Thirty years after the death of the most famous drug lord in history, Colombian Pablo Escobar, legends blend with reality regarding the supposed treasure the dangerous narco left hidden in various locations across the country shortly before his death in December 1993. Today, many seem to be searching for the lost fortune of one of the most significant criminals in global crime history.
Escobar was one of the founders of the Medellin Carte, which by the 1980s had become so powerful that it controlled 80% of the global cocaine trafficking and 75% of its market to the United States. A most-wanted criminal by Colombia and the United States, he was killed by Colombian authorities after amassing an incalculable fortune that, according to Forbes, made him the seventh richest person in the world at the time.
Following his death, the mystery of his fortune, estimated to reach US$30 billion, has persisted. Very little of the capo’s money has surfaced in the last three decades, mostly as properties throughout Colombia. But what about Escobar’s liquid fortune? It never appeared, and his family, his wife and two sons who fled to Argentina claim they never knew its location.
The fortune of Pablo Escobar and the hidden treasures of Colombia
While data lacks consensus, as it’s complicated to establish exactly how much money Escobar possessed, it is believed that, in addition to the US$30 billion, the Medellin drug lord owned around 500 properties in Colombia, an art collection valued at US$1.5 billion, and dozens of valuable antique cars.
Among all the properties, Hacienda Napoles was Pablo Escobar’s crown jewel. Spanning 3,000 hectares, it featured buildings, six swimming pools, nearly 30 artificial lakes, a landing strip, a bullring, and even a zoo with 1,200 animals.
In the 1980s, Pablo Escobar’s profits reportedly reached US$420 million weekly. Unable to launder all that money quickly, rumors say he began hiding part of his fortune in rural areas, agricultural fields, and other locations. It’s speculated that about 10% of the money he earned each week and hid in various places was lost due to moisture and the actions of animals.
The family always denied knowing anything about Pablo Escobar’s money
Pablo Escobar’s family always denied knowing anything about the drug lord’s money. His wife, Victoria Henao, and their children Manuela and Juan Pablo, fled to Argentina after he died in 1993 and changed their names, seeking a more anonymous life to protect themselves from Escobar’s shadow and numerous enemies.
In Argentina, they led a very different life from what they had known during Escobar’s lifetime, claiming that nothing remained of the millions from the Medellin cartel. Escobar’s wife asserts that the Colombian government seized most of his properties in Colombia while claiming that the liquid money was taken by the enemies of the Medellin cartel leader, through debt collections and for “damages they had caused.”
Searches in the United States
However, the rumor that Escobar had hidden his fortune persisted strongly in Colombia and abroad. In this quest for money, some investigations extended to the United States where two major investigations failed to solve the mystery.
The first occurred at a mansion Escobar owned in Miami. In 2016, its new owner hired experts who, using metal detectors and after tearing down most of the walls, located two safes. One disappeared, so its contents were never known, while the other yielded little value.
A year later, two former CIA agents participated in a series on Discovery Channel, even claiming knowledge of a submarine Escobar allegedly used to transport cocaine from Colombia to Puerto Rico and then to the United States. However, they ultimately found nothing of Escobar’s treasure.
Searching for the stashes in Colombia
Over the years, several stashes related to Pablo Escobar have been discovered in Colombia. These underground hideouts and secret deposits contained cash, jewelry, and valuable documents belonging to the drug trafficker. Some of the stashes were found by accident, while others were uncovered by individuals desperately searching for Escobar’s legendary treasure.
Despite efforts to confiscate and secure Escobar’s properties, treasure seekers still venture into remote areas of Colombia in search of the lost stashes of the Medellin Cartel. Motivated by the promise of hidden wealth, these individuals risk their safety and confront the law to uncover any trace of Escobar’s financial legacy.
Some have been successful in their quests, discovering small fortunes hidden in unlikely places. However, many others have been arrested or have encountered only false leads and disappointments. Despite the risks, the legend of Pablo Escobar’s treasure persists as a magnet for adventurers and thrill-seekers in Colombia.
The farmer Cartolos and the legend of the US$600 million
The most notable case was that of the farmer Jose Mariena Cartolos, who allegedly found barrels containing around US$600 million, belonging to Pablo Escobar. Cartolos was reportedly installing an irrigation system on his land when he accidentally came across this buried and well-preserved money.
As reported at the time, the farmer did not keep the money but handed it over to the authorities. The case sparked enormous interest in Colombia, as it seemed to confirm years of rumors that Escobar had hidden money in various locations across the country. In fact, several farmers in the area began digging their lands in search of new stashes of money, but these efforts proved fruitless.
Ultimately, the case of farmer Cartolos was debunked by the police.
The stash with rotten money
The most scandalous case, yet the one that came closest to uncovering the fortune so eagerly sought by treasure hunters, was the stash found by Pablo Escobar’s nephew, Nicolas Escobar, who worked with the drug lord’s criminal group.
This stash was located in one of his houses in Medellin, in the Las Palmas neighborhood. There, Nicolas Escobar, who has dedicated himself to searching for his uncle’s stashes, found US$18 million, a typewriter used by the drug trafficker to write his communiqué as “Los Extraditables,” his gold pen, and a camera.
The dollars, discovered in 2020, were unusable after being buried for over 30 years, as the bills had decayed and are now completely worthless.
The Briton who claims to be Escobar’s son
However, this bizarre story has yet another episode. Phillip Witcomb, also known as Roberto Sendoya Escobar, is a Londoner who claims to be the secret son of Escobar. He wrote a book and for a time was a regular on entertainment programs on United Kingdom television.
Witcomb claims that his adoptive father maintained contact with Pablo Escobar, whom he allegedly met during his stay in Colombia in the 1960s. Supposedly, the Colombian drug lord sent his secret British son a series of codes that would lead to Escobar’s treasure in Colombia.
Despite the sensational nature of the case and Witcomb’s conviction, to this day he has neither found his supposed father’s fortune nor is it clear to authorities that he is truly Escobar’s biological son.
The figure of Pablo Escobar, between the myth and the legend of the false Robin Hood
Walking through Medellin’s Comuna 13, Escobar’s image is omnipresent. Despite the neighborhood having overcome the damage caused by drug trafficking in the 1980s and 1990s, memories of that dark era still draw hundreds of foreign tourists today.
Escobar’s cruelty and brutality, portrayed in movies and TV series, and the mythologizing of a figure who dared challenge the state, have turned the man, the criminal, into a popular icon with both light and dark sides. Yet Escobar’s fortune never surfaced, and while collective imagination continues to fantasize about hidden treasures and blood-stained fortunes concealed in Colombian fields and jungles, there are always those determined to find Pablo Escobar’s treasure somewhere in Colombia.
Pablo Escobar’s legacy as one of the world’s most infamous drug lords extends beyond his violence and political power. His vast fortune and hidden stashes continue to intrigue people worldwide, fueling an endless search by modern-day treasure seekers. Although his death marked the end of an era of unchecked violence, the mystery surrounding his lost treasure persists, drawing those willing to take the risk of uncovering a part of Escobar’s myth.