[[DEA]] agent Enrique "Kiki" Camarena was abducted, tortured, and murdered by Mexican drug traffickers in February 1985 in Guadalajara, [[Mexico]]. His death at the hands of Mexican traffickers made him a hero to many narcotics agents and triggered a massive investigation that exposed unexpected connections between drug trafficking and the [[Central Intelligence Agency]]'s [[Contras|Contra]] operations.[^1] ### Connections to Contra Drug Trafficking [[Norwin Meneses]] claimed he helped the DEA gather intelligence on the Camarena murder, providing information that helped U.S. authorities capture one of the Mexican drug lords involved, Rafael Caro Quintero, at a mansion outside San Jose, [[Costa Rica]], in April 1985. Meneses said he also met with DEA attaché Robert J. Nieves in late 1985 concerning the case. Nieves refused to discuss Meneses or the case.[^1] During the 1991–92 criminal trials of Camarena's alleged killers, a longtime CIA operative in Mexico, Lawrence Victor Harrison, testified that the CIA was collaborating with Mexican intelligence and cartel bosses who were providing money, arms, and training facilities for the Contras in exchange for CIA protection of their drug enterprises.[^1] ### CIA Cover-Up Allegations Both Harrison and his DEA overseer, Hector Berrellez, who headed the Camarena murder investigation, believed the agent was killed because his investigations into "protected" marijuana plantations threatened to expose the CIA-cartel collaboration. Based on his investigation—which discovered audiotapes the killers made during torture sessions—Berrellez recommended that a federal grand jury be convened to examine the CIA's knowledge of Camarena's murder. Soon afterwards, Berrellez, one of the DEA's most decorated agents, was transferred to Washington and given a do-nothing desk job until his retirement.[^1] ### Footnotes [^1]: Gary Webb, *Dark Alliance*, Chapter 11: "They were looking in the other direction"