In later years, DEA agent James Kuykendall, who was Camarenas supervisor in Guadalajara, has spoken out about the CIA and the Kiki Camarena murder. My autobiography : A Belfast Child is out soon , see below for details: My autobiography: A Belfast Child is now available to pre-order on Amazon , launch date is 30th April. Roberto Savianos non-fiction bookZero Zero Zero(2015) deals in part with Camarenas undercover work and his eventual fate. He was a Marine. Enrique "Kiki" Camarena Salazar (26 Juli 1947 - 9 Februari 1985) merupakan seorang agen DEA (Drug Enforcement Administration) Amerika Serikat keturunan Meksiko yang menjadi korban pembunuhan oleh kartel narkoba Guadalajara pada 1985. They then forcibly brought him to the United States to stand trial in federal district court. He also was an adjunct professor at the University of Dallas, where he taught law and economics. We need to make justice. In the late stages of Narcos: Mexico, ambitious DEA agent Kiki Camerana was finally murdered after being tortured for several days. Lopez said prosecutors showed him old photographs of former U.S. officials. Camarena, 37, who was known by the nickname "Kiki," served in the U.S. Marine Corps before moving into law enforcement and becoming a DEA agent in 1975. By 1985, which is when Narcos: Mexico roughly starts, he was extremely close to unlocking a multi-billion dollar drug pipeline, the DEA says. document.querySelector("#adunit").addEventListener('click',function(){ In 1981, the same year Reagan started his first term as president, the DEA sent their special agent Enrique "Kiki" Camarena to Guadalajara, Mexico. Kuykendall is quoted in the book Whiteout: The CIA, Drugs, and the Press by Alexander Cockburn. He was injected with amphetamines and other drugs to ensure that he remained conscious while being tortured over a 30-hour period, culminating with a hole drilled into his head with a power drill." }); TheHistory ChanneldocumentaryHeroes Under Fire: Righteous Vendetta(2005) chronicles the events and features interviews with family members, DEA agents, and others involved in the investigation. More than three decades after the incident, U.S. authorities are investigating potentially explosive new evidence in the case: allegations that Camarena was betrayed. Some of the prosecution efforts began to unravel in 1997 when the credibility of agovernmentwitness, and scientific testimony he introduced, came under scrutiny. It would be the last time Camarena was seen alive. The comments below have not been moderated. Did the CIA Torture an Undercover DEA Agent for a Mexican Drug Cartel? . Books of The Times; Behind the Torture-Death of a U.S. Drug Agent window.googletag.pubads().addEventListener('impressionViewable', function(event) { Jacob G. Hornberger is founder and president of The Future of Freedom Foundation. },false) pg.acq.push(function() { Caro-Quintero was convicted by a Mexican court but freed on appeal and is on the FBIs most-wanted list. When the War on Drugs set off in 1971, the U.S. government was leading the charge in trying to prohibit the sale, use, and transfer of illegal narcotics in the states. Since I had represented some people involved in drug prosecutions in federal court in my hometown of Laredo, I was thunderstruck when I heard about the Camarena case. DEA agent whose brutal death featured in Narcos was BETRAYED by CIA agent, according to key witnesses in 1985 case. All three series tell the story of Kiki Camarena, a 37-year-old DEA agent assigned to work in Mexico during the 1980s. Special Agent Enrique Camarena worked with the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) from 1974 through his abduction and murder in 1985 (Drug Enforcement Agency, n.d.). U.S. Justice Department agents and prosecutors obtained statements from witnessesimplicating a Central Intelligence Agency operative and a DEAofficial in the plot to torture and murder Camarena, according to the witnesses, Camarenas widow and others familiar with the case who were interviewed by USA TODAY. Investigatorsare pursuing additional witnesses to see whether the allegations can be corroborated. Reportedly, the farm had an estimated annual production worth $8 billion. According to El Pais, Camarenas skull, jaw, nose and cheekbones were crushed with a tire iron. Do not sell or share my personal information. Two former US