* Note: this article is about a fictionalized character from the TV show Narcos.[]
Fernando Botero Zea was the Minister of Defense of Colombia from 1994 till 1995, as part of President Ernesto Samper's cabinet.
When the Samper presidential campaign was facing heavy losses during the 1994 presidential election, Botero Zea helped him win the elections. In return, Botero and Medina negotiated a surrender deal with Gilberto Rodríguez Orejuela, the leader of the cartel of Cali. However, before the deal could be put into motion, the Search Bloc with assistance from the DEA arrested Gilberto.
Staying true to the deal between the cartel, the Colombian upper echelon dismissed Hugo Martinez, the CNP official responsible for Gilberto's arrest. Under the pretense of national sovereignty, he made sure that the DEA consulted him before undertaking any operations against the Cali Cartel. This ensured that he was able to leak news of Search Bloc and DEA raids to the cartel leaders, helping them evade arrest.