George Jung: The King of Marijuana and Cocaine Who Changed the History of Drug Trafficking.

Reading Time 9 minutes

• From Howard Marks to Mr. Nice: The life of the biggest cannabis drug dealer
• Arrest of drug lords Mayo Zambada and the son of Chapo Guzmán

 

 

George Jung, known as “Boston George”, is one of the most influential figures in the history of drug trafficking in the United States. His life, marked by ambition and connections with the most powerful cartels in Colombia, led him to be the main responsible for the trafficking of weed and cocaine into the North American country in the 1970s and 1980s. From his beginnings in weed trafficking to his meteoric rise in the Medellín cartel, George Jung’s story is a tale of success and downfall, filled with excesses, betrayals, and a lasting cultural impact that made him a legend.

In this article, we will explore in detail the life of George Jung, his role in drug trafficking, his impact on popular culture, and his legacy. Additionally, we will delve into how his story inspired the iconic film Blow (2001), starring Johnny Depp, and how his life continues to be a topic of fascination for many.

 

 

🔥 Childhood and Youth of George Jung

 

George Jacob Jung was born on August 6, 1942, in Weymouth, Massachusetts, into a working-class family. During his youth, Jung showed himself to be a charismatic young man with innate business skills, although he did not always lean towards legal paths. His first contact with drugs was during his adolescence, but it was not until later, in the 1960s, that he began to engage in weed trafficking.

After dropping out of college and moving to California, George quickly immersed himself in the hippie counterculture that was booming at the time. With his shrewd personality and an instinct for business opportunities, Jung became involved in weed trafficking, organizing its import from Mexico and distributing it throughout the West Coast of the United States.

 

 

⏰ Early Weed Trafficking Operations

 

Jung quickly realized the potential of large-scale weed trafficking. Together with friends and acquaintances, he organized a transportation network that used private planes to bring large quantities of weed from Mexico. This operation was a resounding success and allowed Jung to accumulate a significant fortune in a short time.

However, in 1974, he was arrested in Chicago with several hundred kilos of weed. He was sentenced to prison, and although this could have been the downfall of many drug traffickers, for George Jung it was the springboard to something much bigger: cocaine trafficking.

 

 

✅ The Entry into Cocaine Trafficking

 

Time in prison changed Jung’s life. There he met Carlos Lehder, a young Colombian who would introduce him to the business that would define his career in drug trafficking: cocaine. Lehder explained to him the potential of cocaine trafficking from Colombia and how the demand in the United States was booming.

Together, Jung and Lehder developed a system to transport large quantities of cocaine from Colombia to the United States using private planes, similar to how Jung had previously moved weed. But this time, the profits were astronomical. While weed trafficking had been lucrative, cocaine trafficking was on a completely different level.

 

 

🏞️ Connection with the Medellín Cartel

 

The true power of George Jung came when he partnered with the Medellín cartel, led by Pablo Escobar, one of the most powerful and feared criminals in history. George and Lehder became key players within the cartel, responsible for distributing tons of cocaine in the United States. In no time, much of the cocaine that reached the streets of Miami, New York, and Los Angeles passed through the hands of George Jung.

At the height of his career, Jung moved thousands of kilos of cocaine per month, and his profits were immense. He lived a life of luxury, surrounded by mansions, sports cars, and all kinds of excesses. This was the pinnacle of his career, but also the beginning of the end.

 

 

🏹 The Rise and Luxurious Lifestyle

 

George Jung enjoyed the fruits of his success, living a life surrounded by luxury and excess. The profits from drug trafficking were almost incalculable, and Jung spared no expense. During this time, he not only accumulated material wealth but also relationships and contacts in the criminal world and in the most exclusive circles of American society.

However, along with this lifestyle came problems. Tensions within the Medellín cartel grew, and U.S. authorities intensified their efforts to curb drug trafficking. The 1980s saw a shift in U.S. drug policy, which became a “war on drugs” led by the federal government. The focus was on taking down major drug traffickers, and George Jung was in the crosshairs.