law enforcement agents and an ex-CIA contractor have told an American television network that Enrique "Kiki" Camarena - the undercover DEA agent whose 1985 torture and murder in. You can watch the whole. In the early afternoon hours of February 7, 1985, Camarena was leaving his post based in the U.S. Consulate office in Guadalajara to meet with his wife. There is too many ghosts behind me, Godoy said. We need to make justice.. Mexican authorities provided audio recordings of parts of the interrogation to the CIA. Kiki Camarena Death: The Real Story of the DEA Agent's Murder Jacob G. Hornberger is founder and president of The Future of Freedom Foundation. What she was able to tell me was that he was a guy that just wanted to do good. A spokesman for the CIA declined to comment. In the ongoing cat-and-mouse. I had to tell them that he had been. Merely days before he was set to be transferred to San Diego, Kiki Camarena was kidnapped while on his way to lunch with his wife. Camarena Autopsy Report | Belfast Child lvarez subsequently initiated acivil suitagainst the U.S. government, charging that his arrest had breached the U.S.Mexico extradition treaty. }); )Special Agent (ICNTF)Special Agent (DEA). And thats what Ive been doing up until yesterday. True story behind Netflix's Narcos: Mexico - mirror They dropped the murder case against Matta, although he remains in prison on a drug trafficking charge, and agreed to let Verdugo plead guilty to a reduced charge and be deported to Mexico. 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The story of Camarena's kidnapping and subsequent grisly death at the hands of a Mexican drug cartel was most recently brought to viewers via the wildly popular Netflix original series "Narcos:. eventAction: 'render' Full Context. Ann Ogilbys brutal murder: Forgotten victims of theTroubles, Kriss Donald The Brutal Racist Killing of an InnocentSchoolboy, Senior Police Officer II (Calexico Police Dept. In late 2018, federal prosecutors decided not to retry the men. Alyssa Diaz and Mika Camarena attend the Netflix Original Series Narcos: Mexico, special screening at LA Live in Los Angeles, CA on November 14, 2018 in Los Angeles, California. Michael Pena is pictured playing the DEA Agent at right. However,Verdugo and Matta-Ballesteros will not be re-tried, and the CIA declined to comment to USA Today. agent Enrique (Kiki) Camarena walked out of his office in Guadalajara, Mexico, and headed for a lunch date with his wife. eventCategory: event.slot.getSlotElementId(), Image below of Book cover and outline of my storyYou can pre-order via this link on Amazon https://t.co/QAjG1d3u6HVisit my blog for more info: https://t.co/cpdGDOXdgy pic.twitter.com/71z7bgjwQ5. His full name was Miguel Angel Felix Gallardo, and, in real life, he was a brutal and clever man called El Padrino AKA The Godfather. Before Camarenas death, DEA units in Mexico destroyedmillions of dollars worth of marijuana grown on farms for the Guadalajara Cartel, named for the city in Jalisco, a state in western Mexico. There is too many ghosts behind me. Camarena, who had been identified as the source of the leak, was abducted in broad daylight on February 8, 1985, by corrupt police officers working fordrug lordMiguel ngel Flix Gallardo. Fonseca, who was convicted in the 1985 kidnapping, torture and murder of DEA agent Enrique "Kiki" Camarena . It helped bring his killers to justice, and exposed Mexican police corruption. ga('ads.send', { Mika Camarena is pictured meeting Ronald Reagan at the White House shortly after her husband's death. Carlos Somonte/Netflix. The show, in both seasons 1 and 2, traces the growth of the drug trade, moving the series setting from Colombia to Guadalajara, Mexico. 