1 00:00:13,759 --> 00:00:20,660 Gangs rule their territories through ruthless enterprises, fear, and a strict code. 2 00:00:23,399 --> 00:00:31,329 Deviate from this code, or challenge their power, and retribution soon follows. 3 00:00:34,159 --> 00:00:41,840 Especially for the world's first narco-terrorists, the ultra-violent Menin Cartel. 4 00:00:42,439 --> 00:00:46,890 Here are three stories that track the organization's 5 00:00:46,890 --> 00:00:49,670 astronomic rise and calamitous fall. 6 00:00:51,090 --> 00:00:55,329 First, the Medellin cartel buys a piece of land to 7 00:00:55,329 --> 00:00:57,869 create a billion-dollar global drug operation. 8 00:00:58,170 --> 00:01:02,149 A trafficker purchased in an island to traffic cocaine? That was unheard of. 9 00:01:02,810 --> 00:01:07,510 Next, the cartel goes to war with the Colombian government. 10 00:01:08,200 --> 00:01:11,609 Pablo had a belief that he could bring the government to its knees. 11 00:01:12,890 --> 00:01:17,469 And last, the DEA joins the fight and helps the 12 00:01:17,469 --> 00:01:20,670 Colombians back Pablo Escobar into a corner. 13 00:01:20,989 --> 00:01:23,329 He knew that his enemies were here. 14 00:01:24,230 --> 00:01:26,060 He was on his own with nowhere to go. 15 00:01:28,180 --> 00:01:32,969 These are the stories from inside the Medellin Cartel. 16 00:01:33,670 --> 00:01:36,329 This is Gangland Chronicles. 1976. 17 00:01:46,939 --> 00:01:48,170 Medellin, Colombia. 18 00:01:49,790 --> 00:01:54,280 What will become one of the world's most vicious criminal organizations is born. 19 00:01:55,400 --> 00:01:56,680 The Medellin Cartel. 20 00:01:59,879 --> 00:02:03,700 The cartel will rise to dominate the world's cocaine market, 21 00:02:03,700 --> 00:02:06,750 killing as many as 50,000 along the way. 22 00:02:07,629 --> 00:02:09,960 These are folks that have no compunction about 23 00:02:09,960 --> 00:02:12,000 murdering people to get what they want. 24 00:02:12,639 --> 00:02:14,400 There is no remorse. That's business. 25 00:02:20,000 --> 00:02:22,900 The Medellín Cartel is led by several kingpins. 26 00:02:24,060 --> 00:02:29,719 The enterprising Ochoa brothers, paramilitary expert José Rodríguez Gacha, 27 00:02:29,719 --> 00:02:34,740 and Gustavo Gaviria, the cousin of the cartel's 28 00:02:34,740 --> 00:02:38,509 infamous boss of bosses, Pablo Escobar. 29 00:02:41,099 --> 00:02:44,750 Pablo Escobar could be a charismatic type person to get what he wanted, 30 00:02:44,750 --> 00:02:48,400 but he could turn evil in a heartbeat and you might be dead. 31 00:02:51,479 --> 00:02:56,240 Escobar controls Medellin's bloodthirsty hitmen, known as Sicarios. 32 00:02:56,979 --> 00:02:59,639 Their targets include law enforcement and government 33 00:02:59,639 --> 00:03:02,289 officials who are given a stark choice. 34 00:03:06,810 --> 00:03:11,860 Very famous word established by Pablo Escobar, plata or plomo, bullet or money. 35 00:03:13,659 --> 00:03:16,330 You either accept the bribe or you get killed. 36 00:03:16,889 --> 00:03:19,990 Anybody who went against Escobar would die. 37 00:03:21,110 --> 00:03:23,069 He was a well-rounded bad guy, 38 00:03:23,069 --> 00:03:26,659 and I think cocaine became his lifeblood in terms of profit, 39 00:03:26,659 --> 00:03:28,620 and that's the direction he went. 40 00:03:29,280 --> 00:03:31,360 With cocaine selling for $60,000 a kilo, $400,000 today... 41 00:03:36,030 --> 00:03:40,460 By the late 1970s, the Medellin cartel is focused 42 00:03:40,460 --> 00:03:43,419 on cornering the surging American market. 43 00:03:44,319 --> 00:03:48,610 And the key to the U.S. is an associate with a checkered 44 00:03:48,610 --> 00:03:52,030 past, a pilot's license, and a wild idea. 45 00:03:59,250 --> 00:04:01,469 1976, Medellin. 