Damning AP Report Exposes Corrupt DEA Agents Behind Colombian “Contraband Czar” Diego Marín Buitrago, AKA “Papa Smurf’s” Smuggling Empire

An Associated Press investigation has exposed how the US Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), through corruption, negligence, and lack of oversight, enabled the most powerful smuggler in Colombia, Diego Marín Buitrago, also known as “Papá Pitufo” (Papa Smurf) to build and protect a criminal empire.

The investigation, based on interviews with current and former agents, as well as sensitive DEA’s documents, court records, and interviews with US and Colombian officials, reveal that Marín maintained his illegal operations for years, thanks in large part to his relationship with corrupt DEA agents such as José Irizarry.

In 2013, Irizarry signed Marín up as a confidential informant for the DEA. This designation, typically meant to aid criminal investigations, instead gave him protection from scrutiny. “Irizarry helped Marín expand his empire, the government records show, by steering undercover DEA wire transfers to his associates, providing safe passage for containers full of contraband and even seeking to throw off other federal agencies,” the AP investigation says.

Rather than targeting Marín, DEA agents under Irizarry’s influence actively diverted investigations away from his shipping containers and business dealings.

Irizarry (and other DEA agents) accepted gifts from Marín, including cash, Hublot watches, luxury cars, international trips and a $750,000 USD condo; all paid with laundered money. These revelations come from Justice Department records and audits obtained by the AP, showing a pattern of misconduct that went across borders and years.

A DEA’s operation, ironically named “White Wash”, was launched to dismantle Marín’s money laundering network, but instead, it became a cover for expanding it. The operation recovered only $1.3 million USD, while agents spent almost $900,000 USD. Some of the funds were used for yacht excursions and visits to strip clubs.

Rather than targeting Marín, DEA agents under Irizarry’s influence actively diverted investigations away from his shipping containers and business dealings. This effectively allowed his smuggling routes to remain untouched by law enforcement.

The investigation highlights how the DEA’s internal controls failed to catch or stop this misconduct for years. The Attorney General Exempt Operation (AGEO), a legal mechanism that allows DEA agents to conduct sting operations involving money laundering, is a powerful but poorly monitored tool, that created opportunities for corruption in cases like this one.

In 2016, Irizarry tried to block authorities in Colombia from seizing a container of Marín’s with contraband goods. According to the AP, he falsely told US customs officials the shipment was part of an undercover DEA operation and soon after the US ambassador to Colombia kicked him out of the country. Irizarry eventually pleaded guilty and was sentenced to over 12 years in prison in 2020. However, he maintains that he was not acting alone. Until now, no other DEA agents involved in the case have faced criminal charges, but over a dozen have been investigated internally or disciplined. “The indictment paints a picture of me, the corrupt agent that did this entire scheme. But it doesn’t talk about the rest of DEA. I wasn’t the mastermind,” Irizarry told the AP.

Reinforcing Marín’s influence, Colombian news program Noticias Caracol reported in March that Colonel Mario Durán—former head of Interpol in Colombia—was forced to leave the National Police in 2024 due to his involvement in the investigation of Marín. Durán claimed that the investigative team he led was dismantled under pressure from his network. “I had the merits and moral conviction to continue serving my country,” he told Caracol, suggesting that his dismissal was no coincidence, as it occurred just as the investigation was nearing a breakthrough.

Marín’s case has dominated Colombia’s political agenda in recent months after the appearance of allegations linking him to Petro’s 2022 presidential campaign. He was arrested in December 2024 in Portugal, where he is now under preventive detention awaiting for extradition. He applied for asylum to avoid extradition.

“The extradition of the defendant [Diego Marín] and the possible refusal of his international protection by the Portuguese State is equivalent to a death penalty, although there is no accusation against him by Colombia for committing any crime in that territory”, his lawyer Vítor Parente Ribeiro states—with arguments that are difficult to sustain—, as reported by local broadcasting network RTP last February.

Headline Photo: Diego Marín Buitrago, aka “Papá Pitufo” (Photo: National Police)