Global Climate Agreements: Successes and Failures, Backgrounder The drugs would be smuggled into El Paso and taken to other U.S. cities, while weapons and money earned from the drugs would be smuggled back across the border, witnesses testified duringthe trial. told Ada County jurors on Monday that she tested three DNA profiles in connection with Vallow's murder case, including Lori, her 16-year-old daughter, Tylee Ryan, and her friend Melanie Gibb The unchecked power of organized crime was on full display this October, when hundreds of gunmen for the Sinaloa Cartel laid siege to the city of Culiacn in broad daylight, forcing the. "As we were accelerating for take-off, we heard gunshots very close to the plane, and that's when we all threw ourselves to the floor," one of the passengers, David Tellez, told Reuters news agency. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The U.S. government, despite waging a war on drugs and conducting other counternarcotics efforts abroad, has made little progress in reducing demand. The operation, which began at dawn in Culiacn, in Sinaloa state, north-west Mexico, sparked a wave of violence from armed cartel members. Video, On board the worlds last surviving turntable ferry, Shooting suspect was deported four times - US media, Yellen warns US could run out of cash in a month, King Charles to wear golden robes for Coronation, More than 100 police hurt in French May Day protests, Disney faces countersuit in feud with Florida, NFL player's daughter, aged two, drowns in pool, Explosion derails train in Russian border region, MasterChef Australia host Jock Zonfrillo dies. "The Sinaloa Cartels criminal activity in the Cuidad Juarez and El Paso area included the violence that occurred during the war between the Juarez Cartel and the Sinaloa Cartel, which led to the death of thousands of people in Ciudad Juarez and throughout the Mexican states of Chihuahua and Durango," U.S. Attorney's Office for the Western District of Texas officials said in a news release. By 2007, Mexican cartels controlled an estimated 90 percent [PDF] of the cocaine entering the United States. Local search efforts to find the missing and prosecute those responsible have often been stymied by cartel-related violence, government incompetence and corruption, and other factors. Director of Media Relations Kelly Thornton (619) 546-9726 . The indictment said the defendants and other members and associates of the Sinaloa Cartel used, and caused to be used, various means to evade and escape law enforcement and military personnel and to protect their drug distribution activities, including on October 17, 2019, at what is known as the Battle of Culiacn, when the Mexican National Guard captured and then released Ovidio Guzmn Lpez during a gunfight in Sinaloa state. To halt fentanyl, U.S. says it 'infiltrated' Sinaloa cartel : NPR During interrogation, Campos told authorities he distributes illegal narcotics for the Sinaloa Cartel in Mexico, according to the criminal complaint. One also was convicted in thekilling of a U.S. citizen in the Wedding Murders" case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Matthew J. Sutton for the Southern District of California and Acting Deputy Chief Katharine Wagner and Trial Attorney Kirk Handrich of the Criminal Divisions Narcotic and Dangerous Drug Section, and Assistant U.S. The organizations splinter groups have become more autonomous and powerful, maintaining ties to Jalisco, Jurez, and Los Zetas. Mexican security forces had previously arrested Mr Guzmn-Lpez in 2019 but released him to avoid the threat of violence from his supporters. The 49-year-old Sinaloa Cartel member, who is suspected of having killed dozens, goes by the nickname "La Barbie" thanks to his blue eyes. And in 2022, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) seized more than 50 million fentanyl-laced pills, more than double the amount collected the year prior, the Justice Department said. Fierro-Ramirez later was killed in a shootout with Mexicanlaw enforcement. Most populous nation: Should India rejoice or panic? 