. 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. In May of 1985, she met with President Ronald Reagan. October 26, 2021. Despite the War on Drugs launching in the 1970s, it didn't hit full steam until the '80s. After the death of Kiki Camarena, his wife Mika Camarena became involved in a number of social and charitable initiatives in order to preserve and promote the sacrifices made by him. "It's been 32 years," he said. During his time in Mexico, Camarena came dangerously close to exposing top leaders of a multi-billion dollar drug pipeline in the country. Why were you linked to this murder? The U.S. government pulled out all the stops to find out who did the kidnapping, torture, and killing of Kiki Camarena, putting unbelievable amount of pressure on the Mexican government to find the people responsible and extradite them to the United States. He has advanced freedom and free markets on talk-radio stations all across the country as well as on Fox News Neil Cavuto and Greta van Susteren shows and he appeared as a regular commentator on Judge Andrew Napolitanos show Freedom Watch. He spent four years in Mexico tracking the countrys drug dealers (the drugs of choice were marijuana and cocaine back then.). Our youth will lose.. Camarena held other positions in law enforcement before joining the DEA. It organizes various activities and events as a part of it. He was raised in California, graduating from Calexico High School in Calexico, California in 1966. DEA agent Enrique "Kiki" Camarena, seen here with his wife Mika, was kidnapped and killed by orders of the Guadalajara Cartel. A version of this story was first published in Noticias Telemundo. And sure enough, thats what happened. The case has been a point of contention . 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. We have to give it time. The case is thus, believed to be undergoing another investigation, that may bring more shocking results. https://www.thefamouspeople.com/profiles/mika-camarena-43123.php. Caro Quintero had walked free in 2013 after 28 years in prison when a court overturned his 40-year sentence for the 1985 kidnapping and killing of U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration agent . In a talk, she said: When theres no demand, theres no power for the dealers., In an interview, she also spoke of the changes that have come out in the aftermath of her husbands death. It has been some time since the valiant agent passed away, and his body was discovered in 1985. Mika Camarena was born in Fresno in the year 1948. On the other hand, Enrique has proudly followed his fathers footsteps. In 1985, Camarena was kidnapped, brutally tortured, and then executed. Son, Brother, Husband, Father, US Marine, DEA Agent. The money goes toward scholarships. They removed eight hernias. Cartels have never existed in Guadalajara. His boys were 11 (Enrique), 6 (Erik), and 4 (Daniel) at the time of his passing, and Mika was left a widow at the age of 37. Drug dealers don't blindfold and record interrogations to kill someone. A very short video segment released by the navy showed Caro Quintero his face blurred dressed in jeans, a soaking wet blue shirt and baggy khaki jacket held by both arms by men wearing camfoulage uniforms and carrying assault rifles. His left arm was in a cast because he fell a few weeks ago. Camarena and the DEA's investigation into Caro Quintero and the Guadalajara Cartel in the mid-80s was detailed in the hit Netflix show "Narcos: Mexico.". Camarena was abducted by corrupt officers on behalf of the cartel in Guadalajara, Mexico, in February 1985. A 35 aos del asesinato de Enrique "Kiki" Camarena, el diario estadounidenses USA Today asegur en un artculo escrito por Brad Heath, que las autoridades norteamericanas estn . Whats the true story? The Reagan Administration predictably freaked out and exercised its power. In later years, some have argued that Mexican operatives working for the CIA were involved in Kiki Camarenas death, according to El Pais. Mika Camarena and her future husband, Kiki Camarena, both grew up in the city of Calexico, California. The four-part cartel docuseries The Last Narc is set to premiere on Prime on May 15. She graduated from Imperial Valley . In April 2016 I had the first contact with one of his lawyers in Mexico City. Recently, the popular Netflix series"Narcos: Mexico" chronicled his life as the co-founder of the Guadalajara cartel, as the first drug trafficker to create a bridge between South America and the United Statesfor the export of cocaine negotiating with Colombian drug traffickers such as Pablo Escobar. He was on the FBIs most wanted list, with a $20 million reward for his capture through the State Departments Narcotics Rewards Program. Kiki's wife, Geneva "Mika" Camarena, mourned the loss of her husband. Offers may be subject to change without notice. Kiki received two Sustained Superior Performance Awards, a Special Achievement Award and, posthumously, the Administrators Award of Honor, the highest award granted by DEA, the DEA says. The foundation is a non-profit that is aimed to help youth who suffer from any kind of drug abuse. In March 1985, the DEA recovered the body of Kiki Camarena, 37, who left behind Mika and three children named Enrique, Daniel, and Erik. Flix Gallardo was first arrested in April 1989 and has spent 32 years in prison in Mexico for the 1985 murder of U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration agent Enrique "Kiki" Camarena Salazar. A retired skin care consultant, Mika now focuses even more of her time on running the foundation. Three leaders of the Guadalajara drug cartel were eventually convicted in Mexico for Camarena's murder. Kiki and his wife Mika are pictured here on their wedding day. Full Context. Uno de ellos, Enrique 'Kiki' Camarena lleg a Guadalajara, Mxico, en 1980, cuando el Crtel de