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Mexico City, 2011. A warehouse filled with U.S. government weapons sits unguarded as cartel members load trucks. But they're being watched—by the same CIA that supplied the guns. This is the explosive truth behind Operation Fast and Furious and decades of hidden partnerships.
Newly declassified documents from 2024 reveal how U.S. intelligence agencies armed Mexican cartels with over 2,000 weapons, protected drug routes, and managed both sides of the drug war. From the Iran-Contra scandal to modern operations, discover how the CIA turned cartels into intelligence assets while publicly claiming to fight them. Learn why Border Patrol Agent Brian Terry's death exposed a conspiracy reaching the highest levels of government.
Is the war on drugs actually a carefully managed business partnership? What other operations remain classified?
The CIA Files They Didn't Want You to See: Cartel Edition
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0:00
Mexico City 2011. A warehouse filled
0:03
with AK-47s
0:05
and ammunition sits unguarded. Mexican
0:08
cartel members load the weapons into
0:10
trucks heading for the border. But these
0:12
aren't stolen guns. They were sold by
0:15
the United States government. And the
0:17
cartel members, they're being watched by
0:20
CIA satellites. Their every move tracked
0:23
and recorded. This is Operation Fast and
0:27
Furious, and it's about to become the
0:29
biggest scandal in modern intelligence
0:31
history. How does the world's most
0:33
powerful intelligence agency end up
0:35
arming the same cartels it claims to be
0:38
fighting? How do 2,000 militarygrade
0:41
weapons walk across the border with full
0:44
government knowledge only to be used in
0:46
over 150 murders, including a US Border
0:49
Patrol agent? Between 2006 and 2011,
0:54
multiple US agencies ran operations that
0:57
supplied weapons to Mexican drug cartels
1:00
worth over $1.50 million. That's $2.2
1:05
million in today's money. But here's
1:08
what the official reports don't tell
1:09
you. Declassified documents from 2024
1:14
reveal this wasn't the first time. For
1:17
decades, the CIA has maintained complex
1:20
relationships with drug cartels, using
1:23
them as assets, informants, and even
1:25
partners in covert operations. The war
1:28
on drugs, sometimes it was more like a
1:31
business merger. So, get ready to dive
1:34
into the explosive truth about how
1:37
America's intelligence agencies played
1:39
both sides of the drug war and why some
1:42
investigators believe they're still
1:44
doing it today. Act one, the Cold War
1:48
connection. The truth is, we don't know
1:51
much about the CIA's earliest cartel
1:54
operations because most documents remain
1:56
classified or were destroyed. But what
2:00
we do know begins in the 1980s during
2:03
the height of the Cold War when fighting
2:05
communism justified almost anything. The
2:09
story starts with the Nicaraguan
2:11
Contras, anti-communist rebels fighting
2:14
the Sandinista government. Congress had
2:17
banned US funding for the Contras
2:20
through the Boland Amendment, but the
2:22
Reagan administration was determined to
2:24
support them. Enter Oliver North, the
2:27
CIA, and a plan that would forever blur
2:31
the lines between intelligence
2:33
operations and drug trafficking.
2:36
According to declassified documents and
2:38
congressional testimony, the CIA turned
2:42
a blind eye as Contra supporters
2:44
trafficked cocaine into the United
2:46
States to fund their war. Planes that
2:50
delivered weapons to Nicaragua returned
2:53
loaded with cocaine. The drugs flowed
2:56
through Mexico where cartels like the
2:59
Guadalajara organization led by Miguel
3:01
Angel Felix Gallardo served as
3:04
middlemen. But there was a problem. DEA
3:08
agent Enrique Kiki Camarina was getting
3:11
too close to uncovering the CIA cartel
3:14
connection. On February 7th, 1985,
3:18
Camarina was kidnapped in Guadalajara.
