Mexican drug dealer hack FBI agent to intimidate or kill individuals
(MENAFN) A hacker employed by Mexico’s most powerful drug cartel infiltrated the phone records and location data of a senior FBI agent working at the U.S. Embassy in Mexico, according to a recent report from the U.S. Department of Justice’s Office of the Inspector General.
The breach occurred in 2018 during a major FBI investigation aimed at gathering evidence against Joaquin Guzman Loera, also known as “El Chapo,” the long-time head of the Sinaloa cartel.
The cartel’s cyber operative also gained access to Mexico City’s CCTV system, enabling the group to track the agent’s movements and identify his contacts. Several individuals who met with the agent were later threatened or killed, the report states.
Under Guzman’s leadership, the Sinaloa cartel became the primary drug supplier to the United States, trafficking large volumes of cocaine, heroin, methamphetamines, and marijuana.
Guzman was arrested in Mexico in 2016 and extradited to the U.S. In 2019, he received a life sentence plus 30 years from a federal court in Brooklyn and is currently imprisoned at ADX Florence, the country’s most secure federal prison.
However, his arrest did not dismantle the cartel, as leadership shifted and drug trafficking continued unabated.
The DOJ report highlights that recent advancements in surveillance technologies, which are increasingly accessible to criminal organizations and “less-sophisticated nations,” now pose an “existential” threat to U.S. intelligence agencies such as the FBI and CIA.
Since returning to office in January, U.S. President Donald Trump has adopted a tougher stance on Mexico’s involvement in the drug trade. Early in his term, he designated multiple Mexican cartels, including the Sinaloa cartel, as Foreign Terrorist Organizations—potentially paving the way for enhanced military or intelligence measures.
Last week, the U.S. Treasury Department sanctioned three Mexican financial institutions accused of laundering cartel funds, likely cutting them off from the American financial system.
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