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in: Drug cartels, Organisations, Criminal organisations

Medellín cartel

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The Medellín cartel was a Colombian drug cartel based in Medellín. The cartel at its zenith supplied approximately 80% of the cocaine entering the United States.

The Medellín cartel, along with their rivals, the Cali cartel both sent their cocaine to the United States through the Guadalajara cartel following the closure of the Caribbean corridor in the early 1980s.

History[]

Origins[]

In the early 1970s, smuggling in Medellín was dominated by three distinct players: The wealthy Ochoa family led by Jorge Luis Ochoa Vásquez and Fabio Ochoa Vásquez, the treacherous emerald trafficker José Rodríguez Gacha and the rising newcomer Pablo Escobar. Escobar was the first to traffic cocaine, after he was introduced to the drug by Chilean chemist Mateo 'Cockroach' Moreno.

Escobar had a drug lab built for Cockroach and used his friend The Lion to transport it in-person via commercial airliners to Miami, where Carlos Lehder would sell it. As the business grew more profitable, Lehder used airplanes to smuggle cocaine. The operation was a success, and Escobar became richer than his rivals. In 1976, he introduced Gacha and the Ochoa brothers to the cocaine business and allowed them to traffic cocaine through his routes for a cut in the profits. They planned their production accordingly to prevent the Peruvian paste producers from rising the prices.

In 1981, M-19 kidnapped Marta Ochoa Vásquez, one of Jorge Luis' sisters. The brothers went to Escobar for help, and he formed the MAS paramilitary with the help of the other traffickers. Steve Murphy regarded the creation of MAS as the official date of the formation of the Medellín cartel. The MAS mercilessly went after M-19, forcing them to release Marta unharmed. The success of MAS made Escobar believe that violence was the best tool against his enemies.

By 1982, cocaine became the principal export of Colombia thanks to Gustavo's efforts. This resulted in the cartel making massive amounts of money, which they were unable to launder. To overcome this problem, Escobar decided to bury the un-laundered cash in various farms across the countryside. The cartel also came to a territory-sharing agreement with the Cali cartel.

War against Extradition[]

Escobar planned on becoming the President of Colombia and to use his powers to protect his fellow traffickers. He decided to kickstart his political career by running as an alternative candidate for the Nuevo Liberalismo party. Escobar built houses and sporting facilities for the poor and had journalist Valeria Velez cultivate a Robin Hood-esque image. He also used his drug money to bribe voters, and was elected to the country's Chamber of Representatives. However, Justice Minister Rodrigo Lara Bonilla ousted Escobar from the parliament and forced him to resign from his party. He also went after the Ochoa brothers' fleet and Gacha's football team. Enraged, Escobar had Lara assassinated.

Organization[]

Despite being a union of smugglers from Medellín, absolute power was held by Escobar as he was the first to smuggle cocaine and controlled most of the routes. Gacha and the Ochoa brothers used Escobar's routes in exchange for a 30% cut in profits. While being close to Gacha, Escobar began to neglect the Ochoa brothers overtime.

As Escobar was the wealthiest out of all other cartel members, he held the loyalty of the swathes of sicarios under the cartel's payroll. Gacha also maintained a sizeable group of sicarios trained by Israeli mercenaries. Cockroach initially handled production but was replaced by Escobar's cousin Gustavo Gaviria. Carlos Lehder, who previously oversaw cocaine shipments to the USA took over production after Gaviria's retirement. Lehder was arrested during the Tranquilandia raid and was replaced by Fernando Galeano and Gerardo 'Kiko' Moncada. After their deaths at the hands of Escobar, Judy Moncada took control of her husband's labs, while Gato took control of the remaining labs.

Jose Rojas was the cartel's chief accountant, having taken over the job from Gustavo Gaviria after his death. Politician and lawyer Fernando Duque, along with television personality Valeria Velez represented the cartel during negotiations with the Colombian government.

Roberto 'Poison' Ramos, and later Velasco served as the sicario lieutenants of the cartel and were tasked to command over the army of gunmen and spotters loyal to the cartel. La Quica oversaw recruitment of spotters, couriers and gunmen from the barrios. The Lion managed the cartel's operations in Miami. Carlos Lehder and the Ochoa brothers maintained a fleet of airplanes to fly cocaine from Colombia to the United States, with stopping points at Norman's Cay, Nicaragua and Cuba. They also hired American aviators like Barry Seal to fly cocaine, and in the mid-1980s, used the services of Mexican drug traffickers belonging to the Guadalajara cartel. The cartel received help from the Sandinista government in Nicaragua, and the Noriega regime in Panama.

To solidify their control over Medellín, the cartel hired criminal groups such as the Gallon gang and Los Priscos to act as auxiliary enforcers.

Members[]

Leadership[]

Others[]

Associates[]

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