José Figueroa Agosto

Jose Figueroa Agosto (born June 28, 1964), also known as "José David Figueroa Agosto", "Junior Capsula" and "the Don Pablo Escobar of the Caribbean", is a Puerto Rican former drug trafficker.[2] As the head of a major drug trafficking organization that made 90% of cocaine in Puerto Rico, Figueroa Agosto is considered to be one of the most dangerous drug lords of Puerto Rico.[3] He was the most wanted fugitive in Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic.[4]

José Figueroa Agosto
Born (1964-06-28) June 28, 1964
San Juan, Puerto Rico
NationalityPuerto Rican
Other names"Pablo Escobar of the Caribbean"
Angel Rosa
Junior Capsula
CitizenshipPuerto Rican and American
OccupationDrug dealer
Criminal statusReleased
Spouse(s)Leavy Yadira Nin Batista[1]
Children1 daughter and 3 sons
Criminal chargeDrug trafficking and smuggling
Penalty30 years

Criminal career

In 1999, Figueroa Agosto escaped from prison in Puerto Rico, where he was serving a 209-year sentence for murder and illegal weapon possession. He originally went to prison on murder charges in Puerto Rico, but escaped and fled to the Dominican Republic, where he managed to obtain several alternate identities and continued drug trafficking for another 10 years. While in the Dominican Republic he was arrested in a minor stint as one of his alternate identities and then released for an unknown reason (his alter ego wasn't yet known to the authorities). Following a lead in late 2009 one of his many apartments was raided, and police found $4 million in cash and $1 million in watches. A car chase followed, but he managed to elude the police by fleeing his vehicle and hiding in a sewer. Eventually, he managed to return to Puerto Rico, allegedly by paying 1 million dollars to unnamed high-ranking military personnel. He was able to hide in San Juan, Puerto Rico for 10 months, until July 2010, when DEA, FBI, US Marshals and Puerto Rican police arrested Figueroa in Santurce, a district of the capital city of San Juan, as he tried to escape from officers conducting surveillance. Figueroa was the most wanted fugitive by the Puerto Rican and Dominican Republic authorities.

In 2017, authorities believed that with the Caribbean's biggest reputed drug lord back behind bars, law enforcement authorities in the region should be on alert for potential bloody feuds among rivals and lieutenants trying to take his place. Capture of Jose Figueroa Agosto in Puerto Rico's capital after a decade-long hunt was a big break, but it also meant that members of his violent group would try to gain control of his share of the illegal trade.[5]

Authorities say Figueroa-Agosto, worked as a drug-boat driver until 1993, when he carried out a hit on a truck driver who allegedly stole a shipment of Colombian cocaine. Puerto Rican courts convicted him of the murder and sentenced him to 209 years in prison. But in 1999, he walked out of the prison's front gates after presenting the guards with a falsified release order. He was on the run for the next 11 years, leading his criminal organization while living what U.S. Marshals described as a luxury lifestyle in both the Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico. He allegedly bought homes and cars under false identities. At one point, Figueroa-Agosto — or a man claiming to be him — called a popular Dominican morning radio show and offered an $800,000 reward for the murder of either of the country's two top police officials.

Arrest and imprisonment

At the time of his capture, he was on the lam after being convicted in Puerto Rico for a 1993 murder. His capture was a law enforcement priority in the Dominican Republic and the United States and Dominican President Leonel Fernández and United States Attorney General Eric Holder were personally involved in the decision-making process leading to his capture. Dominican Police Chief Rafael Guillermo Guzmán had called Figueroa Agosto's capture "the Dominican state's biggest challenge".

Ending a 10-year manhunt and, like fellow smuggler Christopher "Dudus" Coke in Jamaica, Figueroa was arrested wearing a wig after having had various plastic surgeries. Figueroa was wanted for allegedly moving cocaine through the Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico with fellow co-worker Angelo Millones, into the United States. Figueroa Agosto has also been charged by U.S. authorities with passport fraud and unlawful flight to avoid prosecution. Other rumors are that Figueroa Agosto will be on the streets soon after all of this if there is no proof by the federal agents they can't put him behind bars.

His romantic companion had been captured months before he was and reportedly was cooperating with authorities[6] after appearing in pornographic videos protagonized by both of them.[7]

Dominican authorities have sought Figueroa Agosto for multiple violations including kidnapping, money laundering, drug trafficking and murder. He also has been linked to criminal activity in Colombia and Venezuela, according to the DEA, but they haven't charged him for trafficking.[8]

He plead guilty to drug trafficking charges in 2012 and in 2017 he was sentenced to 30 years in prison.[9] He was released in 2020 after serving 10 years in prison.[10][11]

Sex tape

In 2010, a sex tape of Agosto proved to be a popular sell among porn DVD vendors in Puerto Rico and Dominican Republic.[3]

References
  1. "Drug Boss Figueroa Agosto's Ex-Wife Surrenders to Dominican Law Enforcement". Dialogo Americas.
  2. "Caribbean 'drug baron' arrested". BBC News. July 18, 2010 – via www.bbc.co.uk.
  3. Fieser, Ezra (August 18, 2010). "The Caribbean Drug Kingpin Turned Porn Star". Time – via content.time.com.
  4. "DEA agents nab alleged drug kingpin in Puerto Rico - CNN.com". www.cnn.com.
  5. Clavel, Tristan (August 17, 2017). "Trafficking Routes Up for Grabs After Fall of Top Caribbean Drug Kingpin".
  6. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2010-12-18. Retrieved 2010-12-20.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  7. http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,2011778,00.html
  8. "Behind bars, the 'Pablo Escobar of the Caribbean' (and his girlfriend) as they are arrested after historic 10-year manhunt". Mail Online. July 19, 2010.
  9. "Puerto Rican ex-kingpin Figueroa Agosto gets 30 years in prison". DominicanToday. August 8, 2017. Retrieved 20 July 2020.
  10. "Names surface after Puerto Rican kingpin's release". DominicanToday. Retrieved 20 July 2020.
  11. "Junior Capsule would be released from prison this weekend". Archyde. 28 March 2020. Retrieved 20 July 2020.
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