This is one of the more shocking stories of recent times: a man who once was one of the senior officials in the Drug Enforcement Administration has been arrested for conspiring with a Mexican cartel to launder money and import drugs. This is the indictment.
The defendants are Paul Campo and a friend or associate of Campo, Robert Sensi. The indictment recites that Campo spent 25 years in the DEA, retiring in 2016 as Deputy Chief of the Office of Financial Operations. Subsequent to that, he purported to run a consulting firm. The events described in the indictment began in late 2024. This was evidently a sting operation. A confidential source purporting to be a member of CJNG, a Mexican cartel, apparently approached Campo and Sensi. They had multiple meetings and extensive discussions about collaborating in the drug business.
Campo and Sensi agreed to launder money for the cartel, and ultimately to finance drug importation to the U.S. along with larger-scale money laundering. They also discussed supplying the cartel with firearms and providing other services. They actually carried out a small-scale money laundering operation as a sort of test, but the money in fact went to the DEA. Campo told the confidential source that he had worked on other “projects” with other organizations like CJNG.
There are many more details in the indictment. The case raises obvious questions. Campo presumably had been engaging in illegal activities for some time prior to 2024, and had thus come to the attention of the Department of Justice, leading to its use of a confidential source. For a former law enforcement officer, especially a high-ranking one like Campo, to turn criminal is rather horrifying. But here, an obvious question is when Campo went over to the other side. Did he work with cartels while he was with the DEA, for example by selling information about DEA practices, plans or even personnel? One hopes not.
This will be an interesting case to follow as it unfolds.
