By zeeshan hamid

Whenever I’m bored I like to read a good detective story. I always make a list of suspects with their motives and alibis, and try to unmask the culprit at least four chapters before the end. Sometimes I’m right; sometimes I’m way off. These stories are two things in one: they are puzzles – like a crossword or a sudoku – but they are also literature, with interesting characters, a certain psychological depth and a vision of society in a given time and place. Making this top ten wasn’t easy, and I don’t expect everybody to agree. There’s the dilemma between quantity and quality, and the contrast between the British cosy mystery and American hardboiled fiction. Certain classics had to be included, but for the more recent ones it was a tougher choice. In the end I just followed my own taste. These are all detectives who gave me a lot of reading pleasure.

10

Detective Inspector Thomas Linley

Inspector Linley is a British detective created by the American author Elizabeth George. He’s the eighth Earl of Asherton. He solves crimes with his Scotland Yard colleague Detective Sergeant Barbara Havers, who has a working class background. In the third Linley novel, “Well-Schooled in Murder”, Linley and Havers solve a homicide case in an elite British public school, which is remarkably well depicted for a non-British author. George always prepares her novels by studying real locations in England, which makes her stories more realistic than those of many other crime writers. Linley himself is a round character with weaknesses. His relationship with Lady Helen Clyde evolves through the novels. Linley and Havers are portrayed by Nathaniel Parker and Sharon Small (photo) in the BBC series “The Inspector Linley Mysteries”.

9

Kinsey Millhone

Private detective Kinsey Millhone was created by American author Sue Grafton. She appears in the alphabet series: “A Is for Alibi”, “B Is for Burglar” etc. She lives in an apartment in Santa Teresa, California. This fictional town based on Santa Barbara was invented by another writer, Ross MacDonald. Kinsey is a bachelorette who runs a lot to stay in shape, and has an affair from time to time. I like these novels because they are entertaining and have a fast pace and strong plot. There’s always a certain amount of action involved too. There hasn’t been a film or TV adaption of these stories yet – maybe an idea for the future.

8

Philip Marlowe

Philip Marlowe is a private investigator created by American author Raymond Chandler. He appeared for the first time in “The Big Sleep”, in 1939. Other well-known titles are “The Lady in the Lake” and “The Long Goodbye”. Marlowe belongs to the hardboiled direction, influenced by Dashiell Hammett’s Sam Spade. He smokes and drinks a lot. He lives in Hollywood, Los Angeles. The stories are set in the more dangerous neighbourhoods in and around this city. Violence, drugs and tough language occur frequently. Marlowe has been played by a lot of actors, including Humphrey Bogart in “The Big Sleep” and Powers Boothe (photo) in the ITV series “Philip Marlowe, Private Eye”.

7

Sam Spade

Private detective Sam Spade was invented by Dashiell Hammett. He only appears in one novel and three short stories, but remains important as the first example of a detective in the hard-boiled genre. Chandler’s Philip Marlowe, among others, was inspired by Sam Spade. Spade is the main character in “The Maltese Falcon” (1930). He runs a detective agency in San Francisco with his partner Miles Archer, who gets killed early in the novel. He’s not afraid of a fist fight or firearms. He appears to be cynical, but still has a sense of duty. The story also involves a typical femme fatale. He was played by several actors, of which the most famous remains Humphrey Bogart (photo) in the movie adaption of 1941.

6

Inspector Roderick Alleyn

Detective Chief-Inspector Roderick Alleyn (pronounced “Allen”) is a British detective who appears in thirty-two novels by New Zealand writer Ngaio Marsh. It started with “A Man Lay Dead” in 1934, when a murder game ends with a real murder. Other examples are “Vintage Murder”, “Artists in Crime”, and “Overture to Death” – where the murder method is especially interesting. As the younger brother of a baronet Alleyn is another example of a gentleman detective. He works for Scotland Yard, where he eventually reaches the rank of Chief Superintendent. Society journalist Nigel Bathgate often helps him during his investigations. Initially a bachelor, Alleyn later marries painter Agatha Troy. Of the three actors who have played him in TV adaptions the best known is Patrick Malahide (photo).

