Jhon Jairo Velásquez Vásquez (April 15, 1962 – February 6, 2020), also known by the alias "Popeye" or "JJ", was a Colombian
hitman
Contract killing (also known as murder-for-hire) is a form of murder or assassination in which one party hires another party to kill a targeted person or people. It involves an illegal agreement which includes some form of compensation, moneta ...
, who was part of the criminal structure of the
Medellín Cartel
The Medellín Cartel () was a powerful and highly organized Colombian drug cartel and terrorist organization originating in the city of Medellín, Colombia, that was founded and led by Pablo Escobar. It is often considered to be the first major ...
until his surrender to the Colombian justice system in 1992. Within this structure he claimed to be a
lieutenant
A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a Junior officer, junior commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations, as well as fire services, emergency medical services, Security agency, security services ...
commanding half of the sicarios.
Velásquez was born in the municipality of Yarumal,
Antioquia Antioquia is the Spanish form of Antioch.
Antioquia may also refer to:
* Antioquia Department
Antioquia () is one of the 32 departments of Colombia, located in the central northwestern part of Colombia with a narrow section that borders th ...
,
Colombia
Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country primarily located in South America with Insular region of Colombia, insular regions in North America. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Caribbean Sea to the north, Venezuel ...
. He joined the
Colombian National Army
The National Army of Colombia () is the land warfare service branch of the Military Forces of Colombia. With over 361,420 active personnel as of 2020, it is the largest and oldest service branch in Colombia, and is the second largest army in the ...
; later he was in the cadet school of the national police, only to leave days later joining the school of apprentices of the
Colombian Navy
The Colombian Navy, officially the Colombian National Navy (), also known as the ''"Armada Nacional"'' or just the ''"Armada"'' in Spanish, is the naval branch of the Military Forces of Colombia, military forces of Colombia.
The Navy is responsi ...
where he earned the nickname "
Popeye
Popeye the Sailor Man is a fictional cartoon character created by E. C. Segar, Elzie Crisler Segar.plastic surgery and no longer had the same distinctive appearance. Velásquez escaped from prison, was later caught, and served his sentence.
Education
Velásquez entered the School of NCOs of the Colombian Navy, eventually transferring to the General Santander National Police Academy where he spent one semester there.
Criminal career
Velásquez was identified as one of the foremost hitmen of the Medellín cartel. He confessed to 257 killings, the
kidnapping
Kidnapping or abduction is the unlawful abduction and confinement of a person against their will, and is a crime in many jurisdictions. Kidnapping may be accomplished by use of force or fear, or a victim may be enticed into confinement by frau ...
of then-candidate for mayor of Bogotá,
Andrés Pastrana Arango
Andrés Pastrana Arango (born 17 August 1954) is a Colombian politician who was the 30th President of Colombia from 1998 to 2002, following in the footsteps of his father, Misael Pastrana Borrero, who was president from 1970 to 1974.
Early ...
(who would later become the
President
President most commonly refers to:
*President (corporate title)
* President (education), a leader of a college or university
*President (government title)
President may also refer to:
Arts and entertainment Film and television
*'' Præsident ...
of the Republic), the kidnapping of Francisco Santos (who would later become
vice president
A vice president or vice-president, also director in British English, is an officer in government or business who is below the president (chief executive officer) in rank. It can also refer to executive vice presidents, signifying that the vi ...
), the kidnapping and
murder
Murder is the unlawful killing of another human without justification (jurisprudence), justification or valid excuse (legal), excuse committed with the necessary Intention (criminal law), intention as defined by the law in a specific jurisd ...
of Colombian politician Carlos Mauro Hoyos, complicity in the murder of the governor of
Antioquia Antioquia is the Spanish form of Antioch.
Antioquia may also refer to:
* Antioquia Department
Antioquia () is one of the 32 departments of Colombia, located in the central northwestern part of Colombia with a narrow section that borders th ...
,
Antonio Roldán Betancur
Antonio Roldan Betancur (1946 – July 4, 1989) was a Colombian politician. He was once the governor of the department of Antioquia, from 1988 until his death in 1989. Roldan Betancur was also a medical doctor and a community sports leader.
Deat ...
