3. George Jung
Fortune: $100 Million
Born in Boston, 1942, George Jung carried the nicknames of “Boston George” and “El Americano” due to his part in the United States cocaine trade of the 70s and 80s. He played a key role to the success of the Medellín Cartel; the ruthless Columbian drug trafficking organization known to bring in more than $60 million in drugs a day. In the United States alone, the Medellín Cartel smuggled close to 85% of the cocaine there. Jung’s specialty was large scale smuggling for the Medellín Cartel. He started by having his mistress sneak in drugs for him. She was a stewardess and would hide the drugs in her luggages. Jung had originally bought cannabis in California and sold it in New England. Then he expanded operations internationally. He was portrayed by Johnny Depp in the movie Blow which narrates Jung’s life and career. After his arrest and conviction for drug trafficking, Jung served for nearly 20 years in prison. Jung has been incarcerated in several prison institutions throughout the country. He is 75 years old and was most recently released from a halfway house in July 2017.