The Flip That Broke the Cali Cartel

About this episode

Retired Special Agent Chris Feistl discusses the dismantling of the Cali Cartel and its impact on drug trafficking and law enforcement.

Now that drug cartels can be labeled foreign terrorist organizations, how do you dismantle one? As part of his 26 years at the Drug Enforcement Administration, retired Special Agent Chris Feistl was on a team that brought the demise of the Cali Cartel in Colombia. One of the world’s biggest crime syndicates, the cartel earned billions each year. From selling marijuana in the 1970s, to harder drugs in the decades that followed, the so-called “Godfathers of Cali” bribed judges, lawmakers, police commanders, and military officers. They used Boeing 727s to haul drugs outside of Colombia, and they even funneled millions to a candidate who won the 1994 presidential election, effectively buying the race. The details are told in Chris’ book After Escobar and Season 3 of Netflix’s Narcos. Subscribe to Sasha's Substack, HUMINT, to get more intelligence stories: https://sashaingber.substack.com/ For more information about the International Spy Museum, visit: https://www.spymuseum.org/ And if you have feedback or want to hear about a particular topic, you can reach us by email at spycast@spymuseum.org. This show is brought to you by N2K Networks, Goat Rodeo, and the International Spy Museum…

People in this episode

Guest: Chris Feistl

Topics covered

• drug cartels
• Cali Cartel
• law enforcement
• terrorism
• Colombia
• history of crime

Keywords

• Cali Cartel
• drug trafficking
• Chris Feistl
• DEA
• foreign terrorist organizations
• Narcos
• After Escobar
• Colombia
• 1994 election

Sponsors

N2K Networks, Goat Rodeo

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Drug Enforcement Administration, Netflix, HUMINT, International Spy Museum

Books & works: After Escobar, Narcos

Places: Colombia

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