BUENOS AIRES—Like most drug bosses, Marco Antonio Estrada González (known as “Marcos”) enjoyed a lavish lifestyle. The native of Peru ran his operations from a mansion in a luxury housing complex on the outskirts of Buenos Aires right under the nose of former Argentine security minister Alejandro Granados, who, they say, just happened to be his neighbor.
On humid summer days, Marcos would have a poolside lounge chair as his office. Other times, he could make phone calls from the plush red couch in his porcelain-cat-adorned living room. If anyone who visited forgot who was in charge, a table with legs in the shape of a silver “M” would remind them that they answered to Marcos.
This upscale lifestyle all came to a halt—perhaps for good this time—on Dec. 16, when special police forces raided the kingpin’s home to arrest him and his wife.