The Cr;me Scene 67

The Enrique Camarena Case: A Forensic Nightmare

On February 7, 1-985, U.S. DrugEnforcement Agency (DEA) Special Agent(SA) Enrique Camarena was abducted nearthe U.S. Consulate in Guadalajara, Mexico.A short time later, Capt. Alfredo Zavala, a

DEA source, was also abducted from a carnear the Guadalajara Airport. These twoabductions would trigger a series of eventsleading to one of the largest investigationsever conducted by the DEA and wouldresult in one of the most extensive casesever received by the FBI Laboratory.

Throughout this lengthy investigation,unusual forensic problems arose thatrequired unusual solutions. Eventually,numerous suspects were arrested, both inthe United States and lVexico, whichculminated In an S-week trial held in U.S.District Court in Los Angeles, CA.

On February 7 , 7985, SA Camarena left theDEA Resident Office to meet his wife forlunch. On this day, a witness observed aman being forced into the rear seat of a lightcolored compact car in front of the CamelotRestaurant and provided descriptions ofseveral of the assailants. After some initialreluctance, Primer Comandante Pavon-Reyesof the Mexican FederalJudicial Police (MFJP)

was put in charge of the investigation, andMexican investigators were assigned to thecase. Two known drug traffickers, RafaelCaro-Quintero and Ernesto Fonseca, werequickly developed as suspects. A short timelater at the Guadalajara Airport, as Caro-

Quintero and his men attempted to flee byprivate jet, a confrontation developedbetween Caro-Quintero's men, the l\4FJP, andDEA Agents. Afler some discussion, Caro-

Quintero and his men were permitted toboard and leave. lt was later learned that a

Reprinted from FBl Law Enforcement Bulletin,September 1989.

6-figure bribe had been paid to Pavon-Reyesto allow this departure.

During Februarlr 1985, searcnes of set'eralresidences and rancires :hr3L;gr3,i \'Jericoproved f"uitless. ces3'-e :1€ -'-: :s -':^:DEA tas" 'orce ass ;':a -.c ' .::.::.: .- :matler and i-e .':^':-l: -: :'::s-'T :: -n

applleo bY ihe t. S Gc ,: "- ^- - -: ::accelerare :ie',::. :.:,- - i-- :.:

directlv inrc rea : --': ::sa : s :; e.'ecthat beca-se :':- s -=:: :-= '.':' ::'drug traii:cllers a.c aa'-t ^ "':,Accordrng ic :.e I -'. -,^a',':-j . :, :/AnA |A :a :_ iF .1- - i :-:/ " - - t- -: -,- z-

Undated photo of Enrique Camarena.Courtesy AP Wide World Photos

Michael P MaloneSoec'al Agent, Laboratory DivisionFedera Bureau of Invesugation.\!asn ngton. D.C,

UIUB tl o i -f\riS c L !: . ' =' -. -'\enforcenel: oi'c a,s '=:" :=--a: ? : a' ,

68 cHAPTER 2

60 miles southeast of Guadalajara. TheMFJP was supposed to raid the ranch,eliminate the drug gang, and eventuallydiscover the bodies of SA Camarena andCaptain Zavala buried on the ranch. TheDEA would then be notified and the casewould be closed. Thus, the Bravo gangwould provide an easy scapegoat.

During early March, MFJP officers raided theBravo ranch before the DEA Agents arrived.ln the resulting shootout, all of the gangmembers, as well as one MFJP officer, werekilled. However, due to a mix-up, the bodiesof SA Camarena and Captain Zavala werenot buried on the Bravo ranch in time to bediscovered as planned. The individuals paidto do this job simply left them by the side ofa road near the ranch. lt was later learnedthat certain Mexican law enforcementofficials were paid a large sum of money toformulate and carry out this plan in order toobstruct and prematurely conclude theinvestigation.

Shortly after this shootout, a passerbyfound two partially decomposed bodies,wrapped in plastic bags, along a road nearthe Bravo ranch. The bodies were removedand transported to a local morgue wherethey were autopsied. The DEA was thenadvised of the discovery of the bodies andtheir subsequent removal to anothermorgue in Guadalajara, where a secondautopsy was performed.