, in a failed mission entrusted to Velásquez and
John Jairo Arias Tascón
John Jairo Arias Tascón (1961 – 13 June 1990), known as Pinina, was a member of the Medellín Cartel. He took power in the cartel's military wing and was accused of hundreds of murders. He was considered to be ranked fifth within the cartel ...
, alias "Pinina", to kill a police colonel, and the killing of politician and Presidential candidate
Luis Carlos Galán Sarmiento
Luis is a given name. It is the Spanish form of the originally Germanic name or . Other Iberian Romance languages have comparable forms: (with an accent mark on the i) in Portuguese and Galician, in Aragonese and Catalan, while is archaic ...
. He also admitted to arranging over 3,000 killings. He also helped to plan the 1989 bombing of
Avianca Flight 203
Avianca Flight 203 was a Colombian domestic passenger flight from El Dorado International Airport in Bogotá to Alfonso Bonilla Aragón International Airport in Cali, Colombia. It was destroyed by a bomb over the municipality of Soacha on Novem ...
that killed 110 people.
In May 2018 Velásquez was arrested on charges of
extortion
Extortion is the practice of obtaining benefit (e.g., money or goods) through coercion. In most jurisdictions it is likely to constitute a criminal offence. Robbery is the simplest and most common form of extortion, although making unfounded ...
and criminal conspiracy. It has been claimed that he was
blackmail
Blackmail is a criminal act of coercion using a threat.
As a criminal offense, blackmail is defined in various ways in common law jurisdictions. In the United States, blackmail is generally defined as a crime of information, involving a thr ...
ing former associates of
Pablo Escobar
Pablo Emilio Escobar Gaviria (; ; 1 December 19492 December 1993) was a Colombian drug lord, narcoterrorist, and politician who was the founder and leader of the Medellín Cartel. Dubbed the "King of Cocaine", Escobar was one of the wealthie ...
who were still in control of some of his assets.
Convictions
From 1992 until 2014, Velásquez served a prison sentence on charges of
terrorism
Terrorism, in its broadest sense, is the use of violence against non-combatants to achieve political or ideological aims. The term is used in this regard primarily to refer to intentional violence during peacetime or in the context of war aga ...
,
drug trafficking
A drug is any chemical substance other than a nutrient or an essential dietary ingredient, which, when administered to a living organism, produces a biological effect. Consumption of drugs can be via inhalation, injection, smoking, ingestion, ...
, extortion, conspiracy for terrorist purposes and murder. He had received a sentence of thirty years, the maximum provided for under Colombian penal law. During 2000 and 2001, Velásquez was involved in armed clashes in La Modelo prison. In 2008, he was sentenced to twelve years for other judicial proceedings against him. On August 22, 2014, he received probation for having served three-fifths of his sentence. Aged 52, he was released on August 26, 2014, after 23 years and 3 months in prison.
In 2018 he returned to prison on extortion charges and a subsequent conviction and in 2020 died while incarcerated.
Personal life
Velásquez was once in a relationship with Wendy Chavarriaga Gil, a former lover of his boss Pablo Escobar. They were lying in bed one day when the phone rang and on the other end was Pablo Escobar. Velásquez was then given a choice: "love or death, money or lead (''plata o plomo'')". Velásquez chose plata. He arranged for her to meet him in a cafe. Velásquez would never show, instead he rang the cafe and asked to speak to Wendy. While she was on the phone, two sicarios shot her in each temple. Shortly after the hit, Velásquez drove by to see Wendy laying in a pool of blood.
Controversy continued to swirl around Velásquez following his release from prison. On December 12, 2016, a video appeared in which Velásquez brandishes and fires a handgun in the streets of
Medellín
Medellín ( ; or ), officially the Special District of Science, Technology and Innovation of Medellín (), is the List of cities in Colombia, second-largest city in Colombia after Bogotá, and the capital of the department of Antioquia Departme ...
. In the video, Velásquez proudly states, "Hello, warriors, I'm here in the streets of my beloved Medellín, testing out my beautiful 9mm Pietro
Beretta
Fabbrica d'Armi Pietro Beretta (; "Pietro Beretta Weapons Factory") is a privately held Italian firearms manufacturing company operating in several countries. Its firearms are used worldwide for various civilian, law enforcement, and military p ...
