Guns, Drugs, Smoke and Mirrors: What Happened To Pablo Escobar's Daughter, Manuela Escobar?

She was heir to the throne of kingpin Pablo Escobar's $30-billion empire -- and then she vanished.

Following her family's arrest, Manuela Escobar essentially disappeared.

So, where is the cartel princess -- Manuela Escobar -- now?

The Life and Crimes of Pablo Escobar

You've heard of Pablo Escobar. Over three decades after his death, his reputation precedes him.

The Colombian Drug Lord was one of the most ruthless, insane, and dare I say, awe-worthy criminals of all time.

He was also the richest (cue the *oohs* and *awes*).

And while I'm definitely not saying Pablo was a good guy (let the record show this man is definitely a bad dude if not a civil terrorist!) When I say awe-worthy, I just mean that Escobar's hustle was insane.

Like, I think respectfully, that's a MASTERCLASS we'd all take. I'd definitely pay $180 for Pablo Escobar's Masterclass for Starting Your Own Business Like A (Drug) Boss.

More than anything Escobar is the poster boy for why you shouldn't underestimate a middle child! The third of seven children, and born in Colombia into extreme poverty, Pablo Escobar clearly decided that he had other plans for his life.

By the time Escobar was a teenager, his criminal career was already underway.

Petty crimes (mind you) like selling fake diplomas and smuggling stereo equipment...

Escobar also allegedly made a profit stealing tombstones and then re-selling them. He wanted to make money at all costs.

In a hustle whose origin stories we don't have time for right now (because for once this isn't about Pablo, but about his daughter Manuela), Escobar managed to go from glorified grave robber to amassing a $30 billion dollar fortune as El Patron (the boss) of the notorious Medellín Cartel.

Pablo Escobar: The King of Cocaine

By the 1970s, Pablo Escobar was one of the world's most powerful and wealthy criminals in the world. His rise to infamy as Thee Colombian Drug Trafficker earned him the moniker "The King of Cocaine".

Throughout the '70s and the '80s, Escobar organized the Medellín Cartel's drug production, smuggling, and distribution of cocaine and subsequently amassed immense wealth and power through his illicit activities.

At the height of his career, it is reported Escobar would wash $70 Million *cash* *per day* in drug sales.

And if that doesn't seem like a sh* t load of money, let me put it this way: Escobar's operation was the backbone of the addictive stimulants drug trade (aka cocaine) in America.

AND IF THAT IS NOT LANDING, let me give you another mind-blowing figure: Pablo Escobar was responsible for supplying 80% of the cocaine in America. In the 1980s.

*Which, for the record, is so much f*cking cocaine*

80% of the cocaine.

In America.

When the US was OBSESSED with cocaine!

Cocaine was so big in the US, everyone was snorting it.

Think Wolf of Wall Street. Think Patrick Bateman. Think The Golden Girl's snorting that sh*t at BINGO!

The mass consumption of cocaine in America fuelled Pablo Escobar's reign of terror in Columbia

His tenure was marked by violence, corruption, and the destabilization of Colombia (it's actually really f*cked up and heartbreaking what his narco-terrorism did to the nation).

But as justice would have it, it didn't end well for Escobar.

He was gunned down in a police op in December of 1993, bringing an end to his reign as one of the most notorious figures in the history of organized crime, leaving behind a $30-billion empire.

But that's not all he left behind.

Pablo Escobar had two children with his wife Maria Victoria Henao.

Their son Sebastián Marroquín (born Juan Pablo Escobar) and their daughter Manuela Escobar.

The Drug Lord's Daughter: Princess of the Cartel

Manuela Escobar was born on May 25, 1984, and her life while her father was still alive seems so terrifying it's no wonder she's seemingly vanished into thin air since his death.

While it is rumored that Manuela Escobar was "the apple of her father's eye," this does not mean much to a child, when constant assassination attempts are being made on your father's life, life throughout your childhood.

Though, yes, she was the heir to a $30-billion fortune.

So you can imagine the Escobar compound really popped off at Christmas---really put the kids of divorce's holiday festivities TO SHAME, I'd imagine!

Manuela Escobar and her brother Sebastian spent their early years enjoying the usual luxuries that come with the territory of being Pablo Escobar's kid: luxurious mansions, private jets, and it's not confirmed but I'm pretty sure Manuel and her brother didn't have to share a bathroom---very cool.

Slightly less cool is of course, the constant and impending threat of child abduction/kidnapping.

Y'know---the ol' thieving and torturing of the drug lord's daughter for ransom?

The Escobar family's awareness of this threat, led them to cautiously shield their children from the public eye, knowing their vulnerability would make them the easiest target.

Manuela Escobar Grew Up Away From The World

Like the Rapunzel of Cartel Kids---Manuela Escobar was kept isolated, away from the "outside world."

