Mexican President Defends Release of Infamous Drug Kingpin Targeted by U.S.

Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador has justified the 2013 release order of one of the United States authorities' most wanted drug kingpins.

The said drug kingpin was Rafael Caro Quintero, who walked free after he was sentenced to 40 years in prison for the torture and murder of Enrique "Kiki" Camarena in 1985. Camarena was a U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration agent.

At the top of the DEA's Most Wanted list with a $20 million reward for his apprehension, Caro Quintero has since reportedly resumed his role as a violent drug trafficker after his release, according to The Washington Post report.

Lopez Obrador said that the legal appeal that led to the drug kingpin's early release was "justified" as supposedly no verdict has been given against him after 27 years in jail.

The Mexican president justified it despite the Mexico's Supreme Court later ruling it as a mistake, according to an Associated Press report.

"Once he was out, they had to look for him again, because the United States demanded he shouldn't have been released, but legally the appeal was justified," Lopez Obrador said on Wednesday.

Presidential spokesman Jesus Ramirez cleared out the Mexican president's statement, saying that Lopez Obrador just meant that the case was a legal aberrating after the judge had not issued a verdict on Rafael Caro Quintero after 27 years. Ramirez stressed that the Mexican president was not defending the drug lord's release.

Rafael Caro Quintero and Enrique 'Kiki' Camarena

Rafael Caro Quintero is considered the grandfather of Mexican drug trafficking after establishing a powerful cartel in Sinaloa's northwestern area, CBS News reported.

Mexico's relations with the U.S. were widely affected when the drug kingpin ordered Camarena to be kidnapped, tortured, and killed.

Rafael Caro Quintero was allegedly angry about a raid on "Rancho Bufalo," a 220-acre marijuana plantation in central Mexico, by Mexican authorities at Camarena's demand. Mexican authorities seized the plantation.

On Feb. 7, 1985, Camarena was kidnapped in Guadalajara. A month later, his lifeless body was discovered with signs showing that he was tortured.

American officials accused Mexican authorities of letting Camarena's killers getting away. Rafael Caro Quintero was eventually arrested in Costa Rica.

The ruling left many wondered why it took 24 years to determine that the drug kingpin was improperly tried in a court for a crime that should have been treated as a state offense.

Caro Quintero's sudden release angered the U.S. government and surprised some Mexican prosecutors as they were not notified of the said action until it already happened, The Baltimore Sun reported.

Lopez Obrador earlier publicly announced that the Mexican government is no longer eyeing detaining drug lords. The Mexican president has also ordered the release of Ovidio Guzman, a son of imprisoned drug kingpin Joaquín "El Chapo" Guzman, to avoid further violence.

U.S. authorities also claimed that Caro Quintero continued to launder drug money during his time in prison. He was also believed to have maintained an alliance with drug trafficking organizations such as the Sinaloa cartel. However, Rafael Caro Quintero insisted that he has stopped being a drug trafficker.

In 2019, Lopez Obrador also said the army would no longer prioritize arresting cartel bosses, noting that there was no more war and wanted peace.

WATCH: $20 million for Capture of DEA Agent's Killer - From ABC 10 News