Guadalajara comenzaba a prosperar transportando la cocana que llegaba de Colombia. Of the 10, three agreed to be interviewed for this story. She said: those in the DEA headquarters learned quite a bit from this. Todays arrest is the culmination of tireless work by 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. They kept beating me up. And the nation mourned the loss of a hero. Kiki Camarena was missing and nobody knew what had happened at that time. Flix Gallardo: No. Caro Quintero was originally slapped with a 40-year sentence for masterminding the murder of Camarena, who was accused of tipping off Mexican forces in 1984 to a marijuana plantation worth . Kiki's kids are all grown up. According to The Los Angeles Times, Camarenas murder led to the fall of Gallardo and his close associates and the fracturing of their cartel. Copyright 2023 NBCUniversal Media, LLC. Official websites use .govA .gov website belongs to an official government organization in the United States. So, where are they now? 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. In 1987, Mr. Hornberger left the practice of law to become director of programs at the Foundation for Economic Education. Her eldest son Enrique became a deputy district attorney in 2014, working in the South Bay. However, she gradually distanced herself from the details about the case in order to focus more on what used to drive him during his lifetime: to not let the drug cartels win. He blamed Camarena for a raid on a marijuana plantation in 1984. His badly beaten body was recovered nearly one month after he was kidnapped. However, she grew up in Calexico. (You can see photos of the real people behind the Narcos: Mexico characters here.) But after Berrellez figured out what was really going on, he was taken off the case. Kiki was due to be reassigned in three weeks because he had come dangerously close to exposing the top leaders of a multi-billion drug pipeline. Amazon Prime's 'The Last Narc' details the horrific account of DEA agent Enrique S "Kiki" Camarena Salazar's abduction and murder by the Mexican drug lords at Guadalajara and the ensuing investigation that followed. Mika Camarena continues to honor her former husbands legacy through the foundations work. Since You Can't Go to the Movies, Amazon Prime Brought the Movies to You, Amazon Prime Delivery Is Experiencing Delays in the Wake of Coronavirus, The Best Amazon Prime Shows of 2020, in Case You Needed Another Reason to Stay In. We didnt see a lot of effort (to capture Caro Quintero) in the last several years, especially when (Lpez Obrador) came in and immediately started to dismantle a lot of the infrastructure and the bilateral relationships between the U.S. and Mexico relative to drug trafficking, Vigil said. Throughout the year, Mika herself visits schools and communities across the country to share her story and speak on the importance of drug awareness. "There is no hiding place for anyone who kidnaps, tortures, and murders American law enforcement. Suspect wanted for the killing of DEA Agent "Kiki" Camarena was arrested in Mexicali. In an interview, regarding the same, she said: I want the truth to be out. Enrique S. Camarena Jr. was 11 when members of a narco-trafficking cartel tortured and murdered his father, nicknamed Kiki, in Mexico in February, 1985 -- a tragic milestone in a drug war that still rages on. Im talking about who you are as a person. . There had been tensions between the Mexican government and the DEA after Mexico enacted a law limiting the U.S. agency's operations. Flix Gallardo: As the honest person that I always was, a man who wasn't into weapons. However, she recently received unprecedented media attention after Netflix produced the crime-drama series 'Narcos: Mexico' in 2018, which depicted the tragic story of her husband. The CIA has denied the allegations. In a candid interview with the San Diego Tribune, Mika was asked if she ever imagined this happening and knew of the dangers involved in Camarenas day-to-day work life. He mentioned that he did not just learn from them in their capacity as lawyers, but learned from them as people. The foundations three main programs include placement of memorial Camarena busts, scholarships for high school senior students, and participation in the Red Ribbon campaign. He was added to the FBIs top 10 most wanted list in 2018. And Im going to be serving my county, serving this community in a different way., Camarena, much like his father, is a peoples person. What would you like to do if you were to regain your freedom one day? So if we werent welcome here in Mexico that wouldnt happen.. And Im not talking about who you are as a lawyer or trial skills. Enrique 'Kiki' Camarena, 37, was abducted, tortured and killed in 1985 while working with the DEA in Mexico . My family is digging a grave so that I may be buried next to a tree. It has been some time since the valiant agent passed away, and his body was discovered in 1985. In fact, better yet, first watch Seasons 1 and 2 of Narcos: Mexico on Netflix. Was he really abducted? Getty Don Neto is a key character in Narcos: Mexico. She went on to raise her three boys alone. After all, when Camarena tragically died, his three children, Enrique, Erik, and Daniel, were 11, 6, and 4 years old, respectively. The program has worked with many schools nationwide, sharing Kiki Camarena's story, and the harms of using drugs. Send him email. Powered by WordPress.com VIP. Enrique is now a deputy district attorney. Caro Quintero, who's believed to be between 59 and 69, served 28 years of a 40-year sentence in Mexico for the grisly killing of DEA agent Enrique "Kiki" Camarena before being fre Today, the eight-day celebration is an annual catalyst to show intolerance for drugs in our schools, workplaces, and communities. 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