Pablo Escobar's chief assassin 'Popeye' is robbed at gunpoint in Medellin

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Pablo Escobar's infamous chief assassin 'Popeye' is robbed at gunpoint in Colombian city he once brought terror to
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John Jairo Velasquez, known as 'Popeye', was Pablo Escobar's chief assassin
Thieves recently robbed him at gunpoint in Medellin, Colombia
Sunglasses, a mobile phone, cash and jewellery worth a 'fortune' were stolen
Popeye has admitted to killing around 300 people and served 22 years in jail

Published: 04:44 EST, 6 December 2016 | Updated: 07:46 EST, 6 December 2016

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John Jairo Velasquez, better known as 'Popeye', was the chief assassin for Pablo Escobar

The chief assassin of Pablo Escobar has been robbed at gunpoint by two men on motorbikes in the Colombian city he once brought terror to.

The thieves forced notorious former hitman John Jairo Velasquez to pull over as he drove near a shopping centre in an upmarket area of Medellin before stealing his designer sunglasses, mobile phone, cash and jewellery.

The 54-year-old, who admits to having killed around 300 people and helping murder at least 3,000 more and served 22 years in jail, confessed to becoming a crime statistic himself on Tuesday as he called for people to be given the right to carry weapons.

'I've learnt my lesson. I'll leave my valuables at home next time I go out.

Pablo Escobar pictured with Velasquez - the two tormented the city of Medellin where 'Popeye' was recently robbed at gunpoint and had a 'fortune' of valuables stolen

He added: 'The jewellery cost me a fortune.

'The blokes who did it didn't say anything to me. Each one of them stuck a gun to my window. There was nothing I could do.'

Police are still hunting the ballsy pair responsible for the daring hold-up, which happened in the upmarket area of El Poblado which is home to some of the richest people in Colombia.

'Popeye' visited the tomb of Escobar at the Montesacro cemetery in Medellin to pay his respects to the drug lord - after spending 22 years in prison for doing his bidding

The assassin was robbed in the upscale area of El Poblado - home to some of the richest people in Colombia - and has vowed to 'leave his valuables at home next time'

It is not known if they recognised their victim.

One local said on social media: 'The situation has got to be pretty bad for someone to dare to rob this man. Can this really have happened?'

Velazquez, better-known by his nickname Popeye, was the mastermind behind some 200 car bombs during Escobar's Medellin cartel's war against its rivals and the Colombian state.

Velasquez, seated on Escobar's grave, said: ''Whenever I took a life, I didn't feel anything. Not shame, not sadness, not happiness'

Popeye posed with a fan at Escobar's tomb - he and Escobar have been featured as characters in the popular Netflix series Narcos which dramatises Escobar's life and infamous legacy

He was also responsible for high-profile kidnappings including those of Attorney General Carlos Mauro Hoyos in January 1988 and even organised the bombing of a commercial airliner in which 107 people died.

He claimed in an interview in September coinciding with the release of the second series of the hit Netflix series Narcos dramatising Escobar's life:

'Whenever I took a life, I didn't feel anything. Not shame, not sadness, not happiness. It was simply a day at the office carrying out Don Pablo's orders.

Popeye dedicates a book to Escobar which reads 'Popeye - Escobar's trusted assassin'

Popeye has only been released this year after serving three-fifths of his sentence for the murder of 300 people - he was also the mastermind behind more than 200 car bombs

'Killing was too easy. I was in a war and they were killing my family, my friends and my colleagues.

'We had to fight fire with fire.'

Popeye, who met Escobar after dropping out of a Colombian police school aged 17, now lives in hiding after nearly two decades in prison for the murder of presidential candidate Luis Carlos Galan in 1989.

The former hitman, who says he is now a reformed character and has recast himself as a YouTube star with thousands of followers, describes himself as an 'ex-bandit in search of a new opportunity in society' on his Twitter page.

Revealing why he hadn't reacted to the hold-up, he said: 'About three months ago two men on motorbikes also tried to rob me.

'I drove one of them off the road using my car and he was left in a pretty bad way. That's illegal. That's why I don't do it any more.'