Norman's Cay
Encyclopedia
Carlos Lehder
Carlos Enrique Lehder Rivas or simply Carlos Lehder is a German-Colombian drug dealer currently imprisoned in the United States, having been co-founder of the Medellín Cartel....
's drug-smuggling operation from 1978 to around 1982.
Drug smuggling history
When Lehder arrived in Norman's Cay in 1978 he started purchasing large pieces of property, including a home for himself, a hotel and an airstrip. Lehder then began pushing the native population and vacationers off of Norman's Cay and rapidly gained full control of the island. Following Lehder's arrival, air traffic over the small island began to increase and armed guards began patrolling the beaches. In July 1980, a yacht belonging to a retired couple was found drifting off Norman's Cay; blood stains were found when the boat was searched, and a corpse recovered.As part of the Medellín Cartel
Medellín Cartel
The Medellín Cartel was an organized network of "drug suppliers and smugglers" originating in the city of Medellín, Colombia. The drug cartel operated in Colombia, Bolivia, Peru, Central America, the United States, as well as Canada and Europe throughout the 1970s and 1980s. It was founded and...
, he used the island as a transshipment
Transshipment
Transshipment or Transhipment is the shipment of goods or containers to an intermediate destination, and then from there to yet another destination....
base for smuggling cocaine
Cocaine
Cocaine is a crystalline tropane alkaloid that is obtained from the leaves of the coca plant. The name comes from "coca" in addition to the alkaloid suffix -ine, forming cocaine. It is a stimulant of the central nervous system, an appetite suppressant, and a topical anesthetic...
into the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. Lehder, before with his partner George Jung
George Jung
George Jacob Jung , nicknamed "Boston George", was a major player in the cocaine trade in the United States in the 1970s and early 1980s. Jung was a part of the Medellín Cartel which was responsible for up to 85 percent of the cocaine smuggled into the United States . He specialized in the...
and later through Norman's Cay, is often attributed with revolutionizing drug smuggling. The typical method of transporting small shipments often carried by human drug mules, either through digestion or in their luggage, onto commercial airlines, was surpassed by the use of small aircraft shipping entire loads of cocaine
Cocaine
Cocaine is a crystalline tropane alkaloid that is obtained from the leaves of the coca plant. The name comes from "coca" in addition to the alkaloid suffix -ine, forming cocaine. It is a stimulant of the central nervous system, an appetite suppressant, and a topical anesthetic...
.
Lehder eventually constructed a 3300 feet (1,005.8 m) long runway for his fleet of aircraft. In order to protect the island, armed guards and attack dogs patrolled the beaches and runway, and radar was employed. Any pilot foolish enough to land there was quickly warned off by heavily armed guards. The island served a strategic point as stop for Colombian drug flights to refuel and rest before proceeding to the United States.
With the Bahamian authorities looking the other way and the local inhabitants scared off, the island became a haven of debauchery for Lehder and his associates. Carlos Toro remembers, "Norman's Cay was a playground. I have a vivid picture of being picked up in a Land Rover with the top down and naked women driving to come and welcome me from my airplane... And there we partied. And it was a Sodom and Gomorrah
Sodom and Gomorrah
Sodom and Gomorrah were cities mentioned in the Book of Genesis and later expounded upon throughout the Hebrew Bible, the New Testament and Deuterocanonical sources....
... drugs, sex, no police... you made the rules... and it was fun."
In 1982, under pressure from US law enforcement, and despite years of turning a blind eye, the Bahamian government began to crack down on the activities on Norman's Cay, ultimately confiscating Lehder's land. It is now a tourist destination that can be reached by charter flight.
Recent years
The island was again a subject of (minor) controversy when the newly-elected Progressive Liberal government honoured a pre-election in-principle agreement to sell the government-owned portion of the island valued at $40.5 million, despite the objections of the local MP. The government believes it may encourage further foreign investment.The island's consortium of local and foreign buyers are thought to include resort chain Amancaya.
Norman's Cay was featured in the 2001 movie Blow
Blow (film)
Blow is a 2001 biopic about the American cocaine smuggler George Jung, directed by Ted Demme. David McKenna and Nick Cassavetes adapted Bruce Porter's 1993 book Blow: How a Small Town Boy Made $100 Million with the Medellín Cocaine Cartel and Lost It All for the screenplay. It is based on the real...
, portraying George Jung's life story, played by Johnny Depp
Johnny Depp
John Christopher "Johnny" Depp II is an American actor, producer and musician. He has won the Golden Globe Award and Screen Actors Guild award for Best Actor. Depp rose to prominence on the 1980s television series 21 Jump Street, becoming a teen idol...
.