Buzz
Drug lords live by the sword, and often they meet their end by it. Those at the helm of cartels and local drug operations understand the brutal reality of their world. To maintain their power, the most influential must be cold-blooded. When their reign comes to an end, many of these kingpins make their final exit on their own terms. With enormous wealth accumulated during their lives, some spared no expense in their funerals. Others left behind a legacy shrouded in mystery and intrigue. But they all left an undeniable mark on the world as they departed it.
Let’s take a closer look at how these drug lords met their end and where their final resting places might be—possibly.
10. Felix Mitchell
Felix Mitchell was a street icon in Oakland, California. Known as 'Felix the Cat,' he transformed a local heroin trade into a sprawling drug empire worth millions. By the 1980s, he was notorious for his savage violence. Authorities alleged he was responsible for or ordered the deaths of six individuals. Eventually, the law caught up with him, and by 1985, he was imprisoned. In 1986, Mitchell was fatally stabbed by a fellow inmate, just two days before his 32nd birthday.
Mitchell’s funeral made headlines worldwide. The two-hour procession featured a horse-drawn carriage, Rolls Royces, and limousines. Ushers and mourners donned tuxedos. His coffin, priced at over $6,000, was the centerpiece of the event. City officials criticized the extravagant display, but nearly 2,000 people attended the ceremony. Thousands more gathered along the streets to witness the journey as Mitchell was taken to his final resting place in Richmond, a nearby city.
9. José Gonzalo Rodriguez Gacha
José Gonzalo Rodriguez Gacha was ruthless to his foes but admired by his hometown. The Colombian drug lord was adored for funding numerous public initiatives in the town of Pacho. In 1989, Gacha, a key figure in the Medellín Cartel, was killed in a shootout with police along with his son. Though initially buried, their bodies were exhumed two days later and returned to Pacho. As Gacha’s body arrived, 15,000 people flooded the streets to mourn their local hero. After the public ceremony, the family held a private funeral in the late hours. It’s said that Gacha was interred in a meticulously crafted wooden coffin.
In the years following Gacha’s death, locals in Pacho began noticing a man who closely resembled the drug lord. This mystery individual was even seen attending the memorial for Gacha’s birthday. Speculation grew, fueled by the strange circumstances of the late-night funeral and the sealed coffin. Whispers circulated that Gacha may have faked his death, and to this day, many remain skeptical of the funeral’s legitimacy.
8. Amado Carrillo Fuentes
Amado Carrillo Fuentes, infamously known as the "Lord of the Skies," gained notoriety for his use of private jets to smuggle cocaine. As the leader of the Juarez cartel, his sudden death in 1997 shocked the world when it occurred during a plastic surgery procedure.
It was said that Fuentes had undergone cosmetic surgery to alter his appearance in an attempt to evade law enforcement. His final resting place in Culiacán, Mexico, is a magnificent three-story mausoleum, worth over $415,000. It features a 50-seat chapel and two burial chambers. However, the question remains: is Fuentes really buried there? Investigators have long speculated that the body in the mausoleum might not be his. Rumors circulated that one of his loyal henchmen could have been buried in his place. The mystery deepened when, months after Fuentes’s funeral, the bodies of the plastic surgeons who operated on him were found sealed in barrels of concrete.
7. Ramón Arellano Félix
Ramón Arellano Félix spent much of his life as one of the FBI's Most Wanted Fugitives, alongside figures like Osama bin Laden. But by the end of 2002, the law caught up with him. That year, Mexican authorities tracked down the infamous Tijuana cartel boss and killed him in a shootout. Or so they thought. The man believed to be Félix was carrying an ID with the name "Jorge Pérez Lopez."
As investigations proceeded, a person claiming to be a family member of the deceased took the body from the funeral home. Before authorities could intervene, the body was quickly cremated. Félix—or whoever it was—vanished from history. Police resorted to testing DNA from blood found on the deceased’s clothes, and while they declared with near certainty that it was Félix, the absence of conclusive proof left the case shrouded in uncertainty, and the cremation remains an enduring enigma.
6. Arturo Beltrán Leyva
Arturo Beltrán Leyva, infamously known as "The Boss of Bosses," had a notorious career trafficking cocaine from Mexico to the United States. His reign ended in 2009 when Mexican forces launched a surprise raid on his compound near Mexico City, killing him. To bring him back home to Culiacán state, his grieving followers arranged for a private jet. His funeral, however, was surprisingly subdued. In an effort to avoid police attention, no men were present at the ceremony.
