The Dirección Federal de Seguridad (''Federal Security Directorate'', DFS) was a Mexican intelligence agency and

secret police Secret police (or political police) are intelligence, security or police agencies that engage in covert operations against a government's political, religious, or social opponents and dissidents. Secret police organizations are characteristic of a ...

. It was created in 1947 under Mexican president

Miguel Alemán Valdés Miguel Alemán Valdés (; 29 September 1900 – 14 May 1983) was a Mexican politician who served a full term as the President of Mexico from 1946 to 1952, the first civilian president after a string of revolutionary generals. His administr ...

with the assistance of U.S. intelligence agencies (namely the

CIA The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA ), known informally as the Agency and historically as the Company, is a civilian intelligence agency, foreign intelligence service of the federal government of the United States, officially tasked with gat ...

) as part of the Truman Doctrine of Soviet Containment, with the duty of "preserving the internal stability of Mexico against all forms subversion and terrorist threats". It was merged into the

Centro de Investigación y Seguridad Nacional The ''Centro Nacional de Inteligencia'' or CNI, is a Mexican intelligence agency controlled by the Secretariat of Security and Civilian Protection. Until 2018, the agency's official title was ''Centro de Investigación y Seguridad Nacional'' ...

(CISEN) in 1985. During the period from 1968 to the late 1970s (a period called the

Mexican Dirty War The Mexican Dirty War ( es, Guerra sucia) was the Mexican theater of the Cold War, an internal conflict from the 1960s to the 1980s between the Mexican PRI-ruled government under the presidencies of Gustavo Díaz Ordaz, Luis Echeverría and J ...

), the DFS was accused of illegal detentions, torture, assassinations and

forced disappearance An enforced disappearance (or forced disappearance) is the secret abduction or imprisonment of a person by a state or political organization, or by a third party with the authorization, support, or acquiescence of a state or political organiza ...

s. At least 347 complaints were received by the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and international security, security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be ...

related to Mexican state crimes from 1960 to 1980. The agency was highly successful in thwarting and deterring any attempt by anti-government or pro-Soviet organizations to destabilize the country. However, it was a notoriously controversial government entity, and it was disbanded under the presidency of

Miguel de la Madrid Miguel de la Madrid Hurtado (; 12 December 1934 – 1 April 2012) was a Mexican politician affiliated with the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI) who served as the 59th president of Mexico from 1982 to 1988. Inheriting a severe economic an ...

by the hand of his secretary of the interior

Manuel Bartlett Díaz Manuel Bartlett Díaz (born 23 February 1936) is a Mexican politician, and the current director of the public energy company CFE, and former Secretary of the Interior. Bartlett was elected to the Senate of the Republic for the 2000–2006 ...

in 1985. Multiple agents were suspected (and later confirmed) of having links with criminal organizations, which included top members like

Miguel Nazar Haro Miguel Nazar Haro (26 September 1924 – 26 January 2012) was the head of Mexico's Dirección Federal de Seguridad (Federal Security Directorate) from 1978 to 1982. He started his career working for the secret-police chief Fernando Gutiérrez Bar ...

and Arturo "El Negro" Durazo Moreno. Other infamous former agents includes Rafael Aguilar Guajardo founding member of the

Juárez Cartel The Juárez Cartel (Spanish: ''Cártel de Juárez''), also known as the Vicente Carrillo Fuentes Organization, is a Mexican drug cartel based in Ciudad Juárez, Chihuahua, across the Mexico—U.S. border from El Paso, Texas. The cartel is one ...

and

Juan José Esparragoza Moreno Juan José Esparragoza Moreno (born February 3, 1949), commonly referred to by his alias El Azul (English: "The Blue One"), was a Mexican drug lord and leader of the Sinaloa Cartel, a drug trafficking organization. Originally a member of the Dire ...

