Sean Penn ‘should be in jail’ over 'El Chapo' interview: former DEA agent

Actor Sean Penn attends an event. (Reuters)

A now-retired agent of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency wants to see Sean Penn “in jail” for putting lives at risk when the actor interviewed notorious drug lord Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman for Rolling Stone in 2015.

Jack Riley, 60, came close to seeing El Chapo arrested on Oct. 2, 2015, but the operation conducted by Mexican marines was interrupted when Penn, accompanied by Mexican soap opera actress, Kate del Castillo, arrived at the El Tuna compound, the New York Post reported.

SEAN PENN IN TURKEY WORKING ON A DOCUMENTARY ABOUT THE DEATH OF JAMAL KHASHOGGI

“Oh, my God! If I could get my hands on Sean Penn!” Riley, a former top agent with the DEA, told the Post. “The people he put at risk because of that stunt. He should be in jail.”

"If I could get my hands on Sean Penn! The people he put at risk because of that stunt. He should be in jail.”

— Jack Riley, former DEA agent

The marines put the mission on hold so they wouldn’t risk putting the celebrities in danger, according to the paper. But doing so cost authorities the element of surprise and allowed the drug kingpin to escape.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

Riley tried to get Penn and del Castillo prosecuted for obstruction, but DEA and Justice Department officials didn’t pursue charges because the actor was protected by serving as a journalist, according to the Post.

El Chapo was finally arrested in 2016. He faces multiple drug and murder conspiracy charges that could put him in prison for life if he's convicted.