Despite the modesty of his funeral, Leyva’s journey to the afterlife was far from humble. His mausoleum, a two-story structure resembling a mansion, is equipped with two bedrooms and a kitchen. It is filled with his personal belongings, including firearms, cars, and other items he cherished during his life. In addition, the tomb boasts modern amenities such as satellite TV, air conditioning, and Wi-Fi.
5. Heriberto Lazcano
Heriberto Lazcano, once a soldier in Mexico’s Special Forces, turned into a ruthless assassin for the Gulf Cartel. His life came to an end in a shootout in 2012. After his death, law enforcement collected fingerprints and DNA samples from his body. However, just days later, the corpse mysteriously disappeared from the funeral home where it was being held.
The Mexican government firmly stated that they had killed Heriberto Lazcano. To confirm the identity, they even exhumed the bodies of his parents to perform a DNA test. However, the results remain sealed until 2024. If Lazcano was indeed the one killed, his afterlife journey has been an extraordinary one. The notorious hitman is said to be interred in a lavish three-story mausoleum, adorned with a strong religious theme, in his hometown of Culiacán.
4. Griselda Blanco
Griselda Blanco earned a notorious reputation as one of the most prolific cocaine traffickers in history. However, her criminal career ended with a 15-year prison sentence in the United States, followed by her 2004 deportation back to Colombia. Upon her return, she lived a quieter life of retirement. But in 2012, Blanco met a violent end when a motorcyclist assassinated her at a butcher shop. Ironically, it was Blanco who had pioneered the use of motorcycle assassins during her violent reign.
Two days after her assassination, Blanco was buried in the same cemetery as rival drug lord Pablo Guzmán. The funeral became a large-scale event, with thousands of schoolchildren brought in from across the city of Itagüí to pay their respects. Mourners, mostly adults, gathered at her grave for hours, drinking liquor and reminiscing. The only one notably absent was Blanco’s son, Michael Corleone—yes, named after the iconic character from *The Godfather*—who was under house arrest for his own drug-related crimes.
3. Frank Lucas
Frank Lucas was the real-life inspiration for the 2007 Denzel Washington film *American Gangster*. His life story was as dramatic as any Hollywood plot. In the 1970s, Lucas rose to prominence as one of America's most powerful drug lords, dominating the heroin trade on the East Coast. He famously smuggled huge quantities of heroin from Southeast Asia. Despite his violent and illicit past, Lucas made a remarkable exit from organized crime, living well into his 80s.
Shortly before his death, Lucas commissioned a custom-built casket for his final resting place. The design was a tribute to his love for luxury, modeled after a Cadillac CTS-V, complete with a sliding rooftop window and various accessories. The custom coffin cost $12,000. When he passed away, his funeral was a well-attended affair, led by his nephew, a pastor. The pastor acknowledged Lucas’s past while praising the former gangster for his efforts to help others avoid the criminal life in his later years.
2. Héctor Beltrán Leyva
After his brother Arturo’s death in 2009 (See #6), Héctor Beltrán Leyva took the reins of the family cartel. While Arturo’s life and burial were surrounded by extravagance, Héctor's final chapter was far less ostentatious. Known as “El H,” Héctor led the Beltrán Leyva Cartel until his arrest in 2014. Four years later, while in prison awaiting trial, the drug lord died of a heart attack.
Following his death, the Beltrán Leyva family insisted on keeping details private. Héctor’s body was flown back to his hometown of Hermosillo on a private jet, where it was placed under tight security at the city’s mortuary. Beyond that, the details of his burial remain a mystery. His final resting place has never been publicly revealed.
1. Nazario Moreno González
The Mexican authorities initially declared that drug lord Nazario Moreno González was killed in a shootout in 2010. However, it wasn’t the end for the La Familia cartel leader. Four years later, they reported his death again—and this time, they were right. Known as 'El Mas Loco' (The Craziest One), he was truly shot and killed. Authorities held his body until forensic analysis confirmed his identity, after which his remains were returned to his family.
In life, González was treated almost as a divine figure. Dressed in flowing white robes, he had an almost cult-like following. His disciples hung on every word, some even worshipping him as a saint. Yet, in death, his final resting place remains a mystery. Family members refused to reveal where he was buried, and rumors suggest he was cremated. To this day, no one knows where the kingpin’s remains truly lie.
