Daniel Barrera Barrera | |
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Born | c. 1968 (age 55–56) Bolívar, Santander, Colombia |
Nationality | Colombian |
Other names | El Loco ("The Crazy One") |
Occupation | Drug trafficker |
Conviction(s) | Drug trafficking and smuggling, illegal distribution of cocaine, arms trafficking, money laundering, assassination |
Criminal penalty | Sentenced to 35 years on July 25, 2016 |
Daniel Barrera Barrera, also known as El Loco, is a Colombian drug lord suspected of being the boss of the illegal drug trade in Colombia's eastern plains. He was arrested in Venezuela on September 18, 2012 after trafficking drugs for more than 20 years. The arrest of the drug lord, according to news reports in the New York Times, was the result of a complex four-nation endeavor.[1] Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos named Barrera "the last of the great kingpins".[2]
According to the Colombian National Police intelligence service DIJIN, Barrera bribed numerous Colombian policemen in order to maintain his drug emporium in Bogotá,[3] which has grown after being a key link in the drug business first with members of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) guerrilla group and later with members of the United Self-Defense Forces of Colombia (AUC) paramilitary group and members Colombian Government Forces.[4]