Fabio Ochoa Vásquez (born May 2, 1957) is a former leading member of the
Medellín Cartel, along with his older brothers
Juan David and
Jorge Luis. His role briefly made him a billionaire. He was
extradited
In an extradition, one jurisdiction delivers a person accused or convicted of committing a crime in another jurisdiction, into the custody of the other's law enforcement. It is a cooperative law enforcement procedure between the two jurisdic ...
to the US and served 25 years of a 30-year sentence in federal prison. He was released from prison in December 2024, and returned to Colombia.
Career
The youngest of the three
Ochoa brothers, Ochoa Vásquez lived in
Miami, Florida
Miami is a East Coast of the United States, coastal city in the U.S. state of Florida and the county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade County in South Florida. It is the core of the Miami metropolitan area, which, with a populat ...
during the 1970s and early 1980s, and was alleged to have handled thousands of pounds of cocaine.
He was indicted by the US government for the first time in 1984, and was allegedly involved in the February 19, 1986 murder of
Barry Seal
Adler Berriman "Barry" Seal (July 16, 1939 – February 19, 1986) was an American commercial airline pilot who became a major drug smuggler for the Medellín Cartel. When Seal was convicted of smuggling charges, he became an informant for the Dru ...
, an informant for the U.S.
Drug Enforcement Administration
The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) is a Federal law enforcement in the United States, United States federal law enforcement agency under the U.S. Department of Justice tasked with combating illicit Illegal drug trade, drug trafficking a ...
.
In 1987, he and his brothers were included in the
Forbes
''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine founded by B. C. Forbes in 1917. It has been owned by the Hong Kong–based investment group Integrated Whale Media Investments since 2014. Its chairman and editor-in-chief is Steve Forbes. The co ...
list of
billionaires, and remained on the list until 1992.
The New York Times reported that during this period he was considered the "chief executive" of the family business.
Imprisonment
In 1991, Ochoa Vásquez and his brothers turned themselves in to Colombian authorities, hoping to avoid "open war" with the government through a plea deal.
They served short terms together in Colombia, and were released by 1996. At the time, Colombia and the US did not have an extradition treaty,
and the brothers secured a promise that they would not be extradited in the future as part of the plea deal.
After release, he was arrested again in 1999, and accused of contributing knowledge and receiving payments for cocaine shipments.
Despite a lobbying and press campaign,
he was extradited to the
United States
The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
in September 2001, and convicted in 2003 of trafficking,
conspiracy
A conspiracy, also known as a plot, ploy, or scheme, is a secret plan or agreement between people (called conspirers or conspirators) for an unlawful or harmful purpose, such as murder, treason, or corruption, especially with a political motivat ...
and distribution of cocaine in the U.S. He was sentenced to 30 years in a
U.S. federal prison.
After his imprisonment, the Colombian government seized properties worth several million US dollars from him, including several farms and businesses. On May 1, 2020, U.S. federal prosecutors objected to a bid for Ochoa Vásquez to be released five years before the completion of his 30 year prison sentence. He was released on December 3, 2024 and was deported to Colombia on December 23.
Television
Ochoa Vásquez has been represented in four television series.
*The character of Julio Motoa in the Colombian TV series ''
Pablo Escobar: El Patrón del Mal'' is based on Ochoa Vazquez.
Motoa is played by
Aldemar Correa.
*Ochoa Vásquez is a character on the Netflix series ''
Narcos'', portrayed by
Roberto Urbina.
* Fabio Ochoa is portrayed by
Gael García Bernal
Gael García Bernal (; born 30 November 1978) is a Mexican actor and filmmaker. He is known for his performances in the films ''Amores perros'' (2000), ''Y tu mamá también'' (2001), ''Bad Education (2004 film), Bad Education'' (2004), ''The Mot ...
in TV Series ''
Alias El Mexicano''.
* Fabio Ochoa is portrayed by
Christian Gnecco-Quintero on the Netflix Series ''
Griselda''.
See also
*
Cocaine Cowboys
*
Griselda Blanco
*
War on Drugs
*
Medellín Cartel
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ochoa Vasquez, Fabio
Ochoa Vazquez, Fabio
Colombian drug traffickers
Colombian people imprisoned in the United States
Prisoners and detainees of the United States federal government
Living people
1957 births
People extradited from Mexico to the United States
People from Medellín
Ochoa Vasquez family