. We're firing it, it's a doll, a beauty!"
In December 2016, two men on motorbikes pulled up alongside him as he was driving in his car and robbed him of his glasses, two old bracelets and an old mobile phone, he said. He also said it was the second time he had been targeted in such a way but he had not reported the incidents.
Aside from being a controversial figure, Velásquez was a
YouTube personality
A YouTuber is a content creator and social media influencer who uploads or creates videos on the online video-sharing website YouTube, typically posting to their personal YouTube channel. The term was first used in the English language in 200 ...
who uploaded videos. In these videos, he critiqued various topics in Colombia such as a corrupt government and socioeconomic hardships. He was working on a TV series based on his own life and his involvement in the Medellín Cartel. Then in 2017 Netflix released a drama series called '' Surviving Escobar'', which is based on the book written by Velásquez. He was featured in the 2018 documentary series premiere of '' Dark Tourist''. Velásquez performs in a 2019 film, ''X Sicario – Pablo Escobar's Hitman''; he played Simon, the most feared hitman who worked for Pablo Escobar. The film tells a story in which Simon resists against the new regulator of the Mafia in Medellín.
Death
After having been admitted to the hospital for a month, on December 23, 2019, Velásquez was transferred for health reasons from the maximum-security prison of
Valledupar
Valledupar () is a city and municipality in northeastern Colombia. It is the capital of Cesar Department. Its name, ''Valle de Upar'' (Valley of Upar), was established in honor of the Amerindian cacique who ruled the valley; ''Cacique Upar''. The ...
to La Picota prison in Bogotá. On January 8, 2020, it was announced that Velásquez had terminal
esophageal cancer
Esophageal cancer (American English) or oesophageal cancer (British English) is cancer arising from the esophagus—the food pipe that runs between the throat and the stomach. Symptoms often include dysphagia, difficulty in swallowing and weigh ...
and that he had at most a few months left to live. He died on February 6, 2020, in Bogotá, aged 57.
Works
*
*
Popular culture
* In the 2012
Caracol Televisión
Caracol Televisión () (known as Caracol and previously as Canal Caracol) is a Colombian free-to-air television network owned by Caracol Medios, a unit of Grupo Valorem. It is one of the leading private TV networks in Colombia, alongside Canal ...
's TV Series ''
Pablo Escobar, The Drug Lord
''Escobar: El Patrón del Mal'' (international title: ''Pablo Escobar, The Drug Lord''; also known as ''Pablo Escobar: El Patrón del Mal'') is a 2012 Colombian biographical TV series produced and broadcast on Caracol TV, based on a true story a ...
'' he is portrayed by Carlos Mariño as the character of Yeison Taborda 'El Marino'.
* In the 2013 TV Series ''
Tres Caínes
''Los Tres Caínes'' (The 3 Cain and Abel, Cains) is a 2013 Spanish-language TV Series produced by RTI Producciones for Colombia-based television network RCN TV and United States–based television network MundoFox. Based on the story of the Colom ...
'', he is portrayed by Sebastián Boscán as the character of 'Espinaco'. This nickname was also used in the 2014 TV Series ''
En la boca del lobo
''En la boca del lobo'' (English: ''Into the Wolf's Mouth'') is a Colombian telenovela produced by Sony Pictures Television and Teleset for RCN Televisión and UniMás
UniMás (, stylized as ''UNIMÁS'', and originally known as TeleFutur ...
Narcos
''Narcos'' is an American crime drama television series created and produced by Chris Brancato, Carlo Bernard, and Doug Miro. Set and filmed in Colombia, seasons 1 and 2 are about Colombian narcoterrorist and drug lord Pablo Escobar, leader ...
'', he is portrayed by Alejandro Buitrago as the character of 'Velasco'.
YouTube
YouTube is an American social media and online video sharing platform owned by Google. YouTube was founded on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim who were three former employees of PayPal. Headquartered in ...
YouTube
YouTube is an American social media and online video sharing platform owned by Google. YouTube was founded on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim who were three former employees of PayPal. Headquartered in ...