richard collapsed over, and it happened.'
Azie "AZ" Faison had one of the greatest redeeming stories following Rich's death. He founded a rap group called MobStyle, which later produced a documentary and a book, 'Game Over: The Rise and Transformation of a Harlem Hustler.'
'Paid in Full' is a film about the real-life events in Harlem; however, the film does use dramatization and fictional elements to keep the plot junctures more intriguing. The whole ordeal became a fixture in the rap culture, and there were many songs related to the events, making it one of the city's biggest controversies and tragedies.