3:21
He was tortured for 30 hours. his skull
3:24
crushed, his body dumped on a ranch. The
3:28
official story blamed the cartels, but
3:31
declassified documents suggest CIA
3:34
assets were present during his
3:35
interrogation.
3:37
Desperate to know what he had learned
3:39
about their operations.
3:41
The murder created a crisis. The DEA
3:44
wanted revenge. The CIA wanted cover.
3:48
The solution? blame everything on the
3:51
cartels while protecting the
3:53
intelligence assets embedded within
3:54
them. Key cartel figures with CIA
3:58
connections received light sentences or
4:01
mysterious escapes. Others who knew too
4:05
much died in suspicious circumstances,
4:08
yet something was missing from the
4:10
official narrative. Why were certain
4:13
trafficking routes never disrupted? Why
4:16
did specific cartel leaders seem to have
4:18
advanced warning of raids? The answer
4:21
lay in a strategy that would define US
4:24
cartel relations for decades, controlled
4:27
chaos. As long as the drugs flowed
4:30
predictably, the CIA could monitor and
4:33
manipulate the trade for intelligence
4:35
purposes. Act two, the partnership
4:38
deepens. By the 1990s, the Cold War was
4:42
over, but the CIA's cartel relationships
4:45
had evolved into something more complex.
4:48
The agency now justified these
4:51
connections as necessary for the war on
4:54
terror and maintaining regional
4:56
stability. Cartels weren't just drug
4:59
traffickers. They were intelligence
5:01
assets who could provide information on
5:04
everything from arms dealers to
5:07
potential terrorists. The Sinaloa cartel
5:10
led by Hain El Chapo Guzman became
5:13
particularly valuable. According to
5:14
court documents unsealed in 2014, the
5:17
DEA and CIA allowed the Sinaloa cartel
5:20
to traffic tons of cocaine into the
5:22
United States between 2000 and 2012 in
5:25
exchange for information about rival
5:26
cartels. The deal was simple. immunity
5:29
for intelligence. Viciente Zambada
5:32
Nabla, son of Seneloa leader Ismael
5:36
Elmeo Zambada, testified in federal
5:39
court that he was a US government asset.
5:42
He claimed DEA and CIA handlers gave him
5:46
cart blanch to traffic drugs as long as
5:49
he provided information. When arrested
5:51
in 2009, he had documents proving his
5:54
cooperation.
5:56
The government fought to keep these
5:58
documents sealed, claiming national
6:00
security. But the most explosive
6:02
operation was yet to come. In 2009, the
6:07
ATF with CIA coordination launched
6:11
Operation Fast and Furious. The official
6:14
goal, track weapons to cartel leaders.
6:17
The method, allow gun stores to sell
6:19
militarygrade weapons to known cartel
6:22
buyers, then follow the guns to their
6:24
destination.
6:26
Between 2009 and 2011, over 2,000
6:30
weapons walked across the border.
6:33
AK-47s50
6:36
caliber rifles, pistols, enough to arm a
6:40
small army. ATF agents were ordered to
6:43
stand down when they could have made
6:45
arrests. Gun store owners who reported
6:48
suspicious sales were told to complete
6:51
them anyway. The weapons were supposed
6:53
to be tracked, but the tracking devices
6:56
were removed or disabled. Therefore, the
6:59
cartels received a steady supply of
7:02
American weapons with de facto
7:04
government approval. The CIA monitored
7:07
the weapons movement through satellite
7:10
surveillance and human intelligence.
7:13
They knew which cartels received which
7:15
weapons, who used them, where they were
7:18
stored. It was the perfect intelligence
7:21
operation until it wasn't. On December
7:24
14th, 2010, Border Patrol agent Brian
7:28
Terry was killed in a firefight with
7:31
cartel members near Ngalas, Arizona. Two
7:35
Fast and Furious weapons were found at
7:38
the scene. The operation unraveled.
7:41
Whistleblowers came forward. Congress
7:44
launched investigations.
