A museum made for the infamous Columbian drug lord Pablo Escobar has been shut down by authorities after it was found to be operating illegally. The narco museum was dedicated to the life of Escobar who was, at one point, the richest drug lord in history. As per a report in Columbiano, the institution didn’t have the required license issued by the Columbian authorities of Medellin to operate, which led to its shut down.

The museum also happened to be one of the houses owned by Escobar and displayed various relics from the life of the notorious drug king. It features cars, furniture, photos and belongings. It offered Escobar fans a glimpse into the life of the drug king and routinely held “narco tours” for them. Narcos in Mexico, Netflix Makes Fans Go Berserk With This Masterstroke!

The Medellin mayor Federico Gutierrez said that such institutions are not only illegal but serve to glorify mafia culture. He was reported as saying: “We have to tell the story, not the mobsters. We do not want those 'narco tours' who advocate crime, showing these Mafiosi as if they were legends and heroes.”

He emphasised that the real heroes were the victims of Escobar. While everyone knows Escobar, he urged people to remember Franklin Quintero, a commander of police who was murdered by the drug lord by riddling him with bullets.

Pablo Escobar who had achieved worldwide notoriety in the late 80s and early 90s was known as the ‘King of Coke’ since he amassed considerable wealth smuggling cocaine. He was so wealthy that his net worth in the 90s was estimated to be around 30 billion USD. He was even named by Forbes as the seventh wealthiest man in the world.

In the recent years, the Netflix series Narcos had managed stoke curiosity about the fallen drug lord. The show portrayed him as an antihero-esque character who was a ruthless criminal on one hand and a fiercely devoted family man on the other. It had managed to drum up sympathy for the criminal who is responsible for orchestrating around 6,000 murders in the course of his smuggling career.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Sep 21, 2018 06:50 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).