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Pablo Escobar & The Medellín Cartel

Pablo Escobar & The Medellín Cartel is the definitive true crime podcast exploring the rise, reign, and brutal legacy of the most powerful drug trafficking empire in history. From the blood-soaked streets of Medellín to the corridors of Washington and Bogotá, this show pulls back the curtain on the real story behind the world's most infamous cartel king and the criminal organization that held an entire nation hostage. Each episode dives deep into the cocaine trade, the politics of narco-terror, and the ruthless philosophy of plata o plomo — silver or lead — that defined Escobar's stranglehold on Colombia and sent shockwaves across the globe. Whether you're a longtime true crime listener, a history buff, or someone who wants to go far beyond what Netflix dramatized, this podcast delivers meticulously researched storytelling that separates myth from reality. Discover the cartel's origins, its key players, its violent wars with rivals and the Colombian state, and the human cost of an era that reshaped international drug policy forever. This is not just a story about one man — it's a story about power, corruption, poverty, and survival. Subscribe now and follow the trail of cocaine, cash, and consequences that still echoes today.

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14 episodes · Verified by YesOui

Episodes

Latest episodes

8 Sep 2026 · 16 min

From Smuggler to Cocaine King: The Rise, Reign, and Ruin of Escobar

Pablo Escobar earned $70 million a day, corrupted a nation, and died face-down on a Medellín rooftop — but the world he built outlived him. This episode traces the full arc: from stolen tombstones to the most powerful criminal empire in history.
7 Sep 2026 · 14 min

Tombstones, Coca Fields & the Making of a Cocaine King

Before Pablo Escobar built the Medellín Cartel into a $22-billion-a-year empire, he was stealing tombstones and smuggling stereos across Colombian borders. This episode traces the full arc — from a poor kid in Rionegro to the most dangerous criminal organisation in history.
6 Sep 2026 · 12 min

The Enemy Within: Los Pepes, the Shadow War, and Escobar's Last Stand

By 1993, the Colombian state hadn't broken Pablo Escobar — but a paramilitary death squad backed by cartel rivals was about to. This chapter exposes the shadow alliance of Los Pepes, the Search Bloc, and the CIA that finally cornered the world's most wanted man.
5 Sep 2026 · 13 min

End Game: The Final Sixteen Months and the Rooftop Where It Ended

Pablo Escobar spent his last sixteen months sleeping in a different bed every night — still running a criminal empire, still refusing to surrender. This is the end game: how Colombia finally closed the net, what the pursuit cost, and what the cocaine king left behind.
4 Sep 2026 · 12 min

Silver, Lead & La Catedral: The Architecture of Escobar's Power

Pablo Escobar built a cocaine empire worth $22 billion a year, then forced the Colombian government to let him design his own prison. This episode traces the full arc — from stolen tombstones to La Catedral, from plata o plomo to the rooftop in Medellín.
3 Sep 2026 · 14 min

Silver or Lead: How Escobar Built an Empire and Declared War on a Nation

From stealing tombstones in Rionegro to running the most profitable criminal enterprise in history, Pablo Escobar didn't just traffic cocaine — he industrialised it. This is the full arc: the pipeline, the bribes, the bombs, and the assassination that turned a drug war into a war of annihilation.
2 Sep 2026 · 13 min

The Folk Hero and the Monster: Escobar's War Against Colombia

Pablo Escobar built a $22-billion cocaine empire on plata o plomo — bribery or bullets — then declared outright war on the Colombian state when extradition threatened everything. This chapter traces the full arc: from Medellín's hillside slums to the rooftop in Los Olivos where the cocaine king finally fell.
1 Sep 2026 · 12 min

Tombstones to Tonnes: How Escobar Industrialised the Cocaine Trade

Pablo Escobar didn't invent cocaine trafficking — he industrialised it, moving 70 tonnes a month and clearing $70 million a day while buying politicians and burying enemies. This chapter traces the full arc: the slum kid stealing marble, the congressman-kingpin, the war on the Colombian state, and the rooftop in Medellín where it all ended.
31 Aug 2026 · 12 min

The Cocaine King: From Tombstone Thief to $70M-a-Day Empire

Pablo Escobar didn't just join the cocaine trade — he reinvented it, moving 80 tons a month into the US while bribing, bombing, and killing anyone who stood in his way. This is the full story of how a tombstone thief from Rionegro built the most powerful criminal empire in history.
30 Aug 2026 · 13 min

La Catedral, the Search Bloc & the Rooftop in Medellín

Pablo Escobar industrialised the cocaine trade, declared war on the Colombian state, and died on a Medellín rooftop — this is the full arc of the narco terror that reshaped a nation. From plata o plomo to La Catedral prison, the Search Bloc, and the assassination of Galán, no story in drug cartel history cuts deeper.
29 Aug 2026 · 13 min

The Assassination That Started a War: Galán, Extradition & Total Terror

Pablo Escobar didn't just run cocaine — he declared war on a nation. This chapter follows the killing of presidential candidate Luis Carlos Galán, the cartel's industrial-scale pipeline, and the plata o plomo terror campaign that left Colombia on its knees.
28 Aug 2026 · 13 min

Blood, Bombings & the State He Hollowed Out

Pablo Escobar didn't just build a cocaine empire — he systematically dismantled a nation. From the Palace of Justice siege to the Avianca bombing, this episode traces how one man turned corruption into a weapon of mass destruction.
27 Aug 2026 · 13 min

Plata o Plomo: How Escobar Built and Weaponised an Empire

From a logistics genius running 80 tons of cocaine a month to a terrorist bombing an airliner, Pablo Escobar's war on extradition reshaped Colombia forever. This chapter traces the machinery of the Medellín Cartel — the bribes, the bullets, and the blood.
26 Aug 2026 · 12 min

Cocaine, Power & Plata o Plomo: The Making of a Cartel King

Pablo Escobar began by stealing tombstones and ended by earning $70 million a day — this is where the real story starts. Episode 1 traces the making of the Medellín Cartel from Rionegro to the cocaine pipeline that held Colombia hostage.