Washington – A former agent of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) was charged in a federal court in New York with conspiring to launder millions of dollars that he believed came from the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG).
The defendant, identified as Paul Campo, 61, worked for 25 years for the DEA, first in New York, ultimately serving as deputy director of the Office of Financial Operations, according to the indictment reported by The New York Times.
Allegedly, Campo and his associate Robert Sensi, 75, laundered nearly $750,000 of what they believed were CJNG drug profits, converted it into cryptocurrency, and agreed to raise the laundering amount to $12 million.
Campo and Sensi believed they were dealing in the meetings with a cartel member, where they agreed on what they would do, but in reality it was an undercover DEA informant who delivered the cash that they would launder.
There is no indication that Campo or Sensi had contact with real members of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel—designated by the United States as a foreign terrorist organization—or that the money used in the investigation was intended for the group.
Campo and Sensi met the DEA informant in March on two occasions.
In the first meeting, in New York, the informant told them that the cartel had operations across the United States and needed a reliable method to move money from this country to Mexico. The second meeting took place in Florida.
In those meetings, Campo informed the supposed cartel member of the various ways in which he could launder the drug proceeds, including real estate, prepaid cards, and smuggling cash, according to the indictment.
He also indicates that during the meetings with the informant, the now-accused had agreed to assess obtaining commercial drones, weapons and military equipment for the Cartel, including AR-15 and M16 rifles, M4 carbines, grenade launchers, and rocket-propelled grenades.
Campo and Sensi were charged with various counts of conspiracy: to commit narcoterrorism, to distribute narcotics, to provide material support to a terrorist organization, and to launder money.
It is worth noting that previously other DEA agents have been charged with aiding cartels.
