November 2017.. Medellin, Colombia Popeye being interviewed for The Sicario Effect.
Photo: ©Exclave Media 2020
Popeye in an interview from Jail circa 2011
August 26, 2014, Popeye is transferred from his jail cell to an undisclosed location after being relesased from jail.
Popeye doing an interview after being released from prison in 2014.
November 2017.. Medellin, Colombia Popeye being interviewed for The Sicario Effect. Photo: ©Exclave Media 2020
After returning from Prison, among his various endeavors, Popeye became a tour guide, giving personalized tours of Medellin for eager narco-tourists. The above is an ad from the internet, offering a “Halloween in Medellin” package tour including flights, hotel, transportation, and Popeye. In recent years, Medellin’s mayor, Frederico Gutierrez has been one of the most vocal critic’s of Narco-tourism, and made efforts to combat the trend.
June 12, 2016, Article from The NY Times reporting on Popeye’s growing fame as a YouTube star.
Popeye received recognition from Youtube for surpassing 100, 000 subscribers. His plaque pictured above. (source: screen cap)
Popeye holds up an English version of his book “Surviving Pablo Escobar: Popeye the Hitman 23 Years and 3 Months in Prison”. The book was the basis for the Caracol produced television series “Surviving Escobar: Alias JJ”, The series, (69 episodes) debuted on Netflix in August of 2017. The Netflix platform immensely helped to amplify Popeye’s narrative. Many relatives of victims of the Medellin Cartel expressed their objection over show, citing that it was nothing more than a glorification of Popeye’s former life, portraying him as a hero, rather than an active participant of some of the most horrific violence in the country’s history.
February 6, 2020. The official announcement of Popeye’s from INPEC (Instituto Nacional Penitenciaro y Carcelario). “The National Penitentiary and Prison Institute infoms Mr. Jhon Jairo Velásquez, "Popeye," died early this morning. at the National Cancer Institute.. The prisoner had been hospitalized since this past December 31, 2019 and suffered from stomach cancer. Jhon Jairo Velasquez was captured on May 25, 2018, charged with the crime of conspiracy to commit a crime and extortion.”