 

 

📢 The Fall: Betrayal and Imprisonment

 

The descent of George Jung began with betrayals within his own circle. As authorities closed in on drug traffickers, many of his former partners, including Lehder and others, began to cooperate with the government in exchange for reduced sentences.

 

 

🔍 Net Worth of George Jung

 

The net worth of George Jung fluctuated greatly throughout his life, primarily due to the large sums of money he earned and lost during his career as a drug trafficker. At the height of his career in the 1970s and 1980s, when he worked with the Medellín cartel in cocaine trafficking to the United States, it is estimated that he handled millions of dollars. According to some sources, he reached a net worth of over 100 million dollars during the years he operated his drug trafficking network.

However, after multiple arrests, trials, and years in prison, his fortune faded. When he was released from prison in 2014, after serving nearly 20 years of his sentence, his net worth had drastically reduced and was estimated to be close to zero or very low. Jung, at the end of his life, had no access to the large sums he once handled during his drug trafficking career.

 

 

🎲 Life After Prison and the Legacy He Left

 

After spending nearly 20 years in prison, George Jung was released in 2014. Despite his time behind bars, his story continued to fascinate the public. This was largely due to the success of the film Blow, which narrated his life and his involvement in drug trafficking. The film became a cultural phenomenon and cemented the legend of “Boston George.”

Jung tried to rebuild his life after his release, but faced difficulties adapting to life outside the criminal world. He was arrested again in 2016 for violating the terms of his parole, which served as a reminder of the challenges many ex-criminals face when trying to leave their past behind.

 

 

🌺 Daughter of George Jung

 

The daughter of George Jung is named Kristina Sunshine Jung. Her relationship with her father has been a highly discussed topic, especially due to the impact that George’s criminal life had on his family. In Blow, it is not very clear how this relationship continued, but it seems that it was not very good.

 

Relationship with George Jung

Kristina was born in 1978, the result of the relationship between George Jung and Mirtha Jung. The relationship between George and his daughter was tense and complicated, especially during the years when George was deeply immersed in cocaine trafficking with the Medellín cartel.

After George’s arrest and imprisonment, Kristina spent much of her childhood and youth without her father’s presence, which greatly affected their relationship. In the film Blow (2001), their relationship is portrayed as one of the main tragedies of George’s life, showing how his criminal life affected his family relationship, especially with Kristina. In the film, the young version of Kristina was played by actress Emma Roberts.

 

Reunion with her father

Over the years, Kristina and George Jung had a distant relationship, and it has been reported that it was very difficult for her to overcome the abandonment and the consequences of her father’s life. However, after his release from prison in 2014, it is believed that Kristina and George have tried to rebuild their relationship, although the details about this are private and there is not much confirmed public information about their current status.

 

 

💎 Personal Life and Career

 

Kristina has maintained a relatively low profile, away from public life. Although she has appeared at events related to the film Blow, she has not followed the path of fame that her father’s story might have offered her. It is known that she has worked on various business projects, and seems to have taken a more stable route, away from the world of drug trafficking that marked her father’s life.

In summary, the relationship between George Jung and his daughter Kristina has been marked by pain, abandonment, and the aftermath of George’s criminal life, but with the hope of some degree of reconciliation after his release.

 

 

❤️ The Wife of George Jung

 

The wife of George Jung was Mirtha Jung, a Cuban woman who was also involved in the world of drug trafficking during the years when George worked with the Medellín cartel. The relationship between George and Mirtha was intense and marked by their life in crime, substance abuse, and excesses.

 

History of Mirtha Jung

Mirtha and George met during the peak of George’s career in cocaine trafficking. Mirtha was deeply involved in the lifestyle surrounding the drug business, and it has been reported that she also participated in the consumption and trafficking of cocaine. The couple married and had their daughter, Kristina Sunshine Jung, in 1978.

 

Drug Problems

Mirtha, like George, had issues with drug use, particularly cocaine. This affected their relationship and family life, and ultimately contributed to the breakdown of their marriage. According to the portrayal in the film Blow (2001), Mirtha struggled with her own demons while raising her daughter in an environment filled with drugs and crime.

