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Who Was Griselda Blanco? Find Out Everything About the Drug Lord Kingpin As Sofia Vergara Gets Sued For Her Upcoming Biopic
Colombian cocaine boss Griselda Blanco, mother of four, murdered 3 of her husbands and according to U.S. Attorney Stephen Schlessinger, she murdered because she didn’t like the way they looked at her.
Trigger Warning: This article contains references to drug addiction
Colombian cocaine boss Griselda Blanco, a mother of four, rose to power in a male-dominated industry, killed all three husbands, and amassed significant personal wealth while leading a massive drug empire. Assistant U.S. Attorney Stephen Schlessinger says she murdered simply because she didn’t like the way they looked at her.
Netflix has a new six-episode drama series coming out titled Griselda, starring Modern Family’s Sofia Vergara as the cocaine cowgirl herself. Griselda was created by Eric Newman, Doug Miro, Ingrid Escajeda, and Carlo Bernard. Newman and director Andrés Baiz reunite for Griselda following their former hits, Narcos and Narcos: Mexico.
ALSO READ: Why is Sofia Vergara Being Sued By Griselda Blanco's Estate? Controversy Over New Netflix Show
Who was Griselda Blanco?
Griselda Blanco was born February 15, 1943, in Santa Marta, Colombia, and died September 3, 2012, in Medellín. She was a Colombian cocaine trafficker who amassed a vast empire and was a central figure in the violent drug wars in Miami in the 1970s and 1980s. Although there is some confusion about her birth location, several sources give it as Santa Marta, Colombia, where Blanco was baptized.
Blanco grew up in poverty and began her criminal life at a young age, allegedly kidnapping a boy at age 11 and fatally shooting him after his wealthy family refused to pay the ransom. She was also a pickpocket and prostitute. She married a criminal and had three children. However, they subsequently divorced and Blanco was believed to have ordered his murder several years later.
In the early 1970s, Blanco was in a relationship with Alberto Bravo, a drug trafficker whom she ultimately married. It was through him that she became involved in the cocaine trade. The couple, led by Blanco, smuggled drugs into the US using New York City as their base. They created a profitable operation but faced drug charges which led Blanco to return to Colombia in 1975. She came to believe that her husband was stealing money, and a shoot-out between the couple resulted in Bravo’s death. Living up to her nickname as the Black Widow, she reportedly later had her third husband killed as well.
In the late 1970s, Blanco moved to Miami and became known as the Godmother of Cocaine. She ruthlessly controlled the city, leading to the Cocaine Cowboy Wars. She allegedly ordered numerous murders, many of which were committed by gunmen on motorcycles, and some occurred in broad daylight. Blanco became one of the world's wealthiest drug traffickers, smuggling over three tons of cocaine annually, earning $80 million per month. She named one of her sons Michael Corleone after a crime boss in the Godfather series, and enjoyed a lavish lifestyle with luxury homes.
In 1984, Blanco moved to California to escape rivals and fear for her life. She was arrested in 1985 for drug charges and sentenced to 15 years in prison. During this time, officials tried to press additional charges against Blanco, who was implicated in over 200 murders. In 1994, after her hit man, Jorge Ayala testified against her, she was charged with three murders, including the fatal shooting of a former enforcer's two-year-old son. Prosecutors sought the death penalty, but Ayala's credibility was undermined by revelations of phone sex with prosecuting attorney's office secretaries.
In 1998, Blanco pled guilty in exchange for a reduced sentence and was released six years later. She reportedly retired from crime, but in 2012, she was killed by a gunman on a motorcycle as she left a butcher shop in Medellín. Blanco had inspired many books, movies, and TV shows. She notably was featured in the documentary Cocaine Cowboys (2006) and served as the central figure in Cocaine Cowboys 2: Hustlin’ with the Godmother (2008).
Griselda Blanco's son sued the creators of Netflix's Griselda
Griselda Blanco's son, Michael Corleone Blanco, who is releasing a book about his mother, accused the Netflix show, Griselda's creators of using his unreleased artistic literary work and his likeness "to depict the life story of himself and his mother, Griselda Blanco De Trujillo" without permission or credit, according to his lawsuit.
Blanco "has devoted several years to meticulously documenting the private narratives of his, as well as his mother’s life, with the intention of publishing a book and developing a Spanish soap opera," the lawsuit states. He seeks a temporary injunction against Netflix to stop the streamer from releasing the limited series on Jan. 25 and from allegedly using his artistic literary work; he also claims at least $100,000 in damages.
Blanco alleges that two of the defendants in the case, Andres Hernando Lopez and Rafael Alfredo Rojas Vega, had agreed in 2009 to help him publish a book and develop a Spanish soap opera. He also accuses Lopez of meeting with Netflix to discuss Blanco's family story, but Netflix declined to use Blanco's consultation or literary work.
Disclaimer: If you know someone who is struggling with alcohol or substance abuse, please reach out to the authorities and report it. There are several helplines available for the same.
ALSO READ: Sofia Vergara's astonishing transition into Griselda Blanco for Netflix's 'Griselda' teaser
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