The fugitive drug
lord now faces extradition to the U.S. for the infamous torture and murder of
the DEA agent.
Caro-Quintero, one
of the founders of the brutal and powerful Guadalajara Cartel, kidnapped
Camarena and tortured him horribly before finally murdering him. American
officials claim Caro-Quintero was the mastermind behind Camarena’s murder.
Caro-Quintero
served 28 years of a 40-year sentence in a Mexican prison for the Camarena
murder prior to his being released in 2013 due to a legal technically. U.S.
officials had requested Mexico extradite Caro-Quintero prior to the drug lord
going underground. Since then, the U.S. has offered a $20 million dollar bounty
on the fugitive drug trafficker.
Camarena’s tragic
story was dramatized well in the Netflix series Narcos Mexico in 2018.
Also in 2018,
Caro-Quintero was placed on the FBI’s Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list.
The FBI’s
then-Deputy Director, David L. Bowdich, and other officials announced the
addition of Caro-Quintero to the Ten Most Wanted Fugitives at a press
conference.
“Fugitive Rafael
Caro-Quintero marks the 518th addition to the Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list,”
the Justice Department stated in a release at the press conference.
“Caro-Quintero is wanted for his alleged involvement in the 1985 kidnapping and
murder of DEA Special Agent Enrique Camarena Salazar, aka “Kiki.” This is the
first time a DEA fugitive has been placed on the Ten Most Wanted Fugitives
list.”
“Together with our
federal partners at the DEA. the U.S. Marshals Service, and the U.S. Department
of State, we are committed to bring to justice this dangerous criminal and
cartel leader responsible for the brutal murder of a DEA agent,” said Bowdich
at the press conference. “Special Agent Camarena was devoted to stopping drug
trafficking and breaking the cycle of drug-related crime. He showed tremendous
courage to pursue the most violent drug traffickers, and it is because of his
courage, and his selflessness, that we’re not going to stop looking for
Caro-Quintero until we find him and put him behind bars where he belongs.”
Also in 2018, the
Eastern District of New York announced the unsealing of an additional
indictment against Caro-Quintero, alleging his role as the leader of a
continuing criminal enterprise and the individual responsible for the murder of
Camarena. The indictment detailed his leadership in trafficking
methamphetamine, heroin, cocaine, and other drugs into the U.S. from 1980 to
2017.
According to the
Justice Department, Caro-Quintero is regarded as one of the Mexican
“Godfathers” of drug trafficking, and he helped to form the Guadalajara Cartel
in the late 1970s. He allegedly became one of the primary suppliers of heroin,
cocaine and marijuana to the U.S., and he was in charge of the cartel in Costa
Rica and the U.S./Mexican border.
In November of
1984, Mexican authorities raided a 2,500-acre marijuana plantation owned by
Caro-Quintero. The Guadalajara Cartel blamed Camarena for the takedown. And
they decided to retaliate by kidnapping Camarena.
“Camarena, a former
Marine, firemen, police officer, and deputy sheriff, was extremely close to
unlocking a million-dollar drug pipeline from Mexico to the United States in
1985,” the Justice Department stated. “Before he was able to expose the
drug-trafficking operation, he was kidnapped en route to lunch wife his wife on
February 7, 1985min Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico.
“Allegedly, the
direct orders for the kidnapping came from Caro-Quintero. Camarena was
surrounded by five armed men who threw him into a car, then sped away. It is
believed that Camarena died within two to three days of his kidnapping, but his
body was not found until March 5, 1985.”
And now in 2022,
Caro-Quintero is in Mexican custody and U.S. officials are requesting that he
be extradited to America, a fate that drug lords consider worse than death.
On July 15th, U.S.
Attorney General Merrick Garland issued a statement regarding the capture of
Caro-Quintero.
“There is no hiding
place for anyone who kidnaps, tortures and murders American law enforcement. We
are deeply grateful to Mexican authorities for their capture and arrest of
Rafael Caro-Quintero. Today’s arrest is the culmination of tireless work by the
DEA and their Mexican partners to bring Caro-Quintero to justice for his
alleged crimes, including the torture and execution of DEA Special Agent Enrique
“Kiki” Camarena,” the statement read. “We will be seeking his immediate
extradition to the United States so he can be tried for these crimes in the
very justice system Special Agent Camarena died defending.”
Hopefully, there
will finally be true justice for Kiki Camarena when Caro-Quintero is slapped
into a small cell in an American Supermax federal prison.
Paul Davis’
Threatcon column covers crime, espionage and terrorism.
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