'The Last Narc' director recalls pistol being pulled on him during Set in the 1980s, the plot revolves around how an undercover agent for the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), Enrique S "Kiki" Camarena Salazar comes into the picture and tries to catch the drug traffickers red-handed. According to The San Diego Union-Tribune newspaper. The Torture and Execution of Kiki Camarena An internal Justice Department investigation in 1997 found he had testified falsely before Congress. The four other defendants, Vsquez Velasco,Juan Ramn Matta-Ballesteros, Juan Jos Bernab Ramrez, and Rubn Zuno Arce (a brother-in-law of former PresidentLuis Echeverra), were tried and found guilty of Camarenas kidnapping. The Tragic Death Of DEA Agent Kiki Camarena - Grunge.com Lenny Jacobson and Mika Camarena attend the Netflix Original Series Narcos: Mexico, special screening at LA Live in Los Angeles, CA on November 14, 2018 in Los Angeles, California. B-roll. Camarena received numerous awards while with the DEA, and he posthumously received the Administrators Award of Honor, the highest award given by the organization. Ive dealt with everything else, Mika Camarena said. let gads_event; The Red Ribbon Campaign was created to honor Camarena and to raise awareness about the dangers and effects of using drugs. Years later, another Justice Department review found he had repeatedly created scientifically unsupportable lab reports and provided false, misleading, or inaccurate testimony at criminal trials.. DEA He stated that all three of the men are said to 'have witnessed CIA operatives working alongside cartel members.'. Enrique S. Kiki Camarena Salazar(July 26, 1947 February 9, 1985) was a Mexican-born American undercover agent for theUnited StatesDrug Enforcement Administration(DEA) who was abducted on February 7, 1985, and then tortured and murdered, while on assignment inMexico. Throughout season one, we don't know who, exactly, is relating the story of doomed DEA agent Enrique "Kiki" Camarena. Camarena received many awards and is considered an American hero. Consisting of four one-hour segments, it will be the most fascinating drug-war documentary you will ever watch. The Mexican drug lord whose role in ordering the kidnapping and murder of a US drugs enforcement agent in 1985 was featured in Netflix drama Narcos: Mexico has been captured by law enforcement.. Rafael Caro Quintero, a notorious co-founder of the brutal Guadalajara Cartel, was behind the torture and murder of 37-year-old DEA agent Enrique "Kiki" Camarena. Seventeen years elapsed before prosecutors informed Verdugo that the testimony linking him to a hair found at the murder scene exceeded the limits of science. By then, Verdugo had been in prison for 32 years. The U.S. government effectively closed the border with Mexico to pressure its reluctant Mexican counterparts. That was the last time anyone but his kidnappers would see him alive, reveals the DEA, adding that he likely died two days later. Narcos Kiki Camarena Scene - YouTube A manhunt would follow, but it would take a month before they discovered what happened to Camarena. By the early '80s, Ronald Reagan was the new President and the agency was in full force. Kehidupan awal. The result was a murky blend of drug trafficking, corruption and crime-fighting in Guadalajara. It was not the first time someone had claimed that U.S. intelligence was entangled with the cartel responsible for Camarenas death. A man walked down the street just outside the DEA office in Guadalajara, Mexico, to have lunch with his wife. ), Young woman left in tears after her huge back tattoo doesn't turn out as expected: 'I'm stuck with this for the rest of my life', Don Lemon will be forced to have 'formal training' after 'frank' talks with CNN boss Chris Licht following 'sexist' Nikki Haley comment and rift with Kaitlan Collins but will return to morning show on Wednesday, 'If Don doesn't go, we will! Mika Camarena, whose given name is Geneva Camarena, was high school sweethearts with Kiki. Camarena opens the show in a scene that shows hes been abducted. eventAction: 'load' In season 2, an enraged DEA jacks up its efforts to dismantle the cartel and get cartel figures to prosecution, even going so far as abducting a doctor accused of being affiliated with the cartel and assisting in Camarenas death. Despite vigorous protests from the Mexican government, lvarez was brought to trial inLos Angelesin 1992. The memorial is located in the halls of the department, where Camarena served. Tipperary Tim astounding 1928 Grand National winner at 100/1 & a proud resident of Glencairn! Whats the true story? The shows depiction of his kidnap and torture was nowhere near as brutal as the real event and it is right that Kiki should be remembered as a hero who give his life in what I sometime feel is the pointless War on Drugs. Mexican drug trafficker Caro Quintero, accused killer of Kiki Camarena He attended high school in Calexico (a portmanteau of California