Inside The Most Dangerous Cities In Colombia | Our Guy In Colombia | Channel 4 Documentaries

Strong language.

Guy Martin explores Colombia at street level to find out what makes the country tick. Can one of the world’s most beautiful countries escape its long history of drugs and violence? After getting kidnapped, tortured and shot, Guy heads off to see how easy it is to buy drugs in Medellin – once known as the most dangerous city in the world. Guy’s Colombian adventure takes in some gravity racing on souped-up bikes, a dive into a narco-submarine and a cup of very special ‘tea’. (EP1 and EP2)

00:00 Intro
02:31 Bogota
17:22 Guerima
23:59 Cocaine manufacturing
37:40 Medellin
46:54 Illegal bike riding gangs
55:47 The streets
01:02:00 Medellin drugs gangs
01:20:16 Most dangerous city

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guy Martin truck mechanic bike racer and amateur Explorer is on another of his adventures you’re going to think the same as Ida when I say the word you’re going to think gangster where am I going Columbia more than four times bigger than the UK with a landscape that includes the Andes and Amazon Columbia is considered one of the most beautiful countries in the world it is also the number one producer of a certain illegal drug that has turned this paradise into a violent crime Capital but after 50 years of conflict and with a progressive government in place a turning point may have been reached no better time to visit right for the first time ever Columbia is led by a left-wing government telling us total peace green energy the whole nine yards let’s go down there and find out the renewal began by turning the Mansions of former drug kingpin into theme parks or Rubble but while progress has been made the country is struggling to escape its criminal past the Next Generation boast about their crimes on social media look here look here look at this one we’ve got young lad doing a dance whilst picking Coco leaves these boys aren’t shy and so guy is going on a two WE adventure that’s amazing to explore whether Colombia can destroy its Narco reputation got one he’ll discover how one of the world’s most lucrative industrial processes works we got Pure we got cut medium 80% 70% Co how much for the p stff and now powerful its effects are yeah that’s definitely taking effect some much is happening there I feel a bit dizzy in experience the same real life risks faced by Colombians this could all go horribly wrong one two all to find out if this is still a narco superstate or a thrill seeker’s Paradise [Music] the Colombian capital bogatar is nestled in the northern Andes home to 7 million people it knots together the skyscrapers of coffee emerald and oil companies Colonial Cathedrals left behind by Spanish conquistadors and the densely packed slums of a rural population seeking their Fortune it used to be one of the most violent cities in the world the world but after a former mayor linked reduced crime to better public spaces the streets are now pedestrianized at weekends right here we are in bogatar Sunday morning 7:00 the Clos the city center off you go pedling morning this is where a guy will start his Adventure working out what makes Colombia tick at street level everything’s going onky Dar except there is a bit um of an undercurrent of Suspicion and that is them being suspicious of us you know that any foreign journalist come over to Columbia all I want to do is talk about gangsters and drugs and murders well I supp we are going to talk about that but it’s not all about that there’s a bit more to Colombia than gangsters and drugs all these folk here push back you know what I mean they’re sick of folk talking about drugs they’re more bothered about their health than bothered about taking drugs but in Colombia danger is never far away it’s booming cocaine trade with a street value of around a hundred billion underpins violent crime like shootings bombings and [Music] extortion this is the only place that guy and his crew have visited where self-defense training that’s when you’ll start losing both your Airway and your circulation and armed security have been recommended I’m man you know our armed guard gun service just in case all right good man the UK foreign office warns about one crime in particular Colombia is one of the kidnapped capitals of the world with four kidnapping every week look it’s so bad every politician in Columbia has to go through kidnap trading that sounds all right I need to got that can I go so here we are waiting to get kidnapped I don’t know how soon that’s going to happen Colombia’s kidnap training takes place in a high security police facility outside of bogatar the team here Pride themselves on making things as realistic as possible which means they’re extreme after guys escorted into the woods the exercise [Music] begins okay okay the objective is for the kidnappers to extract a telephone number from guy not to work word number no chance all guy has to do is say the Spanish for one two three Uno doess and the exercise will be over you to try hard than that the official advice is to not antagonize your kidnappers Cathy but guy would rather treat this as an extreme test of endurance you could try out no telephone no telephone no telephone no no no no no no the exercise [Music] escalates guy’s taken to the kidnappers Hideout it is in effect a torture chamber cartels have been increasingly turning to torture like water boarding outlawed by the Geneva Convention as inhumane it is conducted here by professionals it creates a near-death experience of droning but still I won’t resort to the Uno stress code phrase lasted 40 seconds [ __ ] C and after the torture comes the Rescue by a Colombian SWAT [Applause] team guy must lie still while he’s checked for booby traps then he can be extracted this training for politicians police and the military is deliberately brutal designed to make the real thing less shocking perfeto perfeto oh she gracias it has left guy practically speechless I’ve heard a warboard before and I thought what he on him you got a mask on you’re Ching W around but not drowning that’s what I used to say not now you need and I’m [ __ ] drowning I’m drowning I’m drowning I’m [ __ ] talking while you are now when you gave the code yeah but I said it in German I think cuz I was a bit fled I don’t know my Spanish from me [Music] German I’ve had a small tiny tiny tiny snippet of Colombian violence F I don’t want it they’re not messes just graci it has been an experience could only have happened in Colombia but the real life everyday risk Sky will have to face aren’t over yet yeah thank you thank you thank [Music] you guy Martin is exploring Colombia on a mission to see whether a new government ambition for peace can help the Country Escape its Legacy of drugs and [Music] violence our folk that’s just showing us around are saying keep away from the south of bogatar we’re only going to get mugged at the traffic lights or something daff like that we’re all right at the North which is where we are now north of B but we have heard of the interesting place just on the border a bit chany but we’re going to give it a go last year nearly 3 million Colombians Were Somehow affected by viol either directly or by simply being too scared to leave their home and in a nondescript industrial estate is a uniquely Colombian Factory that reveals a lot about how the people have adapted