Pablo Escobar was one of the most notorious drug lords in the world and similarly the Netflix series Narcos is one of the greatest crime shows ever. Pablo Escobar rose to become a powerful Colombian mafioso in the 1980s and Narcos is a perfect televised version of his crazy life. Narcos was shot mostly in Colombia as well and two seasons are dedicated to Pablo Escobar.

 

The first season was aired in 2015 on Netflix and it became so popular that they had to renew it for another season. In fact the popularity of the show spilt over to many other offshoots and even a Narcos-themed online casino game. These games are developed by a company called Netent and Netent Slots are usually fun and relevant themes based on such shows and franchises. Pablo Escobar would have been proud to know that there’s an online casino game based on a show that was in turn based on his life!

 

Coming back to his life, the show Narcos on Netflix offers a pretty detailed insight into his rollercoaster life full of drugs, violence and even some high level politics. It’s remarkable to see how a man from a relatively unknown town of Medellin came to change the course of the country within a matter of a few years. This is a story of how a man rose from a relatively unknown middle-class background to become one of the most powerful and richest figures in history only to be shot down like a dog.

Cocaine Business

Pablo Escobar mostly made his money from cocaine. He started the business of transporting cocaine between Colombia and Panama. He initially transported the cocaine by stuffing it into the plane’s tyres. Later as the business grew, he bought a fleet of planes. It is said that once a friend of Pablo’s died while landing a plane and it was subsequently destroyed. Pablo later reconstructed it from whatever parts were left and displayed it on his ranch. When he was first arrested for possession of over 18kgs of cocaine he tried to bribe his way out. When that did not work, he ordered for the execution of the arresting officers. This was the beginning of his strategy of dealing with law enforcement – bribe or murder.

 

Rise to Power

As Pablo Escobar grew his illegal business, he started expanding it. To make his shipments easier, he even invested heavily in an island in the Bahamas called Norman’s Cay. Together with his partner Carlos Lehder, Pablo set up an airstrip, a hotel and boats to help his business grow. By this time, they had been shipping up to 80 tonnes of cocaine every month to America. They even started using submarines to do this job. With the money he started making, Escobar built a ranch in Antioquia called Hacienda Napoles which had everything from a zoo to a lake. At the peak of their business, his cartel controlled over 80 percent of the cocaine industry in the world. They were reportedly making up to $40 million a day and spending thousands of dollars a month just to buy rubber bands to wrap the wads of cash. And while most of the world hated him, he was considered a local hero in Medellin as he helped the poor and invested a lot in sports facilities and housing. This also got him a lot of loyalty and the masses protected him from the law enforcement. It is reported that today Medellin is not very interested in being known for Pablo Escobar anymore as reported in this article although one can still go for hikes and tours that showcase parts of his criminal life.

Escobar in La Catedral Prison

Pablo Escobar was held responsible for the assassination of politician Luis Carlos Glan. This could no longer be ignored and so the Colombian government had to negotiate with Escobar to the point that he agreed to end his violence. However, there was a catch. Escobar had worked out a deal with the government to both avoid being extradited to the US as well as he could choose his own prison. So Escobar was imprisoned in a private prison that had all the luxuries he would ever need. There was a football field, a bar, jacuzzi and even a waterfall. Escobar, while remaining imprisoned in this luxury prison, continued to run his illegal business. Within a year, the government decided that enough was enough and tried to send troops to shift him to a regular prison. This became a huge confrontation with lots of killings on both ends. Escobar managed to escape the soldiers and was forever on the run.

Pablo Escobar was eventually killed in a shootout in December 1993. This was about 16 months after he had escaped La Catedral prison. He died from a gunshot in his ear and while the Colombian police claimed credit, it is still believed to this day that Pablo Escobar had in fact committed suicide.