A top official from former President Barack Obama’s administration was arrested and charged with helping one of Mexico’s most dangerous drug cartels launder millions of dollars and traffic cocaine into the United States.
Paul Campo, 61, who served as Deputy Chief of the Office of Financial Operations for the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), was indicted by a federal grand jury in New York along with his associate Robert Sensi, 75. Both men were arrested over the weekend after raids on their homes in Virginia and Florida.
The indictment alleges Campo and Sensi conspired to help the Jalisco New Generation Cartel, known as CJNG, from December 2024 through November 2025. The U.S. State Department designated CJNG as a foreign terrorist organization in February 2025. CJNG controls a significant portion of the drug trafficking in the United States.
U.S. Attorney Jay Clayton announced the charges against the two men.
“As alleged, Paul Campo and Robert Sensi conspired to assist CJNG, one of the most notorious Mexican cartels that is responsible for countless deaths through violence and drug trafficking in the United States and Mexico,” Clayton said.
“As part of that support, the defendants laundered hundreds of thousands of dollars they believed to be CJNG drug proceeds, agreed to launder millions more, and even agreed to use their financial expertise to facilitate cocaine trafficking right here in New York City,” he said. “By participating in this scheme, Campo betrayed the mission he was entrusted with pursuing for his 25-year career with the DEA. CJNG is a violent and corrupting criminal enterprise that New Yorkers want broken. I commend the extraordinary efforts of the DEA in aggressively pursuing CJNG and those who support their deadly and corrupt efforts, no matter who they may be.”
According to prosecutors, Campo and Sensi agreed to launder approximately $12 million for the cartel.
The two reportedly converted $750,000 in cash into cryptocurrency and also made a payment for $5 million worth of cocaine smuggled into the United States.
The indictment states the two men also provided advice on making fentanyl and talked about getting military rifles for the cartel. In meetings with an undercover source posing as a CJNG member, they discussed using commercial drones to carry explosives.
Campo allegedly used his DEA background to build trust with cartel operatives and boasted about his experience under the Obama administration. Prosecutors say he also offered to provide secret information about DEA investigations and sources.
“The indictment of former Special Agent Paul Campo sends a powerful message: those who betray the public trust—past or present—will be held to account to the fullest extent of the law,” DEA Administrator Terrance C. Cole said.
“The alleged conduct occurred after he left DEA and was unrelated to his official duties here, but any former agent who chooses to engage in criminal activity dishonors the men and women who serve with integrity and undermines the public’s confidence in law enforcement. We will not look the other way simply because someone once wore this badge. There is no tolerance and no excuse for this kind of betrayal.”