Joaquin Garcia spent 24 of his 26 years with the FBI working undercover. “I’ve done over a hundred undercover investigations,” he told Business Insider.
His investigations spanned the Italian Mafia, Mexican and Colombian cartels, Russian and Asian organized crime groups, police corruption rings, jury bribery schemes, murder-for-hire setups, and large-scale narcotics operations.
Of all the criminal organizations he infiltrated, Garcia fears one above the rest. “Mexican cartels are just simply brutal,” he said. See Garcia’s interview with Business Insider in the video below and keep reading to learn why he fears the cartel most.
Working undercover for the mafia vs. the cartel
From 2002 to 2005, Garcia embedded himself inside the Gambino crime family as “Jack Falcone.” New York’s five Italian Mafia families — the Gambino, Genovese, Lucchese, Colombo, and Bonanno — follow a strict chain of command: boss, underboss, consigliere, captains, soldiers, associates, Garcia explained.
Garcia became the driver and close confidant of Gambino captain Greg DePalma. The role required complete cultural immersion.
Garcia created a Sicilian backstory and went through an informal “mob school,” learning how to pronounce Italian food correctly and practicing in Little Italy. He even went to a cemetery and identified a deceased Mr. and Mrs. Falcone to use as his “parents” if anyone asked to visit their graves.
His work with the cartel was different.
His cartel investigations focused on narcotics trafficking and large-scale drug transactions, where he often posed as an importer or trafficker, he said.
His credibility was more about what he could do than about his heritage. What mattered more was: Could he move kilos of drugs? Could he move money? Those transactions could sometimes shift quickly.
In one deal, Garcia said nine additional men showed up unexpectedly during a cocaine setup. He stepped inside a nearby diner and phoned the FBI, which was stationed nearby and ultimately shut the operation down and made arrests.
Why he fears the cartel most
With the mafia, there was total accountability, Garcia said. They needed to know where he was at all times. If he missed a call, for example, they wanted to know why.
“You had to make sure your i’s were dotted, and your t’s were crossed because one slight move, then you’re in the back of a trunk of a car,” he said.
While there was no shortage of violence within the mafia, it did not compare to what he witnessed from the Mexican cartel, Garcia added.
He saw cartels cut people’s heads off and put them on a spike. Hang people from bridges. “They’ll come after your whole family,” he said.
The cartels’ core business is cocaine and heroin trafficking via international distribution networks that generate revenue far beyond traditional mafia rackets. “The mob doesn’t even come close to any of that kind of money,” Garcia said.
“You should be more afraid of drug traffickers,” Garcia said, adding that when he was still with the FBI, “I had to worry about the cartels more than I do with the mob.”
Life after the FBI
Garcia had planned to stay with the FBI for 30 years, but after 26 years, he said it was enough. Agents who remain for 30 years receive a small gold ring, and he didn’t see a reason to stay longer just for that milestone. He retired in 2006.
Moreover, his daughter was 6 years old at the time, and he wanted to be present in her life. He describes driving her around everywhere and enjoying being home — something he couldn’t fully do while living undercover.
“It felt good to just be around family,” he said.
After leaving the Bureau, he briefly returned as a contractor to work on a Boston police corruption case but declined to continue undercover assignments, saying it was time for younger agents to take over.
He later co-wrote a memoir, “Making Jack Falcone: An Undercover FBI Agent Takes Down a Mafia Family,” which became a New York Times bestseller.
In 2024, he received the FBI Agents Association Distinguished Service Award. Even in retirement, he said, he carries a firearm for protection.
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