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For almost 40 years, my family has been carrying unbearable sadness from the brutal murder of her husband, DEA special agent Enrique “Kiki” Camarena. Kiki was a dedicated father, beloved husband and a dedicated DEA agent who gave his life to protect his American citizens from ruthless drug cartels. He believed in justice, fought for the righteousness, and made the world safer for our children. However, in 1985, America lost its hero when Kiki was murdered in the most frightening way imaginable.
In February of that year, Kiki was invited to the Guadalajara Cartel. He was tortured for hours – beaten and burned with a cigarette. Rafael Caro Quintero and other cartel prisoners refused to feel every ounce of their brutality by injecting him with medicine so that he could fall unconsciously and keeping him awake.
Mexico will hand over to us dozens of cartel leaders and members, including Dr. Rafael Caro Quintero.
We hoped he would go home. When his body was found, his hopes were shattered and abandoned as if nothing had any meaning in his life. But Kiki's life, and his sacrifice, has done something, and it still does. And for 40 years my family and I have fought to ensure that his death is not in vain.
For too long, justice has been out of reach. Because Rafael Caro Quintero and other cartel members who were responsible for the murders of Kiki were exempt from them. They built a vast criminal empire, flooding the streets of the United States with fentanyl, leaving behind the devastation that followed. Cartels are violent organizations that take human life into consideration. They benefit from evil through drug smuggling, human trafficking, terrorizing innocent people and through countless other horrifying crimes. Yet for decades they have operated without the full weight of US law.
It was in July 2022 that Rafael Caro Quintero was eventually captured in Mexico after years of hiding. Unfortunately, at the time, the US government did not try hard enough to force him to pay for his crimes. But once President Trump was re-elected, we were once again hopeful. We knew he believed in our cause and we believed he would maintain his promise to hold the cartel responsible for their heinous crimes.
On his first day back in his office, President Trump bravely issued an executive order to designate the Mexican cartel as a foreign terrorist organization. This classification is more than a legal tool, and is the perception of fear these groups have on Americans like my husband. Additionally, terrorist designation helps cut off funding for cartels and their support networks, as families like me can seek justice in court.
After Quintero was handed over to the US earlier this month, my family and I filed a lawsuit against the man who murdered her husband. For the first time in nearly 40 years, he is awaiting criminal trial in the United States, so we hope that the person responsible for her husband's death will truly be held accountable.
I want the cartel who killed my husband to pay the price for their crimes. But what about other families who have lost their loved ones to cartel violence and are still awaiting justice? I am speaking because I want to encourage other families to take action too.
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President Trump's historic designation of several Mexican cartels as foreign terrorist organizations has cleared the path for many families to pursue justice, but not for everyone. More families like me who have lost their loved ones to cartel violence will have the opportunity to hold the cartel accountable for crimes if the administration expands its list of designated foreign terrorists. In particular, the Juarez and Lalinea cartel, who are responsible for the 2019 brutal massacre of nine American citizens in Lamora, Mexico, including six children, are some of Mexico's most dangerous cartels and should be added first.
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My battle – the Battle of Kiki – doesn't end with Quintero's arrest or this lawsuit. President Trump is standing with us. His administration was able to protect and bring justice to more Americans by adding Juárez, La Línea and other cartels to the list of terrorist designations. We owe it to Kiki and thousands of other victims to honor lives lost in actions that make our country safer.
For 40 years I have been waiting for justice. Now I am determined to ensure that all American victims of cartel ruthless atrocities and terrorism can get the justice they deserve.