3 arrested in Fort Worth tried to sell 125,000 fentanyl pills for First published on April 14, 2023 / 11:53 AM. Several other defendants indicted in El Paso in 2012 have pleaded guilty. SAN DIEGO - Four sons of Joaqun Guzmn Loera, the imprisoned former Sinaloa Cartel leader known as El Chapo, were indicted by a federal grand jury for large-scale drug trafficking, money laundering and violent crimes in connection with their assumption of cartel leadership following their father's arrest and extradition to the United States. New U.S. Justice Department indictments contain this image of armed gang members allegedly associated with the Chapitos network of the Sinaloa cartel. As the Mexican government intensified its efforts to arrest suspected drug lords, he eluded capture, but other cartel leaders were imprisoned, weakening organizations and giving rise to splinter groups. While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies. They have also said that information indicates Mr Guzmn-Lpez ordered the murders of informants, a drug trafficker and a popular Mexican singer who refused to sing at his wedding. Traffickers employ various tactics to evade detection by U.S. authorities at the border. It's time for the United States to get serious about stopping the flow. It is based in Culiacn, Sinaloa state, Mexico. CJNG, which routinely faces off with its No. Two Mexican Cartel Members Found Guilty of Violating RICO Statute EL PASO, Texas (KTSM) Jurors got a reminder of the brutality in the drug trafficking business as images of a woman murdered were on display in federal court on Wednesday. by James McBride The Beltran Leyva brothers were also at the center of the Sinaloa Cartel's security operations. Estimates of its annual revenue ranged from $3 billion to $39 billion. Once peaceful Baja California at frontline of Mexico's murder crisis Last updated September 7, 2022 2:45 pm (EST), By entering your email and clicking subscribe, you're agreeing to receive announcements from CFR about our products and services, as well as invitations to CFR events. Amy Tikkanen is the general corrections manager, handling a wide range of topics that include Hollywood, politics, books, and anything related to the. Copyright 2023 Nexstar Media Inc. All rights reserved. VideoOn board the worlds last surviving turntable ferry, I didnt think make-up was made for black girls, Why there is serious money in kitchen fumes. A long-standing rival of Sinaloa, Jurez has its stronghold in the north-central state of Chihuahua, across the border from New Mexico and Texas. Mexican drug cartels resume tactic of hanging bodies from bridges And, he asked him why hed lost a load of drugs. . Sinaloa Cartel Princeling Guilty But Group Has Moved On - Business Insider Following Guzman Loeras arrest in January 2016 and extradition to the United States in January 2017, the Chapitos allegedly assumed their fathers former role as leaders of the Sinaloa Cartel, along with Zambada Garcia and Damaso Lopez Nunez, aka Licenciado. The amount of fentanyl seized by Mexican authorities nearly quintupled between 2019 and 2020. Today, we say, no more. "We are doing everything in our power, and using every authority we have, to bring those responsible to justice," he added. More than seventy-nine thousand people have disappeared since 2006, primarily at the hands of criminal organizations such as the cartels, though government forces also play a role. 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Meanwhile, the homicide rate continues to hover around record levels. The indictment alleges that for years, Joaqun Guzmn Loeras (El Chapo) sons have destroyed lives and communities through drug trafficking and violence: their time is up, said DEA Special Agent in Charge Shelly Howe. Investigators say the accused part of the "Chapitos" network facilitated the purchase of the precursor chemicals of fentanyl from China, manufactured the deadly drug in Mexico, and then worked to smuggle the substance into the U.S. Four Chinese nationals and one Guatemalan national were charged with supplying fentanyl ingredients to the cartel. The Sinaloa Cartel is one of the biggest and most powerful drug trafficking cartels in the world - and also the focus of Netflix's Narcos: Mexico. The trials are part of a large indictment by a federal grand jury that included Sinaloa cartel leaders Joaquin El Chapo Guzman and Ismael Mayo Zambada Garcia. According to testimony from a jailhouse informant, Shows Urquidi worked as a bodyguard for Sinaloa cartel members and as security duringthe transportation of drugs. Mexican suppliers are responsible for most heroin and methamphetamine production, while cocaine is largely produced in Colombia and then transported to the United States by Mexican criminal organizations. . Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions. We may have been far from it but we were close enough to see many people driving pretty fast in the opposite direction.". The charges, unsealed today, were announced by Attorney General Merrick Garland, U.S. Attorney Randy Grossman and others at a news conference this morning at the U.S. Department of Justice in Washington, D.C. According to the Justice Department, between August 2021 and August 2022, 107,735 people died of drug overdoses in the United States, two-thirds primarily from fentanyl. Sinaloa Cartel. La Familia Michoacna (LFM). most significant drug trafficking threats, technologically advanced, sophisticated, and violent, significant foreign narcotics traffickers, created dozens of smaller, more violent drug gangs. The two are accused of being involved in the Sinaloa cartels operations in Jurez in connection to murders, kidnappings, and drug trafficking. Europe Program, What Northern Ireland Teaches Us About Ending the Ukraine War, Article Updates? El Paso Live presents events for month of May, First Republic Bank seized, sold in fire sale to, Washington Gov. Officials claimedIglesias-Villegas was a "significant participant in the death of thousands of people in Ciudad Juarez from 2008 to 2011.". Defense attorneys for Urquidi and Iglesias questioned the validity of the video the jurors saw and the transcript of what was said in the video. He also created a new national police force, or gendarmerie, of several thousand officers. The Most Brutal Execution Methods Used by Mexican Cartels - Ranker A related indictment charging three of the brothers was also unsealed by the Southern District of New York. The woman who had been recorded was flanked by a man with a rifle as she asked questions. Nationwide, the country registered 493 drug-related deaths that month, 64 of them . The Three Criminal Fronts Sparking Violence in Sonora, Mexico Their bodies were left in an affluent area in Jurez along Avenida Plutarco Elas Calles. For the special agents of IRS Criminal Investigation, the work of investigating dangerous criminals never stops. Global Health Program, Why the Situation in Cuba Is Deteriorating, In Brief Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites. November 4, 2022 Religion and Foreign Policy Webinars, A Conversation with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau of Canada, Virtual Event He will now arrive on Sunday, a day earlier than previously expected, according to a tweet by Mexico's Foreign Minister Marcelo Ebrard. In 2021, three warring Gulf factions announced they had reached a truce, insisting that they wanted to maintain peace in Tamaulipas. The Democratic Republic of Congo has been subjected to centuries of international intervention by European powers, as well as its African neighbors. "The United States government is using every tool at its disposal to combat the fentanyl epidemic," Garland said, "Many of us have heard the stories of those who have lost loved ones to fentanyl poisoning. As the Sinaloa cartel warred with the rival Zetas (another cartel), some victims would be publicly beheaded, or have their murders posted on social media. The cases against the other 14 defendants arepending in federal court. Official websites use .govA .gov website belongs to an official government organization in the United States. At the international level, Mexican cartels began to take on a much larger role in the late 1980s, after U.S. government agencies broke up Caribbean networks used by Colombian cartels to smuggle cocaine. In 2014 Guzmn was apprehended in Mazatln, Sinaloa, Mexico, but the following year he escaped from prison through a tunnel. Reputed Sinaloa drug cartel members set to go on trial Monday in El Paso, El Paso trial of reputed Sinaloa members focuses on drug cartel's operations, methods, Sinaloa cartel members, law enforcement testify in 2nd week of 'Wedding Murders' trial, Reputed drug cartel boss 'El Jaguar' wounded, arrested in Mexican army shootout, 'The worst it's ever been.' The cartels that pose the most significant drug trafficking threats [PDF] to the United States, according to the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), are: A curation of original analyses, data visualizations, and commentaries, examining the debates and efforts to improve health worldwide. "We've also seen security guards, some in cars and some in big tanks going south. Mexico later deployed twenty-five thousand National Guard members to secure its borders, which some experts say increased violence and diminished the countrys cartel-fighting capacity. April 25, 2023 The Chapitos allegedly used these networks to import the drugs into the United States. How to Prepare for the Future After Seven Decades of the U.S.-South Korea Alliance, In Brief Hewassentenced to life in prison, plus 30 years. His hugs not bullets approach seeks to address the socioeconomic drivers of organized crime by creating job opportunities. At least 29 people lay dead, including 10 members of the military and 19 alleged cartel shooters, while 35 soldiers were wounded. The US State Department says he and his brother Joaqun are currently overseeing approximately 11 methamphetamine labs in the state of Sinaloa, producing an estimated 1,300- 2,200kg (3,000-5,000lb) of the drug per month. 