THE abandoned mansion once owned by notorious drug lord Pablo Escobar has been sold at auction for more than £15 million.
The identity of the mystery buyer of the multi-million-pound property remains unknown.
The sprawling estate sits on a man-made lake in the resort town of Guatapé, east of Medellín.
Blown to pieces by a group of vigilantes in the 1990s, the mansion has stood abandoned ever since.
Though left in ruins for decades, the crumbling mansion continues to draw millions of curious tourists every year, all eager to glimpse what remains of the narco kingpin’s stronghold.
Yet even in decay, its secrets endure.
Read more about Pablo Escobar
The villa’s double-layered walls were reportedly designed to conceal hidden stashes of cash and cocaine belonging to the slain drug baron.
The “King of Cocaine” was the leader of the Medellin drugs cartel, notorious for smuggling over 80 per cent of all cocaine into the US.
During his reign, he amassed a huge wealth worth billions and stopped at nothing to protect his drug trafficking business.
At the height of his power, it is thought he was the seventh richest man in the world.
Escobar commissioned the mansion in the late 1980s and named it after his daughter, Manuela.
It was intended as a gift for her 15th birthday – but the doors were never officially opened.
Colombia’s asset-recovery agency confirmed the infamous property has now finally changed hands.
The government organisation known as the SAE, which administers assets seized from organised crime, confirmed the sale following a public auction.
The starting price was just over £11 million.
SAE President Amelia Perez Parra said: “An emblematic property that once belonged to Pablo Escobar has been sold.
“Every asset we manage to recover and sell represents a victory for the state over crime.
“What was once acquired with drug money is now transformed into legal resources that benefit Colombians and allow cycles of violence to be ended with dignity and transparency.”
At its peak, La Manuela was protected by a 120-strong private security force, reflecting both Escobar’s immense power and paranoia.
But in 1993, the mansion was reduced to rubble when Los Pepes – a group made up of Escobar’s former associates and financed by the rival Cali Cartel – detonated 200kg of TNT throughout the estate.
Despite the devastation, some parts of the complex have survived.
A football pitch that doubled as a helipad, a butler’s house, and a building used as a bar-restaurant remain largely intact.
The once blue swimming pool, however, has become toxic and unusable.
After Escobar’s death in 1993, his gardener – William Duque – looked after the grounds of La Manuela for 30 years until he was finally evicted in 2019.
In his absence, the estate is now only a shadow of its former glory.
Reclaimed by nature, vegetation grows through the roof and the deteriorating exterior.
For years, investors reportedly expressed interest in the estate, drawn by its dark history and enormous tourist potential.
It is now up to the anonymous buyer to determine the mansion’s future.
