Splash News/Newscom
Live by the sword, die by the sword, they say. But in this case, it was two bullets to the head that ended the life of Griselda Blanco, the notorious “Cocaine Godmother” who waged a brutal drug war on Miami’s streets during the 1970s and 80s. On Monday September 3, she was shot at close range outside a butcher shop in Medellin, Colombia, the city of her birth, to where she’d been deported after spending 20 years in U.S. jails.
Although Blanco was 69 years old and a grandmother at the time of her death, she was no warm and fuzzy abuelita. Authorities in Miami say she ordered the slayings of at least 40 people during the height of the cocaine wars in the city. In fact, Blanco was considered a “pioneer” in U.S. cocaine smuggling, and even designed bras and underwear with hidden pockets (hmm, a precursor to the WonderBra?) in which to smuggle cocaine. She was known for her nasty temper and ruthless use of violence and retribution—two of her sons and three of her husbands were killed in drug-related hits.
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Blanco was convicted of just three murders, including the shooting of a 2-year-old boy. The target of the assassination was a former enforcer in her organization, who allegedly enraged Blanco by kicking one of her sons in the butt. When Blanco learned that the shooter missed the father but killed his young boy, she apparently expressed contentment that she had settled the score.
The former madrina of cocaine lived in relative obscurity after being deported to Colombia. However, her violent, bloody past caught up with her, as authorities suspect that her murder was an act of revenge. Incidentally, Blanco is credited for bringing drive-by motorcycle assassinations—used by Colombian narcos, to Miami. Authorities and those who knew her say it’s no surprise that she was killed by none other than an assassin on a motorcycle.
Read more at The Miami Herald.