 

Separation and Life After Marriage

Mirtha and George divorced in 1984. After the separation, Mirtha worked to overcome her drug problems and from that point on focused on raising her daughter Kristina on her own, distancing herself from the criminal life she had shared with George.

Despite the importance of her figure in George’s life and the film Blow, Mirtha Jung has maintained a low profile since their separation, and very little is known about her personal life afterward. She has not been in the public eye nor given detailed interviews about her life with George after the divorce. Her story is intertwined with the narrative of George Jung, but she seems to have chosen a more private life after her tumultuous years in the world of drug trafficking.

 

 

👌 Blow: The Cinematic Legacy

 

The film Blow was crucial for the consolidation of George Jung’s legacy in popular culture. Directed by Ted Demme and starring Johnny Depp, the film narrates Jung’s story from his beginnings in weed trafficking to his rise in the Medellín cartel and his subsequent fall.

 

 

➕ Death of George Jung

 

George Jung died on May 5, 2021, at the age of 78, in his home in Weymouth, Massachusetts, after facing complications from a liver disease. His death marked the end of the life of one of the most notorious drug traffickers in the United States, who during the 1970s and 1980s was key in the importation of large quantities of cocaine from Colombia to the United States.

His passing was reported by several media outlets and mourned by those who knew his story, seeing him as a figure who, although controversial, had a significant impact on popular culture and the world of drug trafficking.

 

 

🏁 Conclusion and Final Reflection: A Man Who Changed History

 

The life of George Jung is an example of how ambition and risky decisions can lead to both success and destruction. Despite his involvement in illegal activities, his story resonates because it embodies the perverted American dream: the pursuit of success at any cost.

Today, George Jung is remembered both for his crucial role in weed and cocaine trafficking and for his impact on popular culture. His life, marked by excesses and personal tragedies, serves as a reminder of the dangers of the drug trafficking world and the inevitable consequences that accompany a life outside the law.

As Jung’s story continues to be told through books, films, and documentaries, his legacy remains alive, not only as a warning but as a fascinating tale of rise and fall that will continue to captivate future generations.

 

 

⛳ Frequently Asked Questions Related to George Jung Aka Boston George

 

When did George Jung get out of prison?

George Jung was released from prison on June 2, 2014, after serving nearly 20 years of a drug trafficking sentence. He had originally been sentenced in 1994 to 60 years, but his sentence was reduced after cooperating with authorities in the capture of other drug traffickers.

After his release, Jung tried to stay away from crime and lived his last years out of the public eye, although he remained a figure of interest due to his involvement in drug trafficking and his relationship with the Medellín cartel, as well as his fame after the film Blow (2001).

 

Did Barry Seal know George Jung?

There is no clear evidence that Barry Seal and George Jung knew each other personally, although both operated in the world of drug trafficking at the same time and had connections with the Medellín cartel.

Barry Seal was an American pilot who trafficked drugs for the Medellín cartel in the 1980s and worked directly with figures like Pablo Escobar. He was known for his aerial operations and his eventual cooperation with U.S. authorities before being murdered in 1986.

George Jung, on the other hand, was one of the largest importers of cocaine into the United States, also in collaboration with the Medellín cartel, but his focus was more on the distribution of the drug within the country. Although they operated within the same criminal network, there are no public records confirming a direct relationship between the two.

 

Did George Jung reunite with his daughter?

Yes, George Jung and his daughter Kristina Sunshine Jung eventually reunited after many years of estrangement. Throughout his life, their relationship was very difficult due to George’s criminal life and his long absence during the years he was in prison.

For most of her childhood and youth, Kristina grew up without her father’s presence, which created a significant emotional rift. However, after his release from prison in 2014, it was reported that George and Kristina had begun to rebuild their relationship. Although not much public information has been shared about the exact state of their bond after his release, it has been reported that Kristina visited her father after his release and that they attempted to reconnect.