Introduction
Stephen E. Murphy (born 1957) is an American retired federal agent of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) who, along with Javier Peña, was one of the lead investigators in the manhunt of Colombian drug lord and leader of the Medellín Cartel, Pablo Escobar. The story of this was told in the Netflix series Narcos, with actor Boyd Holbrook portraying Murphy. Murphy and Peña also worked on the show as consultants.
Law enforcement career
Murphy began his law career at the age of 19 as an intern with the Bluefield, West Virginia Police Department. He subsequently joined the Mercer County Sheriff's Department, and later served as a patrol officer in Norfolk, Virginia. He joined the DEA in 1987 and served until 2013.
In popular culture
His character was played by actor Boyd Holbrook in the Netflix TV series Narcos. Murphy and Peña worked as consultants on the show and made a cameo appearance in the last episode of Season 2, "Al Fin Cayó!"
He was also portrayed by Peter Sarsgaard in Loving Pablo (2017), as DEA agent Shepherd.
Books
Manhunters: How We Took Down Pablo Escobar co-written with Javier F. Peña.