This is the true story of the drug lord from the Netflix series ‘Griselda’

The new Netflix series does not do Griselda Blanco justice. The Colombian drug lord was much more violent and cold-blooded than she is portrayed. Anyone who grew up in Medellín, Colombia in the 1970s—like Sofía Vergara, the series’ lead actress—probably suffered under Blanco’s reign of terror.

Griselda Blanco was considered one of the most violent drug lords; even Pablo Escobar would have been afraid of her:

This quote is the first thing that flickers across the screen in Netflix’s “Griselda.” The series begins with her flight from Colombia to Miami with her sons – away from her husband and towards a new life.

But her life began to fall apart much earlier. She was born in Cartagena in 1943 and grew up in Medellín. Her mother was an abusive alcoholic. It is believed that as a child she was a pickpocket and made money digging graves.

At the age of 11 or 13 (sources report different ages) she committed her first murder. Together with other children, she kidnapped a boy of the same age from a wealthy family and demanded a ransom. But when the family didn’t pay, Blanco killed the boy with a shot between the eyes. In the years that followed, she earned her money as a sex worker. She started smoking cocaine at an early age.

She moved to New York with her second husband Alberto Bravo in the early 1970s and imported cocaine from Medellín on a large scale. Police first discovered her in 1973. As part of Operation Banshee, New York authorities took action against Colombian drug traffickers. They opened a case against Blanco after six kilos of cocaine were found on a sailing ship from Colombia in 1975. But it was impossible for investigators to track down Blanco; she had probably fled to Colombia.

It would take another ten years before Blanco was caught.

Blanco moved her business to Miami, where she employed more than 1,500 dealers. The cocaine was fitted with transmitters and dropped over the sea near Miami. In the documentary “Cocaine Cowboys II,” former employees report that Blanco was able to triple the $500 million (not adjusted for inflation) fortune she amassed in Miami in New York.

At the height of her career, Blanco headed a drug smuggling empire worth billions of dollars. She was known for designing new custom underwear with secret compartments to hide drugs. She reportedly imported $80 million worth of drugs a month. Until then, no one had imported cocaine into the United States on such a large scale. She had the monopoly.

Blanco wallowed in luxury, threw lavish parties in her villa, bought expensive jewelry and cars and had a statue made of herself. People who visited her rubbed the statue’s nose for good luck. Even Pablo Escobar is said to have followed this custom. Escobar was Blanco’s protégé for a time. Blanco is said to be the one who introduced Escobar to the world of cocaine. Before her, he was just a petty criminal who stole cars.

It was previously unheard of that a woman could set up and run a drug company of this size. But Blanco ran her business with fear. Those close to her and loyal to her did well, but she taught others to be afraid.

It is said that she ordered up to 250 murders during her regime. Sometimes a little insult was enough to land you on your godmother’s hit list.

But only one of these murders can be directly attributed to Blanco: Alberto Bravo. Her husband and his bodyguard were shot at close range. Blanco escaped during this altercation with a glancing blow. The deaths of her three husbands earned her the nickname “The Black Widow”.

In the early 1980s, violence between rival drug dealers in Florida escalated. Blanco became increasingly paranoid; she hardly trusted anyone anymore. So she ordered the killing of one of her most loyal killers, Jesus Castro, because he had a fight with her son. Instead, the gunmen hit his two-year-old son, Johnny. Blanco would have laughed when she found out, unlike the series where she has a breakdown.

In 1985, Blanco was arrested in California and charged with manufacturing, importing and distributing cocaine. In 1994, she was also charged in Miami with the murder of Johnny Castro and two drug dealers and sentenced to three 20-year prison terms. But after just six years in prison, she was deported to Colombia, where she was released.

Eight years after Blanco returned to Medellín, the 69-year-old was shot dead by hitmen on a motorcycle outside a butcher shop. Ironically, motorcycle murders were Blanco’s preferred method of killing people.

Blanco was buried in a cemetery south of Medellín, the resting place of another cartel boss: Pablo Escobar.

The eight-part series ‘Griselda’ can now be viewed on Netflix.