46 00:04:02,810 --> 00:04:06,169 After serving time in an American prison, 47 00:04:06,169 --> 00:04:10,490 German-Colombian pilot Carlos Lader is deported back to Colombia. 48 00:04:11,050 --> 00:04:15,509 When Lader meets Pablo Escobar, they both see an opportunity. 49 00:04:15,909 --> 00:04:19,689 Carlos was able to introduce himself to Pablo as an accomplished pilot who 50 00:04:19,689 --> 00:04:23,180 could transport large loads of cocaine from Colombia to the United States. 51 00:04:24,639 --> 00:04:26,750 They gave him some test runs. It worked out great. 52 00:04:28,439 --> 00:04:31,569 Escobar invites Lader into the Medellin cartel, 53 00:04:31,569 --> 00:04:37,850 and they use Lader's small airplane to smuggle cocaine into Florida by the ton. 54 00:04:38,310 --> 00:04:43,029 Carlos was willing to do back-to-back trips, probably snorting coke to stay awake. 55 00:04:43,689 --> 00:04:46,930 Carlos was loving it, just making money hand over fist. 56 00:04:47,769 --> 00:04:53,100 But delivering the huge volume of product this way poses new problems. 57 00:04:53,699 --> 00:04:57,259 One of the challenges in flying an aircraft from 58 00:04:57,259 --> 00:05:00,430 Columbia to South Florida is your fuel capacity. 59 00:05:02,329 --> 00:05:05,569 The Medellin cartel needs a Caribbean pit stop 60 00:05:05,569 --> 00:05:08,800 that is under the radar of law enforcement. 61 00:05:09,279 --> 00:05:12,899 Lo and behold, Carlos finds a place in the Bahama Island chain. 62 00:05:14,269 --> 00:05:18,769 Norman's Cay is perfect because it's not a tourist destination. 63 00:05:19,310 --> 00:05:24,860 It's isolated, it's small, it has an airstrip, a small marina, 64 00:05:24,860 --> 00:05:27,379 and it's surrounded by sharks. 65 00:05:30,959 --> 00:05:35,379 Later scares off the locals and buys up the entire island. 66 00:05:37,180 --> 00:05:43,810 By 1978, Norman's Cay is the Medellin cartel's cocaine distribution hub. 67 00:05:45,389 --> 00:05:48,370 Carlos Lehder not only enlarged the airstrip, 68 00:05:48,370 --> 00:05:52,209 but he also bought a fleet of small planes, 69 00:05:52,209 --> 00:05:56,470 and he became an incredibly useful member for the cartel. 70 00:05:57,730 --> 00:06:04,939 But when the island goes from smuggling hub to party location, the DEA takes notice. 71 00:06:09,019 --> 00:06:11,990 1981, Norman's Cay, Bahamas. 72 00:06:13,389 --> 00:06:17,660 With over three tons of cocaine smuggled through the island, 73 00:06:17,660 --> 00:06:22,360 the Medellin Cartel is now the world's number one cocaine supplier. 74 00:06:23,459 --> 00:06:28,100 But Carlos Leiter's distribution center is no longer a secret. 75 00:06:28,579 --> 00:06:32,009 Carlos Leiter installed fuel tanks. He has a couple hangers built. 76 00:06:32,430 --> 00:06:37,269 The armed guards are carrying AK-47 automatic rifles. But at the same time, 77 00:06:37,269 --> 00:06:40,050 he is enjoying the fruits of his labor. 78 00:06:40,750 --> 00:06:42,730 And this becomes known as a real party place. 79 00:06:46,379 --> 00:06:49,980 Not only the operation became much more visible, 80 00:06:49,980 --> 00:06:56,740 but also the behavior of Carlos Lehder made it more outrageous to the entire world. 81 00:07:01,639 --> 00:07:05,639 Because of that attention, the Bahamian government came in and seized the island. 82 00:07:07,180 --> 00:07:08,620 And it forced Carlos to flee. 83 00:07:09,920 --> 00:07:13,160 Carlos burned down basically everything on the island. 84 00:07:15,399 --> 00:07:20,740 That was the end of the most successful route of the Medellin Cartel for four years. 