Pablo Emilio Escobar Gaviria was a Colombian drug lord,narcoterrorist,and politician,who was the founder and sole leader of the Medellín Cartel. Dubbed "the king of cocaine",Escobar was one of the wealthiest criminals in history,having amassed an estimated net worth of US$30 billion by the time of his death—equivalent to $70 billion as of 2022—while his drug cartel monopolized the cocaine trade into the United States in the 1980s and early 1990s.
Narcoterrorism,in its original context,is understood to refer to the attempts of narcotics traffickers to influence the policies of a government or a society through violence and intimidation,and to hinder the enforcement of anti-drug laws by the systematic threat or use of such violence. As with most definitions of terrorism,it typically only refers to non-state actors.
The Cali Cartel was a drug cartel based in southern Colombia,around the city of Cali and the Valle del Cauca. Its founders were the brothers Gilberto Rodríguez Orejuela,Miguel Rodríguez Orejuela and JoséSantacruz Londoño. They broke away from Pablo Escobar and his Medellín associates in 1988,when Hélmer "Pacho" Herrera joined what became a four-man executive board that ran the cartel.
The Medellín Cartel was a powerful and highly organized Colombian drug cartel and terrorist organization originating in the city of Medellín,Colombia,that was founded and led by Pablo Escobar. It is often considered to be the first major "drug cartel" and was referred to as such;due to the organization's upper echelons and overall power-structure being built on a partnership between multiple Colombian traffickers operating alongside Escobar. Included were Jorge Luis Ochoa Vásquez,Fabio Ochoa Vásquez,Juan David Ochoa Vásquez,JoséGonzalo Rodríguez Gacha and Carlos Lehder. Escobar's main partner in the organization however was his cousin Gustavo Gaviria who handled much of the cartel's shipping arrangements and the more general and detailed logistical aspects of the cocaine trafficking routes and international smuggling networks which were supplying at least 80% of the world's cocaine during its peak. Gustavo,also known as León seems to have also had a strong hand in the cartel's unprecedented acts of narcoterrorism,right alongside his cousin Pablo and was considered to be second in command of the cartel and therefore one of Colombia's most wanted men,with both him and Escobar having arrest warrants pending from other nations where their criminal activity had spread to,such as in Spain and the U.S. Meanwhile,Pablo Escobar's brother Roberto Escobar acted as the organization's accountant. The cartel operated from 1976 to 1993 in Colombia (Antioquia),Bolivia,Panama,Central America,Peru,the Bahamas,the United States,as well as in Canada.
La Catedral was a personal prison overlooking the city of Medellín,in Colombia. The prison was built to specifications ordered by Medellín Cartel leader Pablo Escobar,under a 1991 agreement with the Colombian government in which Escobar would surrender to authorities and serve a maximum term of five full years and the Colombian government would not extradite him to the United States. The prison now is administered as a monastery by Catholic monks of the Benedictine Order.
Carlos Enrique Lehder Rivas is a Colombian and German former drug lord who was co-founder of the Medellín Cartel. Born to a German father and Colombian mother,he was the first high-level drug trafficker extradited to the United States,after which he was released from prison in the United States after 33 years in 2020. Originally from Armenia,Colombia,Lehder eventually ran a cocaine transport empire on Norman's Cay island,210 miles (340 km) off the Florida coast in the central Bahamas.
Dandeny Muñoz Mosquera,also known as "La Quica",is a former sicario for the Colombian Medellín Cartel,a prominent drug trafficking enterprise in Colombia in the late 1980s and early 1990s. He was described at one point as the "chief assassin" for the Cartel's leader Pablo Escobar.
Los Pepes,a name derived from the Spanish phrase Los Perseguidos por Pablo Escobar,was a paramilitary group composed of enemies of Pablo Escobar. They waged a small-scale war against the Medellín Cartel in 1993,which ended the same year following the death of Escobar. The group was financed by the Cali Cartel and was led by the Castaño brothers. An example of their acts could be seen on the streets of Medellín,such as hangings of Pablo's hitmen.