She had limited contact with anyone outside of her immediate family, which you can imagine would be an incredibly lonely experience for a little girl.

**All the Barbie Dream House Play Sets in the world wouldn't mean anything if you had no one to play with.**

Despite the circumstances (y'know...that people were calling her dad The King Of Cocaine) Manuela's mother and father--(the King and Queen of cocaine, if you will) tried to provide their children (effectively The Prince and Princess of Cocaine) with a loving and nurturing environment.

Kill A Horse, Ride A Unicorn

Despite Pablo Escobar’s reputation for being evil incarnate, if we've learned anything from *The Marvel Cinematic Universe*, it's that some villains also have hearts!

Pablo Escobar's Achilles heel was his daughter.

He was willing to buy his little girl anything she wanted---though if we've learned anything from *Indie Coming of Age Movies*, it's that money doesn't buy happiness, and "rich kids" have it hard too and just want their parents to spend time with them.

Maybe if Pablo Escobar had time to watch The Breakfast Club he would have taken pause before stapling a horn on a horse's head and wings on its back---but alas, this was a problem even John Hughes couldn't solve.

Yes, you read that right.

One year Manuela Escobar asked her father for a "unicorn" as a gift.

Instead of illuminating his daughter with the knowledge that unicorns are not real---Pablo said f*ck that.

Pablo said: "Boys, bring me a white stallion and your biggest stapler. We have our work cut out for us."

The horse later died of a gruesome infection. PETA tried to picket his complex and was gunned down later that day.

Kidding!

(About PETA. The horse really did die).

He Burned $2 Million Dollars To Keep His Daughter Warm (WTF)

By now, we've come to understand The King of Cocaine was really one for the theatrics.

As the '90s ushered in a new era of Americana addiction (eating disorders), Pablo Escobar’s life of crime began to catch up with him.

For their safety (because people were trying to kill them), the Escobar family was forced to hide out in the mountains of Colombia.

As the legend goes Manuela Escobar was cold one night.

So instead of giving her his jacket---Pablo said: No.

Pablo said: What I lack in boy scout knowledge I make up for in my knowledge that paper 👏 is 👏 flammable 👏.

And then Pablo Escobar burned $2 million in cash — just to keep his daughter warm.

I'm sure this was a nice moment before Pablo realized that this wouldn't cut it for long and eventually entered his family into a safe house under government protection.

In December 1993, Pablo Escobar died in a violent shootout.

The Fall of Pablo Escobar: The Disappearance of Manuela Escobar

Manuela Escobar was just nine years old when her father, Pablo Escobar, was killed in a police operation in December 1993.

The death of the notorious drug lord brought an end to an era of violence and drug trafficking that had plagued Colombia for years.

Following her father's death, Manuela Escobar, and her family were forced to assume new identities and live in hiding to protect themselves from the dangers associated with their father's legacy.

No country wanted to grant the family asylum...

BECAUSE AS IT TURNED OUT, Pablo Escobar wasn't very popular.

Not even the Vatican would take The Escobars (which is saying something).

The family tried their luck from South America to South Africa, until they finally settled in Argentina. They all got new identities and really thought that would do the trick.

But turns out, nope.

In 1999, Manuela's mother and brother were suddenly arrested and imprisoned on account of illicit association, money laundering, and falsifying public documents.

However, Manuela Escobar escaped being detected alongside them and ever since has been a ghost.

Where Is Manuela Escobar Now?

Despite his fortune, Pablo Escobar's daughter did not inherit his billions. Instead, it is reported that Manuela Escobar's net worth sits at $2-million ---which for context is less than Amanda Bynes?

It shouldn't come as a surprise that Manuela Escobar isn't on social media.

*But apparently it does!*

Because "Manuela Escobar Instagram" is one of the top Google searches when it comes to the Drug Lord's daughter. And I get it. We're all a little curious!

But if there's anything we've learned from Andrew Tate, it's that live streaming and hiding out from the authorities do not go together like peanut butter and jelly!

While there's definitely interest in Manuela's physical appearance, few photos on the internet seem to be credible image sources.

With a figure as elusive as Manuela, you can never be too certain you're looking at her true likeness.

Unlike her older brother Sebastian, who released a memoir discussing what it was like to grow up as Pablo Escobar's son, Manuela adopted a very reclusive lifestyle.

Manuela Escobar is the only family member who has never been accused of any crimes.

At the time of her father's death, Manuela was far too young to have any involvement in his affairs, however, it seems that Manuela has never entirely shed the burden of her family name or the horrors of her childhood.

It is rumored that Pablo Escobar's youngest struggles with severe anxiety and depression that's placed her under suicide watch.

Manuela Escobar today remains in hiding and continues to live under the impending fear her identity will be discovered.

It's said that Manuela Escobar's fear around her true identity is that it will put her loved ones in jeopardy---similar to how her safety was in jeopardy all those years ago in her childhood.