On March 7, L985, the FBI dispatched aforensic team to Guadalajara. Theyimmediately proceeded to the morgue toidentify the bodies and to process anyevidence which might be present. Aftermuch bureaucratic delay from the localofficials, they were finally allowed toproceed. The bodies were identified onlyas cadavers number 1 and number 2. ltwas apparent that each body had beenautopsied and that both were in anadvanced state of decomposition. Cadavernumber 1 was quickly identified by thefingerprint expert as that of SA Camarena.Mexican officials would not allow the

second body to be identified at this time;however, it was later identified throughdental records as Captain Zavala.

The FBI forensic team requestedpermission to process the clothing,cordage, and burial sheet found with thebodies but the request was denied.However, they were allowed to cut small,"known" samples from these items andobtain hair samples from both bodies. Soilsamples were also removed from thebodies and the clothing items.

A forensic pathologist from the Armed Forceslnstitute of Pathologl was allowed toexamine the body of SA Camarena. Heconcluded that SA Camarena's death wascaused by blunt-force injuries. ln addition, SACamarena had a hole in his skull caused bya rod-{ike instrument. SA Camarena's bodywas then released to the American officialsand immediately flown to the United States.

The next day, both FBI and DEA personnelproc-eeded to the Bravo ranch where thebodies were initially found. Because this sitehad been a completely uncontrolled crimescene, contaminated by both policepersonnel and onlookers, only a limitedcrimescene search was conducted. lt wasimmediately noted that there was no gravesite in the area and that the color of the soilwhere the bodies had been depositeddiffered from the soil that had been removedftom the bodies. Therefore, "known" soilsamples ftom the drop site were taken tocompare with soil removed from the victims.It was also noted that there were nosignificant body fluids at the "burial" site.This led the forensic team to conclude thatthe bodies had been buried elsewhere,exhumed, and transported to this site.

The MFJP officials were later confrontedwith the evidence that the bodies had beenrelocated to the Michoacan area. This wasone of the factors which led to a new,unilateral MFJP investigation. As a result,several suspects, including State JudicialPolice Officers, were arrested and

The Crime Scene 69

interrogated concerning the kidnapping ofSA Camarena. Primer ComandantePavon-Reyes was fired, and arrestwarrants were issued for a number ofinternational drug traffickers, includingRafael Caro-Quintero and Ernesto Fonseca.

ln late March 1985, DEA Agents located ablack Mercury Gran Marquis which theybelieved was used in the kidnapping ortransportation of SA Camarena. The vehiclehad been stored in a garage inGuadalajara, and a brick wall had beenconstructed at the entrance to conceal it.The vehicle was traced to a Ford dealershipowned by Caro-Quintero. Under the watchfuleye of the MFJP at the Guadalajara Airport,the FBI forensic team processed thevehicle for any hair, fiber, blood, andlorfingerprint evidence it might contain.

During April 1985, the MFJP informed theDEA that they believed they had locatedthe residence where SA Camarena andCaptain Zavala had been held. The FBIforensic team was immediately dispatchedto Guadalajara; however, they were notallowed to proceed to the residence,located at 881 Lope De Vega, until anMFJP forensic team had processed theresidence and had removed all of theobvious evidence. The DEA was alsoinformed that since the abduction ofSA Camarena, all of the interior walls hadbeen painted, the entire residence hadrecently been cleaned, and that a group ofMFJP officers were presently occupying,and thereby contaminating, the residence.

On the first day after the arrival of the FBI

forensic team, they surveyed and began acrime scene search of the residence andsurrounding grounds. [See Figure 1.] Theresidence consists of a large, two-storystructure with a swimming pool, coveredpatio, aviary, and tennis court surroundedby a common wall. The most logical placeto hold a prlsoner at this location would bein the small outbuilding located to the rearof the main residence. This outbuilding,

designated as the "guest house," consistedof a small room, carpeted by a beige rug,with an adjoining bathroom. The entire roomand bathroom were processed for hairs,fibers, and latent fingerprints. The singledoor into this room was made of steel andreinforced by iron bars. lt was ultimatelydetermined by means of testimony andforensic evidence that several individualsinterrogated and tortured SA Camarena inthis room. ln addition, a locked bedroom,located on the second floor of the mainhouse, was also processed, and the bedlinens were removed from a single bed.Known carpet samples were taken fromevery room in the residence.