, who became one of the leaders of the

Sinaloa Cartel The Sinaloa Cartel ( es, link=no, Cártel de Sinaloa), also known as the CDS, the Guzmán-Loera Organization, the Pacific Cartel, the Federation and the Blood Alliance, is a large, international organized crime syndicate that specializes in il ...

, which in 2021 was named as the most powerful drug trafficking organization in the world. Some such criminal exploits included a million dollar US-Mexico car theft ring, collaborating in drug trafficking with the

Guadalajara Cartel The Guadalajara Cartel ( es, Cártel de Guadalajara) also known as The Federation ( es, La Federación, link=no) was a Mexican drug cartel which was formed in the late 1970s by Miguel Ángel Félix Gallardo, Rafael Caro Quintero, and Ernesto Fons ...

(including the protection of the infamous "Colonia Bufalo" marijuana crops), training the

Nicaraguan contras The Contras were the various U.S.-backed and funded right-wing rebel groups that were active from 1979 to 1990 in opposition to the Marxist Sandinista Junta of National Reconstruction Government in Nicaragua, which came to power in 1979 fol ...

in drug trafficker owned ranches, the murder of journalist Manuel Buendia, for investigating ties between the DFS, the CIA and drug traffickers, and for having some degree of participation in, and providing cover to, the kidnapping and subsequent death of

DEA The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA; ) is a United States federal law enforcement agency under the U.S. Department of Justice tasked with combating drug trafficking and distribution within the U.S. It is the lead agency for domestic enf ...

agent

Enrique Camarena Salazar Enrique "Kiki" Camarena Salazar (July 26, 1947 – February 9, 1985) was an American intelligence officer for the United States (DEA). In February 1985 Camarena was kidnapped by drug traffickers hired by Mexican politicians in Guadalajara, Mexic ...

Heads of the DFS

* (1947–1952) Gen. Marcelino Inurreta * (1952–1958) Col. Leandro Castillo-Venegas * (1958–1959)

LLB Bachelor of Laws ( la, Legum Baccalaureus; LL.B.) is an undergraduate law degree in the United Kingdom and most common law jurisdictions. Bachelor of Laws is also the name of the law degree awarded by universities in the China, People's Republic ...

. Gilberto Suárez-Torres . * (1959–1964) Col. Manuel Rangel-Escamilla * (1965–1970) Cap.

Fernando Gutiérrez Barrios Fernando Gutiérrez Barrios (October 26, 1927 – October 30, 2000) was a Mexicans, Mexican politician affiliated with the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI). He was in charge of the Dirección Federal de Seguridad secret police at the m ...

* (1970–1977) Cap. Luis de la Barreda * (1977–1978) Mr.

Javier García Paniagua Javier García Paniagua (February 13, 1935 – November 25, 1998) was a Mexican politician who ran for the presidency of Mexico in 1981. References Politicians from Jalisco 1935 births 1998 deaths Mexican Secretaries of the Agrarian Ref ...

* (1978–1982) Lt.Col.

* (1982–1985)

. José-Antonio Zorrilla * (1985) Cap. Pablo González-Ruelas

Notorious members

* Rafael Aguilar Guajardo *

Arturo Durazo Moreno Arturo "El Negro" Durazo Moreno (1924 – 5 August 2000) was the Chief of Police in Mexico City for six years, from 1976 to 1982. He was arrested in 1984 and incarcerated on multiple counts of corruption, extortion, tax evasion, smuggling a ...

(Alias "El Negro Durazo") *

(Alias "El Azul")

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dirección Federal de Seguridad 1947 establishments in Mexico Government agencies of Mexico 1985 disestablishments in Mexico Defunct intelligence agencies Secret police Defunct law enforcement agencies of Mexico Cold War organizations Cold War in Latin America Foreign relations of Mexico National security institutions Anti-communism in Mexico Human rights abuses in Mexico Mexican intelligence agencies Anti-communist organizations Military history of Mexico Political movements in Mexico Espionage Socialism in Mexico Communism in Mexico Government of Mexico Mexican drug war

Heads of the DFS

Notorious members

See also

References