By now, most of us are well acquainted with the popular Scarface film. Sure, it’s a work of fiction, but it was inspired by a particular person, one who’s extremely dangerous: a drug lord. Mankind has been using various types of drugs for the longest time, in one form or another. As long as particular drugs and substances remain illegal, there will be people looking to make money from selling them. Then there are people that want to establish a drug empire for themselves to rule over, and these types of individuals are very dangerous. While there are many types of drugs ou there, it’s substances like heroin, cocaine, and methamphetamines that attract the highest levels of profit….and violence. So who were the most dangerous and notorious drug kingpins of all-time? How did they make their money? Are they in prison, or have the never been caught? Let’s look at a few of the most dangerous drug lords of all-time.
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Manuel Noriega
Manuel Noriega was the former military dictator of Panama who ruled the country from 1983 to 1989. He came into power after the previous leader died in an airplane accident, of which Noriega was accused of planting the bomb. He then eventually entered into a relationship with the CIA and became an informant and spy for the organization. However while he was working for the CIA, he also was the leading drug lord and trafficker in Panama. No one knows the quantities of drugs moved under his rule, but he played the CIA in what is considered one of the largest foreign policy failures of all time for the United States. Eventually he was extradited to the United States where he was convicted for money laundering, drug trafficking, and racketeering.
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Griselda Blanco
Griselda Blanco, also known as the “Cocaine Godmother”, was a Columbian drug lord who became extremely notorious. Apparently when she was just 11 she kidnapped, held for ransom, and then shot a young child from a neighboring village. She would go on to become a prominent drug lord for the notorious Medellin Cartel and was one of the first to peddle cocaine to Miami during the 1970’s and 1980’s. It’s estimated that she is responsible for some 200 or so murders, including the killing of a two-year old child. She would eventually get caught and was sentenced to 20 years in prison. Still, she ran here business from jail. She was eventually released in 2004, and then a few weeks later was assassinated and killed in a drive-by shooting.
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Rick Ross
Rick “Freeway” Ross is an American who was previously one of the most notorious drug dealers in the country. He is considered to be the first man to popularize crack cocaine in the country, and operated a massive drug empire in Los Angeles during the 1980’s. He grew up in the drug culture, and quickly found himself as a dealer. Eventually he expanded his network, and became one of the highest earning drug bosses around. Back in the 1980’s, it was estimated that he sold $3 million dollars worth of drugs each day, and earned somewhere around $900 million per year. He would eventually ship cocaine across the country, before being arrested in a sting operation. He was sent to prison for life, but had his sentence reduced to 20 years and is out now.
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Osiel Cardenas Guillen
Known throughout Mexico, Osiel Cardenas Guile is a former drug lord and kingpin who was in charge of the Gulf Cartel and the Los Zetas gang. Osiel became involved with the drug cartels at a young age, and decided that he would try to make it big by selling drugs. During his involvement with the Gulf Carltel, the group would enter into gang wars with rival cartels. Osiel would then kill his friend and mentor to take charge of his cartel. He then converted some 30 individuals from the Mexican Army and became very dangerous. He battled with other gangs and was eventually arrested after a small war broke out with the Mexican police and armed forces in 2003.
Photo from DEA/proceso.com.mx
Frank Lucas
Franck Lucas is still arguably the most notorious drug dealer from the United States. He quickly grew to power in Harlem during the 1960’s and 1970’s, and made his fortunes from operating a heroin ring. To maximize profits and eliminate competition, Frank would buy heroin directly from suppliers in South East Asia. This allowed him to keep the product pure and reap all of the profits as there were no middle men. He was certainly a very dangerous man at the time, and then in 1975 his house was raided where authorities found over $500,000 dollars in cash. He was convited for drug and other related crimes and was sentenced to 70 years in prison. He would eventually get out of prison and the 2007 film American Gangster depicts his life.
Photo from mafia.wikia.com
Amado Carrillo Fuentes
Amadao Carrillo Fuentes was a Mexican drug kingpin who took charge of the Juarez Cartel after he killed his boss and mentor, Rafael Aguilar Guajardo. He was a very dangerous drug lord and earned the knickname “Lord of the Skies”. He was known to launder money through Columbia which he then used to finance a fleet of 27 Boeing 727 jets. He used these jets to bring the largest amount of Cocaine ever into the United States, about four times larger than any previous trafficker. It is estimated that he made some $25 billion dollars in the drug industry which was unheard of. After pressure mounted to capture Amado, he underwent plastic surgery to change his appearance in 1997. It was during that surgery that he apparently died, however there are many conspiracies out there that claim he his still alive.
Photo from YouTube
Khun Sa
Nicknamed the “Opium King”, Khun Sa was a drug kingpin and warlord that operated out of the Shan State, a part of present day Burma. Born to Chinese and Shan parents, Khun Sa would eventually enter the Shan State from China as a young boy. He would eventually form his own army which would quickly grow in size. Eventually they would rebel against the Burmese government and would take charge of the Shan region. He then launched a massive opium ring that quickly became one of the largest in Asia, with shipments heading out across the world. he survived multiple battles and assassination attempts, and was truly a fearless warlord. Remember Frank Lucas? Well a large percentage of his heroin and drugs would come from Khun Sa’s fields. He avoided many length prison sentences, and would eventually live out his life, dying of natural causes.
Photo from wbcmagazine.com
Pablo Escobar
When you think of the word “notorious” and the phrase “drug kingpin”, Pablo Escobar is probably the first name that comes to mind. Known as the “King of Cocaine”, Pablo Escobar was probably the most notorious drug lord of all time with an estimated net worth of around $30 billion dollars…back in the 1990’s. He was the head of the Medellin Cartel, and during their biggest years, his cartel made some $60 million or so every day. It’s estimated that his cartel controlled 80% of the cocaine industry and he is easily the most prolific drug kingpin of all time.
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