Colombian Drug Lord Had Awful John Lennon Statue

 

As one of the founders of the infamous Medellin drug cartel, Carlos Lehder holds a distinct, if unintentional, place in rock history. However, it has recently been discovered by Buzzfeed that Lehder has returned the favor to the rock world in a cringeworthy manner. Apparently, he erected an awful statue of John Lennon in the courtyard of a German-themed resort he owned in Pereira, Colombia in the early-1980s.

Despite being a murderous drug kingpin with a history of neo-Nazi activity, Lehder was, incongruously, a fan of the group that sang "All You Need Is Love", and in particular the member who requested that we all "Give Peace a Chance". Somehow he managed to combine the two seemingly divergent philosophies into one bizarre piece of sculpted artwork.

The statue features a nude Lennon holding his trademark Rickenbacker guitar while wearing a German war helmet. The word paz (Spanish for "peace") is on his left arm. To make matters worse, the statue, which was erected several years after Lennon was shot and killed, has a large hole in the chest. Let’s remember folks: Lehder was a Beatles fan.
Carlos Lehder was captured in 1987, when his bribing of Bahamian officials began to attract attention. He was extradited to the United States, where he was sentenced to life without parole plus 135 years for his involvement in the Medellin cartel. His sentence was reduced to 55 years in 1992 following his cooperation in the capture of former Panamanian dictator Manuel Noreiga.

Source: http://www.ultimate-guitar.com