A
drug lord,
drug baron,
kingpin, or
narcotrafficker is a person who controls a sizable network of persons involved in the
illegal drug trade. Such figures are often difficult to bring to justice, as they are never directly in possession of something illegal, but are insulated from the actual trade in drugs by several layers of underlings. The
prosecution of drug lords is therefore usually the result of carefully planned infiltrations of their networks, often using
informants from within the organization.