Clue: Criminal sent a group of spies in Escobar's ranch? (8)
Answer: ESTANCIA
Explanation: Definition: Escobar's ranch?
A charade of ESTAN, an anagram ('criminal') of 'sent a' plus CIA ('group of spies'). Escobar could be any of many Spanish American people to justify the Spanish-borrowed answer word for a ranch, but principally refers to the *Hacienda Nápoles*, the Colombian estate of one-time drug lord Pablo Escobar.