15 of the wildest bounties put out for criminals in the late 1990s
- - 15 of the wildest bounties put out for criminals in the late 1990s
Matt StaffDecember 26, 2025 at 2:04 AM
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A bearded man in an orange prison jumpsuit and tan jacket is escorted outdoors by two law enforcement officers, one wearing sunglasses and the other in a dark jacket with an official seal.
Tracing back to the late 1990s, law enforcement agencies around the globe put out obscenely large bounties on some of the world’s most dangerous criminals and fugitives that were still at large. These bounties captured a moment in history when criminal pursuits became worldwide operations, and long before the era of modern surveillance and digital tracking.
1. Osama bin Laden
Via Anonymous91
By the late 1990s, he’d become one of the most wanted men on the planet, with the U.S. government offering up a $5 million bounty for information leading to his capture. Already linked to multiple terrorist attacks, his image circulated globally as authorities struggled to track him down. The reward reflected the growing urgency to stop a figure who was quickly becoming the face of international terrorism before the turn of the millennium.
2. Whitey Bulger
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For decades on end Whitey Bulger ruled over Boston’s criminal underworld while also secretly playing the part of an FBI informant. By the late 1990s, a $2 million bounty had been placed on his head after he vanished just before being indicted.
3. Ramzi Yousef
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After masterminding the 1993 World Trade Center bombing, he became one of the most sought-after terrorists of the decade. U.S. authorities proceeded to place a $5 million bounty on his capture as investigators raced to prevent further attacks linked to his network.
4. Ayman al-Zawahiri
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As one of the top leaders of Al Qaeda, he became a central figure in global terrorism during the late 1990s. Following the bombings of U.S. embassies in Africa, international authorities placed a massive bounty on his capture, eventually reaching $25 million.
5. Mir Aimal Kasi
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One of the most intense international manhunts of the 1990s centered on the gunman responsible for a deadly attack outside CIA headquarters. After fleeing the United States, a $2 million bounty was offered for information leading to his capture.
6. Ted Kaczynski
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Known as the Unabomber, he carried out a nationwide bombing campaign that terrorized the United States for nearly two decades. By the late 1990s, authorities had placed a $2 million bounty on information leading to his arrest, making it one of the largest domestic rewards at the time.
7. Eric Rudolph
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Following the aftermath of a series of bombings that targeted public events in the late 1990s, he became one of the most elusive domestic terrorists in the country. Federal authorities put up and placed a $1 million bounty for his capture as he vanished into the mountains of North Carolina.
8. Semion Mogilevich
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By the late 1990s, he was considered one of the most powerful and elusive organized crime figures in the world, with the FBI offering a $5 million bounty for information leading to his capture.
9. Victor Mauel Gerena
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By the late 1990s, he remained one of the longest-running fugitives tied to domestic terrorism in the United States, with a $1 million bounty offered for information leading to his capture. His disappearance turned the case into a symbol of how political ideology, international borders, and limited extradition agreements complicated major manhunts during the final years of the 20th century.
10. Dawood Ibrahim
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By the end of the 1990s, he was already considered one of the most powerful and elusive crime bosses in the world, with a $25 million bounty later placed on his capture by U.S. authorities. His continued ability to evade arrest turned him into one of the most notorious fugitives of the era and a reminder of how difficult it was to bring global crime figures to justice before the digital age.
11. Abimael Guzman
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By the early 1990s, he had become the most wanted man in Peru, with authorities offering a bounty equivalent to roughly $10 million USD, one of the highest ever seen in Latin America at the time.
12. Miguel Gallardo
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Although he was arrested before the late 1990s, the scale of the rewards tied to his capture continued to be referenced throughout the decade. Estimates placed the combined bounties and incentives linked to his arrest at several million dollars, setting a precedent for future drug kingpin manhunts.
13. James “Whitey” Bulger Associates
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As the hunt for Whitey Bulger intensified in the late 1990s, federal authorities expanded rewards to include information on his closest associates. Individual bounties of up to $1 million were offered for tips that could lead to arrests within his inner circle.
14. Carlos the Jackal
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Even decades after his peak notoriety, he remained one of the most sought-after international fugitives throughout much of the 1990s. Multiple governments offered combined rewards estimated at several million dollars, reflecting his long history of cross-border operations.
15. El Chapo
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By the end of the 1990s, he was already emerging as one of the most powerful figures in global drug trafficking, with Mexican and U.S. authorities offering a bounty estimated at several million dollars for information leading to his capture.
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Source: “AOL Money”
