Cocaine Cowboys

Cocaine Cowboys is a 2006 documentary film directed by Billy Corben, and produced by Alfred Spellman and Billy Corben through their Miami-based media studio Rakontur. The film explores the rise of cocaine dealer Jon Roberts, described by prosecutors as "The Medellin Cartel's American representative". The film chronicles his role in the Miami drug war (the resulting crime epidemic that swept the American city of Miami, Florida, in the 1970s and 1980s). The producers of Cocaine Cowboys use interviews with law enforcers, journalists, lawyers, former drug smugglers, and gang members to provide a first-hand perspective of the Miami drug war. Synopsis Cocaine Cowboys chronicles the development of the illegal drug trade in Miami during the 1970s and 1980s with interviews of both law enforcement and organized crime leaders, in addition to news footage from the era. The film reveals that in the 1960s and early 1970s, marijuana was the primary import drug into the region. During the 1970s, marijuana imports were replaced by the much more lucrative cocaine imports; as more cocaine was smuggled into the United States, the price dropped, allowing it to turn "blue collar" and become accessible to a wider market. Drug smugglers reveal several of the different methods used to smuggle the drug into Florida. The primary methods of transport were aircraft or boats. The drug smugglers also reveal the complexity of their smuggling methods. The logistics involved included the purchase and financing of legitimate businesses to provide cover for illegal operations, the use of sophisticated electronic homing devices, and other elaborate transportation schemes. The film also addresses the difficulty importers sometimes had storing all the money they made, as a result of which they set up a relationship with Noriega in Panama and also bought up entire neighborhoods of houses, putting money into infrastructure as well as investing in side projects such as race horses.