The End

Osama Ben Laden was a choir boy in comparison to Pavlo Escovat.

A life meant absolutely nothing to him.

I would say that during his lifetime he was probably the most important terrorist in the entire world.

His name, legendary, Eskbar, the King of Cocaine,

a man responsible for the loss of thousands of innocent lives.

His legacy is indisputable.

And yet, his visage is etched into the concrete and reflected in the skyscrapers of modern Medellin.

In this episode of Real Narcos, we'll pull back the curtain on Pavlo's empire

and examine the legend that formed in the dark shadow of his presence.

You'll hear from experts on the ground and the scholars of his sins.

These guys are the real deal.

And this is Real Narcos.

In the 1970s, Pavlo Escovat begins a small time smuggling operation

that sets him on a path to becoming one of the wealthiest people on the planet.

The son of a local farmer and schoolteacher,

he has his first taste for violence at a young age, growing up amidst a vicious civil war.

Sean Atwood is the author of the book, Pavlo Escovat's story.

Pavlo grew up in a department of Columbia called Antiochia.

And this was when a civil war called The Violence was taking place in Columbia

and the violence is in full steam across the country.

And it spills over into the village.

...