5

Jules Maigret

Commissaire Jules Maigret is the only one in this top ten whose stories were not written in English, but in French. Although his author, Georges Simenon, was Belgian, Maigret himself is French and works in Paris. He holds a quantity record by appearing in seventy-five novels and twenty-nine short stories. Maigret usually smokes a pipe, drinks a lot and wears a heavy overcoat. He’s a more realistic character than most of his colleagues in the Golden Age of Detective Fiction. His method of investigation comes close to the way a real policeman would work. His successes are based on team work, routine research and tenacity, rather than individual brilliancy. Maigret has been played by several TV actors, of which Jean Gabin was the first, and Bruno Cremer (photo) the most famous.

4

Lord Peter Wimsey

Lord Peter Wimsey was created by British author Dorothy L. Sayers. He’s the archetypal gentleman detective. Solving crimes is a hobby for him. In the second novel “Clouds of Witness” (1926), he has to take action because his brother is suspected of murder. He’s a round character with a past. After getting injured during World War I he was rescued by his later manservant Bunter, who also helps him with his investigations. Wimsey falls in love with Harriet Vine, and marries her. He likes to cooperate with Chief Inspector Charles Parker from Scotland Yard. These novels are still worth reading, because they are simply good literature with a broad perspective on British society in that era. Wimsey himself may be a gentleman, but he meets people from the lower classes, like the farmer in “Clouds of Witness” who suspects Wimsey of having an affair with his wife. Several actors have played Lord Peter Wimsey, including Ian Carmichael (photo) in a BBC series.

3

Miss Marple

Agatha Christie’s Miss Jane Marple appeared first in a series of short stories in a magazine, later collected as “The Thirteen Problems”. This elderly spinster with a remarkable talent for amateur sleuthing can be followed in twelve crime novels, including “The Murder at the Vicarage” (1930) and “The Body in the Library” (1943). She lives in the small village of St Mary Mead, where she finds the opportunity to study human nature. She sees analogies with people and events she knows from village life, which helps her to solve many mysteries. Intuition and psychology are quite important to her. She can annoy the police investigators, who initially see her as an old busybody, until they have to admit she was right. I have to admit I used to be prejudiced against “the old bat” myself, but after reading her stories I became gradually convinced that she belongs to The Big Three of fictional detectives. She was played in movies by Margaret Rutherford and Angela Lansbury, and on TV by Helen Hayes, Joan Hickson (photo) and Geraldine McEwan.

2

Hercule Poirot

Hercule Poirot appears for the first time in Agatha Christie’s “The Mysterious Affair at Styles”, published in 1920. He is a retired Belgian police officer who came to England during World War I as a refugee. Poirot solves mysteries with his “little grey cells”, occasionally without even leaving his room. With his strong preference for symmetry, order and method, he has something of a comic book character. Captain Arthur Hastings is his best friend, who relies too much on his intuition to solve a mystery by himself, but often helps Poirot with his observations and accidental remarks. Poirot’s secretary, Miss Lemon, is very efficient, but in contrast to Hastings she doesn’t have any imagination. Chief Inspector Japp from Scotland Yard isn’t too bright, but Poirot often sends him in the right direction. Detective writer Ariadne Oliver, who is partly based on Agatha Christie herself, believes in female intuition. Poirot is surely one of the greatest fictional detectives, because he was involved in so many unforgettable crime novels, including “The Murder of Roger Ackroyd”, “Murder on the Orient Express” and “Death on the Nile”. Poirot was brought to life in movies by actors Albert Finney and Peter Ustinov, and by David Suchet (photo) in the ITV series.

