The Rest Is Classified

Episode 76: The Hunt for Pablo Escobar – From Narco to Global Terrorist (Ep 3)

Date: August 24, 2025
Hosts: David McCloskey & Gordon Corera

Overview

This gripping episode dives deep into how Pablo Escobar and the Medellín Cartel escalated from mere criminal enterprise into outright terrorism, culminating in direct confrontations with both the Colombian state and US intelligence agencies. The hosts, David McCloskey (ex-CIA analyst) and Gordon Corera (security correspondent), explore the cartel’s campaign of violence, corruption, and intimidation, and the turning points that shifted the US’s approach from drug interdiction to a quasi-military manhunt for Escobar himself. Through rich storytelling and inside knowledge, the episode highlights the shadowy world of counter-narcotics, intelligence infighting, and the birth of high-tech manhunting.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Escobar’s Public Campaign and Control in Medellín (05:06–08:00)

• Despite being indicted and facing extradition, Escobar openly moves through Medellín, “throwing parties, going to nightclubs and bullfights” and showcasing effective control over the local government, police, and, crucially, the judiciary.
  • Quote:
    “He is openly moving about the city, he’s throwing parties, he’s going to nightclubs… He has very effectively bought off the municipal government, police, and crucially... the judiciary.”
    — David McCloskey, 05:31
• The judiciary is especially vulnerable: young judges on paltry salaries ($230/month) are offered $50,000 to dismiss cartel cases, making corruption rampant and systematic.
• The famous “plata o plomo” (silver or lead) approach is described: take a bribe or face assassination.

2. Escalation of Violence and Formation of ‘The Extraditables’ (08:00–11:56)

• The murder of Justice Minister Lara Bonilla’s investigator in 1985 exemplifies the shift to assassinating high-profile legal figures.
• The Extraditables: A shadowy cartel front founded by Escobar to fight extradition to the US, led a campaign of intimidation and violence against judges and government institutions.
  • Memorable Moment:
    “We will not respect the families of those who've not respected our families. We will burn and destroy the industries, properties, and mansions of the oligarchy.”
    — Escobar manifesto read by Gordon Carrera, 03:05
• Judges receive direct, all-caps death threats and bribe offers (10:20–10:58).

3. The Supreme Court Siege & Systemic State Undermining (12:29–17:17)

• Palace of Justice Siege (Nov 1985): The escalation peaks when M19 guerrillas storm Colombia’s Supreme Court, demanding the end of the US extradition treaty. Funded by the cartel, 11 of 24 Supreme Court justices are killed, and crucial records are destroyed.
  • Quote:
    “An urban guerrilla group called M19 storms the Palace of Justice… held hostage, which prompts a government siege… leaves 50 palace employees dead, including 11 of the 24 Supreme Court justices.”
    — David McCloskey, 12:29
• After the siege, “Pablo and the Medellín cartel are actually on the verge of state capture”, infiltrating most of Colombia’s political and civic institutions.
• US response: Reagan’s 1986 National Security Decision Directive 221 marks drug trafficking as a direct national security threat, opening the door to US military involvement in Colombia.

4. War on Extradition & Colombia Descends into Chaos (17:17–21:34)

• The US and Colombia trade blows over the extradition treaty, which is invalidated and re-signed in quick succession.
• The late 1980s see public assassinations, bombings, and street warfare:
  “By the end of '87, Bogota is essentially a war zone… violence threatening to bring the state down.”
  — David McCloskey, 17:32
• Dual personalities emerge: Escobar is described as “polite, calm, rarely in bad moods, but terrifying”, highlighting the contradiction between his personal charm and his vicious public campaign (19:32–20:32).

5. Cartel Terrorism and the Defining Acts (21:34–27:39)

• Escobar’s tactics evolve into terrorism—pipe bombs and car bombs terrorize daily life, even targeting shopping malls and banks.
• Assassination of Presidential Candidate Luis Galán (23:49–25:04):
  Galán, an anti-cartel reformer, is shot dead in 1989. The president responds by reinstating the extradition treaty, marking an overt showdown.
• Avianca Flight 203 Bombing (25:32–27:39):
  In November 1989, Escobar orchestrates the bombing of a commercial airliner (killing 110, including 2 Americans) in an attempt to assassinate a single political target—a watershed moment reclassifying Escobar as a global terrorist.
  • Quote:
    “You are blowing up a civilian airliner in order to take out one person… this surely is too far, isn’t it?”
    — Gordon Corera, 26:40

6. US Response: Legal and Covert Mechanisms (29:05–34:56)

• The Avianca bombing catalyzes a shift in US strategy. The Bush Administration explores ways to target Escobar, pushing legal definitions around assassination and covert action.
• The Army’s Centra Spike unit is introduced: a clandestine group specializing in finding targets through airborne radio-location.
  • Quote:
    “This is not post-9/11… the legal framework to go after a Colombia-based narco trafficker is thin… By designating Escobar as a threat to the US and a terrorist, it opens the leeway for clandestine military action.”
    — David McCloskey, 29:20; 32:52
• US assistance surges: Colombian special units such as the Search Bloc, led by the courageous Col. Hugo Martinez (“Flaco”), are bankrolled by US aid and receive military and intelligence training (35:38–37:28).

