"stevectpa" for Borderland Beat

Jesus Gilberto A.J.

Chihuahua state authorities arrested a Tamaulipas cartel boss Jesus Gilberto over the weekend. He was the head of Los Xs, a Gulf Cartel faction once headed by former kingpin Jorge Eduardo Costilla Sanchez ("El Coss"). The detainee was hiding in Chihuahua, over 860 km (534 mi) from Tamaulipas, where the Xs are based.

Investigators say that Jesus Gilberto was coordinating marijuana and cocaine shipments from Chihuahua to Tamaulipas with the help of local drug cartels. His associates in Chihuahua were Francisco Arvizu Marquez ("El Jaguar") and Gerardo Garza Santana ("El 300"), heads of Gente Nueva and La Empresa. The Xs also smuggled narcotics to the U.S. through the El Paso–Juárez corridor with the assistance of local smugglers.

In addition, authorities said that Jesus Gilberto's group sold cocaine throughout Chihuahua in black plastic bags marked with the letter X. He was also linked to an extortion case of a bread business in Chihuahua. The Xs reportedly asked the company for payments periodically in order to continue operating. If they refused or were unable to pay, gangsters were ordered to burn the company's distribution buses. This form of extortion is known in Mexico as derecho/cobro de piso ("user rights"), as reported by Borderland Beat.

The arrest was made after a judge in Tamaulipas issued an arrest warrant on 15 October 2020 and asked Chihuahua state officials to help in the search. At the time of his arrest, Jesus Gilberto was one of the most-wanted criminals in Tamaulipas and was considered a "priority target". Chihuahua officials transferred Jesus Gilberto to Tamaulipas for his legal hearings. He is being investigated for homicide, extortion and drug trafficking.

Sources: 24 Horas; El Heraldo de Chihuahua; Sol de Nayarit; La Opcion

 "MX" for Borderland Beat

Raúl Flores Hernández ("El Tío")

A Mexican federal judge suspended the U.S. extradition of Raúl Flores Hernández ("El Tío"), an independent drug kingpin who had strategic alliances with multiple drug cartels. El Tio's defense issued a motion arguing that 60 days had passed without him being extradited to the U.S., a threshold stipulated in the extradition treaty between the U.S. and Mexico. He asked for his immediate release from prison.

El Tio told the federal judge he was worried about his extradition because he is also accused of murder and does not want to face the death penalty in the U.S. However, Mexican officials reassured him that he will not face death penalty if he is extradited Mexico will not agree to extradite a national under such conditions.

In October 2019, Borderland Beat reported that El Tio had been approved for U.S. extradition after he had exhausted all of the legal remedies available to avoid it. Mexican authorities said that there was not a single obstacle preventing his extradition to the U.S. Today's action may highlight the government's inability and/or unwillingness to effectively bring some drug cartel leaders to justice.

Background

U.S. authorities say that El Tio has been a long-time international drug kingpin. Although he operated independently, El Tio maintained ties with multiple drug cartels in Mexico since the 1980s. He had ties to the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG) and the Sinaloa Cartel. His criminal network was mostly based in Guadalajara and Mexico City, and included a vast web of family members and trusted associates.

"[El Tio] has operated for decades because of his longstanding relationships with other drug cartels and his use of financial front persons to mask his investments of illegal drug proceeds," said OFAC Director John E. Smith in 2017.

"This major joint action reflects the U.S. government's close cooperation with our law enforcement partners in Mexico to stop the illegal flow of narcotics and to target and expose drug kingpins and those who facilitate their illicit financial networks."

In March 2017, he was indicted in the U.S. District of Colombia and the Southern District of California for drug trafficking. In August of that year, he was sanctioned under the Foreign Narcotics Kingpin Designation Act for his involvement in drug trafficking and money laundering.

As a result of this sanction, all of his U.S.-based assets were frozen and U.S. individuals were prohibited from engaging in business activities with him. His assets in Mexico were also frozen.

Sources: Milenio and Borderland Beat archives

 Steve C Borderland Beat  Zeta Tijuana

 With arrest warrants against them and as part of Operative Alert, the Municipal Security and Citizen Protection Secretariat, the Sedena and the National Guard, are going after the 15 most dangerous murderers, generators of violence in Tijuana. All, in addition, criminal operators of the Jalisco, Sinaloa and Arellano Félix cartels

 

By recruiting David López Jiménez alias "El Lobo" or "Cabo 20", Pablo Edwin Huerta Nuño "El Flaquito" and Roque García, from the Arellano Félix Cartel (CAF), managed to grow in number their cells of hitmen and drug dealers, and with This will gain territory from the Jalisco Nueva Generación Cartel (CJNG) in Tijuana.

"Los Cabos" are a group of thugs formed from 2015 by the CJNG in Tijuana, but many of them changed to CAF, and are currently facing death with the Sinaloa mafia and their former colleagues from Jalisco, generating a high percentage of the more than 1,570 murders that have been committed so far in 2020 in Tijuana.

López operated with Jalisco until 2018, when he confronted Héctor Manuel Morales Guzmán “El Gallero” -disappeared on May 5, 2019-, leader of the CJNG who, drugged, ordered to kill left and right.

In 2019, "El Lobo" allied with the CAF and was arrested in Querétaro in March 2020, and as of the night of July 18, when thugs murdered Mario Delval Barocio alias "Cabo 33", "Tony" and / or “Mariola” on Alba Roja street in the Hipódromo Dos neighborhood, La Mesa Delegation, the rout was accelerated.

“Many of 'Los Cabos' went over with the CAF”, and “those who still remain with Jalisco are afraid and stay away from Alfonso Trapero”, the CJNG operative leader in the Baja California Coast Zone who remains hidden in the mountainous area of ​​Tecate.

"In Tijuana, the CAF at this time recovered a drug dealing zone, thanks to its allies, who have those from Jalisco cornered in Natura."

This was reported by intelligence groups last week, after the capture of “Los Cabos”: Édgar Pérez Villa “El Nier” or “Cabo 89”; and Víctor González Ochoa “Cabo 85”, whose investigations found accounts of changes in criminal alliances. Both were indicted for possession of a weapon and released under trial.

However, thanks to his lawyers Elías Alberto López Gastélum and José Alberto Souza Montero, since January Pablo Edwin Huerta Nuño, head of CAF, paid a guarantee of 10,000 pesos and obtained a protection from the federal justice that protects him from an “apprehension, arrest, presentation and/or any issue that tends to deprive me of my freedom, violating my individual guarantees enshrined in the Political Constitution of the United Mexican States.

ARRESTED FOR POSSESSION OF WEAPON

Last week, the Secretariat of National Defense (Sedena), the National Guard and the Municipal Public Security Secretariat of Tijuana received reports that Óscar Antonio López Arellano, alias Rodolfo López Arellano "Solecito" and/or "Cabo 30" would have an important family celebration, which opened up a possibility to stop him.

According to the organization chart and the information held by the Coordination Tables for the Construction of Peace and Security, the CJNG is the main generator of violence in Tijuana and has an arrest warrant against him for homicide.

The coordinated forces waited for information of time and place, but it did not arrive. Instead, patrolling the area of ​​Sánchez Taboada and Los Pinos, the information they received led them behind “Cabo 89”, who could provide them with details of the location of their supposed boss “El Cabo 30”, and at the same time avoid a series of homicides.

They are currently on the list of the 15 most wanted killers.

Previously, on Facebook pages dedicated to reporting events by organized crime, they had published a telephone recording attributed to "El Nier" or "Cabo 89", identified by the authorities in the criminal organization chart of the CJNG since 2019. The identity of the "89” is confirmed to the members of the Coordination Table by an informant.

In the audio, a presumed Pérez orders: “I take care that the hands remain for Guaycura, the legs for the Cerro Colorado, the body for the 'Presi' and the sweater right now I say where. But all with cardboard that says the same, leave them about four ceviches on the cock now”.

According to the monitoring of the authorities, at 08:02 a.m. on October 7, in the Bulevar Díaz Ordaz and Baja California of the La Mesa delegation, in the parking lot of the Calimax store they left a plastic bag and inside they found human remains, legs wearing blue jeans and black tennis shoes. A message was left with him signed  LA PERLUCHA and threatening Edwin Antonio Rubio.

Currently, Edwin Antonio Rubio alias “El Max” is the main operator of the Sinaloa Cartel in the East Zone of Tijuana, with operations in Tecate.