their lives to Everyday crime so what the mech here is designer clothes but not just designer clothes the bulletproof designer clothes yeah MC Arma was founded in 1992 at the height of the cartels battling for control of the drug trade normally in England on average 700 murders a year Colombia on average 12,000 a year Well 92 was another kettle of fish 28,000 that year the government called it a state of internal commotion too bloody right it was 30 years later despite a concerted Colombian peace effort this $35 million business sells more than 150,000 vests a [Music] year here we [Music] go this is a private test for a private customer I can’t tell you it is but let me tell you some of the celebrity [Music] customers baraban Steven sigal it’s just a start so yeah no messes the key material in an ultra thin designer bulletproof Fest is a special textile aramid it was originally discovered by an American scientist she came up with this it was trying to met lightweight car tires this is in the 60s anyway it fibers are so tightly woven it’s next to impossible for anything to penetrate it so it disperses the energy of the bullet throughout the whole area of the bulletproof F waits for weight 10 times stronger than steel the man behind it all is entrepreneur Miguel cabalero I want to show you the solution for the female right for the the bistic solution and that is a real boobs is that still as strong in this area as it is in this area we manufacture every size and every moment amazing his imaginative products are sold all over the world what’s this here just me bag right well it’s not is it if the job starts getting a bit Lively as it usually does Grimsby I stream me now you bastards you see it’s a shield now this is the best one this is for kids at school give a kid this put that in your rock sack and now you’ve got a shield be prepared yes so a bulletproof panel to go in your Rook sack this protects only against the ballistic threat of 9 mm and 44 magnum 5e warranty yeah knowing the science he’s all right but the proof of the pudding is in the eating that’s so I need to get [Music] shot Miguel helps guy into a bulletproof hoodie all right it’s good yeah then talks him through the process of being shot by live ammunition at Point Blank Range while we have this open it’s not yet okay okay one take your breed and hold yeah two three punch is okay don’t leave your breath before don’t leave my breath before Miguel has shot more than 200 clients and he has one Golden Rule don’t see me see there don’t see on this way he never wants the person he’s shooting to look him in the eye see there two three pun y it will be one of the few life-threatening experiences the guy has never had never been shot like you you know booger in about with bloody pet guns and mocking about yes but not proper like what what bullet are you going to use here Miguel 38 38 need messing here you have any obligation no no no you are totally free to do this test yeah yeah 100% go for your life Bo well I’m not really it’s these Lots idea so if I die it’s your fault I’m not doing the David bla thing and saying don’t worry no one’s to blame I’m the only one to I’m not saying that it’s your idea I doubt it’s your fault please choose your bullet choose my bullets okay and so in the middle of the factory floor ready yeah Miguel makes his final preparations to shoot guy [Music] Martin what are you doing here migga you look to be getting a bit emotional about it I need to put my concentration in this test your life is in my hands okay which it say yeah thank you a lot of nervous looking faces ready yeah 1 2 three mega mega thank you for that no thank you that was amazing that was just not even full Pelt come here let me punch let me show you what it was it was that that was it that honestly that was it yeah it’s here there he is that’s going on the kitchen wall the bullet was totally deformed and guy has gone through a unique Colombian right of passage I was shot by Miguel cavalera that’s neat and right in that Miguel I like it welcome to Colombia how do you feel 100% way less than I was ever expecting that was a lot of energy absorbed in not a lot of time yeah trying for science come to Columbia and get shots it’s amazing the experience suggests Colombians are not expecting to live peacefully anytime soon thank you for coming to visit us understanding what drives crime in Colombia means understanding one thing cocaine tracking it down means a trip to the Colombian [Music] Amazon cocaine production has doubled in the last decade meeting increasing demand largely from Europe and the USA Colombia is the world’s biggest cocaine supplier down there that’s an area bigger than greater London dedicated to Growing Toc it’s a 100 billion pound industry it is the Dark Legacy of an iconic drug kingpin known as the most successful criminal of all time Pablo Escobar I’ve always been fascinated by this man because the stories are so mad right he earned $20 million a day seventh richest man in the world and he was spending $25,000 a week on elastic bands to wrap his money off hey he was responsible for thousands of murders yet he still got elected for congress what sort of country is this anyway we’re nearly here sble guys heading for an air strip cut into the jungle by Escobar’s gang in the last Douglas DC3 flying in Colombia its ability to land on rough ground made it the drug runner’s cargo plane of [Music] choice it’s also helped an old man hedge a lift to one of the least accessible parts of Colombia today this isolated jungle settlement is rarely visited guy’s fellow passenger has been waiting for a ride back to his family for 13 [Music] years with no shops this is a place where you have to raise chicks instead of buy chicken look after them yeah present on our arrival this is real Columbia too remote to be served by infrastructure or governed by the state yeah I’ve got it I’ve got it it is one of hundreds of villages typical of rural Colombia fil this before whates where the drugs trade found it easy to establish itself [Music] guy is going to explore the area even though security across the region is on high alert 3 weeks earlier the biggest drug cartel broke a six-month ceasefire by taking 79 police officers hostage they have given me a leather jacket there it is very nice made by the bulletproof vest manufacturer just to be on the safe side and if it comes to the only cut a couple of fingers off rather than um giving me the Colombian neck tie a Colombian neck tie James I let that on the plane on the way um cut your throat open pull your tongue out and pull it down here and see how you get on with that nice all right dog [Music] and so braving the areas where tourists won’t go guy Martin is heading into drugs country H thank you look at this we’re on the edge of the Amazon it feels like we the EMP of space what an amazing part of the world 130,000 families are thought to be involved in farming the Coca plant that cocaine is derived from hidden implantations across the Colombian jungle years ago we talking 40s 50s 60 all they grow out here is sort of root crops tties and it was Bloody hard work you could be 200 miles from the nearest market you won’t be long losing the bloody profit would you so that’s when we had cartel managers going into these farmers and saying tell you what he said said why if we get a fair amount more money if you just grow these Coco plants and