El Chapo's Cartel Hacked FBI Surveillance to 'Intimidate and, in Some Instances, Kill' U.S. Informants, DOJ Report Reveals
The breach occurred as Guzmán faced federal charges in New York, including leading a criminal enterprise and murder conspiracies
Pedro Camacho Pedro Camacho / Published Jun 30 2025, 1:48 PM EDT
Drug trafficker Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman is escorted by Marines in Mexico City in 2014 AFP
A hacker employed by Mexico's Sinaloa Cartel infiltrated FBI surveillance operations as recently as 2018 using data from cell phones and surveillance cameras in Mexico City to target U.S. informants, according to a report released by the Department of Justice's Office of the Inspector General.
The report states that the hacker tracked the FBI's assistant legal attaché in Mexico City, a senior official responsible for liaising with Mexican law enforcement during the investigation into Joaquín "El Chapo" Guzmán. The hacker accessed geolocation data, phone call records, and surveillance footage from the city's camera system, enabling the cartel to monitor movements in and out of the U.S. Embassy and follow the attaché's contacts.
"According to the case agent, the cartel used [information provided by the hacker] to intimidate and, in some instances, kill potential sources or cooperating witnesses," another passage of the report adds.
https://www.latintimes.com/el-chapos-cartel-hacked-fbi-surveillance-intimidate-some-instances-kill-us-informants-585892