85 00:07:23,480 --> 00:07:26,720 Carlos Lader returns to Colombia in 1982, 86 00:07:26,720 --> 00:07:31,350 but his home country is no longer a safe haven. 87 00:07:32,110 --> 00:07:35,879 The Colombian National Police get a tip of where 88 00:07:35,879 --> 00:07:39,230 Carlos Lader is located and take him down. 89 00:07:40,500 --> 00:07:43,759 Getting back to Bogota, where the DEA has a plane waiting, 90 00:07:43,759 --> 00:07:46,420 and they immediately extradite him to the United States. 91 00:07:48,730 --> 00:07:51,480 After moving on from Norman's Cay, 92 00:07:51,480 --> 00:07:55,610 the Medellin cartel finds new routes and new partners 93 00:07:55,610 --> 00:07:59,740 to export more cocaine than they ever have before. 94 00:08:00,459 --> 00:08:05,750 Pablo is organizing his drug distribution through all the different fronts, 95 00:08:05,750 --> 00:08:08,149 Colombia, Central America, the Caribbean. 96 00:08:09,629 --> 00:08:14,589 And Pablo was declared as the number one trafficker in Colombia. 97 00:08:16,449 --> 00:08:22,129 The Medellin kingpins are raking in $4 billion a year, $12 billion today, 98 00:08:22,129 --> 00:08:26,060 and living the lifestyle that goes along with it. 99 00:08:26,709 --> 00:08:29,910 Pablo offered to pay the national debt of Colombia two different times. 100 00:08:30,490 --> 00:08:32,710 Billions of dollars. That's how wealthy this guy was. 101 00:08:35,679 --> 00:08:38,700 But Pablo Escobar wants more than wealth. 102 00:08:39,240 --> 00:08:40,519 He wants power. 103 00:08:41,320 --> 00:08:45,809 And if he can't take it legally, he'll take it by force. 104 00:08:52,629 --> 00:08:53,720 1982, Colombia. 105 00:08:54,740 --> 00:08:59,220 Pablo Escobar wins a seat in Colombia's Chamber of Representatives. 106 00:08:59,759 --> 00:09:04,570 His goal is to use political power to influence Colombia's 107 00:09:04,570 --> 00:09:07,450 laws on extradition for drug traffickers. 108 00:09:07,929 --> 00:09:10,830 He really believed at some point he could legitimize 109 00:09:10,830 --> 00:09:12,759 himself and be a national treasure 110 00:09:12,759 --> 00:09:17,279 in terms of business and all the economic things he brought to the country. 111 00:09:18,679 --> 00:09:21,490 No one in the Medellin cartel wanted Pablo to run for Congress. 112 00:09:21,970 --> 00:09:24,110 They didn't want the additional attention that that was going to bring. 113 00:09:25,009 --> 00:09:32,000 But within months, Escobar is thrown out after Attorney General Rodrigo Lara Bonilla 114 00:09:32,000 --> 00:09:34,149 exposes his criminal activities. 115 00:09:34,970 --> 00:09:37,970 A disgraced Escobar vows revenge. 116 00:09:40,139 --> 00:09:46,679 On April 30, 1984, Escobar sends his sicarios after the attorney general. 117 00:09:48,059 --> 00:09:49,440 His car was stopped in traffic. 118 00:09:49,980 --> 00:09:51,779 A motorcycle pulls up with two riders. 119 00:09:52,440 --> 00:09:55,259 The guy on the back shoots and assassinates him in the back of his car. 120 00:09:57,059 --> 00:09:59,659 In response to Lara Bonilla's assassination, 121 00:10:01,009 --> 00:10:04,990 The Colombian government moves to extradite Escobar to America. 122 00:10:06,110 --> 00:10:13,320 There is a saying, better die in Colombia than rot in prison of the United States. 123 00:10:15,039 --> 00:10:17,909 That's when Escobar decided to declare war on his own country. 124 00:10:24,309 --> 00:10:27,159 Through the mid to late 1980s, 125 00:10:27,159 --> 00:10:31,929 the Medellin Cartel kills hundreds of police officers, judges, journalists, 126 00:10:31,929 --> 00:10:35,740 and anyone else who gets in their way. 127 00:10:37,889 --> 00:10:42,210 Escobar made his choice to use terrorism to intimidate 128 00:10:42,210 --> 00:10:46,049 not just the state, but the entire society. 