that’s what they did they took them upon the offer I mean the main goal for them is just to put food on the tape but geographical isolation and an impoverished Workforce weren’t the only reasons Colombia became the home of cocaine it is also a Haven for Flora and FAA if Mother Nature was making the perfect Greenhouse for growing Coke she’d put it in the middle of the Colombian jungle we’re only 200 M from the equator so the temperatures are dead even volcanic soil so we don’t have to use any fertilizer or anything like that we get loads of rainy Seasons so we don’t have to do any irrigation we’ve got massive Hillside so we don’t have to put any drainage in or anything like that and we’ve got altitude like the best variet is a Coke grower altitude and right now they’re all flat out in a pick it over the year that’s going to generate 1,500 tons that’ll take some sniffing hey what’s he doing yeah so we’re in the Colombian jungle we need to find out a bit more we need some coke [Music] Colombia with its Atlantic and Pacific coasts is strategically placed for drugs export and with more than half the country covered in Forest hiding cocaine manufacturer is easy unless you know where to look in improvised Laboratories so-called cartel Cox have mastered the science that produces the molecule c17 h21 one no4 cocaine with the Colombian anti-narcotic police ensuring nothing goes missing guy is going to demonstrate how a cocaine LAB Works here we are we Walter in the jungle um going to have a chemistry lesson Colombian style the first stage is cultivation there are three harvests a year with Pickers earning around £10 a day twice what they get for picking coffee do you want to get a closeup of them I’ll come come up here and show you I’m not too much of a Bish throut but they don’t look any different to anything else and all of the pain that these are caused it’s just a normal Leaf cocaine is a compound locked inside the leaves it was first discovered in 1850 and then yeah obviously got wise to it and then band it cuz it’s highly addictive right Ching her in well the general rule of thumb is right we get 300 kilos of leaves to make 1 kg of cocaine the leaves are then finally chopped the greater the surface area the faster the chemical reactions and the higher the yields po all the cocaine is contained within an organic substance known as an alkaloid cementing it isn’t soluble in water so has to be extracted using a toxic brew that includes petrol yeah why would I want be sticking out with cement calcium paraffin or M but that’s what they do that’s what he’s needed to extract the alkaloid from the cocoa Leaf yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah so I’ve mulched about right I don’t know couple of three or 4 hours got it to a sort of finish goo what we do with that goo then is we put it through an acid filter and that’s when you need the clever people at the halfway point of the process sulfuric acid is added often diluted to taste which causes a putty to form called cocaine paste the paler the paste the purer the cocaine then it goes through a 14 stage filtering process then it goes through a centrifuge process back in the day used to use washing machines and centrifuge it out with the washing machine to separate the good from the bad yeah and then we got to go through a heating process which helped the job along a bit when microwaves came out all right the finishing torch is is the hydrochloric acid you see I’m been careful cuz that’ll do some damage that that’s lethal stuff that goes in batteries lethal right so the only trouble is when we’ve got the cocaine paste it’s a very alkaline solution but as any chemistry teacher would tell you if we put acid to that that creates the salt that salt is called cocaine hydrochloride that’s the stuff you stick up your nose so what we do next we package it in this makeshift press there’s a few quiz worth here by see then we put the top on the Press and then we end up with the block of cocaine streets of Columbia what 3 quid a gam three quid a gram streets of Grimsby 80 quid a gram streets of ibea 200 pound a gram that’s your numbers cocaine sold on the streets is often cut with other products including horse Dormer to increase its volume and boost the profit margin further you know he run like a a major International industry I mean I mean I’m not into drugs at all one bit but I am impressed there’s a lot that goes into this a lot more than I ever thought it was Pablo Escobar who first industrialized cocaine production in the mid 7s he targeted Miami a rich banking center and hedonistic playground selling a kilo for $50,000 returning a 90% profit it earned Escobar’s C tell $4 billion annually a large proportion of which was used as payoffs for everyone from airport staff to judges by 1984 the world had finally woken up to the scale of his operation the drugs business has formed a virtual state within a state with its own public figures factories and armies one of the Ring leaders is thought to be a member of The Colombian Congress Pablo esar one of the richest men in the world Escobar’s story is surrounded by Tales of vast wealth discovering how much of the mythology is based on fact means talking to someone who was there guess what we have found an Escobar right we’ve managed to get a meeting with Nicholas Escobar who is Pablo Escobar’s nephew his dad so Nicholas’s dad was the cartel’s accountant so a proper doer and we’re going to go meet him fingers [Music] crossed Pablo Escobar lived in median Colombia’s Second City and the meeting will take place in one of his former houses situated in the city’s richest District it still contains some of Pablo’s prized possessions hidden behind sliding walls are his safe rooms was I nervous meeting Nicholas Escobar yeah of course up he was Nicholas was a teenager during his uncle Pablo’s Peak and witnessed [Music] everything I’m okay or no sorry English English speak English speak French and Spanish turns out once he got his ssidi Fernando in place as the translator they wear a bit of a double A [Music] he always talk about Pablo esar and he always give the Boo b and he also G the boo BS to me look at that yes you know what it say yes and go on what is this what’s this hole in the wall can I go in please go [Music] on there’s going to be a tunnel that is going to be connected with three different apartments to 150 M away from here Pablo started off as a kid really bringing in counterfeit Goods with a mate of his into a town in the north of Columbia thank you plenty of room for products then we went from that to smuggling drugs in a small way and he got locked up at 27 he bried the judge shot the arresting officer and he soon thought oh yeah I can make things happen if I start dealing with it like this policemen and politicians were told to take a bribe or take a bullet with the public Pablo provided in a way the government did not people were so loyal to him and they were so loyal to him because he paid him so well that was the thing just chucking money about left right and center the Colombian people said yeah he was the only rich man that ever gave the poor people anything they called him Robin H when he got elected to congress you know trying to get the locals to to vote for him he would hand money out at the end of his speeches no wonder they voted for him yeah can we watch these videos a rare collection of Home Movies proves the