DEA agent Enrique “Kiki” Camarena vanished in 1985 after playing a key role in dismantling a billion-dollar marijuana operation in Mexico. On February 7, 1985, while on his way to lunch with his wife, Mika, he was abducted by five armed men, thrown into a vehicle, and driven away. At the time, Camarena, 37, was just weeks away from transferring back to the U.S. His body was discovered a month later, 60 miles from where he was taken, showing signs of brutal torture.
Now, nearly four decades later, Rafael Caro Quintero, the drug lord accused of orchestrating Camarena’s murder, has been extradited to the U.S. along with 28 other prisoners requested by the U.S. government. The Justice Department confirmed the transfer on Thursday.
“This moment is deeply personal for the men and women of the DEA who believe Caro Quintero is responsible for the brutal torture and murder of DEA Special Agent Enrique ‘Kiki’ Camarena. It is also a victory for the Camarena family,” DEA Acting Administrator Derek S. Maltz stated. “Today sends a message to every cartel leader, every trafficker, every criminal poisoning our communities: You will be held accountable. No matter how long it takes, no matter how far you run, justice will find you.”
A Dedicated Agent, A Devoted Father
Camarena was more than just a DEA agent—he was a husband, a father of three, and a man dedicated to serving his country. Before joining the DEA, he served in the U.S. Marine Corps, worked as a firefighter, police officer, and later as an Imperial County deputy sheriff in Calexico, California, where he grew up. Born in Mexicali, Mexico, Camarena moved to the U.S. at the age of nine.
In 1981, he relocated to Guadalajara with his wife and children, going undercover to track Mexico’s largest cocaine and marijuana traffickers. At the time, Rafael Caro Quintero was a major cartel leader, supplying massive amounts of heroin, cocaine, and marijuana to the U.S. His empire took a devastating hit when authorities, acting on DEA intelligence, raided Rancho Bufalo in 1984, seizing thousands of tons of marijuana.
Caro Quintero allegedly blamed Camarena for the loss, leading to the DEA agent’s abduction and murder in retaliation.
Camarena’s son, Enrique Jr., was just 11 years old when his father was kidnapped. In a 2017 interview with CBS News, he recalled how DEA agents filled their home within hours of his father’s disappearance.
“Well, your dad’s Superman,” he said. “So you think, we’ll see him. He’ll be fine.”
But he never saw his father again. Within days, Enrique Jr. and his brothers were rushed back to the U.S. The family later received a call from then-President Ronald Reagan, and Camarena’s wife was invited to the White House to meet him personally.
Now, with Caro Quintero facing justice in the U.S., the Camarena family and the DEA hope that long-awaited closure is finally within reach.