On the same day 7, at 8:40 a.m. on Río Colorado street in the Marrón neighborhood in the Central Zone, they found another black bag, it contained a human head and a card with the same message.

In this context, "Cabo 89" became a priority target, however, upon locating him - according to the police report - they only found him in possession of a weapon.But the audio in which they mention the dismembered, the murderer himself speaks of the corruption of the special operations group of the Tijuana Municipal Police, which the criminals nickname "Las Vaquitas" and the criminal claims to have controlled:

"Erre, check if they are 'Vaquitas' to open them, everyone in general if the 'Vaquitas' are bothering you, write down the unit number and let me know in private, the data is not useful if they do not give me the unit number , so that they are aware ”, information that also led to an internal investigation.

HOMICIDES

In this context of violence, the Tijuana Municipal Public Security Secretariat, headed by the Mexican Army Captain with a license, Jorge Alberto Ayón Monsalve, proposed in October a work called Operative Alert, for which they requested and obtained support. of the Sedena and the National Guard.

Basically, it is about looking for the biggest generators of homicidal violence in Tijuana, the city with the most murders in Baja California. Thugs with any belonging to the criminal cells, who also have an arrest warrant, fugitives.

The following delegations have registered the highest number of violent deaths as part of the fight in the streets for the sale of drugs in Tijuana between January 1 and October 12, 2020:

* Sánchez Taboada, 159 murders

* Los Pinos, 144 executions

* Natura, 138 homicides

* The Rural Dam, 136 murders

* San Antonio, 136 violent deaths

* El Florido-Mariano, 115 corpses.

Those responsible for most of these deaths are held by the members of the Coordination Tables for the Construction of Peace and Security.

Having been identified, they belong to the various cartels and at this time they are the most wanted.

The State Attorney General's Office confirmed that they all have arrest warrants against them, but did not specify when or who they allegedly killed.

15 GENERATORS OF VIOLENCE

The CJNG wanted:

Óscar and / or Rodolfo López Arellano “Cabo 30” and / or “El Güero Pecas”. Along with Israel Alejandro Vázquez “Cabo 50” or “El Goofy” has been facing David Jiménez former “Cabo 20” for two years, trying to kill him and seeking control of the Sánchez Taboada delegation.

In February 2019, he was held responsible for the drug banners that were hung in different parts of the city threatening President Andrés Manuel López Obrador, prior to his visit due to the federal security operation that began on February 4 in Tijuana.

The intelligence groups record criminal operations in Los Pinos, Sánchez Taboada and Natura.

Like his most violent criminal underlings, the authority identified three as the most dangerous, all drug dealers and murderers in San Antonio. And some with bosses between them and López Arellano:

- Jesús Higuera Pérez “El Cachora”, a bully from the Fineas Peña group, a cell made up of eight elements, including a woman, all surnamed López Félix, Félix Martínez, Corral, Hernández Valencia, Cienfuegos Acosta and Higuera Pérez.

- Braian and / or Brayan Aldair Plancarte Mejía “El Blifer”.

- Aarón Gómez Zararáin.

On the side of the Sinaloa Cartel, they listed the necessary apprehensions of:

Edwin Antonio Rubio López "El Max". According to a police report, in October 2013, Rubio, then 22 years old, was caught while speeding in a gray Lincoln 2000 car with California license plates on Main Avenue and Right Margin Street. , Colonia El Florido. Upon inspection, they found a .45 caliber squad pistol with nine shots, and two packages containing 10 kilograms of marijuana.

On August 22 and 23, 2020, they hung two narcomantas, one on a pedestrian bridge on Bulevar Casa Blanca in the Héroes de Independencia neighborhood, and the other in Infonavit Lomas Verdes in the Los Pinos sub-delegation:

“MAX, YOU ARE THE GENERATOR OF VIOLENCE IN ALL URBI AND THE EASTERN AREA, GUILTY OF THE CLANDESTINE GRAVES FOUND A FEW DAYS AGO, GUILTY OF THE MURDER OF THE 5-YEAR-OLD BOY ALEXIS ANTONIO NÚÑEZ MERIDA. WE ARE SICK OF THE AKILES AND THE FROG DEFENDING YOU AND NOTHING HAPPENS, KILLS CHILDREN ALREADY TO VSTA ".

They held him responsible for the murders of Juan Carlos Reynoso Valderrama, 28, and Alexis Antonio Iñiguez Mendoza, 6, committed on August 20 at Privada Monte Albán and Calle de los Volcanes, Urbi Villas del Prado section II.

Additionally, his name came to light in the first investigations into the murder of drug dealer Daniel Sotelo and his brother-in-law, activist Óscar Eyraud Adams, both murdered on September 25 and 24, respectively.

As subordinates of "El Max" they seek for murder:

- Rubén Alejandro Martínez Esparza “El Ñañas”, who on March 22, 2014, aged 21, was captured in the Esperanza neighborhood when he was driving a Jeep Cherokee with a report of theft with a pick on the ignition switch . He is currently considered the head of a small group that includes members of the Benítez Ramírez and García Baltazar families.

-Isidro Palafox Acosta "El Grito", originally identified as part of the CJNG under the command of Leonardo Fabián Llamas "Cabo 45", is now placed as part of the cell of the jailed in 2018, José Luis Martínez Hernández "El Secre", group in which they have identified at least 19 criminals.

- Raúl Antonio López Sandoval “El Rulis”, who commits homicides in the La Presa area.

- José Cruz Gómez Gutiérrez "El Gordo", an alleged murderer who committed a crime together with Osvaldo and Nahúm Romero Juárez; In August 2018, they were detained as part of the Luis Arturo Jain Peña criminal group “El Arcángel” in the Cumbres del Rubí neighborhood. They secured a GMC Envoy truck , in which three firearms were located: a 9-millimeter pistol, a .223 caliber carbine and a 357 caliber pistol.

From CAF and its allies, the former "Cabos", the first priority objectives belong to the same criminal cell:

José Alberto López Barraza "El Clofer". He is only 19 years old, but the authorities place him in homicidal actions since he was just 17 years old. His second in command is the same age and his name is Roberto Santana Íñiguez.

He likes to film himself while murdering his victims and the authorities have those videos, which include the murder of a homeless older man, laughing and for no obvious reason.

It operates in Natura and under its criminal leadership the following offenses: Antonio Ruiz Alvarado, Luis de Arco Rangel and Arturo Valdivia Pérez, who still do not have an arrest warrant against them.

And wanted for murder like "El Clofer":

- Cristian Rodríguez Silva "El Teket"

- Miguel Ángel Beltrán Ramos "El Rencor"

- Luis Armando León Vázquez "El Tortillero"

- Juan Rubén Sánchez Lara "Trak"

Wanted:

Rodolfo López Arellano

For the murder of two men in Colonia Los Valles on March 7, 2018.

Rubén Alejandro Martínez Esparza

For the death of a man from gunshot wounds at the Red Cross on July 26, 2018 and attempted murder of two subjects on February 24, 2020.

Cristian Rodriguez Silva

For the murder on the back of a man in Cañadas de El Florido on March 18, 2020.

Miguel Angel Beltrán Ramos

For the crime of a 51-year-old man who disappeared in June 2019 in Villas del Prado, whose body was located on July 3, 2019.

Luis Armando León Vázquez, Juan Rubén Sánchez Lara and Ángel Orlando Castillo Gutiérrez

For the murder of three men whose bodies were found separately between May 14 and 15, two dismembered in Urbi Villas del Prado, and another young man who died in the ISSSTE Palmas from gunshot wounds.

For the homicide of two men, one perpetrated on January 22, 2019 and the other who died at the General Hospital on April 18 of the same year due to firearm injuries.

For attempted homicide perpetrated against a male on October 11, 2019, the attempted murder of another male on January 14, 2020, and the murder of a woman. In this armed attack, he was allegedly accompanied by:

Aarón Gómez Zatarain , also for the murder of a woman and the attempt of the female on January 14, 2020, in the company of Plancarte.

Steve C  Borderland Beat   Proceso

The body of missing girl named Dulce, a minor from Celaya who was searched for  after being abducted from her home since October 1, was found semi-buried by staff of the State Attorney General's Office when inspecting a house that served as a safe-house for an organized crime cell that was arrested after shooting at agents of the State Forces in that municipality.

The attack by the hit men occurred on October 9. Nine of them were arrested and brought before a judge.

