40 Interesting Facts about Pablo Escobar
No one else was more successful at smuggling cocaine than Colombia’s Pablo Escobar. Cocaine was the illegal drug of choice and Pablo was there to make it reach places no one else could. However, there was more to this crime lord than drugs and violence. Learn about some of his secrets in this list of Pablo Escobar facts.
1. Pablo Escobar was born in Rionegro, Colombia on December 1, 1949.
2. His drug empire was bigger than his own government. People referred to him as “Plato O Plomo”, which means “accept a bribe, or face bullets”.
3. Pablo Escobar became the infamous leader of the Medellin Cartel.
4. His full name was Pablo Emilio Escobar Gaviria.
5. Escobar’s other popular nicknames were “Don Pablo” & “El Patron.”
6. His father was a farmer and his mother was a school teacher.
7. In 1976, Escobar married Maria Victoria Henao Vellejoin.
8. Before becoming a drug lord, Pablo sold contraband cigarettes, stole cars, fake lottery tickets and even kidnapped people.
9. Escobar got the nickname “Robin Hood” from poor people.
10. Escobar was designated as a deputy representative to the House of Representatives of Colombia in 1982.
11. He spent millions on schools, football stadiums, hospitals, and churches.
12. Escobar was confined in a luxury jail referred as “La Catedral”.
13. In 1982, Pablo Escobar was the official representative of the Colombian government at the swearing in of Spain’s Prime Minister.
14. 10% of his money was lost because rats would eat it or it would be damaged by water.
15. Pablo smuggled cocaine in old plane tires.
16. “La Catedral” jail housed a casino, a nightclub, and even a spa.
17. Escobar charity his wealth to get himself elected to Colombia’s Congress.
18. The biggest cocaine shipment ever made in the United States by Escobar weighed around 51,000 pounds.
19. Escobar built a zoo, a lake and other things for him and his family’s recreation.
20. Escobar purchased a 20 square kilometers land which included the “Hacienda Napoles” near the north western Colombian town.
21. Escobar was also doubted for a bombing of the World Trade Center in 1993.
22. Search Bloc, a Colombian electronic surveillance team found Escobar’s hiding place in Medellin.
23. Radio triangulation technology was used to find the Escobar.
24. Two feature films were announced on his life and killing in 2007.
25. Escobar offered to pay Colombia’s debt nearly 10 billion dollars to change the laws of extradition.
26. Sebastian Marroquin is the son of Pablo Escobar. He is a Colombian architect & author.
27. Escobar spent around $2,500 per month on rubber bands to hold all his cash.
28. Escobar was responsible for killing a Colombian presidential nominee, a justice minister, more than 200 judges and over 1000 police officers.
29. Pablo Escobar was gunned down at the age of 44.
30. Escobar’s net worth was $30 billion, all profits from his cocaine business.
31. Escobar had personally distributed money to about 25,000 poor Colombians people in Medellin, Colombia.
32. In 1980, Colombian authorities held Escobar’s massive fleet, 20 helicopters, 32 yachts, 141 homes, 142 planes and many offices.
33. Once Escobar’s daughter Manuela became hypothermic, to keep his daughter warm, Escobar burned about two million dollars.
34. Escobar smuggled up to 15 tons of cocaine each day.
35. Escobar’s Medellin Cartel delivered 80% of the cocaine to the United States in 1980.
36. Escobar was blamed for bombing Avianca Flight 203 in 1989.
37. Escobar sold stolen cars and tombstones to smugglers before getting into the drug trade.
38. Pablo Escobar purchased a Learjet specifically to transport his cash.
39. Escobar paid around $500,000 dollars to pilots per day to transport his cocaine.
