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El Chapo’s Arrest Won’t Impact War on Drugs

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Posted: January 18th, 2016

By Michael Vigil

Mike Vigil is the former Chief of International Operations for the Drug Enforcement Administration. He is one of the most highly decorated agents within the agency and was responsible for numerous multi-national operations, the largest involved 36 countries. He was also responsible for developing global intelligence sharing platforms. He is the author of DEAL and Metal Coffins: The Blood Alliance Cartel and Narco Queen.  He is also the author of The Land of Enchantment Cartel.  Vigil was made an honorary General by the government of Afghanistan and given the key to the city of Shanghai by China. He was also given an Admiral’s sword by the former president of the Dominican Republic, Hipolito Mejia.

There was a sigh of relief when the Mexican government successfully re-captured drug lord Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman last week.  El Chapo, leader of the Sinaloa Cartel, is arguably the most powerful drug trafficker in the world, exporting volumns of illegal narcotics globally and spreading violence in its wake.  However,  DEA Agent Mike Vigil told The Cipher Brief that El Chapo’s capture will not have a significant impact on the drug trade, or what he believes will be a permanent campaign against illicit drugs, until the United States can reduce its demand for drugs. 

The Cipher Brief: How was El Chapo captured? How did the U.S. and Mexico work together to capture El Chapo?

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Categorized as:Latin America ReportingTagged with:

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