It wasn't until Sunday 18 when the State Attorney General's Office revealed that when searching the home where the armed group was sheltered, a semi-buried young girls  body was found in the backyard. The body was transferred to the Forensic Service to carry out the autopsy and identification.

[Below are the subhuman bastards that had little Dulce then half-buried her.  They are charged with abduction, femicide, and homicide among other charges.  Let's hope Ducle receives justice, one way or another.]

Although it does not reveal in the statement, Guadalupe Tamayo Garcia Apro was able to learn that the body corresponds to the minor Dulce Guadalupe, 13 years old, for whom an Amber Alert was issued after reporting her disappearance, which occurred on October 1 at her own home.

The minor was presumably taken from her home and wanted returned by her relatives.

In the statement released on the 18th -17 days after the minor's disappearance- the Attorney General's Office stated that, after the attack that occurred in Rincón de Tamayo, personnel from the Criminal Investigation Agency carried out some proceedings in a building that was inhabited by the criminal group where the body of the minor was found.

"The legal identity of the victim was determined for whom there was an open investigation into her disappearance, since days before she had been deprived of her liberty by armed individuals who took her from her home," the statement said.

Upon being presented before a criminal judge, the detainees were accused by the Prosecutor's Office of femicide, disappearance committed by individuals, robbery, as well as attempted murder against the elements of the State Security Forces who were shot on the 9th of October.

In addition, the specialized public Ministry charged them with the possession of weapons for the exclusive use of the armed forces and explosive devices "of which the competent federal authority will hear," the FGE reported.

The nine detainees -Abraham, Salvador, Edwin, Gerardo, Mario, Adalid, José, Cristian and Daniel- were linked to the process and will remain in preventive detention.

According to the Prosecutor's Office, there are other open investigations that involve the nine detainees in other criminal acts in the Laja-Bajío region.

Note: While some reports state she was taken FROM her home, others report she was taken near her home

 "MX" for Borderland Beat

Los Zetas founding member Jaime Gonzalez Duran ("El Hummer") is ready to be extradited to the U.S., where he faces drug trafficking charges. This announcement was confirmed by a Mexican federal judge who revoked a motion issued by El Hummer's defense that intended to halt his extradition.

Although El Hummer was arrested nearly 12 years ago, authorities have been unable to extradite him to the U.S. His extradition process began in 2015 and has been filled with motions, suspensions and delays.

Should El Hummer be extradited, he would be one of the highest-ranking Zetas members to ever face trial in the U.S. The highest-ranking Zetas member imprisoned in the U.S. today is Jesus Enrique Rejon Aguilar ("El Mamito"), who was also a founding member.

Background

El Hummer was a violent cartel leader and is the suspect in the murder of the famous band singer Valentine Elizalde. Known as one of the most bloodthirsty Zetas, he was born in the tiny humble town of Xolmón, in the municipality of Aquismón, San Luis Potosí.  At the time Xolmón had a population of less than 500, all indigenous people.

He joined the Mexican Army as a young adult and was part of the Special Forces Airborne Group (GAFE). He received specialized training by U.S. forces and the Israeli Defense Force.

After seven years of service, he defected and joined the Gulf Cartel under Osiel Cardenas Guillen, becoming one of the first members of its newly formed paramilitary wing, Los Zetas.

Like El Hummer, most of the first members of Los Zetas were ex-military. Los Zetas was responsible for providing security services to Cárdenas Guillén and carrying out executions on the cartel's behalf. Their role in organized crime increased over the years after they became involved in drug trafficking and territory expansion.

El Hummer was the former plaza boss of Reynosa, Tamaulipas, one of the Gulf Cartel's most lucrative turfs. In 2008, he was arrested and has been in prison ever since.

Case

The extradition of El Hummer has been a headache case for Mexican and U.S. officials. From 2008 to 2015, El Hummer was imprisoned in Mexico without a formal extradition request from the U.S.

In November 2015, a federal judge halted his extradition and allowed El Hummer to file an appeal. This action was a surprise for the Mexican Foreign Ministry and the U.S. government because they had already agreed to send him to the U.S., as reported by Borderland Beat.

In March 2019, his extradition was okayed by the Mexican government once again, but El Hummer was able to get a motion approved in May that temporarily halted his extradition, as reported by Borderland Beat. Another Mexican federal judge gave the "green light" to extradite him to the U.S. that November, but this motion was suspended again in 2020.

Sources:La Jornada and Borderland Beat archives

 Steve C Borderland Beat La Silla Rota

During the government of Enrique Peña Nieto, the arrest and capture of leaders of cartels and criminal organizations had only four apprehensions of the Los Beltrán Leyva cartel, a group for which General Salvador Cienfuegos Zepeda allegedly worked through H-2 , according to the United States government.

The federal government's operations focused on the arrest of members of Los Zetas, del Poniente and del Pacifico, as well as in El Golfo, Juárez, Jalisco Nueva Generación and Familia or Caballeros Templarios. There are even captures of Los Arellano Félix.

According to documents from the Office of the Attorney General of the Republic (FGR), the defunct Federal Police and the Secretary of the Navy (Semar), between December 1, 2012 and November 30, 2018 they were detained or killed in clashes. 109 of the 122 objectives contemplated by the National Security cabinet.

Among the captures or casualties of the Los Beltrán Leyva cartel are Daniel Fernández Domínguez, "El Siete"; Wenceslao Carmona Álvarez, "El Huerco"; Héctor Beltrán Leyva, "El H" and Víctor Hugo Aguirre Garzón, El Gordo, from the Independent Cartel of Acapulco, a cell of Los Beltrán Leyva.

Only one of the arrests against Los Beltrán Leyva was made by elements of the Secretariat of National Defense (Sedena), led in the last six years by Salvador Cienfuegos Zepeda, " El Padrino " or "Zepeda", who according to the United States government favored the H-2 , heirs of the criminal family .

The most important capture against that cartel was that of Héctor Beltrán Leyva , "El H", who boasted of being a real estate entrepreneur in the state of Querétaro. He was apprehended on September 30 by elements of the defunct Attorney General's Office (PGR), now the Attorney General's Office (FGR), and the Army in San Miguel Allende, Guanajuato.

During the past six-year term, Juan Francisco Patron Sánchez, ´El H2´, killed on February 9, 2017 in the capital of Nayarit by elements of the Secretary of the Navy (Semar) was also killed.

Although his death was presumed by federal authorities, the H-2 did not appear on the list of 122 targets that the national security cabinet included in the list of people to arrest at the beginning of the six-year term.

According to the documents consulted by LA SILLA ROTA, among the people who could not be arrested, is Fausto Isidro Meza Flores, "El Chapo Isidro", who started a war against Joaquín " El Chapo " Guzmán together with Arturo Beltrán Leyva,"El Jefe de Jefe ", because of the arrest of Alfredo Beltrán Leyva," El Mochomo " in 2008.

According to the record of the captures made in the past six-year term, the main groups that were weakened through the capture of their commanders were 33 members of Los Zetas , 21 from Sinaloa or Pacific, 17 from Poniente ; seven from Gulf.

The official documents of the national security cabinet indicate that during the past administration, one of the groups that had fewer casualties at the top of their organization was Los Beltrán Leyva.

This cartel has maintained control of different areas of the country through the alliances it made with " El Chapo " until its breakup in 2008.

The Beltrán Leyva, through the H-2 , is mentioned in the accusation presented by the United States government against General Salvador Cienfuegos Zepeda, former head of the Army in the government, and Enrique Peña Nieto.

According to the US government, Cienfuegos is accused of international conspiracy to manufacture and distribute heroin, cocaine, methamphetamine and marijuana, as well as money laundering. The crimes were committed during December 2015 and February 2017, for the benefit of the H-2 cartel.

 Chivis Martinez Borderland Beat TY Gus  Source

Now that Joaquín el “Chapo” Guzmán is in custody, it is his sons who have continued with the drug trafficking business and have tried to maintain and extend the dominions of the Sinaloa Cartel.

Currently, they seek to dominate the Sonoran desert, where there have been several confrontations with the Caborca ​​Cartel, led by Rafael Caro Quintero, who has also settled in the place.

In recent months, this area has increased its levels of violence due to the presence of criminal cells from both cartels that it constantly confronts in the municipality of Caborca.

An En Punto report by journalists Marco Antonio Coronel and Adrián Tinoco revealed that between January and August 2020 intentional homicides have increased 28% compared to the same period last year. That is, they went from 809 to 1,036 victims.