7. The Search Bloc: Colombia’s Own Manhunt (36:37–41:42)

• The Search Bloc, staffed with non-local police to avoid cartel infiltration, faces extreme risks—30 out of 200 killed in the first two weeks.
• Martinez’s resolve hardens despite near-constant threats and bribe attempts ($6 million offered to betray the mission).
  • Quote:
    “Tell Pablo you came but did not find me here and then leave this matter as if it had never occurred.”
    — Col. Martinez reply, recounted by McCloskey, 42:05

8. US Intelligence: Infighting and Challenges (42:47–49:06)

• The intelligence effort is hamstrung by rivalry. The CIA, DEA, and FBI all want in, but mutual distrust and bureaucracy hamper cooperation.
  • Memorable Moment:
    “Whenever we walked in [the CIA offices], they would activate a flashing blue light throughout their office space to let everyone know there was an outsider… required to sit at a child-sized desk…”
    — DEA memoir, quoted by Corera & McCloskey, 48:01–48:57

9. Technical Intelligence and Centra Spike’s Tech (49:24–54:48)

• Human intelligence is extremely difficult: potential informants are either obscenely wealthy or face certain torture and death.

• Technical intelligence, especially radio/cellphone location from the air (Centra Spike), becomes critical. Their pinpoint accuracy leads the manhunt.

  • Quote:
    “By 1989, Centra Spike can pinpoint a radio or cell phone signal down to within a few hundred meters in many cases… from inside one small aircraft.”
    — David McCloskey, 51:01

• CIA attempts to compete with their own tech, but Centra Spike becomes the dominant tool—rivalries (“feature, not a bug”) continue to hamper unified efforts.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Pablo Escobar Manifesto:
  “We are declaring total and absolute war on the government, on the individual and political oligarchy, on the journalists who have attacked and insulted us, on the judges… We will not respect the families of those who've not respected our families. We will burn and destroy…”
  — Read by Gordon Corera, 03:05
• On Colombian Judiciary:
  “$50,000 to dismiss a narco trafficking case. If you’re a judge making $230 a month, that’s life-changing money… the cartel’s bagmen are actually hanging around the arraignment courts in Medellin with briefcases full of cash.”
  — David McCloskey, 06:34
• On Terrorism Shift:
  “To me, this is the moment where Pablo crosses from cartel kingpin to international narco terrorist, which then puts a bullseye on your head in Washington.”
  — David McCloskey, 27:04
• On US Intelligence Infighting:
  “Bureaucratic infighting amongst US intelligence agencies? Never!”
  — Gordon Corera, 47:35 (sarcastic)
• On Col. Hugo Martinez’s Bribe Offer:
  “Would you have taken the $6 million?”
  — Gordon Corera, 41:42
  (The hosts jokingly debate whether they’d have chosen integrity or survival.)

Key Timestamps for Major Segments

• [05:06–08:00] – Escobar’s control in Medellín and systemic corruption
• [12:29–13:31] – Supreme Court siege (Palace of Justice)
• [17:32–20:32] – Colombia’s descent into chaos; Escobar's double life
• [21:34–27:39] – Cartel terrorism, bombings, Galán assassination, Avianca bombing
• [29:20–32:52] – US legal response, assassination rules, Bush’s war on drugs
• [36:37–42:18] – Search Bloc introduction, perils and bribes, Col. Martinez’s resolve
• [42:47–49:06] – US agency rivalries and intelligence shortcomings
• [49:24–54:48] – Technical intelligence: Centra Spike, human vs. tech, cutting-edge manhunting

Tone and Style

The episode is intense, wryly humorous (“The Extraditables… didn’t quite make the Marvel Universe”), and candid about the challenges and moral ambiguities faced by both Colombian officials and US intelligence. McCloskey and Corera balance historical analysis with insider anecdotes, delivering a suspenseful chronicle of one of history’s most notorious manhunts.

Next episode: The hunt ramps up as the US-Colombian alliance puts the cutting-edge Centra Spike technology to work, closing in on Pablo Escobar... or so they hope.