'Wedding Murders': Sinaloa cartel members, law enforcement testify As part of a plea agreement, several other drug and weapon charges were dismissed, according to court records. The Chapitos also allegedly obtained precursor chemicals for the manufacture of synthetic drugs and operated laboratories to manufacture methamphetamine. She said online platforms are usually where the initial contact between buyer and sellers occurs and described social media applications as the "super highway" of the fentanyl supply chain. For related Department of Justice press release, indictments and link to DEA fugitive photos, please seehttps://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/justice-department-announces-charges-against-sinaloa-cartel-s-global-operation. But on Monday, Mexican President Andrs Manuel Lpez Obrador blasted the U.S. for spying on the Sinaloa cartel without first gaining his government's permission. 10 murder victims' bodies dumped in front of Mexico governor's office They also coerce officials into cooperating; assassinations of journalists and public servants by the cartels are relatively common. Sinaloa cartel, international crime organization that is among the most-powerful drug-trafficking syndicates in the world. Guzmans case in the Western District of Texas remains pending, according to court records. What was a simple all-out war between the Sinaloa cartel and the Arellano's for control of the "Tijuana plaza" the coveted territory to traffic narcotics into the United States has now. Authorities noted that Sinaloa, along with other cartels, had become increasingly involved in the distribution of fentanyl, which contributed to the growing opioid crisis in the United States. The Good Friday Agreement offers lessons for trying to end the war between Ukraine and Russia. The cartels and the drug trade fuel rampant, to tens of thousands of homicides in the country each. These include hiding or disguising drugs in vehicles or maritime vessels, smuggling them into the United States through underground tunnels, and flying them over border barriers using drones or other aircraft. Dozens of vehicles were set alight and at least two planes at Sinaloa airports were hit by gunfire, in attacks blamed on the Sinaloa cartel. Shed been on the opposite side of the Sinaloa cartel, which made her a prime target at the height of violence during the criminal organizations war with the Jurez cartel. The U.S. Department of State, through its Narcotics Rewards Program, is offering rewards of up to $10 million for information leading to the arrest and/or conviction of Ivan Guzman Salazar, Alfredo Guzman Salazar, and Ovidio Guzman Lopez and up to $5 million for information leading to the arrest and/or conviction of Joaquin Guzman Lopez. Attorneys Andrew Erskine and Erika Csicsila for the Northern District of Illinois, are prosecuting the case. However, some critics say Calderns decapitation strategy created dozens of smaller, more violent drug gangs. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs, and transnational criminal organizations that threaten the United States by using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies against criminal networks. The cartel is notoriously violent, and has been known to target both rivals and those who cross them. The group formed when the Beltrn-Leyva brothers split from Sinaloa in 2008. The Chapitos are alleged to have repeatedly and consistently obtained and transported multi-ton quantities of cocaine from and through Central and South America, including Colombia, Ecuador, Venezuela, Peru, Panama, Costa Rica, Honduras, and Guatemala, into Mexico, stored that cocaine throughout Mexico, and transported it across the U.S.-Mexico border for further distribution throughout the United States. El Chapo's former safe house to be raffled off, Mourning for Mexican prison attack victims, Gunmen shoot dead at least nine in Mexico bar, Mexico Congress votes to keep military on streets, More than 20,000 Russians dead in Bakhmut, US says, Doja Cat and Lil Nas X arrive at the Met Gala, France May Day protests leave dozens of police injured, 'My wife and six children joined Kenya starvation cult', On board the worlds last surviving turntable ferry. Read about our approach to external linking. Civil liberties groups, journalists, and foreign officials have criticized the Mexican governments war with the cartels for years, accusing the military, police, and cartels of widespread human rights violations, including torture, extrajudicial