Miguel Ángel Rodríguez Orejuela is a convicted Colombian drug lord,formerly one of the leaders of the Cali Cartel,based in the city of Cali. He is the younger brother of Gilberto Rodríguez Orejuela. He married Miss Colombia 1974,Martha Lucía Echeverry.
JoséGonzalo Rodríguez Gacha,also known by the nicknames Don Sombrero and El Mexicano,was a Colombian drug lord who was one of the leaders of the Medellín Cartel along with the Ochoa brothers and Pablo Escobar. At the height of his criminal career,Rodríguez was acknowledged as one of the world's most successful drug dealers. In 1988,Forbes magazine included him in their annual list of the world's billionaires.
Jorge Luis Ochoa Vásquez is a Colombian former drug trafficker who was one of the founding members of the Medellín Cartel in the late 1970s. The cartel's key members were Pablo Escobar,Carlos Lehder,JoséGonzalo Rodríguez Gacha,Gustavo Gaviria,Jorge Ochoa,and his brothers Juan David and Fabio.
Rodrigo Lara Bonilla was a Colombian lawyer and politician,who served as Minister of Justice under President Belisario Betancur,and was assassinated by orders of Pablo Escobar because of his work as Minister in prosecuting cocaine traffickers mainly belonging to the Medellín Cartel.
The illegal drug trade in Colombia has,since the 1970s,centered successively on four major drug trafficking cartels:Medellín,Cali,Norte del Valle,and North Coast,as well as several bandas criminales,or BACRIMs. The trade eventually created a new social class and influenced several aspects of Colombian culture,economics,and politics.
Drug barons of Colombia refer to some of the most notable drug lords which operate in illegal drug trafficking in Colombia. Several of them,notably Pablo Escobar,were long considered among the world's most dangerous and most wanted men by U.S. intelligence. "Ruthless and immensely powerful",several political leaders,such as President Virgilio Barco Vargas,became convinced that the drug lords were becoming so powerful that they could oust the formal government and run the country.
Narcos is an American crime drama television series created and produced by Chris Brancato,Carlo Bernard,and Doug Miro. Set and filmed in Colombia,seasons 1 and 2 are based on the story of Colombian narcoterrorist and drug lord Pablo Escobar,leader of the Medellín Cartel and billionaire through the production and distribution of cocaine. The series also focuses on Escobar's interactions with drug lords,Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) agents,and various opposition entities. Season 3 picks up after the fall of Escobar and continues to follow the DEA as they try to shut down the rise of the infamous Cali Cartel.
The first season of Narcos,an American crime thriller drama web television series produced and created by Chris Brancato,Carlo Bernard,and Doug Miro,follows the story of notorious drug kingpin Pablo Escobar,who became a billionaire through the production and distribution of cocaine,while also focusing on Escobar's interactions with other drug lords,DEA agents,and various opposition entities.
The second season of Narcos,an American crime thriller drama web television series produced and created by Chris Brancato,Carlo Bernard,and Doug Miro,follows the story of notorious drug kingpin Pablo Escobar,who became a billionaire through the production and distribution of cocaine,while also focusing on Escobar's interactions with drug lords,DEA agents,and various opposition entities.
Carlos Mauro Hoyos Jiménez was a Colombian jurist and politician. He was the general inspector of the nation from September 1987 until he was kidnapped and assassinated by hitmen under orders of Medellín Cartel.
Organised crime in Colombia refers to the activities of various groups of drug cartels,guerilla groups,organised crime syndicates or underworld activities including drug trafficking,contract killing,racketeering and other crimes in Colombia. Colombia has seen the rise and fall of drug empires,crime syndicates and organised guerrilla groups,all of which having contributed to the varying forms of organised crimes having occurred in Colombia.
