Intentionally Disturbing: Samantha — Surviving The Mexican Drug Cartel

Podcast: Intentionally Disturbing
Host: Dr. Leslie
Episode Date: September 4, 2025
Guest: "Samantha" (Pseudonym), former cartel member and survivor
Location: Cabo, Mexico
Language: Spanish (interpreted), English

Main Theme & Purpose

This episode features a harrowing and unfiltered interview with "Samantha," a survivor of the Mexican drug cartel world who was shot eight times in an attempted murder. Through candid storytelling, Samantha details her journey from working in construction as a child to being forced into cartel operations, the dangerous realities of cartel life, and her attempt to reclaim a life for herself and her daughters. The episode offers a rare, insider look into the structures, dangers, and unexpected human complexities of cartel life, challenging American misconceptions and exposing the entwined relationship between government and organized crime in Mexico.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

Samantha’s Early Life and Entry into the Cartel

• Pre-cartel Life

  • Samantha describes a humble upbringing spent helping her mother with household chores, starting work in construction at the age of 12 ([04:02]).
  • She earned approximately 2,500 pesos (about $150) a week for 8-hour workdays ([04:51]).

• First Encounter with the Cartel

  • Around age 20, Samantha accidentally found a block of drugs and began selling it. The police picked her up, resulting in the cartel abducting her, putting a gun to her head, and ultimately offering her a job instead of killing her ([06:05] – [07:28]).
  • She was battling severe addiction at the time, especially "ice" (a pure form of crystal methamphetamine) ([08:26]).

“They were going to kill her in that moment. And she said, just kill me because I have nothing to live for. So they took the gun down and kind of like offered her a job to start selling drugs.”
— Samantha (as interpreted), [07:12]

Life Inside the Cartel

• Operations & Daily Life

  • Once involved, Samantha was given a car and a phone filled with contacts for her deliveries ([10:58]).
  • She distanced herself from her family to protect her two daughters, then aged 13 and 4 ([11:26]).
  • Permission was required for every aspect of her life — from grocery shopping to taking her children to the hospital ([16:49]).

• Dangers and Controls

  • The threat of violence kept her in the cartel: “They were threatening her that if she leaves, they will kill her.” ([14:07])
  • Cartel members were watched intensively to prevent them from stealing drugs ([17:57]).
  • Samantha was required to turn over 80,000 pesos (~$4000) worth of drugs daily, keeping the remainder (around $3,000) as payment ([18:44]).

“You can’t do anything without asking for permission.”
— Samantha (as interpreted), [16:49]

• Drug Use as Survival
  • To stay awake for the demands of cartel work, Samantha used the drugs she sold ([20:01]). Part of what she could sell was kept for personal use ([20:57]).

“She had to be active 24 hour, 24 seven... She was using drugs to keep awake all day, every day.”
— Samantha (as interpreted), [20:01]

The Attempted Assassination

• The Shooting
  • Samantha recounts being ambushed and shot eight times while delivering drugs ([29:48] – [33:00]).
  • She managed to drive herself most of the way to the hospital despite her injuries, fainting two blocks from the entrance ([32:57]).
  • Samantha survived a month-long hospital stay, including a week in a coma during which she was assumed dead ([37:45]).

“She got shot eight times. And she kept driving, trying to get to the hospital, but two blocks before... she fainted.”
— Samantha (as interpreted), [32:57]

• Government & Cartel Dynamics
  • Execution orders stemmed from government shift: when a new government takes office, they replace entire branches of the cartel with their own people, disposing of previous workers ([31:45]).
  • "The government is the cartel" and vice versa — without one, the other cannot exist ([63:55]).

“The government money comes from the cartel, and the cartel makes money because the government opens the door for them. So it comes together.”
— Samantha (as interpreted), [64:48]

Aftermath, Escape, and Reflections

• Leaving the Cartel

  • After surviving the shooting, Samantha asked to quit and, surprisingly, was allowed to do so with no outstanding debts ([40:01]).
  • She never met her higher-up cartel boss in person; communications were exclusively via phone ([42:43]).

• Life After Cartel

  • Samantha experienced mixed feelings: missing the ease of cartel money but valuing her family's safety ([54:35]).
  • She now lives a less stable life working odd jobs, seeking legitimate employment ([44:58]), and is focused on raising her daughters.