In an interview on the subject with the municipal president of the place, Librado Macías, who said that "it is something that has to do with the proximity that this region has with the United States, it is a very long border area."

He accepted that the sale of drugs persist in the municipality and the constant appearance of narcomantas that threaten to continue the wave of violence while one of the two cartels is the winner.

"It is a confrontation between two staunch criminal groups that seek to end their opponent, " said the municipal president.

However, the media highlights that the Sonoyta-Caborca ​​and Puerto Peñasco-Puerto Lobos highways are two areas where signs of violence are more frequent.

Sonora, given its geographical location, increases the interest of criminal organizations seeking to control drug trafficking. Among these groups is the criminal cell of Los Salazar  identified as the armed wing of the Sinaloa Cartel.

For years, Caborca ​​has been identified as the center of operations for Caro Quintero.

In May 2020 it was reported that in the state of Sonora the sale of luxury cars has been monopolized by Caborca, land of cattle ranchers, who could not be the purchasers. In addition , the purchase and sale of ranches increased substantially, which were sold at double their cost, and the buyers were not ranchers either.

According to the latest report from the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU), the organization with the largest presence in the country is the Jalisco Nueva Generación Cartel (CJNG), which controls practically all the coastal states.

However, the Sinaloa Cartel is not far behind and its presence has been registered in states such as Baja California, Baja California Sur, Sonora, Chihuahua, Coahuila, Sinaloa, Zacatecas, Jalisco, Colima, Querétaro, State of Mexico, Guerrero, Oaxaca, Chiapas and Quintana Roo.

In addition, the agency reported the presence of other organizations such as the Gulf Cartel, Los Zetas, the Michoacana Family, the Beltrán Leyva, the Unión Tepito Cartel, the Tláhuac Cartel, Los Viagra, the Northeast Cartel, the Independent Cartel from Acapulco, Los Rojos and Guerreros Unidos, among many others.

The main conflict between the Sinaloans and the Caborca ​​Cartel is for the control of the state, where both are allied with Sonoran politicians who seek to keep some hectares of the desert, which have great wealth in their subsoil.

 Chivis Martinez Borderland Bat TY Gus  Guardian

He calls it his war on drugs, others call it social cleansing as his death squads kill thousands of "suspects" on sight....

Philippine president Rodrigo Duterte has said he has no problem with being held responsible for the thousands of killings under his government’s war on drugs, adding that he was ready to face charges that could land him in jail, though not charges of crimes against humanity.

The president’s televised remarks on Monday night were among his clearest acknowledgment of the prospects that he could face a deluge of criminal charges for the bloody campaign he launched after taking office in mid-2016.

The killing of nearly 6,000 drug suspects have been reported by police but rights watchdogs suspect the death toll is far higher.

“If there’s killing there, I’m saying I’m the one ... you can hold me responsible for anything, any death that has occurred in the execution of the drug war,” Duterte said.

“If you get killed it’s because I’m enraged by drugs,” the president said. “If that’s what I’m saying, bring me to court to be imprisoned. Fine, I have no problem. If I serve my country by going to jail, gladly.”

At least two complaints for crimes against humanity and mass murder in connection with Duterte’s campaign are being examined by an international criminal court (ICC) prosecutor, who will determine whether there is enough evidence to open a full investigation.

Duterte responded to the complaints by withdrawing the Philippines from the court two years ago in a move that human rights groups said was a major setback in the country’s battle against impunity. The ICC prosecutor has said the examination into the drug killings would continue despite the Philippine withdrawal.

Duterte framed his remarks by portraying the drug menace as a national security and public threat like the decades-long communist insurgency that the government is obligated to quell.

“If this is allowed to go on and on and if no decisive action is taken against them, it will endanger the security of the state,” said Duterte, a former government prosecutor.

“When you save your country from the perdition of the people like the NPAs and drugs, you are doing a sacred duty,” he said, referring to communist New People’s Army insurgents.

There are 1.6 million drug addicts in the Philippines, Duterte said, citing statistics from an anti-narcotics agency. The figure is much smaller than the 4 million addicts that he cited the police as reporting early in his presidency to justify his crackdown.

Police have reported at least 5,856 drug suspects have been killed in raids and more than 256,000 others arrested since the start of the crackdown. Human rights groups have accused authorities of considerably under reporting the deaths.

'If it’s drugs, you shoot and kill,' Duterte orders Philippine custom chief.

Duterte said drug killings that did not happen during police operations should not be blamed on him, adding those deaths may have been set off by gang rivalries or settling of scores.

There have been widespread suspicions of extrajudicial killings in the crackdown, allegations that Duterte and the police deny.

In 2018, a court convicted three police officers of murdering a 17-year-old student after witnesses and a security video disproved their claim that the suspect was shot after violently resisting, a common reason cited by police officers after drug suspects are killed.

 Chivis Martinez  Borderland Beat   TY Gus

Also in a video message  “Operation MZ” (Mayo Zambada) of the Sinaloa Cartel announces its arrival in Nayarit.

Narco-banners were hung in Zacatecas, ‘signed” by CDS and point to the Zacatecas Senator David Monreal, as being responsible for given access to the territory to CJNG, causing violence to citizens.

The senators brother, Saul Monreal (below) denounced the narco messages as “dirty politics” implying the messages were a smear campaign of lies.  Saul Monreal is the mayor of Fresnillo.

The messages read: (thank you Sol)

Citizens of Zacatecas. You are not alone. We are still working for a better State, free of kidnappers, extortionists, and rapists who only harm society. David Monreal gave CJNG access to the territory,  which is being led by Audias Flores Silva aka El Jardinero. 

He is the one who is kidnapping and extorting the citizens to pay for his political campaign as Governor. Kidnappings, robberies, nor extortionists are allowed to operate within the territory of Mr. Mayo Zambada.

Sincerely,

CDS

La Operativa MZ (Mayo Zambada) del Cártel de Sinaloa anuncia su llegada a Nayarit territorio controlado por el CJNG edo. donde opera "El Jardinero"#CJNG#Propaganda#Terrorism#CDS

Operativa MZ vs CJNG
- vs Grupo Operativa Choke en Zacatecas. pic.twitter.com/YEWZVoY1yM

— BALAM. (@OfficialBalam) October 3, 2020

 Chivis Martinez Borderland Beat  TY Gus  Diario

A video circulates where narcos who call themselves Los Durango or Jinetes de la Muerte exhibited themselves on social networks displaying their powerful arsenal as they walk through the limits of the states of Sonora and Durango in Mexico and launch a threat to the group allegedly headed by Rafael Caro Quintero, alias el Narco de Narcos.

Later in the video, they exit  the truck and once again show off their weapons, ready to shoot, all this while listening to a narcocorrido.

While in another video, which everything indicates was taken from a live broadcast, the alleged leader of said criminal cell launches a threat:

“We are not going to leave until the town is cleansed, (…) all those who have been causing harm to people who live their life doing good, people who work, Just as they killed the footballer, also when they have gone to collect piso they have killed  innocents, the people in the restaurant,  people that have done nothing to you.”

VIDEO1/2Los Durango o Jinetes de la Muerte lanzan amenaza a grupo de Caro Quintero

MAS DETALLE AQUI>https://t.co/xyo3eRFZ0gpic.twitter.com/FgYqPWf77C

— diario Mexico (@diarioMexico1) October 22, 2020

VIDEO2/2Los Durango o Jinetes de la Muerte lanzan amenaza a grupo de Caro Quintero

MAS DETALLE AQUI>https://t.co/xyo3eRFZ0gpic.twitter.com/qCWXzpw2nI

— diario Mexico (@diarioMexico1) October 22, 2020

 Chivis Martinez Borderland Beat  Zeta Tijuana

Among the belongings of "El Chucky" there were notes with contacts from the Social Reintegration Center, National Guard, Attorney General's Office, Mulegé municipal police, journalists, house rentals, and account numbers to which to make deposits.

On October 7, in the community of Santa Rosalía, Jazziel Huerta García and/or Reyes Jazziel Huerta García “El Chucky”, 29 years old, originally from Ensenada, Baja California, was captured. He had a warrant for kidnapping.

Authorities warn of the rise of Los Solís in the North Zone

In recent days, disappearances of young people have been reported in Guerrero Negro, El Vizcaíno, Santa Rosalía and Bahía Tortugas, although citizens confirmed that this crime also persists in Mulegé Pueblo.