7:46
But even as officials testified,
7:48
claiming Fast and Furious was a failed
7:51
ATF operation, classified CIA documents
7:56
told a different story. The weapons
7:58
weren't just being tracked, they were
8:00
being directed. Certain cartels received
8:04
better weapons than others. The Sinaloa
8:07
cartel, America's unofficial partner,
8:10
received the lion's share. Their rivals
8:13
like Losettas and the Huarez cartel were
8:17
targeted for destruction. The CIA was
8:20
picking winners and losers in Mexico's
8:23
drug war. Nevertheless, the strategy had
8:26
logic. A controlled drug trade was
8:29
preferable to chaos. One powerful cartel
8:33
was easier to monitor than many small
8:35
ones. If drugs were going to flow
8:38
anyway, better to have them flow through
8:40
channels the CIA could watch and
8:43
occasionally manipulate. But this cold
8:46
calculation ignored the human cost. Over
8:50
150,000 deaths in Mexico's drug war,
8:54
many killed with American weapons.
8:57
Internal emails released through FOIA SA
9:01
requests revealed the depth of
9:02
coordination.
9:04
CIA analysts tracked cartel territories
9:07
like military campaigns. They had
9:10
organizational charts more detailed than
9:13
the cartel's own records. They knew
9:15
where leaders slept, where drugs were
9:18
processed, where money was counted. Yet,
9:21
raids only happened when politically
9:23
necessary, or when a cartel stepped out
9:26
of line. However, the most damning
9:29
evidence came from Mexico. In 2011,
9:34
Mexican federal police captured an
9:37
entire Zetus training camp. Among the
9:40
weapons, Fast and Furious guns. Among
9:44
the trainers, men later identified as
9:47
former US special forces working as
9:50
contractors.
9:51
The Mexican government's investigation
9:54
was shut down after US pressure. The
9:57
findings classified. Act three, the
9:59
cover up continues. By 2012, Fast and
10:03
Furious had become a political scandal.
10:06
Attorney General Eric Holder was held in
10:08
contempt of Congress for refusing to
10:11
release documents. President Obama
10:14
invoked executive privilege to protect
10:16
CIA files. The official investigation
10:20
concluded it was a botched operation by
10:23
overzealous ATF agents. But the real
10:26
story was buried in classification.
10:30
Whistleblowers who tried to expose the
10:32
CIA connection faced retaliation. ATF
10:35
agent John Dodson, who first revealed
10:37
Fast and Furious, was demoted and
10:39
transferred. Other agents were
10:41
threatened with prosecution for leaking
10:42
classified information. The message was
10:45
clear. The drug wars dirty secrets must
10:47
remain secret, but evidence kept
10:49
surfacing. In 2014, a Mexican newspaper
10:53
published documents showing CIA payments
10:56
to cartel informants totaling millions
10:59
of dollars. In 2017, El Chapo's son
11:02
released phone recordings of DEA agents
11:05
negotiating drug shipments. In 2019, the
11:09
trial of Hinaro Garcia Luna, Mexico's
11:12
former security minister, revealed he
11:15
had taken bribes from cartels while
11:18
simultaneously working with US
11:20
intelligence. The pattern was always the
11:22
same. US agencies claimed to be fighting
11:26
cartels while secretly managing them.
11:29
They destroyed some trafficking routes
11:31
while protecting others. They arrested
11:34
low-level dealers while ensuring
11:36
kingpins received warnings. They seized
11:40
enough drugs for headlines while
11:42
allowing far more to reach American
11:45
streets. Yet, the most disturbing
11:47
revelation came in 2024.
11:50
Newly declassified documents revealed
11:53
Operation Reciprocity, a CIA program
11:57
running from 2015 to 2020. The operation
12:01
used cartel networks to monitor
12:04
terrorist financing in Latin America. In
12:07
exchange, certain trafficking routes
12:10
were deprioritized for enforcement. The
12:14
war on terror had officially merged with
12:16
the war on drugs and both were being
12:19
compromised.