• On Trauma, Addiction, and Family

  • Samantha continues to struggle with addiction, using drugs primarily for energy to get through the day ([57:35]), but believes she can quit on her own whenever she chooses ([57:22]).
  • She speaks openly to her daughters about her past, striving to guide them away from similar paths ([55:23]).

“She got out of it safe and sound. Like she’s okay. She doesn’t seem to be in danger anymore.”
— Samantha (as interpreted), [43:15]

Cartel Culture: Misconceptions, Morality, and the Future

• American Misconceptions

  • Samantha says American tourists are typically not targeted by cartels unless they interfere; "they need" the gringo clientele ([49:58]).
  • Drugs sold to Americans, primarily marijuana, are not intentionally tainted — dangers arise when users overindulge ([50:38]).
  • The main drug contacts for tourists are often taxi drivers at the airport ([51:49]).

• Violence, Justice, and Human Nature

  • Cartel retaliation against members is swift and brutal. Lower-level workers are most expendable ([41:31]).
  • Samantha notes that Mexican cartels operate with less loyalty and more violence toward their own compared to American gangs ([66:39]).

• Future Hopes & Social Concerns

  • Samantha dreams of making enough money to help handicapped and disabled women, driven by her distaste for injustice and violence ([59:21]).
  • She feels hopeless about broader societal violence but is determined to ensure her daughters lead better lives ([69:34]).

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On losing her will to live:
  “Just kill me because I have nothing to live for.”
  — Samantha, describing her first cartel encounter ([07:12])

• On the government-cartel relationship:
  “The government is the cartel… the cartel makes money because the government opens the door.”
  — Samantha, reflecting on corruption in Mexico ([63:55], [64:48])

• On surviving being shot:
  “She got shot eight times. And she kept driving, trying to get to the hospital... two blocks before she fainted.”
  — Dr. Leslie, paraphrasing Samantha ([32:57])

• On why she left the cartel:
  “She risked her family and her daughters a lot…she needed a break. And after the shooting she felt that was about time.”
  — Dr. Leslie, summarizing Samantha’s motivation ([43:36])

• On moral ambiguity of cartel life:
  “That’s so wild that there’s. There’s a good... but also they will kill you in a second.”
  — Dr. Leslie ([61:09])

• On advice for Americans in Cabo:
  “They’re safe. We need them. Yeah, as long as you don’t get in trouble and just buying the drugs. They won’t do anything to them.”
  — Samantha ([49:58])

Timestamps for Key Segments

• Samantha’s Childhood and Entry to Cartel: [04:02] – [08:26]
• First Encounter with Cartel, Choice to Join: [06:05] – [09:39]
• Cartel Daily Life, Threats and Controls: [10:58] – [19:41]
• Drug Use and Survival Strategies: [20:01] – [22:57], [57:35]
• Shooting & Near Death Experience: [28:10] – [37:45]
• Aftermath & Escape from the Cartel: [40:01] – [44:46]
• Life After Cartel, Family and Hopes: [54:01] – [59:03]
• Corruption & Government Ties: [31:42], [63:14], [64:48]
• Advice for Americans & Misconceptions: [49:37] – [51:58]
• Reflections on Violence, Justice, and the Future: [61:09], [69:34] – [71:46]

Tone & Style

• Dr. Leslie’s interviewing is direct, irreverent, and darkly humorous, swiftly drilling into emotional and uncomfortable territory.
• Samantha is plainspoken and candid, with a survivor’s pragmatism, humor, and vulnerability.
• The episode oscillates between raw honesty, moments of levity, and sobering insight into the intersection of poverty, organized crime, and survival.

Final Takeaways

• Samantha’s journey reflects the complex, coercive power of cartel economies, the role of government corruption, and the scarcity of safe choices for marginalized women in Mexico.
• The reality of cartel life is both more mundane and more brutal than portrayed in American media — ordinary people are swept into cycles of violence with little agency or recourse.
• Despite vast trauma, Samantha is determined to break the cycle for her children and to help others, providing a rare glimpse of resilience, humanity, and hope against impossible odds.

Memorable Closing Exchange:

Dr. Leslie: “You need to stop doing drugs.”
Samantha: “Okay?”
Dr. Leslie: “Within two years. Two years?”
Samantha: “Years. Less than that. Okay.”
([72:35]–[72:41])