One Of Most Prolific Drug Smugglers In History Describes Meeting Pablo Escobar
– Roger Reaves –
One of the world’s most successful cocaine smugglers has recounted what it was like to work for Pablo Escobar and how he escaped from prison five times.
Roger Reaves
Reaves grew up on a modest farm in Georgia and progressed from manufacturing moonshine to being one of the most skilled drug traffickers for the Medellin Cartel, one of the world’s largest at the time.
Reaves worked closely with Kingpin Pablo Escobar in the cartel and described him as a “gentleman” when they first met.
He said: “When I first met him, he was a gentleman. Like you and me, we’re sitting here shaking hands.”
Jorge Ochoa introduced Reaves to Escobar when a job went awry and his contact was shot.
Before Escobar entered the room, Ochoa, whom Reaves described as “the brains” of the Medellin cartel, asked him about his expertise in flying drugs across the border.
The Drug Lord
The famed drug lord then described Reaves’ work and remuneration, stating that he paid $5,000 (£3,600) per kg transferred and that each plane trip consisted of transferring between 300 and 500 kilos of cocaine.
This means that the American could earn between $1.5 and $2.5 million (£1 million-£1.8 million) for an eight-hour flight.
Fridman noted that some saw Escobar as a “brutal murderer,” while others see him as a “Robin Hood-like figure who aided the needy,” and he inquired as to which Reaves thought best portrayed the drug lord.
“Both of them,” Reaves remarked. I believe he began honestly by assisting the needy, but then there was a battle down there.
“I felt sorry I ever touched Escobar’s hand after hearing about his blowing up that airliner and killing those women and children.” That is heinous murder.”
Reaves was alluding to the 1989 bombing of Avianca Flight 203, which killed 110 people.
The Guy Behind the Bombing
Dandeny Munoz-Mosquera, the guy behind the bombing, was widely suspected of acting on Escobar’s and the Medellin cartel’s orders.
When asked if he would do it all over again, Reaves replied, “No way.” “It wasn’t worth 33 years in prison to be apart from my wonderful family.”
Despite eluding capture five times, Reaves spent more than three decades in 26 different jails across seven nations and four continents.
Reaves also described being tortured to death in a Mexican prison.
To force the American to confess, they ‘bent him over’ and injected hot chili pepper into his anus. They also abused him and nearly drowned him till he was ‘black, blue, and yellow’ from head to toe.
At the end of the day, the drug smuggler doesn’t consider himself a criminal, stating, “I don’t lie, cheat, or steal; violence makes me sick.”
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Frequently Asked Questions
1. Where was Roger Reaves from?
America
2. How much did Roger Reaves earn?
Mr Reaves recalls how, at the height of the trade, he earned $US7 million in just months and was so powerful that Escobar constructed him a 1000ft (304m) runway in the South American jungle to pick up tonnes of cocaine.
3. How much did Barry Seals Earn?
Seal amassed an estimated $60 million by importing drugs into the country, making him one of America’s wealthiest people.
In the film, executing secret missions for the government adds a patriotism and redemptive dimension to his character, but in real life, Barry Seal was a drug smuggler first and foremost.
4. Where in Georgia is Roger Reaves from?
Brunswick, Georgia
5. Where is Dandeny Muñoz Mosquera now?
Arrested in 1991, he is serving multiple life sentences in a US prison.
6. Who was Ellis McPickle?
Barry Seal, alias Ellis McPickle, was an American pilot who worked for the CIA before smuggling drugs from Colombia into the United States for the Medelln Cartel.
7. What Happened to Debbie Seal?
Seal was killed by Colombian hitmen working for the cartel in 1986 at a safe house in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
8. What was Pablo Escobar’s Daily Wage?
Every day, cash from the United States poured into Pablo Escobar’s hands. Pablo Escobar is said to have gotten more than $50 million in cash per day from his narcotics transactions.
9. What was Pablo Escobar’s Net Worth?
Escobar had a claimed net worth of $25 billion, which he spent lavishly.
10. Is Barry Seal dead?
Deceased (1939–1986)
Smuggler Roger Reaves recently spoke in a podcast with YouTuber Lex Fridman, in which he discusses his remarkable lifestyle. Comment and share your thoughts below.