extent of Escobar’s billionaire lifestyle he was number seven on the Forbes rich list he was making 20 million a day by the late 80s his Medi in cartel was selling cocaine all over the world and he could afford to buy anything look at this all the motorbikes all these motorcycles were for everybody is that right not for no the motorcycles are for you my friends this is where the zoo was yes look at massive margarites yes well the giraffe’s name is Margaret I love Margaret three hios right here in col right now we have 150 150 and we don’t know what to do with those animals we are sick and tired but away from the wealth knowing Pablo could be a death sentence you’ve been shot yes he’s been shot [ __ ] Nicholas was once kidnapped by a rival gang posing as the police in a bid to flush out Pablo you got taken away from your family and then torture what was you thinking honestly with a chainsaw yeah they was putting the chainsaw between your legs you didn’t know to and he knew it oh you knew he knew knew where he was he was rest in a chainsaw on your legs and you didn’t say it took one phone call from a furious Pablo to secure Nicholas’s release he is alive thanks Pablo thanks to Pablo but then you could say you was only kidnapped because of Pablo really it is the first time I saw a person inside of Pablo Scar’s car Pablo knew everything was catching up with him you know he’d been so big for so long so much money but he knew what was going to happen it was all about extradition to the United States and he knew he always said from the start I would rather die on Colombian soil and die in an American prison and so in 1991 Escobar did a deal he would turn himself in but only if he was l looked up in his own personal prison known as the cathedral luxury items and visitors were regularly smuggled in by Nicholas how did you get these into the prison how did you smuggle them in ah you smile you smile imagine in the track in the back they also put Maradona inside to come here maradon maradon went to the the cathedral holy [ __ ] suspecting he was going to be moved to a conventional prison Escobar escaped from the cathedral and went on the run in December 1993 at the age of 44 he was gunned down by police on a median rooftop if we’re talking about deaths throughout the whole of Pablo’s drug career how many you think we’re talking too many people Escobar made easy money but it cost him everything medin is trying to erase all memory of him recently demolishing an apartment block he owned replacing it with a tribute to some 50,000 victims of narot terrorism no one really talks about the victims well they killed 500 police officers four members of parliament that’s what this place is for this is a memorial with a bullet hole for every victim so quite moving really quite moving but can Colombia erase Escobar’s Legacy completely Medan was once known as the most violent city in the world how safe for its streets today good we’re off for um a mooch down medine City Center after hours it’s late on our man Simon here is fettling me ID and Camera me Borton look at that you would not know would you um and if I can get from one end of the street to the other which is a fair Tria I think it’s like a 10minute walk if I get from one end to the other without any bother that’s a result Colombian say blame the chicken not the fox so if I get moed it’s my fault see a bit man come on a m since Escobar’s death the median murder rate may have fallen 97% but it is still eight times higher than a city like Manchester and within minutes the median underworld reveals itself how much how much Coco yeah how much no gracious even at a tourist rate of £9 a gram it is still only around 10% of the UK cost man you have good time got C got what happened how much well what type of Co you got Pure we got cut medium 80% 70% Co how much for the P mine the pi um around here they’re going to say it’s pure put garbage they try to scam your ass I got ones for 50 got one’s for 100 120 what for a gr okay okay stay in a bit cheers mate pure cocaine for around 20 a gram is again a tenth of the price charged in Europe n I’m okay I’m okay Mex mexic yes no graas man no no no s is medine squeaky clean no definitely not definitely not but did I feel like I was going to get mowed down bit the gangs and the cels with bullets no no no no we just felt like a very polite Party Town I think it’s probably no different to going out in Grimsby a leads London orra I’m sure it’s no different and it didn’t seem to be ined much be the strong police presence cuz there was a load of police about was a load of police yeah it w stopping them it was offered left right and center the current government would prefer to eradicate crime by negotiating with Colombia’s illegal groups but the short-term solution as guy is about to experience is a military [Music] Manhunt cleaning up the cartels has proven such a big task for Colombia the part of the police has had to militarize these are Elite Commando cops the junglers and guy will join them on a training raid to see why hunting Naros is so difficult they’ve got me tugged up I’m going to have a go at being a jungle Commander Americans have been training Colombian Special Forces since the 60s originally to fight off communism right and then it gradually evolved um to the War on Drugs the USA spent at least $10 billion in Colombia for its War more on drugs that resulted in the big cartels moving to Mexico but left behind a proliferation of smaller gangs that are harder to find the Colombian jungle is three times bigger than the UK and kocoa plantations occupy just 0.3% of the area the jungle Commandos are searching for a needle in a war zone this year alone they’ve done 400 raids like real world drugs raids sound job my M Milton it was showing me this video right where he was yesterday cocaine production may be soaring but the amount of seizures is increasing at a faster rate without raids like this the cocaine trade would be even bigger progress is being made that’s the profit for the we gun boys today’s exercise will see two teams of Commandos assault a similar jungle drugs lab it’s part of a 20we training course that teaches the recruits how to move and communicate silently in thick and humid jungle what we explain in there there is a house count is a winning after guy’s induction the exercise can begin new recruits play the part of gorillas guarding A drugs lab the Commandos have to Seek and Destroy Lo art and now we’re going for it official Colombian drugs raid in 2021 Colombia’s Most Wanted drug lord was captured in a raid like this this was the miniature version of capturing sort of today’s Pablo esar who was a fellow called Tony L oh Tony L was the latest in Colombia’s NeverEnding lineage of drug lords he had so well that the jungle command resorted to a leaflet drop advertising a $5 million Bounty he got about everywhere on a donkey never had a phone never stayed anywhere for more than 2 days and it took him seven years to catch him seven years that’s the bloody stuff and when the did g the involvement of MI6 the CIA I get this right 500 soldiers 22 helicopters they have to get through seven layers of security on gu’s raid Alpha Team have made it through the kokoa plantation and spotted the laboratory is any else over there or a shadow the team advances to attack all right big man got [Music] one drills like this mean 670 tons of cocaine a year is being