Roll of Honor
Juan C. Vars
Incident
Special Agent Juan Vars was killed in an aircraft accident shortly after taking off from a runway in the jungles of Peru. Four other agents were also killed. The agents were participating in Operation Snowcap, to provided support to Peruvian and Bolivian law enforcement personnel. They had taken off from a small runway in the Upper Huallaga River Valley, 15 miles west of Santa Lucia, to conduct a surveillance flight when the plane crashed. The wreckage was located the following day, but rescuers were not able to reach the site until the next day. Special Agent Vars had served with the Drug Enforcement Administration for seven years.
Survivors
He was survived by his fiancé and parents.
In Our Keeping
- Permanent identifier
BO-US-7E4AD51D- Stewardship
- Maintained by NeuraWeb Global Inc.
- Added to badge.nw
- April 2, 2026
- Last updated
- July 23, 2026
Honored here by 1 sentinel - 1 tribute.
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Tributes
I never knew you. I am standing here anyway.
Special Agent Vars gave the United States Department of Justice 7 years.
Thank you for your service. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Special Agent Vars.
— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993
Agency
Service Record
Incident Details
Special Agent Juan C. Vars is one of 10,088 officers lost to accidents in the line of duty across the full record of this memorial — 31% of all 32,508 officers honored here.
In TX, 653 of 2,421 officers were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 27% of this state's fallen. That is 4 percentage points below the national rate of 31%.
At United States Department of Justice - Drug Enforcement Administration, 20 of 38 officers on record were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 52.6% of this agency's fallen.
National Cause Distribution
How Accident compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. Juan C. Vars's cause is highlighted.
How Juan C. Vars Compares
When Accident Deaths Occur
Monthly distribution of Accident deaths across the full memorial record. Juan C. Vars is highlighted in Aug.
Incident Location
Others Who Wore This Badge
37 officers from United States Department of Justice - Drug Enforcement Administration are honored on badge.nw. Showing the 16 most recent.
