Pablo Escobar, the former leader of the Medellín drug cartel, remains famous even after his murder over two decades ago. His popularity stems from innumerable books, movies, and songs. We decided to provide a list of Escobar’s biographical facts.
Rise to Power
He then lied on report cards, smuggled radio equipment, and stole tombstones to sell. Escobar was arrested for automobile theft in 1974. After becoming a drug courier, he helped form the Medellín cartel in the mid-1970s.
Lots of Money
At its peak, the Medellín cartel controlled the cocaine trade, earning $420 million weekly and making its boss one of the world’s wealthiest.
With a $25 billion fortune, Escobar spent lavishly. His affluent lifestyle featured private planes, beautiful mansions (see below), and extravagant events. He offered to pay off his country’s $10 billion debt in the late 1980s provided he was immune from extradition.
Although his family was on the run in 1992–93, Escobar burnt $2 million to keep their daughter warm. Though he tried, Escobar couldn’t spend all that money, which was kept in warehouses and fields. His brother said 10%, or $2.1 billion, was written off annually due to rats or weather. Sometimes it was lost.
Among his many properties, Escobar’s most renowned was the 7,000-acre Hacienda Nápoles, named after Naples, Italy, situated between Bogotá and Medellín. The $63 million complex includes a soccer field, dinosaur statues, artificial lakes, a bullfighting arena, the smoldering ruins of a rival cartel’s classic car collection, an airfield, a tennis court, and a zoo. Locals destroyed the estate, which today attracts tourists with the plane he used on his first cocaine run to the U.S.
Jungle King
The 200-animal Escobar Zoo had elephants, ostriches, zebras, camels, and giraffes. Escobar’s cocaine flights brought many of the animals into the nation. Zoos took most of the animals after his 1993 death. Left behind were four hippopotamuses. They grew to 40 or more by 2016. Locals fear the hazardous creatures that have ruined farms. The government castrated male hippos to regulate the population.
Robin Hood
Escobar’s generosity earned him the nickname Robin Hood, possibly to win over ordinary Colombians. Hospitals, stadiums, and substandard housing were his projects. Even local soccer teams were financed by him.
He was voted to Congress as an alternate in 1982, demonstrating his popularity among Colombians. However, a campaign to uncover his illicit actions prompted him to leave two years later. The justice minister who led it was killed.
“Plata or Plomo”
Escobar dealt with issues using “plata o plomo,” or “silver” (bribes) or “lead” (bullets). Though he preferred the former, he was brutal about the latter. He allegedly killed 4,000 people, including many police and government officials. The cartel was accused of bombing an informant’s plane in 1989. Approximately 100 died.
Catedral
Escobar offered to surrender in 1991 provided he could build his own prison. Officials from Colombia concurred, maybe unexpectedly. La Catedral was the magnificent consequence. The complex had a nightclub, sauna, waterfall, soccer field, and phones, computers, and fax machines. After Escobar tortured and killed two cartel members at La Catedral, officials moved him to a less comfortable prison. Escobar escaped in July 1992 before being relocated.
Muerto King
The Colombian authorities, with help from U.S. agents and rival drug traffickers, began a huge manhunt after his escape.
Escobar allegedly celebrated his 44th birthday with cake, wine, and marijuana on December 1, 1993. The next day, his Medellín hideout was found. Escobar and a bodyguard climbed the roof when Colombian forces attacked the building.
Escobar died after a chase and gunfire. However, some believe Escobar committed suicide. If apprehended, the drug lord may be sent to the U.S. He previously declared he would rather have a cemetery in Colombia than a jail cell.