Delta and SEAL Operators Could Have Captured Escobar in Three Weeks But Politics Prevented Action

What was said

"Those first few weeks they had specific locations where we could have responded to. Looking back on it all now, we believe that had those special operators been allowed to do their job that they're trained to do, we think Pablo would have been recaptured within 3 weeks, certainly not more than 3 months."

Steve Murphy stated that U.S. special operations forces including Delta Force and Navy SEALs had precise intelligence on Escobar's location within weeks of his 1992 prison escape but were prohibited from conducting operations by Pentagon orders and a weak Colombian colonel. Murphy asserted the 18-month manhunt could have ended in three weeks, meaning thousands died needlessly because politics prevented elite operators from doing their job. The operators provided intelligence but were forbidden from going outside the wire.