The Last Narc

There may be no more dangerous job in the world

these days than being an undercover agent for the United

States Drug Enforcement Administration, the DEA,

the federal agency which is at war with ruthless drug dealers

around the world.

Tonight, one of those undercover agents is missing.

Apparently, the victim of drug vengeance.

Enrique Camarena was reportedly

kidnapped by four armed men in Guadalajara, Mexico.

The hostages' whereabouts and condition unknown.

Camarena left the US consulate on February 7,

intending to meet his wife for lunch,

and was apparently abducted less than a half a block away.

A small army of Mexican Federal

Police and American drug agents are searching for Camarena.

But so far they have found nothing.

US inspectors are making a thorough search

of more than half the cars crossing into this country

along the entire Mexican border

from San Ysidro, California, to Brownsville, Texas.

Motorists at the busiest border crossing

at San Ysidro, near San Diego, have

had to wait up to nine hours.

Although the White House denies it,

reliable sources tell NBC News President Reagan has spoken

to Mexican president De La Madrid

about the case of Enrique Camarena.

ABC News has learned that Camarena had uncovered evidence

indicating that high Mexican law enforcement

agents were involved with the drug smugglers.

I've had this little thorn in my heart

knowing the truth about what really happened to Kiki.

The US intelligence officials ordered the kidnapping and

interrogation of Kiki Camarena.

The Camarena case is still being covered up to this day.

And I want the world to know the truth.

It's time.

And if I die doing it, well, that's what God wanted.

We must wage what I have called total war

against public enemy number one in the United States,

problem of dangerous drugs.

In 1973, President Nixon

created the Drug Enforcement Administration to fight

America's new war on drugs.

The DEA used undercover narcotics agents,

known as narcs, to bust traffickers in the US

and around the world.

In 1980, the drug war expanded to Mexico,

where a group of marijuana growers

had relocated from the mountains of Sinaloa

to the city of Guadalajara to forge

Mexico's first drug cartel.

Rafael Caro Quintero, Ernesto Fonseca Carrillo,

and Miguel Felix Gallardo, became the most

powerful drug lords of the era.

In 1985, they conspired to kidnap, torture,

and murder DEA Agent Kiki Camarena,

resulting in their downfall.

The disintegration of the Guadalajara cartel

plunged Mexico into violence and led to the rise

of Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman.

Since then, more than 125,000 people have

died in Mexico's cartel wars.

But to this day, Camarena's murder looms above them all.

For 35 years, the truth behind his killing

has remained a closely guarded secret

at the highest levels of government

in Mexico and the US.

This is the story of the man who was murdered,

the men who killed him, and the one

man who risked everything to find out what really happened

and why.

When my mom was like 16, she got pregnant with me.

And my grandmother, who was a very strict Catholic,

said, you got to leave the house.

So my mom went and became friends

with these ladies that were like gypsies that told fortunes.

They took her in and they said, listen,

you know, you learn this trade, and you'll always have money.

Your present, your past, and your future.

Present, past, and future.

That's the way she supported herself

when she was pregnant with me.

She married my dad, who lived in Mexico.

Before I was born, they migrated to the United States,

and I was the oldest of six brothers.

You are going to be happy,

because you feel that some force is protecting you.

You will always care for your family.

We grew up in South Tucson, Arizona, which

is mainly a Hispanic community.

All of my Anglo friends spoke Spanglish,

half English half Spanish.

So I grew up speaking both languages.

You are going to receive a letter or some news

about the death of someone you know,

someone you care about.

It will bring you sadness,

and you will have to fight for your life.

Once I did my time in the US military during the Vietnam War

and reported home, my dad had broken his back,

and he wasn't working, so there was no money coming in.

So I started looking at the unemployment

section of the newspaper, and there was

openings for police officers.

And the last thing I wanted to be growing up was a policeman.

But then I found out that my little brother,

who was 12 years old, was hooked on heroin.

The only time that I saw my dad cry...

when he would see his son be dragged in by the US

Marshals in chains.

And I remember the tears rolling down my dad's face.

And it hurt me dearly because I adored my father.

And I would grab him and say, Dad, don't worry.

I'm going to do something about this.

These guys are going to pay that addict people like this.

I'm going to arrest every drug dealer I can.

A, B, C, D, E, F, G, oh boy!

Kiki was born in Mexico,

and he immigrated with his family at the age of 9.

Then he started school in the US at Calexico.

And that's where we wound up meeting.

A lot of the families traveled north to work in the crops.

In the summer of our sophomore year, we made eye contact.

We were 14.

Kiki and I graduated in 1966.

At 18, Kiki had a vision of what he wanted to do.

He wanted to marry me and be an FBI agent.

I thought, how could you possibly at this age already

be so serious about what you want?

Then Kiki was drafted to the Army, but he chose the Marines.

Kiki always felt that the Marines were tougher.

He always wanted to do the right thing.

And being in law enforcement was part of that.

I really liked being a cop.

And I stepped up to the state police

as a uniformed highway patrolman.

They would use me to do undercover buys

because I spoke Spanish.

One day I was writing tickets, the next day I'm undercover.

I liked it. But it was very, very dangerous.

I'm surprised I didn't run into somebody

that I had given a ticket to like two or three days before.

I looked like a cop. Very young. I had short hair.

So I felt uncomfortable going with the informants,

and meeting these Mexican drug dealers, and they look at me

and says, are you sure you're not a cop?

"Man, I don't even have papers."

"I don't even have green papers. I'm here illegally."

I became an adrenaline junkie.

I liked the rush that you got.

You are afraid you might get shot or killed,

but then you're saying, I can fool this guy.

When I was making buys for the state police,

an informant came in and said that he had met a very

big heroin dealer from Sinaloa.

So they said, go in there, buy an ounce of heroin for $10,000,

and pay him.

So I walk in, and of course, I can't

act like I'm experienced with this guy,

because this guy is a big drug dealer.

He was very well dressed, a lot of jewelry,

about 50 years old, and I tell him...

"Look, my mom is in very bad shape.

She is very sick, she has cancer.

And I know nothing about this business.

I know nothing about heroin."

And he says, "This is amazing heroin,

comes directly from the lab."

And I said, "Please, please."

"Because if I take them something that's been cut...

They'll kill me."

And he says, "Calm down, calm down, kid.

This is pure heroin."

And he puts down an ounce of heroin.

"Did you bring the money?"

So I had $10,000 of marked bills.

And I gave him the $10,000.

"Take it.

And I have a gift for you."

And he handed me this bag, plastic bag,

full of white powder.

"It's pure cocaine."

"Is it cocaine?"

"Yes."

I'm acting dumb, naive.

"Thank you."

"Listen, sell this cocaine

and pay your mom's medical bills."

It's a gift from me to you.

I like you, dude, and by the way, get out of this business.

You don't belong in this business.

You're too young and too naive

and too nice of a guy to be involved in this shit.

I don't want to see you again, but we're going do this deal.

So I go outside, open the trunk, and here comes the cavalry,

and they go in and arrest everybody.

We had like a SWAT team out there.

And as they're walking him out of the hotel in handcuffs...

"You're really good, kid."