seized a vital step in the process of rebuilding Colombia thank good thank you thank thank you very much thank you as for otoniel he has admitted to smuggling 100,000 tons of cocaine and is already negotiating with the authorities he said I tell you what I’ll tell you what we St we’ll St with this what if I paid you 170 million back and he can just s that get that cash readily available able off the back of his donkey I’m sure yeah everything about this drugs trade the numbers are crackers next time guy will go even deeper into the Colombian underworld drugs causes many problems in Colombia do you ever feel guilty no and find out why everyday Colombians live life on the edge Colombian people are crazy holy truck mechanic bike racer and amateur Explorer guy Martin is in Colombia he’s on a mission to see how a country famous for drugs and violence is trying to become a peaceful place to live and visit week two in Columbia straight onto the ad stuff this time he’ll discover how hard it is to deal with Colombian crime [Music] but he’ll also work on the world class infrastructure helping the Country Escape its Dark Legacy Bri industry could learn a lot from this and find out how everyday Colombians love to relax by risking their lives the Colombian people are crazy holy Narco superstate or Thrill Seekers Paradise guy Martin is going to find out [Music] so far guys travels in Colombia have shown that the problems of its past still haunt its present and its violent history might explain why even when they’re a play Colombians risk life and limb what smoke weed no the incredibly steep roads of Colombia’s Second City medin have made it the home of gravity biking an underground sport where the goal is simple never break it’s fast dangerous and so guy is going to try it 27-year-old Loco is part of a gravity bike gang and we’ll teach guy how to ride as fast as possible very good in the workshop where his gang have taught themselves how to build these unique bicycles welding the handle bars up inline gas fluxer no goggles old school this man knows what he’s doing nice nice how many years have you been racing honestly most of the boys you started racing with are dead right cutting oil help don’t take the edge off the drill B you Bo know what they’re doing i’ raced the motorbikes in Ireland and in England and I’ve lost many teammates many friends many but I love it so that’s why I keep racing so I suppose is it something the same for you do do you love the risk [Music] why this is the P drug okay I’ve got it watch your guys love it this is mintless down job mate that’s going nowhere on nice you got it you’ve got it nice job mate nice job CH just made that bracket drilled all in it and welded it on there gravity bikes are low and narrow to help aerodynamics go without pedals so that they can be lent further over and have extra weight attached to make them descend faster the heavier the bike is the the greater effect gravity has which is sort of a rule you can’t argue with yeah Force equals mass times acceleration so we can’t do a lot about the acceleration because that’s the hill what we can do is something about the mass so that’s why we’re sling a load of weight on and the heavier it is the faster you will go down the hill it’s got spanner yeah please cheers mate T sound mate sound sound job after a ritual sharing of scars and metal inserts screws in there and then you see my back a big in my back you see can you still see it fail fail guys is finally accepted into the gang they all load up into a truck ready to head to one of Med in’s highest roads the bikes are going in there we’ve sort of got a plan but not really we’re fairly well into this project now we sort of know you cannot police the Colombian people Loco give a thumbs up so really any think could happen I have no doubt when we’re on the flight on the way home I’m going to be picking me CS out of me scabs I think that’s going to be you know how me bloody wounds on my [ __ ] I’ve done plenty of that they head straight to the clouds and the top of the road where gravity racing first started in Med in [Music] yeah we’re 2600 M as it is now twice as high as Ben neis the highest mountain in the UK so yeah we’re doing all right really long way to go was about 2 km course I think is [Music] it gravity racing has been outlawed in other Colombian cities in meden it is a legal gray area her best yes this is an illegal activity but the police have closed the road off to allow this illegal activity to happen welcome to Colombia it’s time to race good Lu come on Bo right let’s have a Goan this is me this is you won be long G some SC wrong [Music] though up to now this has been my favorite Day in Colombia getting T now and you know because of the risk hey hey hey hey hey hey that’s what Colombians do they deal with risk come on oh we’re in the slip stream now mate in the slipstream to deal with it every day in loads of different walks of life and I love it it’s a bit of me that come on let’s have you guy who used to race motorcycles on the road for a living come on big man uses all of his experience to V for the lead the inside line here I think oh come on come on I g p [Music] [Music] bastards I was leading that and then they all Ted me right at the last minute wow yeah I love it I love it m I love it I love it what wait to finish it off she long way down there mate off you amazing country amazing [Music] people that’s got to be one of the greatest views in the world it’s got to be you just got to take a few risks to see it how very Colombian gu’s taken Colombia to his heart but his next stop will put him in the center of the criminal underbelly that it’s trying so hard to escape [Music] from the adelic beaches on Colombia’s Atlantic and Pacific coasts attract around 50,000 adventurous Brits a year but guy Martin prefers to keep it on the streets all right big man that man’s not shy of a day’s work what’s up big man what’s up glass that was a a drug dog sniffing dog very there are many unique sites in the center of bogar look look here now we’re talking good old boy on in Columbia can I get you some brass m but there is one phenomenon in particular that is a mystery to visitors I was told before we got on the plane that there was a bit of a epidemic of folk nicking Mano covers and anyway we’re walking down the street and what do we find a missing Mano cover with a tire there to stop you dropping in look it looks like he’s been missing for a day or two the rumors were true the rumors were true [Music] we’ve got to the bottom of it Colombians out shy are making a quidd two it’s just not that bothered if it’s legal what they was doing alled the middle of a van out and I spend a night driving about nicking steel Mano covers right price of scrap was through the roof 30 in a night a ton of manol covers weighing them in for scrap quids in the only problem we’ve got loads of open manol folk were falling in there breaking legs kids had fallen out there and got wed out to see cars were getting knackered up driving through open manol covers the local government got sorted and said right I know what we’ll do we’ll make manol covers that they won’t Nick we’ll make them out of non-recyclable plastic and they were still nicking them so they put GPS sensors in the plastic ones and found out that gangs were selling them to districts where they’d stolen the steel ones the week before and that is Colombian