"There have been hard blows to the criminal structure, however, a successor quickly arrives to continue operating on the site, and the control that has been evidenced goes from Ensenada, Baja California to Comondú in this State, unfortunately there are law enforcement authorities federal and local protection of criminals, this is how all containment work is complicated”, revealed a source to  ZETA from the Baja California Sur Security Board.

From the dismantling of criminal leaders such as Edson Reyes Reyes "El Chucky", Kevin Armando Martínez González "El Kevin" and/or "El Flash"; and recently Juan Manuel Lazcano Ramírez "El Tío", "El Apá" and/or "El Viejo", the North Zone has been in the sights, since they quickly rise to the top and there is no way to dismantle the organization.

The last and most important coup in the criminal struggle occurred on Wednesday, October 7, in the community of Santa Rosalía, where Jazziel Huerta García and/or Reyes Jazziel Huerta García “El Chucky”, 29, from Ensenada, was captured.

He had a warrant  for kidnapping to cause damage or harm to the person abducted, according to criminal case J105/2020 of October 1, 2020.

On September 19, José Manuel Ibarra Araiza was abducted  in the Nivel 50 neighborhood in Santa Rosalía, after being charged; today he is behind bars.

The operation was carried out without a single shot and after several days of tracking him, in addition, relevant evidence emerged that links him to the criminal structure in charge of the North Zone. The Baja California Sur Security Bureau revealed that it is Los Solís.

The evidence leads members of state intelligence to think that the criminal structure was managed with a low profile, until the fall of the criminal group linked to Edson Giovanni "El Chucky", which brought the rise of the criminal group Los Solís, a structure that today is He is in charge of operations in the North Zone.

According to unofficial information provided by intelligence members, "El Chucky" had relevant information and contacts among his belongings, which has served to locate each of the operators of the criminal structure.

Solis Arce Family

“Basically it is a family, Solís Arce, who are operating the criminal activity, they are responding to the call of 'El Tiburon', a member of criminal operations from Ensenada to Ciudad Constitución, which today operates the North Zone for the Sinaloa Cartel, instructing Los Solís”, says the source of the State Criminal Investigation Agency.

Ricardo Alberto Villavicencio El Niño, 32 years old, deprived of liberty on September 25 in Santa Rosalía, it is probable that the Northern Zone is involved in the disappearance.

The criminal structure of "el chucky"

"El Chucky" is a key piece in the scaffolding of the criminal structure, which in addition to being linked to the "kidnapping" of young José Manuel, could be linked to other disappearances.

During September there were at least two kidnappings or " uprisings":

* Alberto Villavicencio Villavicencio “El Niño”, deprived of his liberty at approximately 1:30 pm on Friday, September 25, on Avenida Constitución between streets 10 and 11 of the Centro de Santa Rosalía neighborhood.

* José Rojas Romero, deprived of his liberty around 2:00 p.m. on Tuesday, September 29 in Guerrero Negro.

In the publications of the relatives, they ask their captors that if "they have already done their job, if they made them pay, their remains do not disappear, there is a family looking for them", which seems to indicate that they recognize that they were involved in crime matters.  As of press time, they were still searching.

But not only these data are under investigation, the recently captured "El Chucky" was found in his possession notes and more evidence that will be essential in the investigation and location of more members of the North Zone organization.

“Among the test data, various notes were found, contacts of people who were involved in the Los Solís operation, there are journalists on the payroll, FGR, National Guard and local authorities, that has been vital, first to misinform the public and generating a perception of a bad criminal operation strategy by the authorities, in addition to co-opting authorities to operate calmly and without being disturbed, ”revealed the source of the Security Board.

Jesús Antonio Banda Solís “El Güero Banda”, originally from Vizcaíno after his capture revealed information to identify Los Solís

Among the belongings of "El Chucky" there were notes with contacts from the Social Reintegration Center, National Guard, Attorney General's Office, Mulegé municipal police, journalists, house rentals and account numbers to which to make deposits.

Apparently "El Chucky" was in charge of controlling the payments to the allies of the criminal structure, the rent of safe houses to operate, among many other indications, for example, it is likely that his work was "to lift " and "align” opposing drug dealers.

In addition to being at the service of Los Solís, Jazziel Huerta García received orders from “El Pitufo”, alleged leader of the plaza in Guerrero Negro, and from “El Tiburón”, who controls the area from Ensenada, Baja California to Comondú.

"'El Chucky' was a drug dealer, who after the fall of members of the structure 'Kevin', 'The Lazcano' and Edson Giovanni, up from level to go ' up' people and operate now part of the contacts , we already have a greater presence of the Sinaloa Cartel in the State, and precisely the Northern Zone is one of the main refuge points for the criminal organization, ”said the Criminal Investigation source.

Undoubtedly the capture of "El Chucky" will be relevant for the dismantling of Los Solís, but the location of clandestine burials is also expected, so there may be news for the groups searching for missing persons.

The rise of the Solis

The fall of the criminal cell at the head of the North Zone commanded by Edson Giovanni Reyes Reyes "El Chucky", captured in May 2019, has been an opportunity for the rise of Los Solís, who from the shadows went getting into the control of the North Zone.

The criminal group took advantage of the operations of the Mesa de Seguridad authorities to contain the criminal groups headed by "El Chucky" and assume control of the sale and distribution of the drug, in addition to operating "uprisings " of opponents.

“While state authorities dismantled these criminal groups, the last one, 'El Lazcano', this criminal family was gaining strength and began to align drug sellers and people who were with the Northern Zone, members rooted in Santa Rosalía and El Vizcaíno, and with the support of certain authorities they have been able to establish control of the North Zone, today already recognized as being in command of the territory, ”said the investigation source.

According to criminal intelligence reports, the criminal structure is commanded by Jesús Jaime “El Rodo”, his armed arms are Ramón “El Mon” and José Luis “El Gallo”, all surnamed Solís Arce.

Nephews and children close to the family are in operations for Los Solís, who today are in the crosshairs of the Security Board, as well as any member actively linked to and supporting the criminal structure.

“With the information revealed after the arrest of 'El Chucky', it undoubtedly opens a clearer picture to us, all the links of the Solís family.

They are the leaders of drug dealing, even 'El Tiburon ', head of the group that operates throughout the Baja California Peninsula, had already been mentioned with operations in Comondú, in many of the statements of attacked drug dealers the nickname of this person arose, who participated to' align ' sellers of drug, "said the intelligence agent.

Names already mentioned in altercations emerged among the organization. On the night of May 9, Jesús Antonio Banda Solís "El Güero Banda", 22, was captured in El Vizcaíno, after being linked by armed robbery to the fuel station located at Kilometer 137 of the Santa Rosalía-Guerrero Negro.

"El Güero Banda" and other people threatened and threatened the victims with a firearm and a machete to seize cash and cell phones. After the open investigation folder, he was linked to the process on May 21 and they issued preventive detention for the crime of robbery with equal violence, when it was committed by more than one armed person.

José Manuel Ibarra Araiza kidnapped in the Level 50 neighborhood, in Santa Rosalía by El Chuky, currently detained

“(Los Solís) are linked to forced disappearances committed since January in the El Vizcaíno area, little by little the organization has been unraveling, the structure has been established; Above all, they maintained an internal war against 'El Chucky', since the latter was the murderer of Héctor Humberto Banda Solís, who on April 7, 2018 placed his head on the road section from Loreto to Santa Rosalía with another individual, from that moment they were already found, only the structure of Los Solís was not visible ”, it was reported.

The sentence of homicides from Murúa confirmed

The fall of "El Chucky" in the North Zone marked the day that they assassinated the director of Radio-Kashana, Rafael Murúa Manríquez, since then it has put them in the crosshairs of the state Security Board and many national and international organizations.

At the time, ZETA announced that the murderers of the communicator had a conviction sentence of 43 years and nine months in prison confirmed:

* Martín Salvatierra Amador “El Martín” and / or “El Picapore”, originally from Santa Rosalía, who tied Murúa's hands and shot twice in his head.

* Pedro Eduardo López Mendoza "El Güerito" or "El Jaiba", a native of La Paz, who participated in the homicide.

* Héctor Mora García "El Moreno", operator of Mulegé Pueblo and Santa Rosalía, charged with the murder of Murúa.

Rafael was deprived of life between 11:00 p.m. on January 19 and 5:00 a.m. on January 20, 2019. His body was found at Kilometer 39 + 950 of the Santa Rosalía-Parallel 28 road sections, partially covered with a black plastic bag.

