Some say it was a toss up between Nicky Bar. Paul Lir Alexander is known as one of the richest Brazilian drug lords. They were both arrested on 27 September 2007. Crime lords don't get much more famous, or infamous, than Chicago's own Al Capone. (The head of Sinaloa, Joaquin "Shorty" Guzman, was recently listed by Forbes as one of the world's richest people, with an estimated fortune of $1 billion.) If we had invested Al Capone's money into an S&P Index fund, he probably would have been the richest gangster today. Griselda was a member of the notorious Medellin Cartel, and was involved with the cartel during their most powerful years. Poverty is what causes violence. Then their youngest brother was again arrested in 1999 for almost 30 years, and he is still in jail because of his deeds. Carlos Enrique Lehder Rivas or simply Carlos Lehder (born September 7, 1949 (age 65) Armenia, Colombia). Legends state that he bought drugs from the "Golden Triangle" and smuggled them into the U.S. using the coffins of servicemen. Click Manage settings for more information and to manage your choices. No one likes . So, just how much money can these violent criminals make by peddling forbidden substances? Rodriguez Gacha was also on the United States list of the dozen most-wanted Colombian drug traffickers. Pablo Escobar is the richest drug lord in history. Several other website reported the same number several years later. He earned so much community support that capturing him in Kingston, Jamaica was a harrowing five-week ordeal with many casualties. But he was also recognized for his use of technology in his narcotics operations, considered to be pioneering for his use of airplanes to transport cocaine. He is currently held in a maximum security prison in the United States. He is getting all this publicity because we live in the social media age. But now they are both in separate prison facilities in the US serving out very long sentences. Known for his use of sophisticated tunnels to smuggle illegal drugs from Mexico into the United States, he gained the image of a folk hero in the narcotics world. During the height of their operations, the were estimated to have a combined net worth of some $6 billion dollars. Although she spoke freely for three hours, vila resolutely refused to see anything evil in the carnage of the drug violence in Mexico, blithely comparing it to Prohibition-era violence in the US. "The importance of Tse's arrest can not be underestimated. Otoniel was captured in his rural hideout in Antioquia province in north-western Colombia, close to the border with Panama. As part of the Medellin Cartel, she smuggled cocaine . Businesses are of different types among which some of them are legal while some are conducted illegally according to the rules of different countries. Until you've reached these levels, you really are just a small timer. He was killed in 1989. Bruce Bagley, a 74-year old University of Miami professor, estimated El Chapo's net worth between $2-4 billion and we think he was being generous. Here we are going to take a look at ten of the richest drug lords of all time to show you just how much money these people made. Pixabay/ Public Domain. 8. Mired in violence, the "Boss of Bosses" originally worked for the notorious drug lord El Chapo, before he turned on the kingpin and had El Chapo's son murdered by a hit team of around 15 gunmen. Tse Chi Lop, a Chinese-born Canadian national, was listed as . He owns a factory which can produce and sell drugs of almost 2-3 million per day. Selling legal cannabis is a completely different job. The Indian Express valued Chhota Rajan's net worth at Rs 4,000-5,000 crore which puts him among some of India's richest drug lords. But now police in Mexico hope to keep hold of Joaquin Guzman, one of the world's most wanted drug barons. He has been supplying the cocaine from 1980 and is also the main reason for the death of millions of people in 1999. His brother Miguel Rodriguez Orejuela is also serving a prison sentence at a federal prison in Pennsylvania. Photo credit: EPA. The notorious narcoterrorist and drug lord from Colombia was born Pablo Emilion Escobar Gaviria. Carlos Lehder - Net Worth $2.7 Billion. His net worth value is almost $52 million because of his enhanced business of drugs. The government at times has to kill people because it is not convenient to imprison witnesses who could testify against them., The problem, she insisted, is not with those who cant leave the cartels, but those who prefer not to. 8. He has also invested money in different construction and real estate projects. ), and was eventually arrested, yet the case fell apart. Lucas was a heroin dealer in Harlem during the late 1960s and early 1970s. A drug lord (also known as drug baron, kingpin, or narcotrafficker) is a person who controls a sizable network of people involved in illegal drug trade. (See also Top 15 Richest Drug Lords of All Time) (See also Top 25 Extremely Notorious Gangsters) (See also 10 Most Powerful Female Crime Lords Ever) 10. Some of them are also involved in other crimes. She has lived, worked and loved inside the upper echelons of the Mexican drug world since the late 1970s. The federal prison system is tough. Whilst