Jobani de Jesús Ávila, known as “Chiquito malo”, the “bad boy”, seems destined to take command of the Colombian Gulf Cartel, for many years in the hands of Dairo Antonio Úsuga, known as Otoniel, the boss waiting to be extradited to the United States. The capture of Otoniel – on 24 October 2021 with the use of 22 helicopters and 500 soldiers – was for the President of Colombia Ivan Duque a victory to be proclaimed. Immediately after his arrest he stated that he considers him second only to Pablo Escobar.
The arrest of the leader of the Gulf Cartel paves the way for several hypotheses for the succession. His right arm, “Chiquito” malo is in pole position but, if the void lasts long, it would be filled by the Mexican cartels. This is what the sixth and new installment of “Narcovid – Rivers of money for drug kings in the time of the pandemic”, now available only on Apple Podcast, tells us. This episode is also full of facts, stories, reconstructions and original rumors that, in this article, are only hinted at.
The cocaine factory
Colombia produces about 70% of the cocaine that circulates in the world. About 15 billion dollars enter the coffers of drug traffickers every year and cocaine is the country’s most exported product. In 2019, according to US estimates, the country produced 951 tons of pure cocaine. Local criminal groups manage the entire production process – from crops to crystallization laboratories – and control the exit routes and distribution.
The Colombian one, the only South American country with ports on both the Pacific Ocean and the Caribbean Sea, is a strategic hub that allows narcos to manage the transport and distribution network both to North America and to Europe, the second largest world market. of cocaine.
Uprooted plantations
In Colombia, as former US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo stated, since the advent of the presidency of Ivan Duque Marquez on 7 August 2018, the fight against drug trafficking has become a serious matter. The government aims to hit the entire chain that powers the business. For this reason, the armed forces have uprooted 350,000 hectares of illicit crops in the last three years. Every hectare of coca in the hands of drug traffickers translates into forced migrations of families, murders of social leaders and antagonists, violence and massacres, which affect the poorest sectors of the population. It remains to be seen – in this scenario – how the balance of power between the ‘Ndrangheta and Colombian drug traffickers will also change.