According to the investigations, he was forced into a white Nissan Tsuru vehicle, he was transferred to the height of Kilometer 13 + 300 of the Santa Rosalía-Parallelo 28 road section. There “El Martín” shot him twice and moved the body miles ahead.

“At this site they found Rafael Murúa's belongings and bullet casings, as well as remains of blood. At the murder site, 'El Moreno' dug a grave, but he is taken from the scene and left on a mound of garbage, half covered with a black bag. Today they are already behind bars together with 'El Lupillo', the intellectual author,” revealed the Investigation Agency.

According to statements by the defendants, "they were only following orders," and from that moment on the structure of the Northern Zone was exposed. Thus, it has been disjointed.

Chivis Martinez Borderland Beat TY Follower of BB via comments

A year ago Huerta was almost captured at the 1st floor of parking lots (E1) of the Grand Hotel Tijuana. A shootout ensued. Pablo Edwin Huerta Nuño aka “El Flaquito”, 28 years old and considered by the authorities as one of the most threatening criminals among drug trafficking operators in the Baja California Coast Zone, fled on foot from the scene where his brother (some say nephew) Ronaldo Alexis Huerta Nuño “El Bananas” was shot dead.  (image at bottom)

Pablo Edwin Huerta Nuño, CAF

“El Flakito”, “El Flaco”, “El 26”, “El Flash”

There are early reports of the capture of  Pablo Edwin Huerta Nuño, of CAF.  This is a big capture.

The arrest was made and as he was being held inside the FGR (Federal Attorney Offices) in Tijuana, allegedly municipal police made an attempt to free him.

As his transfer is being prepared he is now heavily guarded. 

Huerta, is the top operator in the Arellano Feliz Cartel organization and pointed to as the source of most violence.

More details as they are released.

 Steve C Borderland Beat  en linea

An armed attack in the El Retiro neighborhood left three men dead and two wounded who later died while receiving medical attention, including a boy of approximately 17 years old.

The massive attack was registered in a workshop that is located in a three-story house on Tancítaro street, almost at the corner of Autlán, where neighbors made a report to the 911 Emergency System after hearing several detonations, around 9:30 p.m. hours this Thursday.

Police elements immediately moved to the place and upon entering they observed the five bodies of the victims, all face down and shot in the head.

Civil Protection and Firefighters paramedics reviewed the wounded and ruled that three no longer showed vital signs, but two of them did, including the adolescent, so they were immediately transferred to the hospital.

The adult named Genaro was transferred, as well as the young man named Erick to the hospital. Both were admitted to the ICU room but did not recover. The young man died first and the adult shortly after.

While the area where the attack took place was cordoned off by preventives, while the experts raised the evidence and the bodies were transferred to the Forensic Medical Service

 Chivis Martinez Borderland Beat  from OZY

Narcocorridos, the Mexican ballads about drug trafficking and its attendant violence, have succeeded in making manifest an unshakable reality. The bloody day-to-day of drug crime is not what really gets criminals out of bed in the morning. The inevitable cinematic glamour masks the motivating principle behind drug lording and that, as Nelly once suggested, “must be the money.”

When Zhenli Ye Gon, a Chinese-Mexican associate of fugitive drug lord Érick Valencia Salazar, or El 85 as he’s known for reasons unknown, was raided back in 2007, authorities found $205 million in cash in Zhenli’s home. Just laying around.

So when the U.S. government offers, in total lowball fashion, first $5 million and then $10 million for the capture of El 85 — who didn’t so much escape as he was released from Puente Grande prison when a judge determined that his due process had been violated and there wasn’t not sufficient evidence against him — it’s pretty clear: The U.S. either has no real interest in catching El 85 or it’s horribly misguided about what it will take to capture him. Even though the average annual salary in Mexico is $28,316, a reward of $10 million is not nearly enough unless someone has figured out how to spend money when they’re dead.

The either 37- or 43-year-old El 85 — his age is a subject of dispute — has ascended in a cartel life fueled by the old standby cocaine as well as the new trade in drug precursors like ephedrine and synthetics like fentanyl. Ephedrine, as fans of Breaking Bad know well, is a precursor to crystal meth.

While figures on what’s being produced are sketchy, if what U.S. Customs and Border Protection officials are catching is any indication — 59 tons of meth so far in 2020, 1.5 times higher than the amount seized in 2019 — there’s money in them there hills. Money that El 85 chose to not walk away from.

From leading the Milenio cartel first and then an offshoot, Jalisco New Generation cartel (CJNG), and then CJNG splinter Nueva Plaza, El 85 has a steady record of “achievement.” He handled the shipment of raw product from Colombia and China into Mexico and then the shipment of repackaged or manufactured product out of Mexico and into the U.S.

The 5-foot-10, 180-pound kingpin did all this while battling not only rival gangs like La Resistencia or Los Zetas but also the Mexican army, which under President Andrés Manuel López Obrador has been taking a more aggressive public stance on drug interdiction and trying to drive down cartel-related violence.

“There’s a lot of hyperfragmentation in the government’s response to criminal institutions,” says Falko Ernst, senior analyst for Mexico at the International Crisis Group in Mexico City, “which makes it unlikely to slow the slide into a perpetual state of armed conflict.”

Since no group can function well without the tacit involvement of local populations, CJNG is attempting to win over ordinary citizens. “The group has continued such outwardly ‘altruistic’ actions in strategic areas during the coronavirus pandemic,” reported InSight Crime about CJNG’s toy distribution to kids in communities in Veracruz in June. The cartel, which is battling Los Zetas splinter groups in the eastern state, has launched a charm offensive. And its mission to win hearts and minds is not only taking place in Veracruz but throughout Mexico. Among CJNG’s other charitable actions: the delivery of boxes of goods. Granted, they’re not luxury goods, but still, Robin Hood would be proud.

Such actions don’t conceal the daily non-charm offensive of El 85’s group: the homicides, kidnappings and disappearances, with mass graves recently discovered in Jalisco. The CJNG is responsible for the murders of local and federal police officers. At its most gloriously excessive, the cartel used grenade launchers to shoot down military helicopters. This past June it was widely held that CJNG was behind the attempted assassination of Mexico City’s public security secretary, Omar García Harfuch, and the murder of a Colima judge and his wife.

“There’s no disincentive to the violence and crime,” says Cassius Wilkinson, a security analyst at the Emerging Markets Political Risk Analysis group in Mexico. “The judiciary is weak, and so the risks are low.”

So, realistically speaking, no one is looking very hard for El 85? “The list of reasons for why they would comes from the DEA [Drug Enforcement Administration],” Wilkinson says. But what doesn’t come from the DEA — which did not respond to our questions about ponying up more reward cash — is the low-end estimate of how much money the DEA is up against. That, says Wilkinson, is billions.

And that money is “not just from narcotrafficking either,” he continues, “but [also] from fuel theft, extortion, local drug dealing and money laundering. Mexico is not freezing or seizing assets.”

So $10 million reward or not, El 85 is more than likely less concerned about the DEA and much more concerned about what got him arrested in the first place: fake friends. Though unconfirmed, it is widely believed that El 85 was tossed to the wolves by a business associate. Possibly, in true no-honor-among-thieves fashion, El Mencho.

This would largely account for the fracturing that has affected CJNG and guaranteed its remaining behind the Sinaloa cartel of El Chapo fame. Dissident factions are formed by progressively smaller groups of people who trust each other even less, not more. Billions of dollars can do that to an organization.

“No matter what Netflix and Hollywood would have you believe,” concludes Ernst, “it’s hard to keep things together given the stress, psychological stability issues and just pure ambition. The Jalisco cartel [CJNG] has been trying for 10 years and still can’t maintain organizational coherence.” In 2006, there were six large criminal groupings in Mexico, according to Ernst. In 2020, there are an estimated 198.

It’s a fact that makes it much easier for El 85 to get lost. And much easier to make enemies

 Steve C Borderland Beat from AM

Guanajuato- Guanajuato experienced a violent day this Thursday, when 21 people were killed in different municipalities, including two merchants who died in an armed attack in the Piel de León area.

León was the city that registered the most victims this day, with 9 deaths in total.

Salamanca was the second municipality with the most victims.

• A cyclist was shot to death in the La Gloria neighborhood in said municipality.

• In that same municipality, a 15-year-old minor was shot to death in the San Juan de la Presa neighborhood; in addition, a man was injured.

• Around midnight, the body of a man was found in the Celaya - Valle de Santiago bypass near the La Luz community.