129 00:10:49,610 --> 00:10:55,309 Then Pablo Escobar plots his most audacious terrorist act yet, 130 00:10:55,309 --> 00:10:59,870 a hit on presidential candidate Luis Carlos Govan. 131 00:11:00,470 --> 00:11:04,149 Luis Carlos Golan, his platform was pro-extradition. 132 00:11:04,200 --> 00:11:07,740 Let's do something about the narcos in our country that are causing all the murders. 133 00:11:08,299 --> 00:11:10,480 He was going to be the next president of Colombia. 134 00:11:11,500 --> 00:11:14,450 Golan knows the Medellin cartel is after him. 135 00:11:16,259 --> 00:11:19,250 But he's determined to attend a campaign rally. 136 00:11:20,370 --> 00:11:23,690 As he walks out on stage in front of 10,000 people, shots ring out. 137 00:11:31,019 --> 00:11:35,679 August 18th, 1989, Soacha, Colombia. 138 00:11:36,879 --> 00:11:39,440 Presidential candidate Luis Carlos Galan, 139 00:11:39,440 --> 00:11:47,090 enemy of Pablo Escobar and the Medellin cartel, takes the stage at a campaign rally. 140 00:11:48,200 --> 00:11:49,940 Pablo Sicario's were there waiting on him. 141 00:11:53,629 --> 00:11:54,789 They shoot him there on stage. 142 00:11:55,490 --> 00:11:56,750 Several other people are wounded. 143 00:11:57,580 --> 00:12:00,419 They tried to get Luis Carlos Golan in the car to get him to the hospital, 144 00:12:00,419 --> 00:12:01,840 and he didn't make it through the night. 145 00:12:06,580 --> 00:12:12,870 The Medellin cartel then targets Golan's replacement, Cesar Gaviria. 146 00:12:14,389 --> 00:12:16,470 By putting a bomb on an airplane. 147 00:12:26,029 --> 00:12:30,590 Gaviria was not on board, but the bomb kills 110 people. 148 00:12:32,750 --> 00:12:38,700 This absolutely terrified the nation, and the support for Escobar, 149 00:12:38,700 --> 00:12:44,039 if there was any, was really weakening with how 150 00:12:44,039 --> 00:12:47,009 he was killing everybody indiscriminately. 151 00:12:50,159 --> 00:12:56,730 Fueled by public anger, Gaviria wins the 1990 election in a landslide. 152 00:12:57,950 --> 00:13:02,570 And now, the Colombian government is out for blood, 153 00:13:02,570 --> 00:13:06,159 systematically going after the Medellin cartel's leaders. 154 00:13:08,610 --> 00:13:10,889 December 15th, 1989. 155 00:13:12,549 --> 00:13:17,970 Cartel kingpin Jose Rodriguez Gacha is killed during a police operation. 156 00:13:18,990 --> 00:13:23,850 A few months later, Gustavo Gaviria is gunned down in a shootout. 157 00:13:24,929 --> 00:13:27,309 The Ochoa brothers go into hiding. 158 00:13:28,740 --> 00:13:32,000 With the Medellin cartel leadership crumbling, 159 00:13:32,000 --> 00:13:35,259 Pablo Escobar makes a surprising move. 160 00:13:36,000 --> 00:13:40,409 Pablo Escobar calls up the government of Colombia and says, Mr. President, 161 00:13:40,409 --> 00:13:44,090 this is Pablo Escobar, and I am willing to self-surrender. 162 00:13:45,370 --> 00:13:48,200 In exchange for not being extradited, 163 00:13:48,200 --> 00:13:53,870 Pablo Escobar agrees to serve five years in prison with certain conditions. 164 00:13:54,710 --> 00:14:01,330 He will imprison himself in his own prison, built and protected by his own people. 165 00:14:02,610 --> 00:14:07,379 It was no prison. It was a country club atmosphere 166 00:14:07,379 --> 00:14:10,899 where Pablo had his own apartment, 167 00:14:10,899 --> 00:14:14,419 had his color-coordinated curtains, giant TVs. 168 00:14:15,100 --> 00:14:16,500 He was living in luxury. 