DEA Administrator Terry Cole Declares 'Global Hunt' Against CJNG, Invokes Foreign Terrorist Organization Designation

DEA Administrator Terry Cole announced an international law-enforcement campaign against CJNG at a press conference in Tampa, Florida on August 13, 2026, unveiled alongside the DOJ's narcoterrorism and arms-trafficking case against four CJNG members arrested in the Czech Republic. Cole said: 'CJNG, a designated foreign terrorist organization, is killing a record number of Americans. They are a terrorist organization and will be treated as such,' and 'La DEA nunca ha estado tan enfocada como hoy en combatir al CJNG y a sus líderes' ('The DEA has never been as focused as it is today on fighting CJNG and its leaders'). He pledged to pursue the cartel's operators, leadership, and finances through a coordinated 'global hunt' spanning DEA, ATF, FBI, DHS, and Coast Guard offices in Mexico City, Vienna, Cartagena, Portugal, Tampa, and New York, backed by the $102M reward package announced August 5. Cole vowed to 'golpear su dinero' (hit their money) and closed with a direct warning: 'vamos por ustedes' (we're coming for you). The announcement builds directly on the DOJ's August 11 unsealing of Czech Republic charges and Ambassador Ronald Johnson's August 12 statement on CJNG's international vulnerability.