The Underworld Podcast: "The OG Mexican Narco – Pablo Acosta"
Date: October 7, 2025
Hosts: Danny Gold & Sean Williams
Episode Overview
This episode dives into the life, legacy, and violent rise of Pablo Acosta Villarreal, a foundational figure in Mexican drug trafficking and a direct inspiration for later cartel bosses and Netflix dramas alike. Through colorful storytelling and journalistic investigation, Danny and Sean dissect the borderland smuggling culture of the 20th century, the escalating brutality that shaped the Mexican narco world, and Acosta’s transformation from dirt-poor peasant to unofficial "Godfather" of a 200-mile Texas–Mexico border stretch.
The discussion is grounded in Terrence Poppa’s book Drug Lord and explores how Acosta’s story intersects with the rise of cocaine trafficking, the origins of cartel violence, and the corrupt symbiosis between criminals and authorities in northern Mexico.
Key Discussion Points & Insights
1. Early Days & Borderland Roots
[08:49]
- Pablo Acosta grew up in rural poverty in Chihuahua, in a region that was already a hub for smuggling and lawlessness.
- His family’s history involved petty smuggling during Prohibition and harsh survival in the desert—dangerous work sometimes involving violent clashes with authorities.
“His family are itinerant farmers... They wander the border region, his grandfather works mercury mines... and smuggles Soto into West Texas. That whole area is kind of super fluid, the border’s practically non-existent.” — Danny [12:31]
2. The Culture of Violence and Smuggling
[13:55 – 16:54]
- Pablo witnesses his father’s murder as a teen, setting off a chain of blood feuds similar to Albanian honor killings.
- Acosta quickly graduates from bar fights to gunfights and is introduced to smuggling by fellow border migrants.
- Early smuggling involved black tar heroin and marijuana, mostly supplying Mexican-American dealers in the US.
"He’s quiet but loves to get drunk and scrap. One police report: ‘Subject threw a pitcher of beer through a plate glass window at the Steakhouse bar.’" — Danny [16:38]
3. The First Steps into Narco Stardom
[17:46 – 19:02]
- At 31, Acosta is arrested for a botched heroin deal, serves five years, and uses prison to network with bigger players like Shorty Lopez.
- Returning to the border, he switches strategies—moving product within the US, buying from new bosses like Manuel "The Snake" Carrasco.
“It’s not about how many times you get knocked down. It’s about how many times you get up... He networks in prison like all winners do.” — Danny [18:45]
4. The Plaza System: Criminals and Cops in Collusion
[25:36 – 27:00]
- Smuggling operations are run as a kind of franchise: traffickers pay regular fees (plaza taxes) to law enforcement in exchange for protection.
- These arrangements breed constant violence—the “boss” has to pay off authorities and keep control, or face violent competitors.
"Traffickers like Pablo Acosta operated under a system almost like a franchise. They had to pay a monthly fee... for the right to work a specific zone.” — Danny [26:15]
- Discussion compares cartel violence to other parts of the world, noting that corruption, poverty, and a historical “Wild West” mentality all contribute.
5. Gaining Power: Betrayals, Wars, and Brutal Tactics
[28:06 – 35:00]
- After a series of assassinations among bosses (including scalping and body-part trophies), Acosta’s rise is cemented through a war with the Arevalo family—former allies from prison.
- The conflict is marked by kidnappings, shootouts, and grotesque violence.
“In a grisly foreshadowing... one of the killers uses a machete to scalp [Shorty], make pendant necklaces from his skull. Cool stuff, guys.” — Danny [29:18]
- After years of conflict, Acosta emerges victorious and is recognized as a Robin Hood figure among locals—lending money, building infrastructure, winning popular support, but ruling with fear.
6. The Coming of Cocaine and the Colombian Connection
[42:59 – 45:22]
- The episode chronicles the pivotal moment when Colombian cocaine operations pivot from Florida/Caribbean routes to the Mexican border, transforming Acosta’s weed-and-heroin business overnight.
“Hundreds and hundreds of pounds... planes directly from Colombia landing... Pablo’s storing for other traffickers, sometimes paid a thousand a key just to hold cocaine.” — Danny [45:00]
- Amado Carrillo Fuentes ("Lord of the Skies") enters as Acosta’s apprentice, later becoming a kingpin himself.
