Family of Kiki Camerena Sues Rafa and Sinaloa Cartel Under Justice for Victims of Terrorism Act

"Socalj" for Borderland Beat

From an NBC News Article

The family of U.S. federal agent Enrique “Kiki” Camarena has filed a lawsuit against the Sinaloa cartel in Mexico and three suspected drug kingpins over his brutal kidnap and murder in 1985.

Camarena, a 37-year-old agent with the Drug Enforcement Administration, was abducted in broad daylight off the street of Guadalajara on Feb. 7, 1985. His pilot, Alfredo Zavala-Avelar, was kidnapped near the Guadalajara airport. Both men were interrogated and tortured in an effort to gain information on the DEA’s knowledge of the Cartel’s operations, the federal civil lawsuit says.

They were killed two days after the kidnapping and their bodies were buried in a shallow grave on a rural farm about 60 miles from Guadalajara, the lawsuit says. His story was featured in the first season of the Netflix series "Narcos: Mexico."

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Rafael Caro-Quintero Pleads Not Guilty in New York Court to Killing DEA Agent 'Kiki' Camarena

"Socalj" for Borderland Beat

At Rafael Caro-Quintero's arraignment in New York federal court, Assistant US Attorney Saritha Komatireddy said Caro-Quintero "pioneered Mexican drug trafficking" and the violent enforcement of his cartel's turf. 

His court-appointed attorney entered a not guilty plea on his behalf and did not contest pretrial detention. Caro Quintero was among 29 top drug operatives in Mexico who were expelled and transferred to the U.S. under pressure from the Trump administration.

Judge Robert M. Levy clarified in court Caro Quintero was expelled from Mexico under a provision within the national security law, which permits the Mexican government to remove an individual without undergoing the formal extradition process.

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Mexican Official Manuel Bartlett Diaz Responds to FBI Files Regarding 'Kiki' Camarena Kidnapping

From Ioan Grillo's Articles on CrashOut

The Director of Mexico's Federal Electricity Commission, and former interior secretary responded to Crash Out's report on the declassified memorandum.

On Friday Sept. 27, 2024, Manuel Bartlett, Diaz released a letter in answer to a report on CrashOut from Wednesday, Sept. 25. I [Ioan Grillo] strongly believe in the right of reply and I am publishing here the full letter from Bartlett in English and Spanish, with a few further points from Crashout below.

The report Bartlett is responding to is, “Exclusive – U.S. Declassifies Document on Bartlett and Camarena Case,” by Juan Alberto Cedillo and Ieva Jusionyte, with additional reporting and writing by me, Ioan Grillo. You can read the full report here.

The report is based on a 1986 message from the U.S. embassy in Mexico City to the director of the FBI that was declassified on August 12 following freedom of information requests by Jusionyte and Cedillo. The story by CrashOut and the document have been cited widely in Mexican media, which Bartlett mentions in his reply.

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Mexico's Kidnapping Treason Law Stems from Manhunt Following DEA Agent 'Kiki' Camarena's Torture & Murder

"Socalj" for Borderland Beat

The Mexican government says it is bringing charges against Joaquín Guzmán López, but not because he was one of the leaders in the Sinaloa drug cartel founded by his father, Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán.

Instead, Mexican prosecutors are bringing charges against the younger Guzmán for allegedly kidnapping Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada in order to turn him over to US authorities when they landed in New Mexico.

Federal prosecutors issued a statement saying “an arrest warrant has been prepared” against the younger Guzmán for illegal flights, kidnapping, and illicit use of airports, with treason implicated as well. They cited the charge of treason “by those who illegally abduct a person in Mexico in order to hand them over to authorities of another country.”

The inclusion of that particular clause was apparently motivated by the 1990 abduction of a Mexican doctor wanted for allegedly participating in the 1985 torture and killing of DEA Agent Kiki Camarena. The Doctor had helped to keep Camarena alive while he was being tortured, ensuring his pain would continue longer.

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