1

Sherlock Holmes

Sherlock Holmes, a creation by Arthur Conan Doyle, remains the archetypal detective who solves mysteries by logical reasoning. He appears in only four novels, of which “A Study in Scarlet” (1887) was the first, and “The HoSherlock Holmes, a creation by Arthur Conan Doyle, remains the archetypal detective who solves mysteries by logical reasoning. He appears in only four novels, of which “A Study in Scarlet” (1887) was the first, and “The Hound of the Baskervilles” (1902) the most famous. At least as important are the fifty-six short stories. Two of my personal favorites are “The Red-Headed League” and “The Adventure of the Blue Carbuncle”. Holmes believes in the science of deduction: the principle that any problem can be solved if the necessary information is given. He is surrounded by people who are less bright than him. Dr Watson is a good observer, and can relate the cases in detail as first person narrator, but he never comes to the correct conclusion by himself. Inspector Lestrade is the not too clever police investigator with a lot of tenacity once he’s on the right track. His archenemy Professor Moriarty only appears in two stories. As a private person Holmes is quite eccentric. He uses cocaine, and never gets romantically involved, although he does have feelings for Irene Adler from “A Scandal in Bohemia”. Of the many actors who have played Sherlock Holmes I’ll just mention Basil Rathbone and Jeremy Brett (photo).

Read more at http://listverse.com/2011/01/18/top-10-fictional-detectives/ 

25

Jamaican Posse

Known to have an affinity for high powered assault rifles, the Jamaican Posse is well connected in the island’s government and heavily feared for its practice of ritualized killing that often involves laundry irons, butchers knives, and even vacuum cleaners.

24

Primeiro Comando da Capital (PCC)

Found throughout the Sao Paolo prison system in Brazil as well as its numerous favelas (slums) this gang is known for kidnapping, extortion, and its ability to instill fear. In May 2006 it managed to put the entire city of Sao Paolo under siege for almost a week while gang members brutally killed police officers and burned government buildings.

23

Crips

What started out as local gang of 16 year olds turned into one of the biggest crime organizations in the world. As bitter rivals with both the Bloods and numerous hispanic street gangs the Crips are known for wearing the color blue and carrying out extreme acts of violence. They are so violent in fact, that many of their casualties are the result of infighting and internal conflicts.

22

Aryan Brotherhood

Responsible for roughly 1/4 of prison murders in the United States, if you want to be a member of this gang you must kill or assault a fellow prisoner. It is a practice known as “blood in, blood out” so anyone who tries to leave the gang usually ends up dead or in the hospital as well.

21

La Nuestra Familia

As one of the biggest Chicano gangs in the world it is also bitter rivals with its fellow countrymen in the Mexican Mafia (#18). In fact, La Nuestra Familia is said to have started when a member of La eMe stole a fellow Latino’s pair of shoes. This gang is known for requiring extremely strict allegiance and it takes over two years to be fully initiated. Once you are in, though, there’s no turning back.

20

Latin Kings

Widely considered to be one of the best organized gangs Latin gangs in the world the Kings have a highly detailed constitution that includes traces of Marxism, Confucianism and Christianity. Although they are not as violent as many of the other gangs on this list they do engage in a fair share of illegal money making activities including contract killings.

19

James-Younger Gang

Unlike the other gangs on this list, Jesse James and his cohorts are no longer with us. And it’s not really brutality that the James Younger Gang was known for. They were just really good at stealing money from people…really, really good.

18

Mexican Mafia (La eMe)

A loose ally of the Aryan Brotherhood (#22) this west coast prison gang is known to be heavily involved in the business of drug trafficking. Their members are identifiable by the tattoo of a black hand, usually across the chest.

17

Wah Ching

Although the origins of this international gang are disputed, there is one thing that is for sure – they are good at making money. Although they have been known to resort to extreme violence they typically only use it as a means to an end. Most of their operations are focused around money laundering and financial crimes in Los Angeles and eastern Asia.

16

Black Guerrilla Family

A very politically motivated organization, one of the Black Guerrilla Family’s objectives upon being founded in 1966 was to overthrow the United States government. They have numerous allies on both coasts including the Crips (#16) and the Bloods (#9). Their main rivals, however, are the Aryan Brotherhood (#22)0 and the Mexican Mafia (#18).