capitalism Fe [Music] you go gu has immersed himself in all aspects of Colombian culture but the backstory that created this country can be buffing for Outsiders and so guy heads for a cup of tea and a history lesson right are we right at a cafe that serves the local brew cocoa tea thank you cheers made with the leaves of the cocoa plant one in Rome I’m going to drink Coke tea I’m not a tea coniss right I like it a certain way and I do drink a l of it so why wouldn’t I drink Colombian tea when in Colombia if I brought that in to Heath throw I’d get arrested but you’re all right in Colombia I think she’s mashed up we’re not getting any more life out of that are we anyway tastes like green tea [Music] if you meant to eat the leaves anyway while we’re waiting for this to take effect I’ve got a story for you Brian it’s not right we’re in Columbia we’re in bogatar um is me a bit of an history lesson it’s not all about the drugs cels right so we’re going to put that there let me get this right it’s all right that is all right you know Colombia has been in Civil War for the last 50 OD years I can feel a bit of someone say yeah I don’t get that from drinking tea I think something’s happening on the left we’ve got the gorillas right they’re behind the poor people the farmers the left-wing gorillas fighting for social justice and trying to overthrow the government were their peak in the 1990s and we run like a private Army so we’ve got the grillas on the left they’re trying to overturn these fellas right the government right big argument amongst these two here and then look I’m making a good picture of this right and then we’ve got the paramilitaries on the right the right-wing paramilitaries were employed by wealthy farmers and landowners to defend themselves against the gorillas and then we’ve got oh that’s definitely taking effect like a bit lightheaded right right excuse me what my eyes doing I’ve tried to paint a bit of a picture of what’s been going on in the last 50 years just like massive Civil War but what we’ve got now for the first time ever in Colombian history we’ve got a leftwing government he was elected in in August last year in essence what he’s trying to do he’s dealing with like 25 illegal he’s trying to get them all to talk to each other to try and make peace of this absolute Madness good luck mate good luck un is happening there I feel a bit dizzy I feel a bit dizzy suspecting that kokea in the history of South American sociopolitics don’t mix later that evening guy conducts a saliva test to see how powerful the drug really [Music] is you see that I see line there that means I’ve tested positive for cocaine even in dilute T form right I failed a drugs test so cocaine packs on punch don’t it 60% of the world’s most dangerous cities are in Latin America medin Scores highest in terms of risk it’s an international Hub of drugs gangs with a ready supply of weapons and people willing to use [Music] them discovering more about how Colombian criminals work means actually meeting some word has been put out the guys in town and Medan mechanics district has [Music] delivered all right big man with average wages a quarter what they are in the UK the temptation to turn to the most lucrative crime of all can be [Music] irresistible I am guy my name is sorry your name is right thank you um we’ve come to Colombia to see all different ends of the the work Spectrum um and I hear you’ve got an interesting job what is it that you do you’re drug dealer now okay okay does that mean this is obviously illegal in Colombia is this okay with you it’s very normal is that right would you rather be a drug dealer than have a legal job like a mechanic for money honestly okay [Music] okay obviously the drug industry is very violent what violence do you see okay [Music] you personally have you had injuries through the industries plenty times but you’re still here it’s normal it’s normal you’ve grown immune to it okay okay the drugs causes many problems in Colombia do you ever feel guilty about no no okay okay okay never never no guils learning to ignore violence is an important skill in the Colombian underworld especially for those who used to run a gang on behalf of the Kingpin here the Boss El Patron means drug kingpin Pablo Escobar from what you know of Pablo was he a violent person I understand yeah I fully understand why would you do this business because it is illegal have you ever been to prison no never on you proud never been to prison what is the secret to a long life in Colombia without going to prison you laugh you laugh right okay to work very straight right yes right okay thank you for being so honest as long as part of the population views crime as normal reforming Colombia will be difficult especially when the biggest crimes of all occur completely out of [Music] view despite a decades long War on Drugs costing billions the cocaine trade is growing guys heading for a secure Ministry of Defense research compound home to a captured example of audacious Narco engineering that helps the cartels stay one step ahead here we are in and amongst M coka plants you see you’ve got all the right people for this job aren’t you anyway just happens we do it’s all right making all this coke isn’t it we need to get it to the mainland how are we going to do that well it’s a bit risky doing it by land right it’s even riskier doing it by planes 75% of the coke produced in Colombia goes via the sea right and a fair bit of that 75% is these fellas it’s sort of a submarine super super that’s going to be hard to get on in 2021 31 Narco Subs were seized but hundreds have been stealth delivering drugs since the ’90s Pablo escar got the idea from a James Bond film he say oh that’s a right idea I can get me Coke out of Colombia dead easy on one of them I know I’ll make a few phone calls as he did he’s got a few Russian mafia mates and tried to get a Soviet sub anyway all that fell through so he thought I’ll tell you what I don’t know what I’m goingon to do I’m going to build my own and it was these sort of things that he built it takes a team of around 15 just a few days to make a narco sub in a jungle Workshop using simple DIY materials and now we say submarine I think we might be stretching it I think we could say semi submercible submarine anyway let’s go have a look inside a now she’s hot in him head it looks like he’s an adapted boat it’s not he’s been built from scratch bloody hell they still got the engine in here it’s a Detroit diesel engine look at that this is bloody amazing look at the wooden frame holding it together she just Chu together mate they build these in the jungle and you think what you mean they build them in the jungle how do they get them out well there obviously a load of Rivers Running in and about the jungle so they just build them in the jungle and then sail her out to sea carry three ton of product on here like today’s money like 9 9 million quid 90 million quid you carry on this obviously the main Port of Call would be the islands in between here and Mexico and here in North America but they found one of these in Spain you going have sail one of these bloody things to Spain and you want drugs well absolute Madness and what we got here that’s the big SC valve so if someone’s found you open that valve there lets all the water in you’re going to the bottom of the SE quick along with all you cocaine destroy the evidence I