Ex-DEA Agent Gets 12 Years For Conspiring With Colombian Cartels
Former U.S. narcotics agent José Irizarry blamed former colleagues at the Drug Enforcement Administration for fostering a culture of corruption that desensitized him to the implications of violating the law.
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Former U.S. narcotics agent José Irizarry has been sentenced to more than 12 years in federal prison for conspiring to launder money with a Colombian cartel, reports the Associated Press. While he admitted to his crimes, Irizarry also blamed former colleagues at the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration for fostering a culture of corruption that desensitized him to the implications of violating the law.
Irizarry pleaded guilty in 2020 to 19 federal counts, including bank fraud, admitting he parlayed his expertise in money laundering into a life of luxury that prosecutors said was bankrolled by $9 million he and his co-conspirators diverted from undercover money laundering investigations. Irizarry filed false reports and ordered DEA staff to wire money slated for undercover stings to international accounts he and associates controlled, money that should’ve been carefully tracked by the DEA as part of undercover money laundering investigations. U.S. District Court Judge Charlene Honeywell said other agents corrupted by “the allure of easy money” also needed to be investigated. The DEA has been shaken by repeated cases of misconduct in recent years, including agents charged with wire fraud, bribery and selling firearms to drug traffickers.
