I'm Tony Comiti, journalist. I met and recorded Pablo Escobar in person. The Medellin Cartel It is a criminal organization who controlled all cocaine trafficking Worldwide.
She is under the control of a cartel. The Ochoa family and the Escobar family. Because?
To meet these people, obviously, is not easy. You don't call for an appointment I contacted some journalists Colombians. The first one told me: “The Medellin Cartel “He has murdered 80 Colombian journalists.
” Everyone who investigates traffic They are objectives. Members of the Medellín Cartel you can see them every night at the Intercontinental in Medellín. You can't lose them.
White hat, armed, white poncho and Toyotas or 4x4 trucks white ones that are parked at the hotel entrance. I went to Medellín, to the Intercontinental Hotel, I took a room and I approached them immediately, I started to talk. I told them : “I am a French journalist, I want to meet Pablo Escobar.
” We must not forget that at that moment Pablo Escobar is a fugitive. He is wanted by all the police in the world: Colombia, United States and France I was told : “Listen, we will convey the message. ” It asks me for my information then I return to Paris.
A few months later I get a call on the show “52 south of UNE” by Jean Bertolino, with whom he worked. It would be necessary for you to return to Colombia. Then one beautiful morning, I saw four guys arrive at the hotel.
They approached me directly. “French journalist? ” I say yes.
" He tells me “Come on, come with me. ” “Come on, come on, come on. ” We get into a 4x4 convoy We headed to a luxurious hacienda.
And there, instead of Pablo Escobar, we meet Fabio Ochoa, which was an unexpected surprise and memorable for all of us. We spent about a month and a half in the heart of the Ochoa family, an unforgettable experience. They showed us absolutely everything.
From his spectacular home until its incredible property in the beautiful Caribbean. They left nothing out of sight. Their planes.
Your laboratory. We have filmed everything. It was incredible.
Every time he told me. Why are they allowing us to film this? And one beautiful morning, Don Fabio Ochoa wants to show me where his father is buried.
We're going to a cemetery. And there. Is incredible.
A sequence talks about his father and starts crying. This man, responsible of the death of hundreds of people, He is there, talking about his father with a small tear that falls. And it's not a crocodile tear, It's emotion.
I will always remember that. We get into the cars. I was sitting in Fabio's car, the rest of the team in a car with bodyguards armed everywhere.
The convoy stops and Don Fabio He approaches my window. Then he tells me. “Tomorrow we have scheduled An interview with Don Pablo.
” But what Paul? I mean Pablo Escobar. The next day, around 19:00, we left.
The sun was setting and darkness began to envelop us. They put scarves on our heads. and finally We came to a small path.
So which was the entrance to the hacienda. I open the door and activate my camera because Fabio Ochoa tells me: “Above all, don't record. ” Say what you want, but I'm filming.
He had the camera under his arm. There were about 50 young murderers, forming a hall of honor. And we reached the end of the hallway.
There is a swimming pool. and at the end of this pool there is a young man a little chubby, not very high, with a green cap on his head that comes closer to me and he tells me “Pablo Escobar. ” He was Ochoa's son who started talking and Escobar felt that what he responded Ochoa's son It didn't suit him.
Then he approached slowly to the lens of my camera, like that, and sat down. Says : "Let's eat" He has started. Let's go eat right now.
He began giving the interview with confidence. We will interview him for about an hour and in a moment We reach the end of the tape. Beep, beep, beep.
I put my hand in the bag and right behind my neck I hear a 9mm magazine ready to be loaded. Escobar responds: "Oh do not worry" And at the end of the interview, Escobar He grabbed my arm and said: “Don Tony” My name is “Don Tony. ” “Don Tony, are you Corcega?
” “Yes, yes, Don Pablo, yes. But do you know how? ” He tells me: “intelligence It is also my job.
” And when you say goodbye to me, because he was going somewhere, told me : “Well, Don Tony, come see me again. “Drgs are my passion. ” It's the last sentence What I heard from this interview.
We had a deal with the Medellín sign. It consisted of showing the movie before its dissemination. When I arrive at La Loma, Don Fabio's path, with my cassette under my arm, in the path yard there were at least 40 4x4s They were all there, except Pablo Escobar.
Everyone had come to see the movie. Roberto Escobar, Pablo's brother and his group. Ochoa's children, sisters-in-law.
The women couldn't stand us during filming, feeling the danger of a movie like that. They didn't understand why these people, the most sought after, accepted a filming. And so the visualization begins.
Don Fabio sitting, next to and behind the whole poster And there, to my surprise, I'm looking at Don Fabio. at that moment had fallen asleep during the screening. The ending of the movie is terrible because they interview Fabio Ochoa and Bertolino asks him questions: “But in fact Fabio, the true godfather of Medellín, "It's not Pablo Escobar, it's you.
" And the answer in the interview is: "Yes Yes Yes. " And he sleeps. And Roberto Escobar rises and says to Fabio: "Is right the frenchman, the real boss from Medellín you are.
” “Let's go goodbye” It goes. The Ochoa girl stands up furious, He gives me a black look, He tells his father: “Dad, if this movie comes out, we will all be extradited To united states. " His daughter takes my arm very strong, so he drags me down the hallway.
He tells me: “You will tell Bertolini. ” “Wherever you are in the world. Their ancestors, their descendants to be careful.
And you too" “I am a technician, so don't worry, Because I am here to help you. ” And he told me : “You are a very skilled technician. ” And my taxi was waiting in the courtyard tax authorities.
The guy was shaking by recognizing all those people. I said “Well, no problem, Don Fabio. ” I get into the taxi.
I thought, “Shit, they're going to kill me. ” “They are going to kidnap me. “I don’t know what they will do.
” We go down the farm road and there is a white Toyota that blocks us, that blocks us in front, that blocks us behind. And he is Ochoa's youngest son who opens the door. I said that's it.
I am kidnapped. Makes me : - How much does it cost? "- Sorry?
” "'How much does it cost? "'1 million? 2 millions?
“3 million dollars. ” How much is the movie worth? He closes the door.
and the cars They blocked us for ten minutes. It's ten minutes longest of my life. And the taxi babbled.
"We are dead. We are dead. " I was finally able to leave and finally I arrived at the hotel First plane, Paris, which in fact, There is a terrible sequence in the film.
It's just that during Pablo's interview Escobar the entire Medellin cartel It's there, on the table. It's the criminal association and this is extradition To united states. We must not forget that Colombians drug traffickers They prefer a grave in a country to a prison in the United States So Patrick Le Lay, at that time, the head of TF1 decided not release the movie.
The film was released after Escobar's death a year and a half later in the program “52 sur la Une” on TF1.