mean this is nothing the next one is a GPS guided submarine so you’ll just put your gear in press the button and away she goes unmanned submarine they are always ahead of the game but imaginative engineering isn’t just The Preserve of the cartels as guys about to find out Columbian Ingenuity can also be used for the greater [Music] good guy Martin’s Colombian Adventure has taken him through the cities and jungles of the least safe country in South America I know what you could do do we met a day at skaggy beach but wherever he’s gone good man good man he’s found plenty to admire that has nothing to do with gangs and violence he’s been welcomed by one of the most ethnically diverse populations on the planet if I see it is drug free I show you and is free drugs and he sought out a personal passion that you won’t find in any guide book J we can go have a look in our scrapyard new engine getting the job [Music] done we shouldn’t have been here really whenever we’ve mentioned medine all we need security at every touch and turn we need this we need we’ve got no security we haven’t been advised to come in here and you think if you’re ever going to meet wrers it’s going to be in a place like this and we’re here we just let fly down into the lads what’s going on what’s happened what’s gone wrong ah no Pistons no piston rings yeah yeah yeah yeah ah no shells sound sound as a pound ah you know you know you know get it out snapon yes you know snapon NASA yeah like NASA love it love it it’s proper look here look here this is our first sort of touchings on religion since been in Colombia and it’s a very religious Nation look of the truck we’ got a big man on there Jesus Jesus do we call him Jesus there he is our man up there Jesus new engine beautiful oh look at that just pimping the engine up wherever we go Colombians genuinely take a pride in what they’re doing look he’s polishing his engine yeah some Nation some Nation Pride but for all its warmth and Hospitality Colombia still has a frighteningly high crime rate 1 in 300 people were robbed in London last year in parts of bogatar it was one in 12 seeing what the police have to deal with every day means joining them and I don’t know how you boys and girls have pulled this off but I’m going to go on a police patrol bit nervous right pull up at the police station sniffer dogs right yeah just in case anyone’s planting car bombs outside the police station after a series of corruption scandals a new Focus for the police has been put on health and well-being This Is How They now prepare for the dangerous bitar beat the early morning shift in the worst area of the city can begin gu is led to the police Armory to prepare yeah don’t make out with that they the undercover cups don’t don’t show your camera there hey keep it down this is where we get armed up or all the officers get armed up and get the bulletproof vest well I’m not here to get a gun I’m here to get a bulletproof vest in a city that has 400 armed robberies a day every police officer must carry a gun it is checked before and after every shift big a [ __ ] in there every gun is also cleaned and guys spotted the first way he can help the bogatar police department can I have a go please can I can I have a go thank you however this is out an our time and plenty of use it’s plenty of dust and [ __ ] in it nice the tools of the trade are ready for action and Guy gets his ballistic vest gr manual before use okay okay let’s go gracias thank [Music] you ready he meets his Patrol of two motorbikes and two Vans they head for one of the most deprived parts of the city the slums of sead [Music] boulevar number one in bitar’s Murder [Music] charts Colombia has one of the world’s biggest internal migrant populations it’s made up of people trying to escape the drugs War fought in the Lawless jungles and mountains one in 10 Colombians as f million people are leaving the countryside um and heading for the outskirts of these cities these slums yeah massive poverty and where there’s poverty there’s problems this is one of the more complex situation we’re just going a little bit in can to get out what’s happen in the UK the police need reasonable grounds to stop and search someone in Colombia they can Frisk anybody and they do yeah such a Dutchy area I just come in here and just just check everyone to make sure there anyone wanted just check their ID make sure they’re who they say they are so yeah go in so this like a regular occurrence just go in and Purge it through the patrol goes deeper into the slum the settlers here find a piece of ground and build a home with whatever materials can be scavenged the thick of it here a’t we place to come in smell crack so they’re just having to WAND around very edgy that’s the word look behind you look behind you nicked electric just nicking it the whole place running on next Electric the residents quietly accept the searches cudar Bolivar is used to this kind of Patrol there any here every day they don’t want to expanding any nearer the mountain just keep on top of it just show a presence every day just to put the fear on the patrol moves on to a hideout known for thieves to the beach [Music] one of the motorcycle units stops a lone man they decide to search him this is an area called the beach um but yeah massive homelessness problem um and generally attracts attracts a load of bother knife is that an innocent knife is it just fused for opening packets or what I don’t know I don’t know but anyway that’s what they’re going to give him a fine for having the knife obiously it’s not legal to hold a pocket now the fine of around 50 is issued via an app and the man is released the police know that it is highly unlikely the fine will ever be [Music] paid H yes what guy has experienced on this Patrol is a world away from the popular perception of the Colombian underworld all we’re led to believe is yeah gangster in glamour Colombia it’s far from that when you get the your boats on the ground poverty poverty Colombia has one of the world’s worst income inequality problems the bottom 50% of the population own 1.6% of the wealth the illegal economy is often the only way to survive but there is hope for years Medan was known as the most dangerous city and the most dangerous country in the world but today it’s winning awards for being the most Innovative city in the world nice it part of that is thanks to a gold standard public transport system that serves 215 million Journey’s a year H clean tidy nicely rooted cables I think he was in a Swiss ski resort without the [Music] snow the Columbia’s geography is a pin in the backside you know what I mean you’d have a right job putting in underground round here well well it just wouldn’t happen would it it wouldn’t happen look at the size of these Hills look at the size of getting from the edge of town to shops schools and jobs in the middle could be a 3-hour walk through some of the least safe parts of the city now that commuters can sail over the top the crime rate has fallen and he’s caught a bit of faith in the Colombian government because to put a bit of brass back into the people oh maybe they’re not all back it’s all right coming for a bit of a ride on the cable cars but we’re going to go a bit further than that we’re going to go work on them guy is joining the median Metro cable repair crew the team quickly teach him how to use their climbing equipment they’ll get to