During the investigation of Enrique's kidnapping and murder, who was the special agent of DEA and Alfredo, investigators were faced with several challenges that hindered them from collecting the required evidence for the case. Additionally, these problems almost hindered the forensic experts' ability to obtain facts of the case and even undermined the investigation. Nevertheless, despite the many challenges, standard forensic techniques helped investigators rightfully solve the case.
Main Challenges for Investigators
The Federal Bureau Investigation was faced with several challenges when collecting evidence on the SA Camarena and Alfredo Zavala. Mexican Law enforcement officials were one of the significant difficulties that the investigators faced. The crime was initially committed in Mexico. For that reason, the Mexican Federal Judicial Police were the prime investigators of the case. Being in charge of the authority, they had first access to the scene, tampered with the evidence, and used corrupt practices during the investigation. MFJP had control over the evidence hence inhibiting the ability of the FBI to analyze forensics. They also denied the FBI permission to identify the body of the second victim.
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For instance, the two suspects involved in the killing were allowed to board a jet and free out of the country because they had paid a six-figure bribe to Payvon-Renes ( Malone, 1989 ). The Mexican officials also received a bribe to develop a plan and ensure that they expedite investigations due to the American government's continued pressure. The heat of the investigation, law enforcers, and drug traffickers came up with a delay in the investigation. For example, the anonymous letter indicating that SA Camarena and Captain Zavala were held in Bravo in LA Angostura was simply a misinformation to confuse the investigators. The MFJP were expected to raid the ranch, get rid of the drug gangs, and finally, discover the bodies of the victims buried in the ranch.
Another challenge was that investigators experienced was the discovery of a license plate when they were researching for the bodies of SA Camarena and Zavala. The MFJP officers were upset hence calling for backup from the headquarters. When the superiors arrived, they seized the plates, therefore excluding Americans from continuing with the investigations—this derailed collection for evidence by the investigators. Generally, the presence of the MJFP denied FBI control over the integrity of the case, and they were not given the free range of process as desired (Feess et al., 2017). They had limited access to crime scenes, resulting in an uncontrolled crime scene and narrow search, particularly where the bodies were buried.
Use of Reference Samples
As investigators surveyed the crime scene and the residence, several discoveries were made. They began the investigation by processing for fibers, latent, and fingerprints on the rooms and bathroom ( Malone, 1989) . Officers used testimonials and forensic evidence to establish that several people were involved in the interrogations and tortured SA Camarena in the room. The DEA received the insight that there had been victims from a previous drug trafficking case buried at La Primavera Park ( Malone, 1989) . Investigators used a combination of the head hair, carpet, clothing, and pillowcase samples to prove that the victims were at 881 lope De Vega. They also used blood to do the investigations. Investigators found Camarena's head hair and blood in mercury and VW Atlantic vehicles, which matched the described abduction vehicle (Feess et al., 2017). His hair was also found in several house rooms, and there were several blindfolds and burial sheets used in wrapping Camarena. There were pieces of pillowcase and carpet on the burial sheets. This linked the two together, a proof that the victims were there at some point in time.
How Investigators Used Soil to determine that the Bodies were moved
Investigators analyzed the soils from victims' bodies and from the region where the bodies had been deposited. Upon the analysis, investigators realized the difference in the color of the soil. They also discovered no grave in the areas, implying that they had been buried somewhere else before they were moved ( Malone, 1989) . There was also no significant body fluids on the burial areas, which indicated that the bodies were moved there. The DEA also excavated soil from the original grave and compared it with that on the victims' bodies. The soil was identical. This helped investigators verify that indeed they were buried in the park before they were later moved to Bravo Ranch.
References
Feess, G., Bonner, R. C., Hoffman, P., & Medrano, M. (2017). The Enrique Kiki Camarena Murder and Its Aftermath. Sw. J. Int'l L. , 23 , 17.
Malone, M. P. (1989). The Enrique Camarena Case: A Forensic Nightmare. FBI L. Enforcement Bull. , 58 , 1.
