Rafael Caro Quintero
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Rafael Caro Quintero (October 24, 1952) is a Mexican criminal and former drug kingpin of the Guadalajara Cartel. One of its cofounders, he is considered the "Narco of Narcos" as his efforts in collaboration with corrupt police officer Miguel Ángel Félix Gallardo would eventually led to the rise of Mexico's current drug cartels.
Early life edit
Caro Quintero was born on October 24, 1952 to a farming family. As a young man, he began growing marijuana with a drug lord named Pedro Aviles Perez. Later, he bought his own farms and ran an operation together with drug lord Ernesto Fonseca Carrillo and corrupt police officer Miguel Ángel Félix Gallardo.
Founding the Guadalajara Cartel edit
Together with Felix and Fonseca, Caro Quintero decided to bring every marijuana-growing operation in Mexico under one organization, in a manner similar to OPEC. It was called a cartel because they would work together to fix prices of marijuana. Later, they expanded to purchase cocaine from Pablo Escobar.
They ran into many obstacles, including the fallout from Caro Quintero's staged kidnapping of his girlfriend Sara Cosio. Her father was a high-ranking PRI member and government secretary, so Caro Quintero's actions put him and his cartel at risk of investigation(normally, such a thing would not be an issue, since they had most law enforcement in Mexico bought off)
Murder of Kiki Camarena edit
In 1984, DEA agent Kiki Camarena infiltrated a group of workers heading to Caro's marijuana fields. Although he did not know the exact location, he was able to provide an area that could be searched by aircraft. After it was determined that Camarena was responsible, Caro had him kidnapped, tortured and murdered. These actions would ultimately lead to his arrest as well as that of Fonseca, but Felix would escape. As a result, the DEA opened up a new investigation into the Guadalajara Cartel, Operation Leyenda, to apprehend Felix, which eventually succeeded. Despite his arrest, Caro would continue to operate through family connections.
Because of the fallout from Felix's arrest and the breakup of the Guadalajara Cartel, Caro's actions are arguably a major factor in the escalation of drug cartel violence in Mexico.
Release edit
In 2013, Caro was ordered to be released by a Jalisco state court, on the ground that he had been tried and convicted in federal court of state crimes. In response, the United States Department of Justice decided to pursue new criminal charges against him in order to obtain an extradition warrant. He was believed to still be involved in the illegal drug trade until his arrest in July 2022 (see below). With a bounty of 20 million USD, he was one of the most-wanted criminals by the United States.
Capture edit
Rafael Caro Quintero was located by Max, a Navy dog, in the bushes in San Simón de Choix, Sinaloa; he was placed at the disposal of the FGR, he has an extradition order to the United States.
MEXICO CITY (appro).– The Mexican government reported that Rafael Caro Quintero, former leader of the Guadalajara Cartel, was arrested in San Simón de Choix, Sinaloa, in a joint operation with elements of the Attorney General's Office (FGR ) and the Secretary of the Navy (Semar).
Fictional depictions edit
He appears in the Netflix series Narcos and Narcos: Mexico portrayed by Tenoch Huerta Mejía.