A beige \ArV Atlantic, which flt the generaldescription of the smaller vehicle noted bythe person who witnessed SA Camarena'sabduction. was parked under a carport atthe rear of the residence. The WV Atlanticwas also processed for hairs. fibers, andfingerprints.

On the second day. a thorough groundssearch was conducted. As FBI forensic teammembers were walking around the tenniscourt, they caught a glimpse of somethingblue in one of lie drains. Upon closerinspection, it appeared to be a folded licenseplate, at the bottom of the drain. However, aheavy iron grate covered the drain andprevented the plate's immediate retrieval.

When one of the FBI Agents returned tothe main house to ask the MFJP officersfor a crowbar, they became extremelycurious and followed the Agent as hereturned, empty handed, to the tenniscourt. By this time, a second Agent hadmanaged to remove the grate by using aheavy-wire coat hanger. The license platewas retrieved, unfolded and photographed.The MFJP officers, all of whom were nowat the tennis court, became upset at thisdiscovery, and one of them immediatelycontacted his superior at MFJPheadquarters, who ordered them tosecure the license plate until the

70 cHAprER 2

LicensePlatesFound

TennisCout PRIVATE

BUSINESS\.

GROUNDS or*#gCovered

PorchSIDE

ENTRANCE

WALL AND ARCHWAYS

SIDEENTRANCE

GARAGE

Area

Sliding Gate

Flcl.JRE x. Diagram of the 881 Lope De vega grounds. Gamarena was held prisoner inthe guest house.

(5z.z.=o--r- ;<9E a=>Jo

E,oUo

The Crime Scene 7l

Assistant Primer Comandante arrived onthe scene. After his arrival approximately2O minutes later, he seized the licenseplate and would not allow the Americansto conduct any further searches.

However, by this time, five very large plasticbags of evidence had been recovered andwere placed in the rear of a DEA truck. Theevidence was quickly transported to theDEA vault in the U.S. Consulate.

After negotiations between the UnitedStates and Mexico. the MFJP did allow a

second, final search ofthe residence. OnJune 24,1985, a forensic team returnedand processed the four remaining roomson the first floor of the main house.

By this point in the investigation, anassociate of Rafael Caro-Quintero hadbeen arrested and interrogated by theMFJP. He stated that the bodies of twoAmericans, Albert Radelat and JohnWalker, who had been abducted and killedby Mexican drug traffickers, were buriedon the south side of La Primavera Park, alarge, primitive park west of Guadalajara.The bodies of Radelat and Walker werelocated and recovered. Soil samplestaken from the surface of an area neartheir graves were similar in most respectsto the soil recovered earlier from thebodies of SA Camarena and CaPtainZavala.

ln September 1985, DEA personnel wentto La Primavera Park and sampled an areaapproximately 2 feel below the surfacenear the same site. This sample matchedthe soil samples from SA Camarena andCaptain Zavala almost grain for grain,indicating that this site was almostcertainly their burial site before they wererelocated to the Bravo ranch.

Later that fall, after further negotiationsbetween the U.S. and the Mexicangovernments, permission was finally grantedfor an FBI forensic team to process the

evidence seized by the MFJP forensic teamfrom 881 Lope De Vega the previous April.The evidence consisted of small samplesthe MFJP had taken of SA Camarena's burialsheet. a piece of rope used to bind SACamarena. a portion of a pillowcaseremoved ftom bedroom number 3, a pieceof unsoiled rope removed from the coveredpatio. and a laboratory report prepared bythe MFJP Crime Laboratory. The remainderofthe evidence had been destroyed for'heafth reasons."

ln January 1986, a drug trafficker namedRene Verdugo, who was considered to be ahigfrranking member of the Caro-Quinterogang, was apprehended and taken toSan Diego, where he was arrested by theDEA. He was then transported toWashington. D.C.. where hair sampleswere taken. He refused to testify before a

federal grand jury investigating theCamarena case. Later that year. DEApersonnel obtained hair samples in MexicoCity from Ser$o EspineVerdin. a formerfederal comandante. who is believed tohave been SA Camarena's PrimarYinterrogator during his ordeal at 881 LopeDe Vega.

