Moments From Death At The Hands Of Escobar's Hitmen

DEA Agent Mike Vigil

Working for the US Drug Enforcement Administration (the DEA) in Colombia was no walk in the park. Just commuting to work sometimes involved taking your life in your hands.

One evening, Agent Mike Vigil left the DEA office late after a long shift. Night had fallen. The roads were virtually empty.

“It was already dark; it must have been about 8 o’clock in the evening and I was tired. I was going up this mountain road, headed home, and I had my windows down, the radio off. And all of a sudden, I heard a motorcycle right behind the car, you know, I could hear the hum of the engine which was very loud. But I couldn’t see it because there were no traffic lights in the area.”

The motorcycle was driving very fast. It had nearly caught up with the car. But its headlights were turned off. This was a common assassination technique perpetrated by Pablo Escobar. He’d have a driver up top with a gunman sat on the back, typically operating an Uzi or some other automatic weapon. They’d follow the vehicle, weaving between traffic. When the individual they were after hit a jam, they’d come alongside and carry out the hit.

A quiet drive home up the hillsides of Antioquia province had turned into a life or death chase. Vigil knew he had to avoid offering the hitmen a clear shot. He swung his steering wheel from side to side, as the would-be assassins tried to come up alongside him… 

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