They waged a small-scale war against the Medellín Cartel in 1993, which ended the same year following the death of Escobar.
There are reports that Los Pepes had ties to some members of the Colombian National Police, especially the Search Bloc, with whom they exchanged information in order to execute their activities against Escobar.
The Castaño brothers (Carlos, Vicente, and Fidel) were founders of several paramilitary groups and the driving force behind the AUC's creation.
Another member of Los Pepes, Diego "Don Berna" Murillo Bejarano eventually became Inspector General of the AUC, as well as an important drug trafficker with Oficina de Envigado.
[3][4] Mark Bowden's book Killing Pablo highlights some of the operations of Los Pepes and describes some of the forms of cooperation and support that the group allegedly received from members of the Colombian National Police.