7. US Law Enforcement Gets Wise—Operation and Paranoia
[47:02 – 53:20]
- Large-scale cocaine busts in El Paso and Los Angeles are linked to Acosta’s network, uncovering hundreds of associates and corrupt officials on both sides of the border.
- Growing law enforcement pressure brings assassination attempts and narco paranoia—Acosta becomes increasingly erratic, addicted to cocaine and crack, and obsessed with informants.
8. The Agent, the Socialite, and Narco Diplomacy
[51:42 – 53:13]
- Customs agent David Regela tries to turn Acosta into an informant, connecting through Mimi Webb Miller—an American rancher, artist, and former lover of both men.
- Despite mutual respect and negotiation, Acosta feeds unhelpful tips and becomes more unstable, his organization crumbling under pressure.
“Pablo is just, like, straight up losing it... forgetting things, being abandoned by friends and allies. Most people start to think the crack and coke is going to finish him before the bullets do.” — Danny [60:00]
9. Publicity, Paranoia, and the Fall
[56:03 – 62:10]
- In a disastrous PR move, Acosta agrees to a newspaper interview—admitting murders, showing off crack, and boasting of bribing officials.
- The article leads to national embarrassment for Mexican authorities, a sweeping manhunt, and the collapse of Acosta’s inner circle.
10. The Death of the Border Fox
[62:17 – 66:14]
- Fleeing to a remote canyon village, Acosta is finally cornered in April 1987 by Mexican commandos (assisted by US cooperation); he dies in a shootout.
- Ballads and narco-corridos are written in his honor; his death marks the end of an era and paves the way for the professionalized "cartel era" under Amado Carrillo Fuentes and others.
“Gone is Pablito, friend of the poor, killed by the government... in a world that shows no mercy for people like that. Yet he had done nothing more than give them what they wanted.” — Narco song lyric read by Danny [64:46]
Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments
- On the Violence Escalation:
- “You can kind of see in this episode how violence starts ratcheting up—things that weren’t done get done, and the next guy has to one-up the last.” — Danny [27:35]
- On Criminals and Law Enforcement:
- “It’s amazing how many guys not just got started as police officers, but would go work as police while working for cartels during this time.” — Danny [40:16]
- On Border Life:
- “There’s no better border town than the one where a country with super strict laws meets a country where no one gives a damn.” — Danny [11:01]
- On Acosta’s Fall:
- “Most people start to think the crack and coke will finish him off before the bullets do.” — Danny [60:00]
- Narco Ballads:
- “The tsar of traffickers is dead. Truly, the mafia king... Even the bravest shook with fear.” — Danny, reading narco lyrics [64:49]
Timeline of Important Segments
| Timestamp | Segment | |:-------------:|:-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 00:39 | Cold open: Pablo vs. Arevalo – brutal beginnings, early betrayals | | 08:49 | Source material & overview: Terrence Poppa’s Drug Lord, border geography | | 13:55 | Pablo’s family history, honor feuds, and first brushes with violence | | 17:46 | Early smuggling, arrest, networking in prison | | 25:36 | Plaza system explained: criminal–state symbiosis, bribery, and territory control | | 28:06 | Series of assassinations and betrayals—scalping/trophy killings, rise to power | | 35:41 | Pablo’s Robin Hood phase: community investment, winning local loyalty | | 42:59 | The cocaine revolution: shifting Colombian routes, arrival of Amado Carrillo Fuentes | | 47:02 | Massive busts, law enforcement wakes up, smuggling innovations (propane tanks) | | 51:42 | Pablo's paranoia mounts, attempts to flip informants, and chaos within organization | | 56:03 | Newspaper interview disaster, press brings avalanche of heat and collapse | | 62:17 | Final manhunt: Pablo's last stand, shootout, and death | | 64:46 | Narco-corrido lyrics, legacy, and reflection on the old and new cartel eras |
Final Reflections & Legacy
- The episode closes reflecting on how Acosta symbolized a transforming era: part old-school bandit, part merciless criminal innovator, part corrupted local hero. The infrastructure, loyalties, and methods he pioneered paved the way for even more violent successors.
- The podcast notes the ongoing escalation—where violence, corruption, and the scale of operations continue to grow as the decades pass. Acosta’s death is both an ending and a beginning, his border fox legend echoed in narco-corridos and cartel myth.
For Further Listening
- Recommended: Underworld’s episodes on Amado Carrillo Fuentes, the Cuban connection, and Albanian blood feuds (earlier seasons).
- Main source: Drug Lord by Terrence Poppa.