On 2 December 1993, Pablo Escobar was gunned down by an elite unit of the Colombian National Police bringing a bloody end to the reign of the most powerful and violent narcoterrorist of the 20th century.
For retired DEA Special Agents Steve Murphy and Javier Pena, it was a fitting exit for the man responsible for thousands of murders as he relentlessly pursued his unquenchable lust for wealth and power. “In my opinion, and I'm pretty sure Javier would agree with this, [Pablo] got what he deserved that day,” Steve says.
“The [Colombian] government had already bent over backwards, had broken every legal rule as well as a lot of moral rules by allowing him to surrender and only give him a five-year prison sentence, and let him build his own prison, which [was] more like a country club. So the Colombian government bent over backwards to try and accommodate this guy, but that just wasn't enough for him.
“He was in prison for a year, then he killed two of his fellow traffickers inside the prison over money and then when they tried to move him to a real prison he escaped, which led to the second manhunt. So I think he was given every opportunity to do the right thing. He was given what we call the 'deal of a lifetime' and he didn't take advantage of that; his ego just got the best of him. The guy was completely out of control.”
Javier most certainly agrees with his partner. “Yep, and if you look at where he was at, the so-called prison, that was a country club,” Javier affirms.
“All he had to do was another four years, he'd be a free man of the world and he'd have billions of dollars but that greed got to him and that's what Pablo was all about. That greed, that power – 'you cross me I'm going to get back at you' – and basically that's what led to [his] downfall.”
Steve and Javier's instrumental role in bringing down Pablo Escobar served as real-life inspiration for the hit Netflix series 'Narcos', which is now in its fourth season. The pair will be in Australia next year with an updated edition of their live presentation series 'A Conversation On Narcos With Steve Murphy & Javier Pena' where they reveal inside information about the rise and fall of Pablo Escobar.
“It's history, we have original photos and videos. It's not really a lecture, it's a presentation,” Javier says.
“We have some newer photos and we always try to perfect it, try to get a little bit more in our presentation, so it's a unique presentation. We take it from how Pablo got all his money, how he developed his drug contacts, we talk about the 'deal of a lifetime', we talk about his ranch; we show the audience everything and what we talk about is the real, true history of Pablo Escobar.”
A Conversation On 'Narcos' With Steve Murphy & Javier Pena Australia Tour 2019
Fri 19 Jul - Astor Theatre (Perth)Sun 21 Jul - Odeon Theatre (Hobart)
Tue 23 Jul - City Recital Hall (Sydney)
Thu 25 Jul - The Tivoli Theatre (Brisbane)* new show added 17 April
Fri 26 Jul - The Tivoli Theatre (Brisbane)
Sat 27 Jul - Canberra Theatre
Mon 29 Jul - Athenaeum Theatre (Melbourne)