169 00:14:17,600 --> 00:14:21,320 The government got a political cushion where they felt they had come, 170 00:14:21,320 --> 00:14:26,570 they had put a bad guy in jail, and Pablo got the ability to continue his business, 171 00:14:26,570 --> 00:14:31,519 live the way he wanted, and most importantly, if he served his term, he was free. 172 00:14:32,830 --> 00:14:37,740 But when Pablo Escobar takes advantage of his light prison sentence, 173 00:14:37,740 --> 00:14:41,309 the country comes after him and the cartel. 174 00:14:48,070 --> 00:14:53,049 July 22nd, 1992, Envigado, Colombia. 175 00:14:53,730 --> 00:14:57,570 Less than a year into his prison sentence, 176 00:14:57,570 --> 00:15:02,370 Pablo Escobar savagely murders two associates at his custom-built jail. 177 00:15:03,809 --> 00:15:05,529 He thought they were stealing from him. 178 00:15:07,330 --> 00:15:13,159 They were tortured, killed and cut into pieces and allegedly barbecued. 179 00:15:14,679 --> 00:15:18,139 That outraged the associates from the Medellin cartel 180 00:15:18,139 --> 00:15:21,610 because they realized he now goes after everybody, 181 00:15:21,610 --> 00:15:25,080 not just his enemies, but his own people. 182 00:15:27,320 --> 00:15:33,200 So that shifted not only the thought process of the Colombians and the government, 183 00:15:33,200 --> 00:15:38,230 but also the world's view of what was going on down there. 184 00:15:39,360 --> 00:15:41,320 When we found out about it, 185 00:15:41,320 --> 00:15:44,590 the United States Embassy went to President Gaviria and said, 186 00:15:44,590 --> 00:15:46,220 something's got to be done. 187 00:15:47,059 --> 00:15:50,500 President Gaviria orders him to be moved to a state prison. 188 00:15:52,029 --> 00:15:55,789 But with the help of his sicarios, Escobar escapes. 189 00:15:57,429 --> 00:16:00,889 The Colombian government has no choice but to respond. 190 00:16:02,289 --> 00:16:06,830 And this time, American DEA agents joined the fight. 191 00:16:07,649 --> 00:16:09,990 For the next 18 months, Javier and I live in 192 00:16:09,990 --> 00:16:11,389 Medellin with the Colombian National Police. 193 00:16:12,840 --> 00:16:16,980 Their only objective was to find, capture, and or kill Pablo Escobar. 194 00:16:20,100 --> 00:16:23,820 But the Medellin Cartel soon has more than the 195 00:16:23,820 --> 00:16:26,710 Colombian government and the DEA after them. 196 00:16:26,730 --> 00:16:34,620 1993, Medellin, Colombia. 197 00:16:39,840 --> 00:16:42,110 Supported by U.S. law enforcement, 198 00:16:42,110 --> 00:16:45,629 the Colombian National Police wages an all-out 199 00:16:45,629 --> 00:16:48,649 assault on Pablo Escobar's Medellin cartel. 200 00:16:50,629 --> 00:16:54,559 We started raiding his money launderers in Medellin and Miami, 201 00:16:54,559 --> 00:16:57,700 where we were picking up financial records, accounts, 202 00:16:57,700 --> 00:17:03,600 and then we started seizing all this money in the United States and in Europe. 203 00:17:05,490 --> 00:17:08,869 First time in history where we're dismantling a whole 204 00:17:08,869 --> 00:17:11,500 organization which had never been done before. 205 00:17:12,099 --> 00:17:15,769 At the same time, a new enemy is giving the 206 00:17:15,769 --> 00:17:18,700 Medellin cartel a taste of its own medicine. 207 00:17:20,880 --> 00:17:26,160 In early 93, A group comes along that everybody now knows as Los Pepis. 208 00:17:27,680 --> 00:17:30,869 And Pepis stands for people persecuted by Pablo Escobar. 209 00:17:32,269 --> 00:17:37,720 Los Pepes, a vigilante group made up of relatives of the Medellin Cartel's 210 00:17:37,720 --> 00:17:41,500 many victims and members of the rival Cali Cartel, 211 00:17:41,500 --> 00:17:45,269 make it their mission to destroy what is left 212 00:17:45,269 --> 00:17:47,789 of the Medellin's once powerful organization. 