My mother Griselda Blanco was no saint, but I love her. I survived seven assassination attempts and quit the cartel to become a reality TV star and fashion boss

Griselda Blanco, also known as the Cocaine Godmother or the Black Widow, was a Colombian drug boss who founded one of the most profitable cartels in history before her murder in 2012.

Today a biographical series is released on Netflix, starring Sofia Vergara as a career criminal.

The drug lord, who stood just five feet tall, was involved in pickpocketing and prostitution from a young age, but it wasn’t long before her crimes began to escalate as she rose to notoriety in the crime world.

After being drawn into the cocaine industry by her second husband, whom she later murdered, Griselda built a thriving drug empire, earning more than a whopping $80 million every month.

Michael Corleone Blanco, 45, her only surviving offspring, spoke with The mirror about what it was like to be raised by the infamous criminal and how his life changed after leaving the cartel for business, fashion and reality TV.

He told the newspaper: ‘My mother was not a saint. She had to survive to do her thing. But at the end of the day, she was my mother. I will honor and respect her forever. I love her’.

However, he also admits that he “had no childhood” and “lived the life of a teenage capo,” risking his life every time he left home.

‘I was told you are a Blanco, part of that nobility. So when you drive, make sure there are people in cars driving around you, driving behind you. And keep your gun right under your thigh.”

Griselda had four sons, but three of them, Osvaldo, Dixon and Uber, were murdered.

From the moment he was born, Michael was associated with drugs, having been given the middle name Corleone, after the mafia family in the Godfather films.

As a child, he survived seven murder attempts, one of which resulted in his father, a drug trafficker, and Griselda’s third husband, Dario Sepulveda, dying in his arms after their car was ambushed.

Griselda, who was raised in a slum in the cocaine cartel city of Medellin, Colombia, went on to rule a $2 billion empire that stretched from the South American country to Miami, New York and California.

She seized power by being more inventive and even ruthless than the drug lords who emerged in the 1970s.

The queenpin maintained order with a gold-plated submachine gun studded with emeralds while earning $80 million a month.

At one point it was reported that she and kingpin Pablo Escobar were constantly ordering each other around. She is accused of being involved in 200 murders.

She was the first female criminal billionaire to wage a reign of terror during the Cocaine Cowboys’ drug wars in Miami in the 1970s and 1980s.

Michael revealed he had armed guards 24 hours a day before his mother was jailed for 25 years for drug trafficking in the US in 1985.

While she was behind bars, he lived with family and guardians chosen by Griselda.

He admitted that he enjoyed a “lavish lifestyle” and that it “wasn’t all pain and suffering.”

When his mother was released after ten years in prison, she was deported to Colombia, where she is said to have ‘retired’ from her life of crime.

But it seemed her past was catching up with her and in 2012 Griselda was shot dead as she left a butcher shop in Medellin at the age of 69.

Michael decided to leave the human trafficking life after his mother’s murder and create a new kind of empire with his business partner and long-time friend Michael “Majix” Yuen.

Before he died, he had already started working with his mother to make money legally through the ‘cartel culture’.

Now he enjoys life as a suburban dad with wife Marie Ramirez De Arellano and three children, while running his successful business.

Their billionaire cartel lifestyle brand Pure Blanco is described as a company focused on “fashion, film, music, cannabis and licensing of the Pure Blanco brand.”

The website, which mainly sells clothing and accessories, states: ‘We are a lifestyle brand made by bosses for bosses, so wear with pride’.

As a tribute to his mother, there is even an entire collection called ‘Boss Like Griselda’, with t-shirts, socks and hoodies with the slogan.

And it’s not just the fashion world that the 45-year-old is now involved in; he has also made his first foray into the world of entertainment.

Michael also stars alongside his fiancée Marie Ramirex De Arellano in the American reality TV show Cartel Crew on VH1, which follows the lives of people with past ties to the drug trade.

In the show, which premiered in 2019, the sons and daughters of cartel members share a glimpse into their personal journeys as they try to overcome ghosts from their pasts and deal with family drama.

He also appeared in an episode of Evil Lies Here, called ‘The Last Blanco’, in 2018, where he told his mother’s story through his own eyes.

Now he is releasing a new book, “My Mother, The Godmother, and the True Story of Michael Corleone Blanco, the Son of Griselda Blanco.”

Michael will share astonishing insights into the woman whose pioneering routes flooded the US with cocaine.

He revealed that he started taking notes to tell his family’s story in 2006, getting information directly from his mother before she was eventually murdered in 2012 at the age of 69.

However, the career criminal’s son exclusively told DailyMail.com that he is not happy with the new Netflix show.

Speaking about his anger and disappointment that Sofia Vergara and her team refused his offer to consult on the project, Griselda’s son branded the rejection a “slap in the face” – and said she “didn’t want to deal with it” would have gotten away’ if his mother were still alive.

He also criticized the “disrespectful” decision to transform Sofia’s superstar appearance with facial prosthetics due to her portrayal of his famous mother.