and Mexico) where he met high school sweetheart and future wife, Geneva 'Mika' Camarena. Officials questionedthe men intheir offices in Riverside, California. In 2004, the Calexico Police Department erected a memorial dedicated to Camarena. Powered by. You can read about him here. Camarena, the Mexican-born agent and father of three, was 37 years old. "In (Camarena's) interrogation room, I was told by Mexican authorities that CIA operatives were in there," Phil Jordan, a former CIA agent, told Fox News in 2013. The implosion of Guadalajara led to the rise of the Sinaloa cartel, led by Joaquin El Chapo Guzman, who is now in U.S. custody. A CIA operative conspired with a drug kingpin to plan the brutal murder of a DEA Agent, according to multiple witnesses who have been re-interviewed about the 1985 case. Berrellez, the former DEA agent who once ran the task force investigating his murder, has said for years that the CIA was involved. He was also a veteran, having joined the U.S. Marine Corps in 1968, according to a DEA biography of him. She told the newspaper, Since retiring as a skin-care consultant, I can spend more time as president of the foundation. A man convicted in the 1985 kidnapping, torture and killing of U.S. DEA Special Agent Enrique "Kiki" Camarena Salazar was deported after serving three decades in prison, officials said Friday . gads_event = event; Physical Description 1 videocassette (Umatic) (1 min., 54 sec.) 1. ga('create', 'UA-67136960-15', 'auto', 'ads'); Camarena was tortured at Gallardos ranch over a 30-hour period, then murdered. ga('ads.send', { Indirectly, they (the CIA) have got to take some of the blame. He alleged the CIA protected the DFS for decades, and stated, The DFS just got out of hand., Kiki Camarena Death: The Real Story of the DEA Agents Murder, Please review our privacy policy here: https://heavy.com/privacy-policy/, Copyright 2023 Heavy, Inc. All rights reserved. Berrellez, the former DEA agent who ran the task force investigating his murder, has said for years that the CIA was involved. Lawyers for both said they were not permitted to discuss the details. Geneva "Mika" Camarena was looking forward to lunch at a upmarket restaurant with her husband Enrique or "Kiki". But on his way from the building to his vehicle, he was abducted by armed men who shoved him into a car. At 881 Lope de Vegaa residence owned by Ruben Zuno Arce, a dealer and associate of. The Justice Department declined to answer questions about the case. Narcos Kiki Camarena Scene Mark Marquez 125 subscribers Subscribe 3.9K Share 487K views 7 years ago I do not own this video. Who was the real Kiki Camarena? Murder of Kiki Camarena Camarena's kidnapping By 1984, the Guadalajara Cartel had expanded into the cocaine industry in partnership with Colombian cartels, and it became increasingly violent as it took over Tijuana from Alberto Sicilia Falcon 's organization and fought back against DEA efforts to weaken its drug business. By then, federal agents had launched a manhunt like few others in U.S. history. Camarena's Abduction and Torture Described - Los Angeles Times We sell bronze life-size busts of Kiki that are unveiled in schools and libraries throughout the country, not just in San Diego. Kiki joined the Drug Enforcement Administration in June of . Along with pilot Freddy Zavala, Kiki is interrogated, tortured, and ultimately executed. Enrique Camarena Salaza lahir di . Camarenas son, Enrique Jr., a county judge in San Diego, declined to comment through a spokesman because judicial ethics rules dont allow him to comment on open cases or investigations.. Kiki Camarena's bio and legacy Kiki Camarena died in 1985 and was a Drug enforcement agent since 1974. He spent four years in Mexico tracking the countrys drug dealers (the drugs of choice were marijuana and cocaine back then.). [News Clip: Camarena - Arrest] - The Portal to Texas History Murdaugh is heckled as he leaves court, Ukrainian soldier takes out five tanks with Javelin missiles, Ken Bruce finishes his 30-year tenure as host of BBC Radio 2, Missing hiker buried under snow forces arm out to wave to helicopter, Family of a 10-month-old baby filmed vaping open up, Insane moment river of rocks falls onto Malibu Canyon in CA, Fleet-footed cop chases an offender riding a scooter, Moment teenager crashes into back of lorry after 100mph