Pablo Escobar was a man of power and riches during his time in history. Escobar was listed as the seventh richest man in the world in 1989. Coming from Medellin, the second largest city in Colombia, Escobar started off as a small time gangster and a car thief. His small time crimes would never amount to what he was going to become. In the late 1970's Escobar and his cartel became one of the most powerful organized crime organizations. The cartel consolidated the cocaine industry controlling as much as 80 percent of cocaine worldwide.
             Escobar, a heavy pot-smoker cultivated a relaxed, informal life style with his friends and associates. Escobar was not as friendly to his enemies he was vicious and feared by everyone. For example when one of Escobar's bombs brought down an Avianca Airliner in Colombia in November 1989, Killing 107 people, he become one of the most feared terrorists in the world.
             He was considered the brains of the cartel and had a stand up reputation with the people of Medellin. He built many things for the community such as a hospital, housing for the poor and other types of charity. Which lead to being elected as an alternate to Colombia Congress in 1983, Escobar enjoyed widespread popularity among the poor in Colombia, especially in his home state of Antioquia. Some called Escobar the Robin Hood-type criminal among Colombia's poor.
             At the height of his power in the late 1980's, he was in control of the multibillion- dollar export of Colombian cocaine to the United States. He was at that time the most notorious drug trafficker in the world running his cocaine business surrounded and protected by the Colombian army. Estimates were made that 70 to 80 tons of cocaine were being shipped from Colombia to the United States every single month, and Escobar and his cartel controlled the bulk of it.
             This soon turned violent in 1984, when Colombia began cracking down on the cocai...