213 00:17:49,269 --> 00:17:53,150 They would administer their own form of justice in the form of a bullet in the head. 214 00:17:54,400 --> 00:17:57,930 The accountants, the lawyers, the hitmen, 215 00:17:57,930 --> 00:18:02,640 all the inner circle of Escobar was attacked. 216 00:18:03,279 --> 00:18:10,180 With Gaviria and Gaucha dead, and the other kingpins behind bars, by 1993, 217 00:18:10,180 --> 00:18:14,960 Escobar is all that's left of the cartel's leadership. 218 00:18:16,019 --> 00:18:18,700 The Medellin cartel was basically gone. 219 00:18:19,940 --> 00:18:27,009 Pablo Escobar had to feel utterly isolated because he was the last man standing. 220 00:18:28,019 --> 00:18:32,000 Pablo was a bad guy, a bandit, a bandito, whatever you wanna call him from day one. 221 00:18:32,440 --> 00:18:36,480 His view of the world was either domination or you're gonna kill me. 222 00:18:36,900 --> 00:18:40,349 And that characteristic is really what did him in in the end, 223 00:18:40,349 --> 00:18:42,650 because there was nowhere for him to go. 224 00:18:44,210 --> 00:18:44,750 December 1st, 1993. 225 00:18:48,369 --> 00:18:52,059 Without any money and his cartel in shambles, 226 00:18:52,059 --> 00:18:58,500 Pablo Escobar spends his 44th birthday in a safe house hidden somewhere in Medellin. 227 00:19:00,920 --> 00:19:04,529 His gift to himself is to stay on the phone with his family. 228 00:19:06,170 --> 00:19:11,069 Allowing American intelligence to pinpoint the neighborhood where Escobar is hiding. 229 00:19:12,690 --> 00:19:14,609 We're starting to intercept his phone calls. 230 00:19:16,079 --> 00:19:19,279 Escobar would talk to his son every day at 5 o'clock. 231 00:19:21,019 --> 00:19:25,160 And by now, they're starting to hone in on Pablo Escobar. 232 00:19:25,500 --> 00:19:28,630 The next day, the Colombian police flood the 233 00:19:28,630 --> 00:19:30,980 neighborhood with a full-scale ground search. 234 00:19:31,769 --> 00:19:37,630 Then, in a second-floor window of a house, they spot Escobar virtually alone. 235 00:19:38,359 --> 00:19:42,150 When Escobar was finally located, we expected him to have a full army. 236 00:19:43,430 --> 00:19:44,329 It was down to one. 237 00:19:45,630 --> 00:19:46,720 That shocked everybody. 238 00:19:55,119 --> 00:19:58,910 A shootout ensues between the bodyguard and authorities. 239 00:19:59,730 --> 00:20:07,089 As Escobar flees across the rooftop of his hideout, he is shot dead by police. 240 00:20:07,730 --> 00:20:11,359 The death of Pablo Escobar marked the end of the Medellin cartel. 241 00:20:12,910 --> 00:20:18,630 And it's the first time that an entire cocaine production and distribution 242 00:20:18,630 --> 00:20:21,980 cartel had been completely dismantled and eliminated. 243 00:20:22,720 --> 00:20:26,200 But the Medellin cartel's legacy is a blueprint 244 00:20:26,200 --> 00:20:29,240 for cocaine export that many have followed. 245 00:20:30,190 --> 00:20:32,069 Somebody gets arrested, there's another person 246 00:20:32,069 --> 00:20:34,259 that's willing to take over their business, 247 00:20:34,259 --> 00:20:36,450 and it's still going on right now. 248 00:20:37,980 --> 00:20:43,630 Colombia continues to be associated with drug trafficking when they would prefer 249 00:20:43,630 --> 00:20:48,799 the victims to be appreciated and remembered rather than the victimizers. 250 00:20:50,339 --> 00:20:55,170 The nation to this day is living through the trauma of drug 251 00:20:55,170 --> 00:20:58,799 trafficking caused by Pablo Escobar and the Medellin cartel.