---
aliases:
- Donald Barrios
category: Intelligence & Government
created: 2026-05-17
location: Miami, Florida
summary: Wealthy Nicaraguan exile, FDN supporter, and relative of former president
  Violeta Barrios de Chamorro who introduced Norwin Meneses to Danilo Blandon and
  co-founded La Parrilla restaurant in Miami as a Contra gathering place.
tags:
- Person
- Nicaragua
- UnitedStates
- 1980s
- ContraWar
- DarkAllianceInvestigation
title: Donald Barrios
updated: 2026-05-18
---

Donald Barrios was a wealthy former insurance broker from Managua living in Miami who was a relative of former Nicaraguan president Violeta Barrios de Chamorro. He was an active [FDN](/organizations/fdn/) supporter and played a connecting role among Contra-linked drug traffickers in Miami.[^1]

### Introducing Meneses to Blandón

[Norwin Meneses](/people/norwin-meneses/) was introduced to [Danilo Blandón](/people/danilo-blandon/) through Barrios. After Meneses proposed that Blandón sell [cocaine](/concepts/cocaine/) in [Los Angeles](/places/los-angeles/) to raise money for the [Contras](/organizations/contras/), Barrios facilitated the initial connection. He later sent Blandón to fetch Meneses from LAX when Meneses first arrived in California in 1980 or 1981.[^1][^2]

### Business Activities in Miami

Barrios was in business with several of Blandón's FDN associates. In 1984, [Roger Sandino](/people/roger-sandino/) set up an import-export business in Miami with the help of a Coral Gables attorney who was in business with Barrios and former National Guard major general [Gustavo Medina](/people/gustavo-medina/). Barrios later co-founded La Parrilla, an elegant Nicaraguan restaurant in Miami, with Medina. The restaurant became a hangout for Contra leaders and was the site of pro-Contra demonstrations and seminars. The Miami Herald described the cuisine as "Contra cooking from ex-Somoza General Gustavo Medina." [Henry Corrales](/people/henry-corrales/), Blandón's former cocaine distributor, also owned a piece of the restaurant.[^1][^2]

[^1]: Webb, Gary. *Dark Alliance: The CIA, the Contras, and the Crack Cocaine Explosion.* Seven Stories Press, 1998. Chapter 6: "They were doing their patriotic duty"
[^2]: Webb, Gary. *Dark Alliance: The CIA, the Contras, and the Crack Cocaine Explosion.* Seven Stories Press, 1998. Chapter 21: "I could go anywhere in the world and sell dope"