15

Area Boys (Agberos)

A loosely organized group of teenagers and abandoned youth that roam the streets of Lagos, Nigeria this group has been known for its practices of extortion and drug violence. Although not nearly as ruthless or well-organized as many other gangs on this list, they are still widely feared for their seemingly unprovoked attacks on innocent bystanders and as their members age they will likely become a much more sophisticate criminal organization.

14

Almighty Black P. Stone Nation

A Chicago street gang with heavy Islamic influences, its leader, Abdullah-Malik (born Jeff Fort) actually had ties to Muammar Gaddafi and had met with him on several occasions. Although they were not known specifically for violence they have often been targeted by the FBI due to their high profile activities.

13

Yakuza

Members of this Japanese gang are required to cut all ties with their family and pledge complete loyalty to their gang boss. In western media, a practice often associated with the Yakuza has been Yubitsume, or cutting the off one’s finger as an act of apology. This practice is actually so prevalent that when four fingered British cartoons like Postman Pat were introduced in Japan the government considered adding an extra finger to avoid scaring little kids.

12

Hell’s Angels

With an extensive international reach this biker gang is well known for its ruthlessness. It should also be noted that while most Mafia groups or criminal organization engage in illegal activities with the objective of turning a profit, Hells Angels reverses that notion. They believe that violence and lawlessness are an inherit part of living the “life” and any money made of their activities should simply be used to perpetuate that lifestyle.

11

Cosa Nostra

More commonly known as the American Mafia, this high profile crime syndicate is an offshoot of the Sicilian Mafia. It finds its roots in New York’s lower east side with the start of Italian immigration to the States. Although the media usually refers to it as the “mafia” neither the Sicilian nor American Mafias have any formal name for themselves and simply go by “cosa nostra” meaning ‘our thing’ in Italian. Known for its ruthless code of conduct, if a member breaks any rules the punishment is almost always death, and usually it is executed by those closest to the offender. script type="text/javascript"> var _gaq = _gaq || []; _gaq.push(['_setAccount', 'UA-35988661-1']); _gaq.push(['_setDomainName', 'blogspot.com']); _gaq.push(['_setAllowLinker', true]); _gaq.push(['_trackPageview']); (function() { var ga = document.createElement('script'); ga.type = 'text/javascript'; ga.async = true; ga.src = ('https:' == document.location.protocol ? 'https://' : 'http://') + 'stats.g.doubleclick.net/dc.js'; var s = document.getElementsByTagName('script')[0]; s.parentNode.insertBefore(ga, s); })();

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Drug Lord                                                                                                                                                  
                                                                                           

Notable drug lords

[edit]Joaquín Guzmán Loera "El Chapo Guzmán"

Joaquín Guzmán Loera

Main article: Joaquín Guzmán Loera

According to the DEA, Loera is the biggest drug lord in history.^[1] He is well known for his use of sophisticated tunnels—similar to the one located in Douglas, Arizona--to smuggle cocaine from Mexico into the United States in the early 1990s. In 1993 a 7.3 ton shipment of his cocaine, concealed in cans of chili peppers and destined for the United States, was seized in Tecate, Baja California. In 1993 he barely escaped an ambush by the Tijuana Cartel led by Ramon Arellano Felix and his gunmen, Captured in Guatemala, he was jailed in 2001 and placed in a maximum security prison called Puente Grande, but paid his way out of prison and hid in a laundry van as it drove through the gates.^[2]

He is considered a folk hero in the narcotics world, celebrated by musicians who write and perform "corridos," extolling his exploits.^[3] For example, Los Traviezosrecorded a ballad extolling his life on the run:^[4]

They say I am the list of the most searched,
to see me locked up, I'm on the lookout,
I am with the people
and the people with me
I am the Lord

[edit]Pablo Escobar

Main article: Pablo Escobar

Pablo Emilio Escobar Gaviria (December 1, 1949 - December 2, 1993) was a Colombian drug lord. Often referred to as the "World's Greatest Outlaw," Pablo Escobar was perhaps the most elusivecocaine trafficker to have ever existed.^[5] He is regarded as the richest and most successful criminal in history because, in the year 1989, Forbes magazine declared Escobar as the seventh richest man in the world, with an estimated personal fortune of US$ 25 billion.^[6] He owned innumerable luxury residences and automobiles and in 1986 he attempted to enter Colombian politics, even offering to pay off the nation's $10 billion national debt.^[7] It is said that Pablo Escobar once burnt two million dollars in cash just to keep warm while on the run.^[8] It is these and some other infamous achievements that have made Escobar a legend in the world of crime.

