Hunting Kingpins

SMALL-TIME DEALERS DON'T INTEREST THE DEA THESE DAYS

Special Agent in Charge Javier Pena has not been in the San Francisco Field
Division long enough to get pictures up on his office wall. But he's
managed to get down to the Mission BART station and pick out the main
heroin dealer, just to prove that at 48 and with 20 years in the Drug
Enforcement Administration, he still has the touch.

What's your jurisdiction?

I oversee the DEA's field operations for San Francisco, Oakland, San Jose,
Redding, Sacramento, Santa Rosa, Bakersfield. It's about 250 agents.

How'd you decide to go into this line of work?

I was a deputy sheriff in Laredo, Texas. There was an announcement. It was
better pay. I didn't even know what DEA was all about.

So what is it all about?

We go after drug-trafficking organizations. There's a myth that we're after
the users, the peddlers on the streets. We go after major organizations. I
joined for a couple of years, and then I liked it.

What do you like about being a DEA agent?

It's fun, the infiltration. I did a lot of undercover work when I first
came on.

How dangerous is that?

I remember once in a hotel room in Austin, Texas, negotiating over some
heroin. Before we started the deal, the guy puts a gun to my head and says,
"If you're a cop or this deal doesn't go, you're gone. We're going to blow
your head off. "

What happened?

He was a Mexican trafficker from near Laredo. With me growing up on the
border and knowing the bars, I said, "Hey, have you ever been to this bar?"
He took a liking to me and put his gun down.

So the gun was sitting on the table?

Once they delivered the heroin to us, I was able to get the gun before he
got it.

How many years did he get?

I think he got about 10 years. I'm sure he's out now.

You never worry these guys will come looking for you?

I don't. It's just part of the job.

What was your longest assignment?

I spent nine years in Colombia. I was co-case agent on the Pablo Escobar
investigation.

Who was Pablo Escobar again?

The most notorious drug trafficker in the world in the late '80s, early '90s.

What happened?

After nine years, he finally ended up getting killed by the police in
December of 1993.

What are the DEA priorities in San Francisco?

The main one is medicinal marijuana. It's legal here to buy marijuana,
which contradicts federal law. The other main priority is methamphetamine.

Is meth as big as cocaine or heroin?

Moneywise, it is. Methamphetamine in our area is No. 1. Heroin is No. 2,
and then cocaine.

What about pot clubs?

What we're seeing is these dispensaries are not in it for the health
benefits. They're in it to make money.

Do you see progress in the drug wars?

I see it with the young kids, starting in the elementary schools. At the
high school level, I think it's too late.

Did you experiment with drugs in high school?

No, I never did. Our big thing was drinking beer in a pickup truck out some
dirt road.

Not even to maintain your cover?

Never did. That's another fallacy. We tell them, "Hey, I'm in this for the
money."

They believe that?

With your cartels, those people do not use drugs and they don't let their
employees use drugs. It messes up the business.

Kind of takes the romance out of it?

It's not like in the movies where it's always fun, girls, action. Nothing
like that. It's a lot of long surveillances. I've worked a lot of
Christmases and New Year's. But it's rewarding when you finally put the
cuffs on the bad guys.