Kiki Camarena

Camarena was married to Mika with whom he had three sons – Enrique, Daniel and Eric.

Kiki was born on July 26, 1947, in a small town called Mexicali. When he was nine, his family moved to Calexico, California.

After graduating high school, Kiki served in the United States Marine Corps from 1973 to 1975. After working in the Marine Corps, he went to Imperial Valley College and earned his associate degree.

During his college days, he also worked as a fireman in Calexico. He then joined the police department in Calexico.

While working in the police department, Kiki was transferred to El Centro, California, where he began his work as a narcotics investigator.

In 1974, he was appointed as an agent in the Drugs Enforcement Administration (DEA), and started working as a special agent. His principal mission was to eradicate drug trafficking in the country.

In 1981, he moved to the Guadalajara office in Mexico and stayed there for four years. During his stay in Mexico, he started gathering information about the various drug production houses in the surrounding area. He then passed on the information to the local police department and to the DEA.

In 1984, acting on a tip-off from Kiki, 450 Mexican soldiers backed by a helicopter destroyed Rancho Bufalo – a 2500-acre marijuana plantation. The damage affected the drug lords in a big way as almost 8 billion dollars worth of production was destroyed in the attack.

The drug lords managed to figure out that Camarena had provided the information about Rancho Bufalo. Meanwhile, Camarena was on the verge of exposing another massive drug trade, but the drug-mafia had already begun a hunt for him.

Camarena received many awards for his courage and bravery. One of the most important awards that he received was ‘Administrator’s Award of Honor’, which is the highest award given by the DEA.

To honor Camarena, a golf tournament is held every year at the DEA station in Fresno.

In 1985, ‘Red Ribbon Week’ was started in his memory. It is basically a campaign that teaches children and young adults about the ill-effects of drugs.

In 2004, Enrique S. Camarena Foundation was established in his honor.

‘Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks’ introduced an annual award ceremony called ‘Enrique Camarena Awards’. The award is given to individuals who show determination, courage and focus.