The founders of MAS/the Medellin Cartel in 1981
Muerte a Secuestradores (MAS) was a counter-insurgent paramilitary group that was founded in 1981 by Pablo Escobar, the Ochoa Brothers, Jose Rodriguez Gacha, Fernando Galeano, and Carlos Lehder, who formed the Medellin Cartel at the same meeting. Its name means "death to kidnappers", and the name came from the toast that the founders of the Medellin Cartel made after Escobar proposed forming a cartel. The MAS fought against FARC and M-19, communist groups that kidnapped people in exchange for ransom, and it assassinated political opponents and community organizers. By the late 1980s, 8 of Colombia's 32 departments had a MAS presence, and MAS hired military instructors from the United States, Israel, Australia, and the United Kingdom to train its fighters. MAS disbanded after its leaders were either killed or captured during the 1990s.
Gallery[]
