Narconomics: How To Run a Drug Cartel

by Tom Wainwright

even though CSR seems to be flagging in some legitimate industries, it is thriving in the underworld. Some high-rolling criminals have acquired a reputation for carrying out ostentatious acts of philanthropy. Shorty Guzmán, who liked to strut around the poshest restaurants of Sinaloa, was known for the thousand-dollar tips he gave to waiters. Pablo Escobar gave out Christmas presents to the children of Medellín, built roller-skating rinks, and even housing for the poor. La Familia Michoacana provides cheap loans to businesses, and an informal “dispute resolution” service (which no one tends to question). Many drug lords have paid for the construction of churches. Mexicans even have a word for this: narcolimosnas, or drug alms. On a small chapel in the state of Hidalgo there is a brass plaque that reads: “Donated by Heriberto Lazcano Lazcano,” followed by a quote from Psalms. Lazcano, also known as “The Executioner,” was the leader of the Zetas cartel and reportedly enjoyed feeding his victims to pet lions and tigers. (He met a more ordinary end, shot dead by marines in 2012.)