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Why Did Griselda Blanco Go to Prison? Inside the Late Drug Lord’s Sentence and Release
Griselda Blanco was a gender-defying drug lord who wasn’t afraid to get her hands dirty – or bloody. The “Godmother of Cocaine” ran the streets of Miami in the 1970s and 1980s, but her criminal activity ultimately landed her a 15-year prison sentence. Griselda was murdered in September 2012 after two armed motorcycle riders shot her in a drive-by-style killing. Now, people will learn more about Griselda’s life in the self-titled Netflix series and Sofía Vergara will star as “La Madrina.”
Inside Griselda Blanco’s Sentence
The Columbia native was sentenced to 15 years in prison by the United States District Court for New York’s southern district in 1985 on cocaine manufacturing, importing and distribution charges.
After Griselda was behind bars, the Miami-Dade State Attorney’s Office built a case against her for the murders of two Miami drug dealers and a 2-year-old boy, the son of an associate The “Black Widow” arranged for the men to be taken out after they failed to pay for a delivery, and the young child was accidentally killed as his father, who was a crime organization’s enforcer, was the intended target.
She was charged with the killings in 1994, but the case fell through because the key witness and Griselda’s main lieutenant, Jorge Ayala, was caught having over-the-phone sexual relations with secretaries in the Miami-Dade prosecutor’s office.
“At first [Griselda] was real mad because we missed the father, but when she heard we had gotten the son by accident, she said she was glad, that they were even,” Jorge told officials of the murder of the young boy.
Griselda pleaded guilty to the three killings in 1998 and she was sentenced to serve three concurrent 20-year sentences.
When Did Griselda Blanco Get Out of Prison?
The notorious criminal was released from jail in 2004 after she was able to cut a deal.
Griselda suffered a heart attack in prison in 2002 as a result of years of chain smoking. Due to her health struggles, she was granted compassionate release from prison and was deported back to Mendellín, Colombia, two years later.
How Old Was Griselda Blanco When She Was Released From Prison?
The queenpin was 61 when she was released from prison and deported back to her home country. Although Griselda lived a life full of drug trade, murder and deceit, she lived a low-profile life in the years leading up to her execution-style death outside of a butcher shop in September 2012.
“She might have retired to Colombia and wasn’t anything like the kind of player she was in her early days, but she had lingering enemies almost everywhere you look. What goes around comes around,” Bruce Bagley, author of the book Drug Trafficking in the Americas, told The Guardian at the time.
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