Ti:= ?ri*!ln July 1988, the main trial of themurder, interrogation, and abduction of SACamarena began in U.S. District Court inLos Angeles, CA. The forensic evidencepresented in this trial identified 881 LopeDe Vega as the site where SA Camarenahad been held. The evidence also stronglyassociated two Mexican citizens, ReneVerdugo and Sergio EspineVerdin, with the"guest house" at 881 Lope De Vega.Several types of forensic evidence wereused to associate SA Camarena with 881Lope De Vega: forcibly removed headhairs, found in the "guest house" andbedroom number 4, in the WV Atlantic andin the Mercury Gran Marquis, and twotypes of polyester rug fibers, a dark, rose-

Q 52A UacuumSweeping

{Guest House}

Q 52A VacuumSweeping

{Guest House}

K 9 Head Hair

K 9 Head Hair

K 9 Head.Hair:

:,q : t: ;;. .;;

FIGURE 2 Tfial chart showing hair comparisons between known Camarena hairs and hairsrecovered fiom 881 Lope De Vega,

The Crime Scene 73

Q 45 Front Seat K I Head Hair

Q 45 Front Seat

Q 45 Front Seat

F'iG|JRE 3 Trial chart showing hair comparisons between known Gamarena hairs and hairsrecovered from the Mercury Gran Marquis.

K I Head Hair

K 9 Head Hair

74 cHAPTER 2

f:**R€ 4 A model of 881 Lope De Vega prepared as a trial exhibit.

colored fiber and a light-colored fiber. iSeeFigures 2 and 3.1 Fabric evidence was alsopresented, which demonstrated thesimilarities of color'. composition.construction. and cesjgr letlveen SACamarena's gi-l',;l 5hggi a-: i.'te twop', c,',cases'e:c\.e.ec "co 3eJ'oorrsairffac. Q rnr"! i

Basec on tnis e\:Jence assoc atingSA Camarena anc 881 Looe De vega. theFBi Laboratory examiner ,.!as abie io iesiirythat SA Camarena was at thls residence.as well as in the VW Atlantic ano theMercury Gran Marquis. and that he hadbeen in a position such that his head hairswere forcibly removed. Captain AlfredoZavala was also found to be associatedwith the "guest house" at 881 LopeDe Vega. Light-colored nylon rug fibers,found on samples of his clothing taken atthe second autopsy, matched the fibersfrom the "guest house" carpet.

A detailed model of the residence at881 Lope De Vega was prepared by theSpecial Projects Section of the FBILaboratory for the trial. [See Figure 4.]

Over 20 trial charts v,ere also prepared toexplain the various types of forensicevidence. These charts proved invaluablein ciarifl ing the complicated techniquesand clraracteristics used in theexamination of the hair, fiber. fabric, andcordage evidence. [See Figure 5.]

The forensic pitfalls and problems in thiscase (i.e., destruction of evidence,contamination of crime scenes) wereeventually resolved. ln some cases,certain routine procedures had to beignored or unconventional methodsemployed. However, in many instances,detailed trial testimony overcame thelimitations of certain evidence, andeventually, almost all of the evidenceintroduced at the trial made a tremendousimpact on the outcome of thisproceeding. After an 8-week trial,conducted under tight security andinvolving hundreds of witnesses, all of thedefendants were found guilty, convictedon all counts, and are currently servinglengthy sentences.

The Crime Scene 75

CAIEGORIES OF FORENSIC EVIDENCE

IN CAMARENA CASE

Blood onTissue

nGLlnE 5 Trial chart used to show the association of Camarena and Tavala with various locations.