Notorious: The Top Drug Lords of All Time: #8 Pablo Escobar
Pablo Escobar
Country: Colombia
Product: Cocaine
Pablo Escobar was one of the the most notoriously violent and wealthy drug lords of all time. Lauded by drug dealers, rappers, kingpins, and financiers, he was famously listed by Forbes Magazine in 1989 as the 7th richest man in the world with his wealth estimated at $25 billion. Every drug kingpin film that you have seen has used elements of Pablo Escobar as foil for what it really means to be on top of the drug world.
Escobar started his career stealing tombstones and cars and selling them on the black market in Colombia . In the ‘70’s he started to build his empire through his contacts in the cocaine business and slowly but surely the Medellin Cartel became ground zero for most of the cocaine production and distribution throughout the world. Escobar was a ruthless leader, routinely murdering anyone that attempted to get in his way, cops, state officials, underlings, rivals, no one was exempt from his disciplined and authoritarian rule. Pablo Escobar was the Genghis Khan of drug lords. His famous maxim “plato or plomo” meaning “bribe or bullet” played into all his dealing with rivals and officials, as he was directly responsible for the assassination of Colombian presidential candidate Luis Galan after he refused to be bribed by Escobar. After this murder the Colombian government descended upon him with all their force forcing him to submit to prison with a maximum term up to five years. This prison known as Hotel Escobar or Club Medellin was a prison that was built by Escobar with the Colombian government’s blessing at his exact specifications. It included a jacuzzi, a bar, a full scale soccer field, and a telescope that allowed him to see his daughter while he was on the phone with her. After leaving the prison eventually he was killed by US forces with the assistance of the Colombian government. Nevertheless, his legacy is probably the largest and most all encompassing that the drug world has ever known.
About: The Dope Report has compiled the definitive list of the most ruthless movers and pushers, the most innovative and sophisticated producers, suppliers, and buyers, the largest street dealers and big ballers that comprise the ultimate in drug lord lore. Some you have heard of, others you haven’t, we give you the skinny on what’s what in the highest echelons of drug kingpins.
May 02, 2009 6:45 PM at 6:45 PM