Who Was DEA Special Agent Rick Finley?
On May 20, 1989, DEA Special Agent Rick C. Finley was doing what he always did. It was something he believed in deeply, something that was making a difference in people’s lives, and something that was making his country safer. On that day, Rick Finley was fighting drugs in Peru, helping stem the flow of cocaine to the United States. Rick was part of the Drug Enforcement Administration’s “Operation Snowcap,” a joint initiative between the United States and South and Central American countries to disrupt the growing, processing, and transportation systems supporting the cocaine industry. For the program’s duration from 1987-1994, DEA sent teams of agents who volunteered for the tour to deploy temporarily to countries like Bolivia, Peru, and Ecuador. Special Agent Rick Finley was assigned to the Detroit, Michigan, DEA office while conducting his second ninety-day tour in Peru. He had just been notified that he was selected to transfer to the DEA office in Fayetteville, Arkansas-his home s