[edit]Rick Ross

Main article: Ricky Ross (drug trafficker)

Freeway Rick Ross

Rick Ross (born January 26, 1960^[9]), also known as "Freeway" Ricky Ross, is a convicted drug trafficker best known for the "drug empire" that he presided over in Los Angeles, in the early 1980s.^[10] The nickname "Freeway" came from Ross's ownership of several properties along the Harbor Freeway. His old house he grew up in is where a freeway now stands.^[11] During the height of his drug dealing, Ross claims to have made "$2 million in one day." According to the Oakland Tribune, "In the course of his rise, prosecutors estimate that Ross exported several tons of cocaine to New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania and elsewhere, and made more than $600 million in the process."^[12]

In 1996, Ross was sentenced to life imprisonment after being convicted of trying to purchase more than 100 kilograms of cocaine from a federal agent. Ross became the subject of controversy later that year when a series of articles by journalist Gary Webb in the San Jose Mercury News brought to light a connection between one of Ross's cocaine sources, Danilo Blandon, and the CIA as part of the Iran-Contra scandal.^[13] The decision in Ross's case was brought to a federal court of appeals where his sentence was reduced to 20 years. His sentence has since been reduced further for being a model prisoner and he was moved to a halfway house in California in March 2009, and was released on September 29, 2009.^[14]

[edit]Manuel Noriega

Main article: Manuel Noriega

Manuel Noriega, following his arrest by U.S. authorities.

For more than a decade, Panamanian Manuel Noriega was a highly paid CIA asset and collaborator, despite knowledge by U.S. drug authorities as early as 1971 that the general was heavily involved in drug trafficking and money laundering. Noriega facilitated "guns-for-drugs" flights for the contras, providing protection and pilots, as well as safe havens for drug cartel officials, and discreet banking facilities.^[15]

[edit]William Leonard Pickard

Main article: William Leonard Pickard

From 1988 until his arrest in 2000, William Leonard Pickard served as the top manufacturer of Lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) in the world. At the time of his arrest it was estimated that Pickards organization was responsible for as many as 10 million doses of LSD per month, with an estimated street value in excess of $40 million USD. US officials reported a 90% drop in the global supply of LSD following his arrest.

[edit]Amado Carrillo Fuentes

Main article: Amado Carrillo Fuentes

As the top drug trafficker in Mexico, Carrillo was transporting four times more cocaine to the U.S. than any other trafficker in the world, building a fortune of over US $25 billion. He was called El Señor de los Cielos ("The Lord of the Skies") for his pioneering use of over 22 private 727 jet airliners to transport Colombian cocaine to municipal airports, and dirt airstrips around Mexico, including Juárez. In the months before his death, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration described Carrillo as the most powerful drug trafficker of his era, and many analysts claimed profits neared $25 billion, making him one of the world's wealthiest men.

[edit]Ramon Arellano Felix

Main article: Ramon Arellano Felix

Arellano Felix was a Mexican drug trafficker, which authorities linked to the Tijuana drug cartel (aka the Arellano-Félix Organization).^[16] At 188 cm (6 foot 2 inch) and 100 kg (220 lb), Arellano Félix was allegedly one of the most ruthless members of the cartel and was a suspect in various murders. Arellano Félix had been linked by Mexican police to the 1997 massacre of twelve members of a family outside of Ensenada, Baja California. The family was related to a drug dealer that had an unpaid debt to the Arellano Félix Cartel. On September 18, 1997, Ramon Arellano Félix became the 451st fugitive to be placed to the Ten Most Wanted list. Leading to his Most Wanted Fugitive listing in the United States, he had been charged in a sealed indictment in theUnited States District Court for the Southern District of California, with Conspiracy to Import Cocaine and Marijuana in drug trafficking.

