Top Drug Cartel Figure Slain in Police Shootout
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BOGOTA, Colombia — Gonzalo Rodriguez Gacha, one of the most powerful drug traffickers in the world, was killed today during a shootout with police, officials said.
According to police, Rodriguez Gacha, his 17-year-old son Freddy and 11 of his bodyguards were shot to death near the Colombian port of Covenas, on the Caribbean about 75 miles south of Cartagena.
Gen. Carlos Casadiego, subdirector of the national police in Covenas, confirmed the death of Rodriguez Gacha, who is No. 2 in the notorious Medellin cartel, and the 12 others but had no further details.
Pablo Escobar, the leader of the Medellin cartel, remains at large.
Rodriguez Gacha and Escobar have been sought by U.S. and Colombian authorities since President Virgilio Barco Vargas ordered a crackdown on drug traffickers following the August slaying of a leading opposition presidential candidate.
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