Carlos Lehder
Carlos Enrique Lehder Rivas (born 7 September 1949) is a German Colombian former drug lord who was co-founder of the Medellín Cartel. Born to a German father and Colombian mother, he was the first high-level drug trafficker extradited to the United States, after which he was released from prison in the United States after 33 years in 2020. Originally from Armenia, Colombia, Lehder eventually ran a cocaine transport empire on Norman's Cay island, 210 miles (340 km) off the Florida coast in the central Bahamas.
Carlos Lehder | |
|---|---|
Mugshot of Carlos Lehder after his extradition in 1987. | |
| Born | Carlos Enrique Lehder Rivas 7 September 1949 |
| Nationality | Colombian, German |
| Other names | El Loco (The Madman) Henry Ford of cocaine 'Rambo' González |
| Occupation | Drug trafficker |
| Criminal status | Released from prison 16 June 2020, after more than 33 years and 4 months in captivity. |
| Children | Diana Lehder
Maria Del Mar Lehder Mónica Lehder García (1983) |
| Parent(s) | Klaus Wilhelm Rudolf Lehder Helena Rivas |
| Criminal charge | drug trafficking |
| Penalty | Life imprisonment plus 135 years; commuted to 55 years in prison |
| Medellín Cartel |
|---|
|
Lehder was one of the founding members of Muerte a Secuestradores ("MAS"), a paramilitary group whose focus was to retaliate against the kidnappings of cartel members and their families by the guerrillas. His motivation to join the MAS was to retaliate against the M-19 guerrilla movement, which, in November 1981, attempted to kidnap him for a ransom; Lehder managed to escape from the kidnappers, though he was shot in the leg. He was one of the most important MAS and Medellin Cartel operators, and is considered to be one of the most important Colombian drug kingpins to have been successfully prosecuted in the United States.
Additionally, Lehder "founded a neo-Nazi political party, the National Latin Movement, whose main function, police said, appeared to be to force Colombia to abrogate its extradition treaty with the United States."