Colombia puts Escobar estate up for auction: Video
Colombian authorities have announced the public auction of La Manuela, a former estate belonging to drug lord Pablo Escobar, with a starting price of 7.7 billion Colombian pesos, or about $2.1 million.
Officials said the proceeds from the sale will be used to compensate victims of drug trafficking, framing the move as part of broader efforts to reclaim assets linked to organised crime.
Footage, taken by Viory, from the property shows extensive decay, with collapsed roofs and vegetation overtaking what was once a symbol of wealth and power during Escobar’s rise in the cocaine trade. The estate, named after Escobar’s daughter, continues to attract visitors, even as it stands abandoned and marked by the violence associated with his criminal empire.
Authorities said the auction represents a symbolic victory of the state over organised crime. The sale follows other measures to repurpose confiscated assets, including the transfer in 2025 of land from another Escobar property to rural women affected by Colombia’s armed conflict, as part of a reparations and agrarian reform programme.
This story is written and edited by the Global South World team, you can contact us here.
