Top 10 Things Griselda Got Factually Right and Wrong

Michael Corleone is the fourth and only surviving child of Griselda Blanco, who named him after “The Godfather” character. Blanco had Michael with Darío Sepúlveda, whom she married in 1978. As the marriage fell apart, Sepúlveda felt that Michael would be better off with him. Since the couple wasn’t going to settle their differences in court, Sepúlveda kidnapped his five-year-old son, taking him to Columbia. Sepúlveda could only keep Michael from his mother for so long. In 1983, Sepúlveda was gunned down in front of Michael, who returned to Blanco two years before her incarceration. Michael also became involved in drug trafficking but has since left the business behind. He’s currently suing the creatives behind “Griselda,” alleging they used “private artistic literary work” without compensation.

In the final episode, Blanco turns herself in to the police, believing that this will keep her family safe and she’ll get a reduced sentence. The real Blanco didn’t go so willingly. Where the show depicts her calling the cops and giving up her location, it was DEA agent Bob Palumbo who tracked Blanco down in 1985. After a decade-long search, Palumbo reportedly kissed Blanco. Caught off guard, Blanco didn’t put up much of a fight, but she gave the arresting officers a false name. “Griselda” also implies that Blanco’s lawyer negotiated her sentence down to seven years. Blanco actually received 15 years for drug trafficking and three 20-year sentences for second-degree murder, although she was released early and deported due to her declining health.

It’s been estimated that Blanco’s body count ranged from as few as 40 to more than 200. Episode 4 opens with one of the most publicized murders linked to Blanco. Around 2:30 P.M. on July 11, 1979, drug trafficker German Jimenez Panesso and bodyguard Juan Carlos Hernandez were taken out in a blaze of gunfire at the Dadeland Mall’s Crown Liquors store. Two shop employees were also wounded in the shootout. While there were no other fatalities, the assassins would shoot up several cars in the parking lot, drawing comparisons to the wild west. The shooters subsequently fled in a van reading, “Happy Time Complete Party Supply.” Blanco wasn’t prosecuted for the Dadeland Massacre, although there’s little doubt that she orchestrated the hit.

Just as Blanco is about to reclaim her freedom, she’s informed that her three eldest sons have all been killed. While this twist gives the show a Shakespearean sentiment, it’s not entirely accurate. Uber and Osvaldo were both killed while Blanco was still in prison, but it’d be a few more years until she got out. As such, their deaths weren’t planned to coincide with her release. Dixon would join his brothers eventually, although it’s suspected that his death occurred sometime between his mother’s assassination on September 3, 2012, and 2020. The show also gives detailed explanations about how each son died. All we know for sure, though, is that Osvaldo met his end outside a nightclub. Dixon and Uber’s deaths remain clouded in mystery.

The first episode hooks viewers in with a quote from Pablo Escobar: “The only man I was ever afraid of was a woman named Griselda Blanco.” Whether or not Escobar said these precise words, he was very much aware of Blanco’s operation. Some might debate exactly how much Escobar feared Blanco, as he didn’t resist clashing with her over territory. Blanco wasn’t one to back away from competition. Escobar himself doesn’t pop up in the series, much to the disappointment of those hoping for a “Narcos” crossover. As the opening text indicates, though, Escobar recognized the power that Blanco commanded, making her a potential threat. Medellin ultimately wasn’t big enough for the two of them, although Blanco and Escobar would both meet their end there.

The series makes multiple changes regarding Marta Ochoa. She’s depicted as the cousin of Juan David, Jorge Luis, and Fabio Ochoa Vásquez, although she was reportedly their sister. “Griselda” suggests that Marta died from an accidental drug overdose while getting high with Blanco. After trying to get rid of the body, Blanco is forced to flee the scene. The exact circumstances surrounding Marta’s death are unclear, although it’s been speculated that Blanco was involved. Rather than an overdose, the leading theory is that Blanco had Marta killed. Blanco supposedly owed her $1.8 million, and murdering Marta was easier than paying this debt. This theory also claims that Marta was tortured before her death in hopes that she’d reveal the location of Rafa Salazar.

Jorge “Rivi” Ayala-Rivera was among the most notable hitmen who worked for Blanco. It sounds like something out of a Coen brothers’ movie, but Ayala robbed a bank for quarters, which led to his arrest. You’d think that would be the craziest chapter of his criminal record. After cutting a deal with the Florida DA, though, the incarcerated Ayala found himself at the center of a phone sex scandal. With Ayala no longer seen as a creditable witness, the case that the authorities had been building against Blanco crumbled. It’s hard to say if Ayala planned all this, but the show does take one liberty. Ayala didn’t have phone sex with a secretary from the state’s attorney's office. It was multiple secretaries!

Detective June Hawkins is depicted as the one primarily responsible for bringing Blanco to justice. Dramatically, this makes sense, as both women were underestimated in male-dominated fields. While Hawkins played a role in tracking down Blanco, the show overlooks many other key figures. There’s no mention of Bob Palumbo, who apprehended Blanco. When Blanco was caught, Palumbo - not Hawkins - sat in the backseat with her. Hawkins also didn’t visit Blanco in prison to tell her about the deaths of her sons. Hawkins only met Blanco once. Detective Al Singleton, whom Hawkins would marry, had Blanco in his office one day. Knowing that Hawkins worked on the case, Singleton suggested she drop in. Instead of a heated conversation, Hawkins just observed Blanco, describing her as “diminished.”

Darío Sepúlveda was Blanco’s third husband. While we know how their marriage ended, there’s little information about how the two met. It’d be a stretch to say that their first encounter in “Griselda” is anything short of romanticism. Sepúlveda is introduced as the henchman of Fernando Bravo, Blanco’s former brother-in-law. Seeking vengeance for his brother’s murder, Fernando plans to make Blanco suffer before doing her in. When Dixon attempts to save his mom, Fernando orders Sepúlveda to take him out. Unable to kill someone so young, Sepúlveda turns his gun to Fernando, emerging as Blanco’s loyal protector and lover… for a period. Although it makes for one of the show’s most intense moments, there’s no evidence suggesting that it ever happened.

While we may never know every detail of Griselda Blanco’s life, it’s not a coincidence that all three of her husbands died violent deaths. Blanco met her first husband, Carlos Trujillo, as a young teen, getting involved in the drug business together. After divorcing, the two got into a business argument that resulted in Blanco having Trujillo assassinated. Blanco went on to marry cocaine smuggler Alberto Bravo. It’s unlikely that Bravo told Blanco to sleep with his brother as the show depicts. However, the marriage would end with Bravo getting shot in the head and Blanco taking credit. As for Darío Sepúlveda, the fact that he kidnapped Michael gave Blanco more than enough reason to take action. They didn’t call her Black Widow for nothing.

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