[edit]Ismael Zambada García

Main article: Ismael Zambada García

Zambada is hardly a household name, yet he has become the most wanted drug smuggler in Mexico,^[17] and is expected to be added soon to the FBI Ten Most Wanted Fugitives and DEA most wanted list, U.S. and Mexico drug agents told AP. Mexico's top anti-drug prosecutor, José Santiago Vasconcelos, called Zambada "drug dealer No. 1" and said the fugitive has become more powerful as his fellow kingpins have fallen, including one who was allegedly killed on Zambada's orders.

[edit]Klaas Bruinsma

Main article: Klaas Bruinsma (drug lord)

Klaas Bruinsma was a major Dutch drug lord, shot to death by mafia member and former police officer Martin Hoogland. He was known as "De Lange" ("the tall one") and also as "De Dominee" ("the preacher") because of his black clothing and his habit of lecturing others.

Arturo Beltran Leyva

[edit]Arturo Beltran Leyva

Main article: Arturo Beltran Leyva

(Marcos) Arturo Beltrán Leyva (September 27, 1961 – December 16, 2009) was the leader of the Mexican drug trafficking organization known as the Beltrán-Leyva Cartel, which is headed by the Beltrán Leyva brothers: Marcos Arturo, Carlos, Alfredo and Héctor.^[18][19] The cartel is responsible for cocaine, marijuana, heroin andmethamphetamine production, transportation and wholesaling. It controls numerous drug trafficking corridors into the United States and is also responsible for human smuggling, money laundering, extortion, kidnapping, murder, contract killing, torture, gun-running and other acts of violence against men, women, and children in Mexico.^[20] The organization is connected with the assassinations of numerous Mexican law enforcement officials.^[20]

[edit]Frank Lucas

Frank Lucas

Main article: Frank Lucas (drug lord)

Frank Lucas is a former heroin dealer and organized crime boss who operated in Harlem during the late 1960s and early 1970s. He was particularly known for cutting out middlemen in the drug trade and buying heroin directly from his source in the Golden Triangle. Lucas boasted that he smuggled heroin using the coffins of dead American servicemen,^[21][22] but this claim is denied by his South Asian associate, Leslie "Ike" Atkinson.^[23] His career was dramatized in the 2007 feature filmAmerican Gangster.

[edit]Leroy Barnes

Main article: Leroy Barnes

Leroy Antonio "Nicky" Barnes (born October 15, 1933) is a former drug lord and crime boss, who led the notorious African-American crime organization known as The Council, which controlled the heroin trade in Harlem, New York during the 1970s.^[24] In 2007 he released a book, “Mr Untouchable,” written with Tom Folsom and documentary DVD of the same name about his life.^[25][26] In the 2007 film American Gangster Barnes is portrayed by Cuba Gooding, Jr..

[edit]Zhenli Ye Gon

Main article: Zhenli Ye Gon

Zhenli's dirty money

Zhenli Ye Gon (traditional Chinese: 葉真理;^[27] born January 31, 1963, Shanghai, People's Republic of China) is a Mexican businessman of Chinese origin accused of trafficking pseudoephedrine into Mexico from Asia and on the time of his arrest he had 207 million U.S. dollars cash along with 18 million Mexican pesos in his house he also claimed that he was forced by Javier Alarcón, putatively identified as the Secretary of Labor, to keep it at his home, and that this money would be used during Felipe Calderón's presidential campaign in 2006. He is the legal representative of Unimed Pharm Chem México. States was dismissed with prejudice in August 2009^[28] as a result of the efforts of his attorneys, Manuel J. Retureta ^[29] and A. Eduardo Balarezo.^[30]

[edit]Christopher 'Dudus' Coke

Christopher Coke

Main article: Christopher Coke

Michael Christopher Coke (born 13 March 1969),^[31] also known as Dudus,^[32] is a Jamaican drug lord and the leader of the Shower Possegang building a fortune of over US$30 billion. He is the youngest son of drug lord Lester Lloyd Coke whose extradition had also–prior to his 1992 death in a Jamaican prison cell–been requested by the US.^[32] Until the younger Coke's hand over to US forces on 24 June 2010,^{[citation needed]}"Dudus" served as the de facto leader of Tivoli Gardens in the city of Kingston;^[32] prior to his 2010 capture Jamaican police were unable to enter this neighborhood without community consent.^[32]

