Biography and personality of Pablo Escobar, the irreducible narco
The Colombian Pablo Emilio Escobar Gaviria He was the leader of one of the most powerful criminal organizations that has ever existed.
During the 80s, controlled the drug trafficking business and was the cause of numerous deaths around the globe . He sowed terror and ordered hundreds of murders and, along the way, he won millions of dollars as a Medellín cartel. He came to own mansions, airplanes, a private zoo and even his own army of criminals.
Pablo Escobar was, without doubt, one of the most well-known and feared criminal personalities; In part because of the interesting part of his life, between 2009 and 2012, a series based on his life was broadcast, entitled "Pablo Escobar, the pattern of evil".
But… What is the psychological profile of the "King of Cocaine"? In this article we review the psychological characteristics of this character who died 20 years ago.
Biography of Pablo Escobar
Pablo Escobar was born on December 1, 1949 in Colombia . He grew up in a low middle class family in the suburb of Envigado, in the Colombian city of Medellín. As a young man, he could already appreciate his great ambition, constantly repeating to his relatives that he wanted to be the president of Colombia one day. Obviously, his dream was never fulfilled, but his aspirations make it clear that he had a great desire to stand out. Something that did, although illicitly.
Escobar's career as a delinquent began in the streets, when he began to steal gravestones in the cemeteries to sell the marble and earn a few pesos. He also dedicated himself to the smuggling of tobacco and alcohol, to then bring coca paste from Bolivia and Peru through Ecuador, hiding the goods on the tires of the trucks. After refining it, it was transported to the United States to sell it. There it would be consumed in the form of cocaine.
The leap to criminal power and his life as a politician
The jump to power in the criminal world of this notorious character happens in 1975, when he ordered to assassinate Fabio Restrepo , one of the great drug traffickers of the time. Escobar takes power in the criminal organization of the latter, expanding its operations. After a while, controls the crime in Medellín and is responsible for 80% of the cocaine transported United States .
Despite the development of its illicit activities, it did not remain anonymous. Escobar adopted the role of caring for the people, and financed improvement plans for the suburbs of Medellín. In this way, he rebuilt a neighborhood of 780 homes for disadvantaged people, and got votes to become deputy mayor of the City of Medellín.
His obsession to be part of the political scene and of course is in the benefit of drug trafficking, Escobar financed several parliamentary and presidential campaigns and tried to get involved in politics. He formed a political group called Civics in March, attached to the training New Liberalism. In 1982 he managed to enter the congress when he was elected as deputy substitute of the Antioquia parliamentarian. Now, when the leader of the coalition New Liberalism, Luis Carlos Galán , he heard about Escobar's illegal activities, decided to expel him.
"Silver or Lead", a matter of life and death
Throughout the years, Escobar was making enemies, and his cruelty was evident hundreds of times. His rise in the criminal world was not well seen by politicians, police or honest judges, who suffered in their own flesh their evil. Escobar became known for his phrase "silver or lead", which came to say: "or pay or die" .
Generally, if a politician, police or judge crossed his path, he first tried to bribe him, and if this did not work, he ordered his murder. The number of honest people who were victims of this perverse criminal is not known exactly, but it passes over a hundred, and there is even talk of thousands of people executed by the surroundings of Escobar .
The end of Pablo Escobar
Pablo Escobar, who became one of the most wanted drug traffickers in Colombia by the United States, died on December 2, 1993 at the hands of the Colombian security forces. The founder of the Medellín cartel, who was also called "El Patrón", "el Capo", "el Duro" and "the Czar of cocaine", was killed during a "commando-like" operation deployed by military and police forces. when they located their hiding place.
The psychological profile of this famous criminal figure
Pablo is known by many, because his popularity was such that his name crossed the barriers of his native Colombia.
Andrés Parra , the actor who played him in the series of his life, said in an interview to eltiempo.com, "few know the extent of the evil of Pablo Escobar." The actor explains to this portal "that his character took away his sleep and that he consulted a psychologist to understand it". But how was this character really? What are the psychological keys to understand their cruelty and desire for power?
The keys to his personality
According to a text from the School of Psychology of the Universidad López Vallejo published in 2014, Pablo Escobar was a professional criminal, so he dedicated his life to illegal acts and, therefore, was a repeat offender.
His personality inclined towards a social egocentric profile , so that his pattern of behavior was oriented towards ambition, arrogance or exhibitionism.
Related article: "Self-centered personality: 15 characteristic features"That's why Pablo Escobar, like other drug traffickers, when he was captured and given the opportunity to appear on social media, he was serene and defiant and made a series of gestures that indicated to his followers that he was still at the bottom of the canyon. Such was the desire for notoriety of Pablo Escobar, who tried to appear as a figure of business with politicians, according to the newspaper "Hoy Digital".
In general, the results of the different investigations carried out on the personality profile of drug traffickers, highlight that they usually show an affable appearance, social resentment, disloyalty, aggressive and violent behavior, absence of feelings of guilt, tendency to lie and the manipulation, great cravings for power, besides being vengeful and calculating people.
All these qualities are those that Pablo Escobar showed. In addition, the article published by Lopez Vallejo University qualifies him as an antisocial person. The cause of this type of behavior was the result of both exogenous and endogenous factors. Among the exogenous factors that caused his personality pattern, are: poverty, truncated education, lifestyle in Colombia or guerrilla. As endogenous factors, they emphasize their addiction to drugs or their desire for wealth and power .