'Hot zone' in the Laja Region.

• In Salvatierra, the bodies of two men were found outside the Health Center of the Cupareo community . The victims had gunshot wounds. Inhabitants of the community who came to the Health Center to get their file for consultation made the finding so they immediately notified the authorities.

• In Acámbaro, two corpses were also found, the first on the Jaripeo bypass , the height of the entrance to Conalep , was wrapped in plastic bags.

• In the Solidaridad neighborhood , another was found, bound and with gunshot wounds.

• In Celaya, a human head was found near some planters of the Andador Diamante in the San Juanico neighborhood .

• On one side of the Northwest Axis, a body wrapped in plastic bags was found in a vacant lot.

 Unofficially, it was said that these remains and the head could be the same victim; however, this was not confirmed by authorities.

• In Cortazar , a couple was attacked with bullets before the eyes of witnesses, a few meters from the main garden. The man died at the scene while the woman was injured.

• In Apaseo el Grande , armed men entered a house and shot another to death in the community of La Purísima .

• In Valle de Santiago, armed men also forcibly entered a home and took a 27-year-old young man, who hours later was found dead and with gunshot wounds, on a dirt road in the community of Las Jicamas .

 Steve C Borderland Beat  El Universal

Through the company Corporativo Pesquero Velázquez, owned by Martín Velázquez Cuevas, the Sinaloa Cartel was transporting cocaine from Costa Rica in frozen sharks that were filled with the drug and transferred from Central America to the Port of Progreso, Yucatán, to later be transported to Jalisco. This operation, for which they slaughtered tens of thousands of sharks, lasted several years, at least since 2009 when a first shipment of sharks containing cocaine was seized in Progreso, by the Secretary of the Navy, until 2017, the year in which he was arrested. and accused the fishing businessman Velázquez.

This operation, in which drugs were also sent to Houston, Texas, and other parts of the world was called the "Shark Case" and is part of the arrests and blows to the Sinaloan cartel, documented by the Mexican government. The fishing company that worked for the Sinaloan drug traffickers reported deposits of 272 million pesos from 2007 to 2019 and withdrawals in the same period for 1,783 million pesos, while in its tax returns, the Corporativo Pesquero Velázquez only reported the accumulative income of 6.4 million pesos to the SAT, from 2014 to 2018. According to financial investigations from the federal government, this company received in its accounts transfers of 139.2 million pesos between 2018 and 2019, resources that it triangulated by sending them to the accounts of an individual identified with the Sinaloa Cartel.

In an official report of the Mexican government, prepared by the Financial Intelligence Unit of the Ministry of Finance, details of the blockades of 1,354 bank accounts of 401 people linked to the Sinaloa Cartel, who had amounts of 233 frozen million 300 thousand 578 pesos and 77.8 million dollars. There are 77 family members on the list and the rest are businessmen linked to Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán, Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada and Juan José Esparragoza Moreno “El Azul”, all indicated on the OFAC lists (Office of Control of Foreign Assets of the United States) and in the Lists of Blocked Persons of the FIU.

Of a total of 871 targets that were related to the Sinaloa Cartel, 273 were identified by OFAC, 165 by the Lists of Blocked Persons, 250 through criminal complaints, and 77 relatives of the three Sinaloan capos. 

Del Chapo included 29 family members, among his 10 children (one of them Edgar Guzmán López, executed in 2008), his 3 wives, 4 brothers, 11 nephews, and a brother-in-law; by El Mayo21 family members were reviewed, including his 3 brothers, 1 partner, 7 children, 1 grandson, 2 brothers-in-law, 2 nephews, 2 daughters-in-law, and a legal representative of a company, all of them linked to 14 companies that were investigated; While "El Azul" they investigated 13 relatives, 2 spouses, 6 children, 1 daughter-in-law, 1 son-in-law, a wife of his nephew, and 1 sister, in addition to 23 financial operators and name men who ran 23 companies linked to the boss.

The report reveals that only 3,184 individuals with operations in the financial system were identified for Chapo Guzmán and that they had links with the drug trafficker imprisoned in the United States, while the Cartel as a whole had significant financial operations for 30 million pesos in the system banking national, international transfers 11.3 million, 69 million purchase of vehicles, 2 million in jewelry and watches and 88 million pesos in the purchase of property. Joaquín Guzmán mentions in an official document in the possession of this column that "He was considered the most powerful drug trafficker in the world, according to various international accounts," when he was arrested in 2016, then his extradition to the United States in 2017 and the trial and conviction to life imprisonment.

Financially - the report continues - Joaquín Guzmán Loera is referred to in more than 800 operations on behalf of other subjects, due to a customs operation in which the preliminary inquiry number 4058 / DGI / 93 dated March 3, 1998 refers, without requiring more data. Regarding the activity and the reports of Chapo before the federal treasury, he points out: "No fiscal or corporate information."

In the case of Ismael Zambada García, the report says, his name has not appeared in the financial system since 1997, despite the fact that he has two registered checking accounts and no annual tax or informative or third-party returns are located. He is mentioned as “leader of the Sinaloa Cartel, partner of Joaquín Guzmán Loera. In 2104, after the arrest of "El Chapo", he occupied the leadership of the cartel, controlling a large part of the heroin production in Mexico to traffic it to the United States ". They cite six different nicknames and aliases: "Zambada", "El Mayo", Zambada García Ismael Mario, Loaiza Avendaño Jesús, García Hernández Javier, Higuera Renteria Ismael andLópez Landeros Jerónimo, as well as 3 possible dates of birth in 1948, 1951 or 1952, and three places of birth: Costa Rica; El Salado in Sinaloa, and Guadalajara, Jalisco.

According to the UIF report, there are 14 companies that have direct links with El Mayo Zambada and his relatives: Autotransporte Jym, Business Administration Services, Leche Santa Mónica, Establo Puerto Rico, Estancia Infantil Niño Feliz, Fertilizer Saenz, Inmobiliaria Niebla, Jamaro Constructores, Lácteos Elaborados del Pacífico, Living 2030, Multiservicios Jevis, Nueva Industria de Ganaderos de Culiacán, Petrobarrancos, SA de CV, Production Pesquera Dona Mariela.

Of Juan José Esparragoza, whom the official report mentions as "the conciliatory narco " for promoting alliances between the cartels in the country, his birth in Chuicopa, Badiraguato, on February 3, 1949 is mentioned and on whether he is alive or dead, The FIU report says: "There are rumors of his death since June 2014, when it was said that he had died of a heart attack (information has not been corroborated)." Financially, they identified 3 bank accounts, one in Seguros Inbursa, which registered in 2013 and 2014 bank interest for 8,049 pesos, another in BBVA where direct debit payments of 1,010 pesos are observed in 2018 and in 2013 the sale of a property of 2.1 million pesos together with Maria Antonia Esparragoza Moreno, acquired by María del Rosario Arana Esparragoza and Nora Guadalupe Arana Esparragoza. Fiscally, it says, it began operations in October 1983 and has been suspended since December 31, 2009, without annual tax returns.

To the companies that the authorities of the Ministry of Finance relate to Esparragoza Moreno "El azul" and his two families, the Esparragoza Gastelum and the Esparragoza Monzón, there are a total of 23 and there are from the Agrícola y Ganadera Cuemir, Agropecuaria del Volcán, Agropecuaria Sánchez Loza, to Constructors such as Aquasum, SA de CV, Avicultura Al Detail, Bona Habitat, SA, Concretos TYG, Construcciones y Edificaciones Linsesa, Indus Development of Tijuana, El Baño de María, Canary Service Stations, Grupo Cinjab, Grupo Impergoza , Grupo Isayas, Gasodiesel and Ancona Services, Alamos Country Gas Station, Villabonita Gas Station and Services, La Villa Gas Station, Materials and Recycled from Los Mochis, Petrobarrancos, Chulavista Services and Northwest Waste Transporter.

Other companies that have been investigated and sanctioned with the freezing of their accounts and assets by the UIF for their links with the Sinaloa Cartel are Agua Mala, owned by agricultural businessman César Bueno Martínez, dedicated to the "planting, cultivation and harvest of grain corn" , which according to the UIF investigations, acquired vehicles for 2.1 million pesos, in 2014 two trucks (one 725 thousand pesos and another one for 539 thousand pesos) and in 2016 another for 883 thousand pesos. This small agricultural company made bank deposits for 2.3 million pesos between 2003 and 2017, while it withdrew 9.3 million pesos between 2002 and 2018. Comercializadora de Granos Patrón, SA de CV also appears, dedicated to the wholesale trade of grains and seeds, in the that Bueno Martínez and his wife Angélica Pérez Maldonado are here. This company was alerted for being part of a group of companies investigated for the September 2008 seizure of dollars in Culiacán, and received between 2013 and 2019 international transfers for 112 million dollars from the United Arab Emirates , while it sent 28.1 million dollars mainly To united states.