12:20
Mexican journalists who investigated
12:23
these connections faced assassination.
12:26
Between 2000 and 2024, over 150
12:30
journalists were murdered in Mexico.
12:33
Many while investigating government
12:36
cartel collusion. American journalists
12:39
were pressured to ignore the story.
12:41
National security letters gagged
12:43
potential sources. The truth was treated
12:46
as more dangerous than the crimes it
12:48
exposed. But why did it continue? Former
12:52
CIA officers speaking anonymously
12:54
provided answers. The cartel
12:57
relationships generated intelligence on
13:00
everything from arms trafficking to
13:02
migrant smuggling. They provided early
13:05
warning of instability in Latin America.
13:08
They offered deniable assets for
13:10
operations Congress would never approve.
13:13
Most importantly, they gave the illusion
13:16
of control over an uncontrollable
13:18
problem. The human cost was staggering.
13:23
Hundreds of thousands dead in Mexico.
13:26
American communities devastated by
13:29
drugs. Billions spent on a war that was
13:32
being deliberately prolonged. But for
13:34
intelligence agencies, these were
13:37
acceptable losses in a larger game. As
13:40
one former officer put it, "We're not in
13:43
the business of stopping drugs. We're in
13:46
the business of managing chaos." Today,
13:49
the operations continue under new names
13:53
with new justifications.
13:55
The cartels have evolved, become more
13:58
sophisticated, learned from their CIA
14:01
contacts. They use encrypted
14:03
communications taught by intelligence
14:05
agencies. They employ counter
14:08
surveillance techniques developed for
14:09
special operations. They've become in
14:12
effect paramilitary intelligence
14:14
organizations themselves.
14:17
The Mexican government caught between US
14:19
pressure and cartel power plays along.
14:23
They arrest whoever the Americans
14:25
designate while protecting whoever the
14:28
Americans ignore. They fight the war on
14:30
drugs for cameras while knowing their
14:32
allies are supplying both sides. They've
14:35
learned that in this game, survival
14:38
means accepting the unacceptable.
14:41
Recent revelations suggest the
14:43
relationship has evolved again. Cyber
14:46
warfare, cryptocurrency, and artificial
14:49
intelligence have created new
14:51
opportunities for collaboration.
14:54
Cartels provide human intelligence
14:57
networks. Agencies provide technical
15:00
capabilities.
15:01
The partnership that began with guns and
15:04
drugs now encompasses the full spectrum
15:08
of 21st century threats. But perhaps the
15:11
most chilling aspect is how normalized
15:14
it's become. New agents are trained to
15:18
work with criminal informants without
15:20
questioning why those informants never
15:22
face justice. Politicians speak of
15:26
fighting cartels while authorizing
15:28
programs that strengthen them. The
15:31
public demands action while remaining
15:34
unaware that the government is playing
15:36
both sides. The documents declassified
15:40
in 2024 are just the beginning.
15:43
Investigators believe thousands more
15:45
files remain hidden, detailing
15:48
operations that would shock even cynical
15:50
observers. But classification periods
15:54
extend 50 years or more. By the time the
15:57
full truth emerges, everyone involved
16:00
will be dead, their crimes buried with
16:02
them. So, what do you think? Is the CIA
16:05
still arming and protecting certain
16:08
cartels while pretending to fight them?
16:11
Are these operations necessary evils in
16:14
a complex world or unforgivable
16:17
betrayals of public trust? How many more
16:20
fast and furious scandals remain hidden
16:23
in classified files? Drop your theory in
16:26
the comments. I read every single one.
16:29
And if you want more explosive
16:31
revelations about government operations
16:34
they don't want you to know about, hit
16:36
subscribe and ring that notification
16:39
bell. Because the real war isn't on
16:42
drugs.
16:43
[Music]