An individual formerly in a senior position at the DEA faces allegations of aiding in drug trafficking and money laundering amounting to £9 million for a well-known Mexican cartel. Paul Campo purportedly orchestrated a scheme to transfer funds to the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG), a group associated with 80% of cartel-related fatalities in Mexico over the last ten years. Alongside his associate Robert Sensi, the 61-year-old, who served as a US Drug Enforcement Agency agent for nearly a quarter-century, is accused of converting funds into cryptocurrency to procure 220kg of cocaine and agreeing to launder a minimum of $12 million (£9 million) for the cartel.
Campo and Sensi were apprehended in New York on Thursday afternoon and charged with narcoterrorism, terrorism, narcotics distribution, and money laundering. According to an indictment made public on Friday, the pair fell into a trap set by a US law enforcement source posing as a cartel member. In a meeting at a New York restaurant in March, they allegedly discussed various methods to transfer money from the US to Mexico, including through real estate investments and smuggling large sums of physical cash.
During the encounter, Campo reportedly mentioned his past experience in aiding clients in financial matters and even exhibited his former DEA badge, revealing his prior workplace. Rising through the ranks during his tenure at the DEA to lead the Office of Financial Operations targeting money laundering operations, Campo established a company named Global Financial Consultants upon exiting the agency in 2016.
Earlier this year, the State Department classified CJNG as a foreign terrorist organization following US President Donald Trump’s comparison of South American drug cartels to the “ISIS of the Western Hemisphere.” US Attorney Jay Clayton condemned Campo for allegedly betraying the DEA’s mission and collaborating with CJNG, a violent criminal enterprise responsible for numerous deaths due to drug trafficking and violence in the US and Mexico.
DEA Administrator Terrance C Cole emphasized that Campo’s indictment serves as a stern warning that any breach of public trust, past or present, will face legal consequences. Despite the alleged criminal activity occurring post-DEA employment and being unrelated to official duties, engaging in illegal actions post-employment tarnishes the integrity of law enforcement and erodes public trust. The DEA remains steadfast in holding individuals accountable for betraying the public’s trust.