the Medellin Cartel was waging war against the Columbian government, the Cali Cartel was less-violent and focused on making money. He is also involved in some other activities like political bombing and the incident of 1993 in Mumbai, which killed 250 people. Three years later, El Chapo, by then one of the world's biggest drug lords, was arrested by . Blanco was one of the world's wealthiest and most dangerous women, as well as the world's most successful drug lord.She is the world's first female billionaire convict, running her multibillion-dollar cocaine dealing enterprise with an iron hand and becoming one of history's most dangerous people. He is also known for his association with Pablo Escobar and the Galeano family. Her status led her to become known as The Queen of the Pacific, in honor of her alleged prowess organizing a fleet of tuna boats laden with 10 tons of cocaine each as they navigated north from Mexicos Pacific coast towards the worlds number one cocaine market: the United States. (Former crime boss, active in New York City during the 1970s), (Kingpin who ran South Florida from the 1970s to 1990s), (English Criminal and the Mastermind Behind the 1963 'Great Train Robbery'), (Most wanted criminal in the Netherlands with a record-breaking reward of 100,000 until his late 2019 arrest in Dubai), (Former Criminal Cartel Boss and Programmer), (Wife of Notorious Drug Dealer Frank Lucas), (Former Key Member of 'Medelln Cartel', Serving 30-Year Prison Term in the US), (Bulgarian Entrepreneur and Published Writer Who Was Imprisoned on Changes of Money Laundering and Drug Trafficking), (Fugitive and convicted murderer who was added to the Federal Bureau of Investigation's Top Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list on December 7, 1996), (Cuban drug kingpin who ran South Florida from 1970s to 1990s. Alfredo Beltran Leyva smuggled multi-ton loads of methamphetamine and cocaine from South America and Mexico into the United States. It is said that the business of drugs can make a common man one of the richest people in the world. 10. She notes that people in the street call her Reina (Queen) and smiles at the notoriety. Brothers Gilberto and Miguel Orejuela were two of the co-founders and leaders of the Cali Cartel, a drug cartel from Columbia and one of the major rivals of the Medellin Cartel. Bruce Reynolds was a British criminal who was the mastermind behind the Great Train Robbery in 1963. Rayful Edmond is an American drug lord in Washington D.C. in the 1980's. Edmond is credited with introducing crack cocaine into Washington D.C. The leaders of drug cartels have frequently made Forbes 's list of the richest people in the world. Khun Sa was a Shan military leader and drug lord who is also known as the Opium King. The operation involved 500 soldiers supported by 22 helicopters. Marllory had one fierce reputation. Escobar was eventually killed during a raid in 1993, leaving behind a notorious legacy. There are people who like to feel adrenaline, some with heights, others with guns, and women who feel adrenaline when they cheat on their husbands, she laughed with a conspiratorial smile. Blanco is a fascinating figure in drug war history. He gained plenty of popularity by sponsoring charities and sports but eventually undermined his own reputation with excessive and often indiscriminate violence. Courtney is a Toronto-based freelance writer whose work has appeared on The Richest, AmongMen, 29secrets, ELLE Canada, Complex, and The Bolde. When he was arrested . 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 dollarsback in the 1990's. He is seeking early release from prison because he suffers from prostate and colon cancer. We will be using inflation adjusted numbers in our article. Griselda primarily worked in New York and Miami, helping with the cocaine shipments that ended up in the United States. Narco trafficking is a business that has not been legalized, says vila. He has earned a large amount of money because of the drug trafficking business which was started in 1990. Gilbertos nephew, William Rodriguez Abada, spoke out against the Netflix series Narcos, which he said misrepresented the true facts and tarnished his reputation as a result. Photos of her party life resemble an episode of Keeping up with the Kardashians except when she scanned the photos every few years, another one of the characters had been murdered. And in less than 10 years, her coronation was complete. Rodriguez Gacha resisted arrest by the Colombian government, throwing grenades in a shootout that resulted in the death of himself and his 17-year-old son, Freddy. The network's operations centered around his own private island located in the Bahamas. She has the net worth value of almost $2 million. He has escaped from prison twice over the course of his career, which has been dramatized on television programs like "Narcos: Mexico" and the Netflix/Univision co-production "El Chapo." Player View. This list features the most brutal drug kingpins - people who wouldn't hesitate to murder for the sake of their profits. It is tiring. But I don't know if he was the richest. It didnt hurt that she was a raucous car driver, a master horseback rider, and a fabled