police race. He said he was asked not to discuss the case, but were in a free country.. Mexico drugs: How one DEA killing began a brutal war - BBC News O Plata O Plomo? "Silver or Lead?" - "The Abduction of DEA Agent Kiki Anyone can figure out that that sort of thing is just going to get the U.S. government even more determined to come after you. He was raised in California, graduating from Calexico High School in Calexico, California in 1966. On the face of it, it would appear that Camarena was kidnapped, tortured, and killed because he was responsible for discovering and destroying a massive marijuana plantation in Mexico that cost the drug cartel billions of dollars. Camarena first joined theDEA, at theirCalexico, Californiaoffice. The Camarena murder never made any sense to me. eventCategory: event.slot.getSlotElementId(), document.querySelector("#ads").addEventListener('click',function(){ However, bombshell new testimony from three men who worked as security guards for the cartel kingpin tells a more sinister story. On February 7, 1985; DEA Special Agent Enrique "Kiki" Camarena and his pilot Fredy Zavala were kidnapped by agents of the Direccin Federal de Seguridad, allegedly on behalf of Rafael Caro Quintero, one of the leaders of the Guadalajara Cartel. Beyond that, the witnesses who provided information to authorities are closely tied to a former agent, Hector Berrellez, who has long alleged a CIA connection to Camarenas death and was accused by a defense lawyer involved in the case of encouraging a witness to lie. Wrapped in plastic, his ribs were broken, skull crushed and a hole drilled into his head. Hundreds of club members including Calexico High School teacher David Dhillon wore red ribbons and pledged to lead drug-free lives to honor the sacrifices made by Kiki Camarena and . pg.acq.push(function() { According to The Los Angeles Times, Camarenas murder led to the fall of Gallardo and his close associates and the fracturing of their cartel. Criminal cases seldom improve with age as both memories and evidence fade, and the investigation of Camarenas murder has produced reams of conflicting evidence that would make any new prosecution especially challenging. Enrique (Kiki) S. Camarena was born on July 26, 1947, in Mexicali, Mexico. 'Narcos: Mexico': Michael Pena on Kiki Camarena Abduction - The Kiki Camarena was born Enrique (Kiki) S. Camarena on July 26, 1947, in Mexicali, Mexico. Ultimately, Camarena's death had a significant impact on the DEA in the years after, and turned a new page on just how violent the war on drugs was. 'The Last Narc' Cause of Death: How Did Kiki Camarena Die? - Heavy.com What's the real story of the death of Kiki Camarena? As the Mexican federal policemen began leaving the scene, Kiki slowly walked towards the house, and saw a glimpse of Caro Quintero along with his lieutenants Cuco and Chapo. In order to maintain control and enforce these anti-drugs laws, a new federal agency was born. In 1987, Mr. Hornberger left the practice of law to become director of programs at the Foundation for Economic Education. You cant just put it in a drawer and forget about it, said one official, who was not authorized to speak publicly about the case and did so only on condition of anonymity. The nationwide annualRed Ribbon Week, which teaches school children and youths to avoid drug use, was established in his memory. Gallardo, known as 'The Godfather', remains behind bars for his role in the murder. In 1985, I was practicing law in Texas. Golden Brown The Stranglers: Iconic Songs & the story behindthem. Thirty-five years later, three former cartel insiders share unprecedented details. The tape helped authorities identify Camarena's voice pleading with the culprits in his murder. It was the 7th of February, 1985. eventAction: 'click_ads' The money goes toward scholarships. In real life, Camarenas wife was indeed named Mika, and she is the mother of his three children. Click here to order :https://tinyurl.com/2p9b958v. In the aftermath of Camarena's death the DEA then launched their biggest homicide manhunt,Operation Leyenda ("Legend")(per DEA Museum and Visitors Center). Seventeen years elapsed, however, before prosecutors informed Verdugo that the testimony linking him to a hair found at the murder scene exceeded the limits of science. By then, Verdugo had been in prison for 32 years.