[2] Benjamín Arellano Félix, who worked closely with his brothers, was one of Mexico's most powerful drug lords and the supplier of one-third of the U.S.'s cocaine.

[citation needed] Benjamín was first arrested on 18 June 1982, in Downey, California, for receiving 100 kilos of cocaine smuggled through the San Ysidro border.

This was accomplished, in part, with large amounts of cash bribes to Mexican politicians and police commanders, at the cost of an estimated US$1 million per week.

That high-profile assassination brought international attention to his trafficking organization and, although this forced Benjamín to lie low and adopt false names, he continued to live in casual confidence, apparently unafraid of capture.

[7] The act prohibited U.S. citizens and companies from doing any kind of business activity with him, and virtually freezing all his assets in the U.S.[8] The U.S. DEA learned that Benjamín's oldest daughter had a very recognizable and rare facial deformity, and that she was the "soft spot" in her father's violent life.