Colombia extradites ‘El Loco’ Barrera, ‘the last of the great capos’ to US

Daniel "El Loco" Barrera

Colombia extradited drug lord Daniel “El Loco” Barrera, also dubbed “the last of the great capos,” to the United States on Tuesday.

Under extreme security measures, National Police officials transported the drug trafficker from the Picaleña prison in Ibague, Tolima to a military airport in Bogota where the drug trafficker was handed over to DEA agents.

Until his arrest in Venezuela last year, El Loco was considered Colombia’s most influential capo with ties to both left-wing guerrilla groups, right-wing paramilitaries and Mexican drug cartels alike.

PROFILE: El Loco Barrera

Barrera reportedly began a life of crime in the 1980s and lived the rest of his life as an outlaw, increasing his control over Colombia’s drug trafficking business while other organization’s like Pablo Escobar’s Medellin Cartel and the Cali cartel were dismantled by authorities.

At the time of the drug lord’s arrest in a town just across the Venezuelan border, President Juan Manuel Santos said “the last of the great capos” had fallen.

MORE: ‘El Loco’ Barrera, Colombia’s biggest drug lord, arrested in Venezuela

The drug lord is wanted by courts in New York and Florida to face drug trafficking charges.

Related posts

Colombia allocates $382M to climate disaster relief

US claims it financed Colombia’s purchase of Israeli spyware

Former presidents of Colombia’s congress formally accused of corruption