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The Enrique Camarena Case. The Abduction. February 7, 1985, U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency Special Agent Enrique (Kiki) Camarena was abducted near the U.S. Consulate in Guadalajara, Mexico. Capt. Alfredo Zavala, a DEA source, was abducted a short time later near the Guadalajara Airport.
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The Abduction February 7, 1985, U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency Special Agent Enrique (Kiki) Camarena was abducted near the U.S. Consulate in Guadalajara, Mexico. Capt. Alfredo Zavala, a DEA source, was abducted a short time later near the Guadalajara Airport.
A Little History • Camarena was born in Mexico. • His family moved to Southern California when he was nine years old. • Joined the Marines. • After the Marines, he became a fireman, then a policeman, and then joined the DEA.
A Little More History • Camarena was the father of three boys. • He planned to retire three weeks after the date he was abducted. • He was going to meet his wife, Mika for lunch when he was abducted.
And A Little More History • Camarena was an undercover agent who had been monitoring a multi-billion dollar syndicate which he suspected extended to the highest reaches of the Mexican army, police, and government. • In November 1984, the Mexican authorities and the DEA raided an enormous marijuana plantation called “The Buffalo”.
The Mexican Federal Judicial Police Response • Slow! • Primer Comandante Pavon-Reyes was put in charge of the MFJP investigation. • Rafael Caro-Quintero and Ernesto Fonseca were quickly developed as suspects. • Caro-Quintero was encountered at the Guadalajara Airport, but was allowed to board a private jet and leave.
The Investigation • February 1985, several Mexican residences and ranches were searched to no avail. • The U.S. Government started to apply tremendous pressure. • Mexican drug traffickers and certain MFJP officers fabricated a plan.
The Plan • The MFJP were to receive a letter indicating that SA Camarena and Captain Zavala were being held at the Bravo drug gang’s ranch in La Angostura, Michoacan (~ 60 miles from Guadalajara). • The MFJP would raid the ranch finding the bodies of the two missing men. • The MFJP would report to the DEA that the case was closed.
What Really Happened! • During early March, MFJP officers raided the Bravo ranch before DEA agents arrived. • A shootout occurred killing all of the Bravo gang and one MFJP officer. • The bodies were found by the side of the road in plastic bags. Not buried as planned.
The Investigation Continues • March 7, 1985 – The FBI sent a forensic team to Guadalajara. • They were allowed to examine the bodies. • Cadaver 1 was identified by fingerprints as Camarena. • Cadaver 2 was later identified by dental records.
The Investigation Continues • Requests to process the clothing, cordage, and burial sheet were denied. • They were allowed to cut small, “known” samples of each and take hair samples. • Soil samples were removed from the bodies and their clothing.
Camarena’s Cause of Death • Death caused by blunt-force injuries. • He had a hole in his skull caused by a rod-like instrument.
The Road Side • The next day, both FBI and DEA personal proceeded to the Bravo ranch to the site where the bodies were found. • No grave site was found. • The soil on the bodies was different in color from the soil where the bodies had been deposited. Samples were taken for comparison. • No significant body fluids at the site.
The Road Side Conclusion – The bodies had been buried elsewhere, exhumed, and transported to this site.
A New Investigation • The MFJP officials were later confronted with this evidence. • Several State Judicial Police officers were arrested and interrogated. • Primer Comandante Pavon-Reyes was fired. • Arrest warrants were issued for several international drug traffickers including Rafael Caro-Quintero and Ernesto Fonseca.
Late March 1985 – DEA agents located a black Mercury Gran Marquis which they believed was used in the kidnapping or transportation of Camarena. • Vehicle was traced to a Ford dealership owned by Rafael Caro-Quintero. • The car was processed for hair, fiber, blood, and fingerprint evidence.
881 Lope De Vega • April 1985 – the MFJP informed the DEA that they believed they had located the residence where Camarena and Zavala had been held. • The FBI dispatched a forensic team to Guadalajara; however they were not allowed to proceed to the residence until an MFJP forensic team had processed the residence and had removed all the obvious evidence.
881 Lope De Vega • A beige VW Atlantic was under a carport at the rear of the residence. • On the second day, a thorough grounds search was conducted. • They observed a folded blue license plate in a drain near the tennis courts. • They removed the iron drain grate, unfolded the license plate and photographed it.
La Primavera Park • An associate of Rafael Caro-Quintero was arrested and interrogated by the MFJP. • He stated that the bodies of two Americans, Albert Radelat and John Walker, were buried on the South side of La Primavera Park. • Soil samples taken from this site 2 feet below the surface were very similar (grain for grain) to the soil found on Camarena and Zavala.
Rene Verdugo • A drug trafficker and high ranking member of the Caro-Quintero gang was arrested January 1986 and taken to San Diego. • He was thought to be involved in the kidnapping of Camarena.
Sergio Espino-Verdin • A former Federal Comendante. • He was believed to be the primary interrogator during Camarena’s ordeal at 881 Lope De Vega.
The Trial of Rene Verdugo and Sergio Espino-Verdin • U.S. District Court in Los Angeles, CA • Started July 1988. • Lasted 8 weeks. • Both were found guilty of the murder, interrogation, and abduction of Camarena.
Red Ribbon Week • Americans celebrate Red Ribbon Week during the third week of October to honor Enrique Camarena’s efforts in the drug war and to encourage others to take a stand against drugs.