sharpshooter. There are people with loads of money but they dont get out. Who are the richest drug dealers of all time? He was the focal member and founder of the Medellin Cartel, and was one of the wealthiest criminals in history. Griselda Blanco, also known as La Madrina and the Black Widow, was the first billionaire female drug lord. Some reports have had him living in Pakistan, something the Pakistani government denies. Khun Sa grew to prominence during the 1960s when he fled into Burma during the end of the Chinese Civil War. Her life became full-time cartel. Alice Walton . Al Capone: Net Worth - $100 Million. Before Boston George, she was the Medellin Cartel's most prolific smuggler, running tons of cocaine into New York, Miami, and Southern California. Originally born Zhang Qifu, this infamous drug lord got military training from the Kuomintang and the Burmese Army before becoming independent and establishing himself as the Opium King of Myanmar. The series is a remake of the Spanish-language version La Reina del Sur, starring Kate del Castillo the actress who eventually teamed up with Sean Penn for a clandestine and highly controversial meeting with El Chapo. He later died in a Mexican hospital in 1997 after getting intensive plastic surgery in order to alter his appearance and avoid being recognized. 6. 2023 Celebrity Net Worth / All Rights Reserved. The song became a hit, but vila was irate: she had been outed by a band. AN alleged drug lord suspected of running a "$70billion empire across Asia" and compared to El Chapo has been arrested in Amsterdam. He is the 2nd most famous drug dealer of Columbia. He was returning now as one of Suriname's richest, most powerful and popular men, to bring electricity to his long-neglected community composed of the descendants of people who escaped slavery . On September 3, 2012, she was shot and killed at the age of 69. He has been estimated to be worth some $1 billion dollars, and is known for his various prison escapes. She gave me 50 pesos [$3] because I had left everything in the car and I escaped in a taxi.. But she flashed to her recently murdered brother and how that death had weighed so heavily on their mother. Known . This made himthe first European who was executed in Singapore following its independence. He came to limelight for his highly politicized and controversial prosecutions and imprisonment. Two gunmen boxed in their car and descended with a fusillade of gunfire. Dead., vila described how a humble witness to the scene gave her shelter, changed her into simple clothes, and saved her life. That's why we are going to use guesstimates from various sites in our rankings. He pleaded guilty to helping to launder $2.5 million in exchange for a $250,000 payment. Below you can find our inflation adjust list of 5 richest drug lords of all time. Drug lords are supplying drugs throughout the whole world which is indeed harmful but still used by the people. He once escaped from a high security jail by hiding in a laundry basket. Additionally during the 1970s he purchased and operated an island in the Bahamas that acted as a way point for drug shipments that were headed from Columbia to the United States. Murillo has been played by actors like Carlos Velsquez and Mauricio Cujar in TV series. But who are the richest drug lords in history? vila also refused to answer certain questions about her precise role in the cocaine trade, coyly forgetting the exact number of bodyguards in her personal detachment, and describing extremely large cash payments made to her as presents. To change that, to be another person is difficult, she said of that time. Juan, Jorge and Fabio Ochoa, known as the aforementioned Ochoa Brothers, were involved in the Medellin Cartel during its 1980s heyday. He was killed in a violent confrontation with police in 1989. Jose Gonzalo Rodriguez Gacha is perhaps better known by the moniker "El Mexicano." Carlos Enrique Lehder Rivas is the co-founder of the Medellin Cartel and still alive. Her fortune is mostly buried, and she and a bevy of lawyers are now furiously fighting to recoup approximately 15 homes, 30 sports cars and an estimated 300 jewels. Around the age of 13, she witnessed her first shootout. She was the sister of the famous Arellano Felix brothers, a drug trafficking clan that operated in Tijuana. He has been supplying cocaine to almost all parts of USA and has made millions from that. The total estimate for El Chapo's "gross drug sale proceeds" since early 1990s was less than $12.7 billion. We're talking about the kingpins, the drug lords, the real bosses. He was then sent to the jail in 1985 for 40 years and is still here. Very tiring. People become drug dealers because it's still the only profession where someone without a college education can become one of the richest people on the planet in just a few years. Known as a narco corrido, this ode to cartel life described how vila once arrived fashionably late to a clandestine birthday party in the hills. How a Drought-Resistant Crop Turned Women in Kenya into Reluctant Drug Lords 'I Need the Money But I Feel Guilt.' . Let's take a look at who the richest Colombian drug lord is. El Chapo. 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