Key Early Cartels ComparedCartel [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8]Approximate Era ActiveKey FoundersOperational StyleMedellín Cartel(Colombia)1976–1993Pablo Escobar, Ochoa brothers, Gonzalo Rodríguez GachaHighly violent, combative, used narcoterrorism against the state.Cali Cartel(Colombia)1977–1995Rodríguez Orejuela brothers, José Santacruz LondoñoPreferred bribery, political infiltration, and operating like a corporate business.Norte del Valle Cartel (Colombia)1990–2012Orlando Henao Montoya, Wilber VarelaFractured remnants that filled the vacuum after Cali and Medellín fell.

If you want to look closer at this history, would you like to explore how they corrupted local governments, the routes they used to smuggle drugs, or how modern networks operate differently from the original 1970s cartels?