Finally, the FIU report shows three mining companies linked to the Sinaloan cartel, which according to the authorities were “used as a bridge because there was never a permanence of resources” and were dedicated to dispersing resources in a fractional manner. There is Golden Qu, SA de CV and Silver Qu, dedicated to the exploitation of mineral deposits and to the mining of zinc and lead, respectively. Between 2011 and 2013, these companies had cash withdrawals of 20.9 million pesos and never filed federal tax returns, so the origin of their resources is unknown. The shareholders mentioned are José Armando Quezada Silva , Pedro Ángel Quezada Silva and José Armando Quezada Rincon . Impulsora Aurum, SC de RL also appears, which they link with Ruth Maribel Figueroa Delgado for having triangulated 2.3 million pesos between their own accounts and then withdrawing 6.2 million pesos in cash. This company is linked with transfers to Víctor Manuel Félix Beltrán, the operator of the sons of Chapo Guzmán , who escaped on January 29 of this year from the South Prison of the CDMX along with two other drug traffickers.

Dear Borderland Beat Followers;

It is with much thought that the decision has been made to shut down Borderland Beat as of Monday, October 26th at 5PM mountain time.

Our plan as of now is to re-open in January 2021.

We will attempt to tweet on the BB Twitter page at @Borderland_Beat if it appears we can contribute in an effective way.

As for now, it is too difficult to continue the blog.

Why?

The decision was made as in the best interest of BB.  

BB has come under attack in an unbelievable scenario, not a hack, but a person, a famous capo,  each of you would know his name and his story. 

He has filed a lawsuit with the federal court of the United States naming Borderland Beat as the defendant.

This is the first time in history that a capo of any magnitude, former or current,  has sued a blog, or for that matter any news site.  

It truly is mindboggling. 

What does he want?

So far, money.

Which of course BB has none.  

Buggs and all the contributors are volunteers.  Buggs has kept his project simple; volunteer generated, with no advertising.

The litigation has the potential of becoming pricy.  

'Capo' objected to an image.  An image where BB was not the breakout media source, that was Reforma/El Norte, then a number of blogs and media sites followed.  

Contributors at BB are like independent contractors, no one 'approves' the posts.  As soon as the request was made to remove the images the entire post was removed.

His name?

Buggs has decided not to divulge the name because, since his first contact, via his attorney, the capo then requested and received a court order allowing him to sue as John Doe.  

Although there isn't a gag order on the case, Buggs feels compelled to honor the order of anonymity to include BB not sharing his true name or moniker.

Capo has recently added a number of other blogs, media sites, and newspapers to the lawsuit as well as google.

These past two months have been incredibly stressful and uncertain.  

The safety of contributors is always in question, but now with this, we are not sleeping well.

BB was founded on an idea for a project by its owner/founder Buggs.  To have this incredibly successful narco news source shut down forever in this way,  must not be the path it is forced to take.

We love you people!  You have supported us, assisted us, championed us, encouraged us.  Without YOU supporters, BB would not have succeeded to the level it has. THANK YOU.🙏🏼

WE WILL BE BACK!!!

 Chivis Martinez Borderland Beat  Thank You Gus

Baja Calfornia State Police attempting  to rescue "El Flaquito" leader of the Los Arellano Felix Cartel captured by Ministeriales, outside the Prosecutor's Office

Estales intentan rescatar a "El Flaquito" líder del Cártel de Los Arellano Félix capturado por Ministeriales, se enfrentan a fuera de Fiscalía

MAS DETALLE AQUI:https://t.co/mqqBFc2LX8pic.twitter.com/2vi27wZO6y

— diario Mexico (@diarioMexico1) October 25, 2020

 By Buggs for Borderland Beat

The charred bodies of 19 people, presumably Central American citizens, were found in various vehicles in the town of Santa Anita, in the municipality of Camargo, Tamaulipas. In a statement, the Tamaulipas Attorney General's Office specified that it had already opened an investigation for the homicides of the burned bodies and vehicles.

It is said that on the afternoon of January 23, authorities from the Ministry of Public Security were alerted by a citizen of a report that a vehicle was on fire in a field in the town of Santa Anita.

Elements of the state police mobilized to the location, where they found two burned vehicles, as well as the burned remains of people.

In one of the vans they located two bodies inside the cabin, another body to one side of the door on the driver's side, one more to the side of the passenger door and 15 inside in another vehicle.

Investigating police officers and forensic experts were processing the scene, as well as to collect evidence that would reveal the way in which the events unfolded.

From the preliminary investigations it was established that death was more likely caused by gunfire and were set on fire afterward.

The Prosecutor's Office said that through their inspections, no casings were found at the scene, which may indicate that the people were most likely executed in another location and set on fife at this location.

Anonymous sources in Camargo provided some information that might shed some light as to what might had happened. Unknown sources said that a group of gunmen from the Northeast Cartel (CDN), which is the former group of Los Zetas, abducted 19 Guatemalan citizens that might have been trying to reach the US border and took them to a house in the town of Santa Anita, whom they executed in that house and then dumped their bodies in the state line of neighboring Nuevo León, where they were set on fire. The CDN is a criminal group that is known to be active in the region.

 By Buggs for Borderland Beat

We are moving and trying to bring Borderland Beat back to life, hopefully new and improved for 2021. We thank you for your patience and loyal support during these trying times. Borderland Beat remains one of the best sources for current and accurate information on the Mexican drug cartels, all made possible with your support, our followers! We are forever grateful. The Borderland Beat audience is one of the best well informed audience when it comes to the Mexican drug cartels. 

We understand that the decision to suspend the website was deeply felt by our large number of followers, most of which are composed of US law enforcement and others who follow the events of drug cartels. We are making some significant changes to the blog, a new look that will be easier to navigate and allow for more features. 

We are also trying out a new forum that integrates better with the blog in a seamless way. Please register, use a user name and set your information to private, unless you want the information you entered public. 

Stay tune, a lot of exciting things coming up.

"Press, do not shoot!"

Yes, we are reorganizing and changing things but one thing that will not change is our commitment to produce reliable content and continue our mission to provide the best and complete picture of the activities from the Drug Trafficking Organizations (DTO). The unplugging of Borderland Beat was unprecedented, and it denied the sharing of vital information that is important in understanding what is happening in Mexico, something that frankly, mainstream media has failed to cover properly. We must continue to dedicate ourselves in the delicate task of researching and investigating the illicit activities of the Mexican drug cartels. If you want to get involved and can help in any way, please get ahold of me.

As many of you know Borderland Beat was named as a defendant in a privacy lawsuit along with a numerous other Mexican news outlets. The lawsuit was filed by San Francisco attorney Jeffrey Mendelman in federal court in September 2020 (Hyperink to doc 1).

He asked for and obtained permission from the Court to file the lawsuit under the pseudonym “John Doe.”   

He named “Borderland Beat” as one of the defendants, as well as yet-to-be-determined persons (“Roes”) who are allegedly responsible for Borderland Beat.  Borderland Beat is not a legal entity, but an anonymous person with administrative privileges has responded to the complaint as “Roe 1.”  She is being defended by Joshua Koltun, a First Amendment attorney with particular experience defending the right to speak anonymously (Hyperlink to Doc 15).

The parties recently filed the attached joint report that summarizes what is at issue in this case (Hyperlink to Doc 19).

Roe intends to defend the lawsuit vigorously to protect Borderland Beat’s right to free speech and protect the anonymity of our contributors. Allowing organized crime to use the US legal system to kick down news outlets that report on Mexican crime syndicates is unacceptable. A lawsuit seeking $250,000 in reparations for damages is beyond belief. 

Killing the Messenger, Will not Silence the Truth

The Committee to Protect Journalists has reported that at least 56 journalists have been executed since 1992. I can assure you that we will do everything in our power to get Borderland Beat back in business and not allow anyone to intimidate us or silence us. 

I plan to keep everyone informed on the progress of the legal proceedings here in this blog and share as much information as possible. Again, thank you for your loyalty and support for our Borderland Beat community.