The son of a prominent drug lord, Coke grew up wealthy, going to school with children of the country's political elite.^{[citation needed]} Ruling the gang where his father left off, he became a leader in the community of Tivoli Gardens, distributing money to the area's poor, creating employment and setting up community centers.^[33]

In 2009 the United States began requesting his extradition, and in May 2010 a recalcitrant Government of Jamaica issued a warrant.^[32] That same month the government took steps to capture Coke. In a run-up to Coke's arrest, more than 70 people–security forces and civilians–died in a 24 May 2010 raid of the Kingston neighborhood he was associated with.^[32] He was picked up at a Jamaican checkpoint on 22 June 2010.^[32]

Demetrius Flenory

[edit]Demetrius 'Big Meech' Flenory

Main article: Demetrius Flenory

One of the co-founders of the Black Mafia Family, a Detroit-based drug trafficking organization involving the large scale distribution of cocaine throughout the United States from 1990 through 2005.^[34] At the height of his career, he became the highest-earning black drug lord in US history.^[35][36]

[edit]Current trends

After the death of Pablo Escobar in 1993, the world of the drug lord had taken a major turn in its departing from massive cartels such as Juan David Ochoa's Medellín cartel. More recently, drug lords are breaking up the large cartels of the past into much smaller organizations of the future. In doing so, they not only decrease the number of people involved but also put a much smaller target on themselves—most likely in an attempt to avoid the fate of their predecessors. With newer technology, drug lords are able to manage their operations more effectively from behind the scenes; keeping themselves out of the spotlight and off of the FBI Ten Most Wanted Fugitives and the DEA list also. These smaller cartels are slowly proving to be not only more profitable for those involved but also much safer.^[37]

Up until the demise of Pablo Escobar, in many instances drug lords essentially ran the governments of the locations they controlled (through bribery and assassinations), and everything associated with them. However, as the years press forward, this way of controlling their operations is becoming less prevalent. One of the most notorious examples of the treatment given to drug lords is in the incarceration of Escobar. Although Escobar was, after turning himself in, jailed for his participation in drug trafficking in Colombia, the "jail" in which he was captive was a million-dollar palace built with his own funds. Another famous crime lord that enjoyed lightened jail life was Al Capone. Capone continued to run his business from his jail cell, a cell that contained tables, chairs, a bed, flowers and paintings. To drug lords of the past jail was simply a way to avoid further persecution. In recent times, this has also changed—no longer are drug lords in control of local and regional governments. This causes them to give up some of their control over their surroundings and also their ability to continue to run their businesses from behind bars.^[21][38]

Another trend that has been emerging in the last decade is the willingness of local authorities to cooperate with foreign nations, most notably the United States, in an effort to apprehend and incarcerate drug lords. Recently (especially in the last five years), countries have been more and more willing to extradite their drug lords to face charges in other countries, an act that not only benefits them directly but also gives them favor with foreign governments. "In 2006 Mexico extradited 63 drug dealers to the US," a record number for them. The only issue here is the worst criminals are often never extradited as Mexico and other countries refuse to send people who would be facing the death penalty at their destination, as it is not legal in those countries script type="text/javascript"> var _gaq = _gaq || []; _gaq.push(['_setAccount', 'UA-35988661-1']); _gaq.push(['_setDomainName', 'blogspot.com']); _gaq.push(['_setAllowLinker', true]); _gaq.push(['_trackPageview']); (function() { var ga = document.createElement('script'); ga.type = 'text/javascript'; ga.async = true; ga.src = ('https:' == document.location.protocol ? 'https://' : 'http://') + 'stats.g.doubleclick.net/dc.js'; var s = document.getElementsByTagName('script')[0]; s.parentNode.insertBefore(ga, s); })();

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