Drug Warrior

John "Jack" Riley spent his DEA career combating Mexican and Colombian cartels and drug-related gang violence. At the time of his retirement, Riley was the highest ranking career Special Agent at the DEA, serving as the organization's second in command, overseeing global drug enforcement efforts.

Mitch Weiss is a Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative journalist currently working for the Associated Press. Over the last 25 years, he has investigated government corruption, white-collar crime, police misconduct, and clerical sexual abuse. His books include Tiger Force and The Heart of Hell: The Untold Story of Courage and Sacrifice in the Shadow of Iwo Jima.

—New York Post

"Drug Warrior is a riveting account of America's drug war. Jack Riley steps right out of central casting: a tough cop on a mission. But Drug Warrior goes beyond Riley's gruff exterior and shows the trials and tribulations of fighting a war that can't be won. Riley's sense of duty is the heart of the book. Want to better understand America's first forever war? You'll find answers here."—Kevin Maurer, co-author of the New York Times bestsellers No Easy Day and American Radical
"For 15 years, Chapo has been Riley's white whale, the object of an obsession that teetered on derangement and sidelined everything else, including his family... A ruddy, white-haired bruiser who holds court from a bar stool, Riley seemed dispatched from the days of fedoras and cops lighting Luckies at crime scenes."

—Paul Solotaroff, Rolling Stone
"Riley's intensity and charisma have made him one of the most quoted and recognizable advocates for drug enforcement in the country."—Chicago Reader
"A sturdy, unadorned tale of true crime and its foes."
—Kirkus Reviews