work in an open-sided service cage what’s your name Claudia Claudia elet elmet elmet elmet I’m guy nice me the team head out to work on line L it’s cable stretch 4 miles Northeast of the city over a 40 acre Nature Reserve situated on the Hills above Med in ready if this was done in England this would take months of training to be able to do this but we get to Colombia and this is great this is great we take safy shoes yeah I know I know I know I know but in England it is too much it is stupid we use common sense yes yes yes yes no no no yeah we think the Colombian way is very [Music] efficient after 10 minutes they reach the defective pylon Claudia’s not messing about and Claudia leads the way to the top of the 20 M Tower and its 1500 volt [Music] system okay okay that’s amazing watchous Gracies they’ve summited so we change one of these and now the work can begin [Music] M she got a hydraulic press they need to change a roller which is worn out it’s the Simplicity of these components that makes Cable Car systems relatively cheap and easy to build there’s some weight in that you won’t want that on your head with no need for laying expensive roads or rails or cutting tunnels a new line can be installed in a little over a [Music] year up thank you up up the language thing a bit of an issue I can yck and shove where the tell to but that’s about it all way there are now 20 miles of pylons and cables crisscrossing Med in providing yearr round public transport with no delays for me Beyond impressive six lines they stop 11:00 at night and start going at 4: in the morning 19 hours a day they run for 19 hours a day amazing [Music] amazing ready thank you thank you hey okay it won’t stop here a record 75 billion in public spending has been announced as Colombia doubles down on its renewal British industry could learn a lot from this we all know what British public transport’s like now it’s on time is it and then if anything needed to happen it would take a lifetime to do it because of all the red tapes around in it you know we came to Columbia expecting gangsters and riots this is the other end of the scale we could take a lot of this information back common sense at his finest okay that’s got the job done the Metro cable shows the progress Colombia is making in becoming a safer place to live and visit although where guys heading next shows Colombians aren’t ready to give up risk completely [Music] guy Martin has time for one final Fiesta in a Colombia that is striving to clean up its act with this strimer keeping the job tidy all right go he’s going to follow his passions to the only place of its kind in the country right another job we’ve got on top side of bogatar they’ve got a racetrack going go a look see what he’s got to [Music] offer this is the tanser circuit Columbia’s only motor racing [Music] track so whenever we’re away we like to get involved in Oddball Motorsport jobs and that’s what we’re going to do tractor M which translates to tractor mes which really means truck racing and while we’re waiting before we get the circuit we’re watching a bit of parac cycling mile and a half circuit these boys have been at it and girls for 10 Well Done big man well done guys contacts soon arrive a set of enthusiastic drivers who use their daily delivery vehicles to go racing within the weekend yeah boss I’m guy nice to meet you what’s your name Juan camoo jamy Jam Jammy nice to meet you jamy he ha wil this is the hacker nice to meet I’m guy looking there for the the first time ever they’re letting an outsider race alongside them so guy can sample a true Colombian Pastime in this oil Rich Nation diesel is a third of the price in the UK and so the drivers don’t hesitate to use as much as possible even though this was meant to be a slow parade lap wild the truck racers have little interest in rules throughout much of Colombian history the lawmakers have been corrupt resulting in a nation that often prefers to ignore regulations and here today that means guy is taken on a sighting lap by a child how old are you 14 14 14 this is not what was meant to happen we saw all sat down last night and had a bit of a plan about this is how it was going to happen today we was going to do a bit of time attacking and then pick the fastest and now everything seems to have changed so I just think as we’re learning from our Colombian visit Colombians are had to police so let’s just get on with it and see where it takes us you might end up in a gravel trap cuz it has started raining in fact it does end up with a crash what do we say phito but here accident damage costing thousands is clust as a mishap The Show Must Go On I love that I love that they do not give a monkeys they don’t give a monkeys let’s just get cracking and let it develop I think it is going to develop after little preparation guys thrust onto the start line with truck Champion Raul as his co- driver the truck Racers have invented their own unique drag race first a dash to the orange barrier then it’s reverse as fast as possible without Jack knifing then it’s straight into a onlap race guy uses all of his trucks 900 horsepower it’s all about who will be brave enough to break lust into the first turn she’s smoking fuel tankers don’t race anywhere else in the world and in this purely Colombian event guy keeps his rival aey to take the [Music] win I think we won I think we won i w there’s no time for celebrations R wants to show guy how it’s really done I watch now I watch [Music] holy obviously I’m treating Ral truck with far too much respect holy [ __ ] he had it in reverse while we were still going forward zero mechanical sympathy you know I’m thinking he’s going to work in that tomorrow I’m not going to go and rip the ass out it get in it Jesus Christ [Music] four-wheel drifting around there like the the whole drive axle was drifting and he’s like on the exhaust breake [ __ ] it hell what is in very health and safety like you’re in there in ey busy I don’t know why you’re thinking they’re not going to help [Music] you what was Columbia like guy just show him that that 20 seconds No More Words needed No More Words needed this is Colombia pack up go now that’s it there done done you love it I love it after two weeks in a country that has been shaped by the extreme and always admires an outlaw guy has found some Kindred Spirits you see what I’ve got here right it’s a plaque from the tracto mulay the truck racing that we did says guy M due to Breaking speed challenges and having great audacity in life the Colombian Truck Racing authority grant me honorary membership how good is that they’ve taken me on as one of them we came here with completely the wrong idea I thought we was going to have two weeks of blood guts drugs gangsters chases all of that and nothing could have been further from the truth they right nice folk right we’ve been in some right dodgy bits and we’ve been in some right good bits and we’ve had nothing but hospitable people you know folk don’t get up D o00 in the morning to be at work for 6:00 the dogs are mint well behaved right they keep the vehicles right bloody hell I just love the way they go about life after a couple of weeks the sort of conclusion I’ve come to is the look at it a little bit like me yeah it might go wrong he probably won’t so let’s get stuck in yeah I love this place 100% I’ll be back no question thank you cheers gracious [Music] your meal [Applause]