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A notorious Colombian drug lord, Pablo Escobar was the founder and leader of the infamous Medellín Cartel. His drug cartel monopolized the cocaine trade into the United States and he became one of the wealthiest criminals ever in history. Dubbed "The King of Cocaine", he left behind a controversial legacy upon his death at the age of 44.
Al Capone, also known by the nickname Scarface, was one of the most notorious American gangsters who controlled the organised crime in Chicago between 1925 and 1931. He was known for violence and cruelty in eliminating rival gang members, the most infamous incident being the St. Valentine’s Day Massacre. His life inspired numerous books and films.
German-Colombian drug kingpin Carlos Lehder, co-founder of the Medellín Cartel, which smuggled cocaine into the U.S., formed the Muerte a Secuestradores, to fight against the kidnappings of his cartel members. He escaped from the kidnappers but spent a 33-year sentence in the U.S., following which he was released.
Ernesto Fonseca Carrillo is a convicted Mexican drug lord. He led a now-defunct criminal group called the Guadalajara Cartel alongside Rafael Caro Quintero and Miguel Ángel Félix Gallardo. In 1982, the Drug Enforcement Administration indicted him in a money laundering operation, but he fled back to Mexico where he was finally arrested in 1985.
Joe Profaci was an Italian-born New York City mafia boss. He founded what later became the Colombo crime family in 1928 and was the family's boss for over three decades. It was the last of the Five Families to be organized. Besides his illegal activities, he also maintained several legitimate businesses. He died of liver cancer in 1962.
Best known as the wife of notorious drug lord Frank Lucas, Julianna Farrait has been behind bars twice, once in 2010, for selling cocaine. She had met Frank during a vacation in Puerto Rico, and the two soon came to be known as "the black Bonnie & Clyde."
Bruce Reynolds was a British criminal who was the mastermind behind the Great Train Robbery in 1963. Although he was sentenced to 25 years in prison in 1969, Reynolds was released in 1978 post which he published three books and became a popular public figure, performing alongside Alabama 3. His life and career have inspired several films and TV series.
A convicted criminal and author, Mark Brandon Read began his criminal career by robbing drug dealers at a very early age, eventually graduating to kidnapping and torturing of other criminals for money, as well as armed robbery. Being incarcerated for long periods, he later turned to writing, publishing fifteen books between 1991 and 2011
An Oxford alumnus, Dennis Howard Marks was an aspiring teacher before chose the world of drugs. He went from consuming cannabis to selling it, and was eventually jailed for 7 years. He used numerous pseudonyms, such as Mr. Nice and Marco Polo, and also penned a bestselling memoir.
Fabio Ochoa Vásquez gained notoriety as a key member of the highly-organized Medellín cocaine trafficking cartel. Fabio served short prison-term in Columbia but was later arrested again and extradited to the US where he was convicted of conspiracy, trafficking, and cocaine distribution and sentenced to 30-years in prison. He is presently serving the term in federal prison in Jesup, GA.
Diego Murillo Bejarano is a former gangster who led the United Self-Defense Forces of Colombia as well as the Office of Envigado cartel. He is also known for his association with Pablo Escobar and the Galeano family. Murillo has been played by actors like Carlos Velásquez and Mauricio Cujar in TV series. He was portrayed by Cujar on Netflix series Narcos.