killings, and forced disappearances. Once led by the Chapitos father, Joaquin Guzman Loera, aka El Chapo, and Ismael Zambada Garcia, aka El Mayo, the Sinaloa Cartels members and associates allegedly including the Chapitos smuggled significant quantities of drugs through Mexico and into the United States. Murders have spiked in Mexico's northern state of Sonora, thanks to the volatile mix of a veteran drug trafficker's alleged return, internal disputes within the Sinaloa Cartel, and an offensive by the powerful Jalisco Cartel New Generation. Sinaloa Cartel - InSight Crime There were blockades in different parts of the city and residents were urged to stay at home. Also, a former police officer with the Jurez police department had been on the opposite side of the Sinaloas. ", The trial focused on the operation of the cartel and several murders committed by the criminal organization, including the abduction and killing of three people May 7, 2010, during a wedding at a church in Jurez, The killings were referred to throughout the trial as the Wedding Murders.. Arturo Shows Urquidi and Mario Alberto Iglesias Villegas, who are cartel members, are on trial this week in U.S. federal court in El Paso. Garland said Friday that the Sinaloa Cartel is "largely responsible" for the increased fentanyl trafficking into the U.S. He Was One of Mexico's Deadliest Assassins. Then He Turned on His Cartel. Sinaloa cartel assassins group leader 'Grim Reaper' gets life in 'Wedding Murders' case. You are also agreeing to our, For media inquiries on this topic, please reach out to, AMLOs Hugs Not Bullets Is Failing Mexico, Mexican Migration Could Be the First Crisis of 2021. His father, Joaqun "El Chapo" Guzmn, is serving a life sentence in the US after being found guilty in 2019 of drug trafficking and money laundering. He was extradited to the United States the following year. The United States and South Korea are marking their seventy-year alliance with a state visit amid tighter defense collaboration. Mexican officials say a notorious cartel killed both Tijuana The FBI San Diego Field Office and Washington Field Office, Homeland Security Investigations San Diego and Nogales Office, DEAs San Diego Division and Chicago Division, and IRS Criminal Investigation are investigating the case. In sweeping indictments, the Justice Department targeted two dozen operatives in the Chapitos network of the Sinaloa cartel. However, after the cartel was involved in the 1985 torture and murder of a U.S. drug enforcement agent, U.S. and Mexican forces cracked down on the syndicate, and by the end of the decade it had broken into various groups, one of which was based in Sinaloa. by Will Freeman Is climate change killing Australian wine? The group is known to have a partnership with the CJNG, using the same transportation networks to move drug shipments to and from the United States. Washington Federal prosecutors unsealed criminal charges against 28 members and associates of the Mexican Sinaloa Cartel including the three sons of former drug lord Joaqun "El Chapo" Guzmn accusing them of orchestrating a transnational fentanyl trafficking operation into the United States. Victims Of The Shooting In Culiacan Sinaloa. In the face of unimaginable pain, those families have shown extraordinary bravery in sharing their stories. November 11, 2022 / 6:06 AM / CBS/AP Nine people are dead, including four women, after gunmen burst into a bar and opened fire in the violence-wracked Mexican state of Guanajuato, authorities said. In recent years, vigilante groups known as autodefensas have sought to fill in where security forces have failed to protect communities from criminal groups. Garland said that Justice Department officials met Thursday with their counterparts in the Mexican government and the two countries renewed their commitment to working together against fentanyl and firearms trafficking. Mexican President Andrs Lpez Obrador said Mexican forces had acted responsibly to look after the civilian population and avoid innocent victims. Calderns successor said he would focus more on reducing violence against civilians and businesses than on removing the leaders of cartels. Experts point to both domestic and international forces. In Cancun alone there was 540 murders last year. Twenty-four hours of terror as cartel violence engulfs Mexican city The victims' bodies were discovered by Jurez police a few days later in the bed of an abandoned pickup, officials said. by Stephen Sestanovich But during and after the arrest, 10 soldiers and 19 . Ex-Sinaloa 'sicario,' audio recordings shed light on 2010 Jurez Investigations into the students disappearances have purportedly found evidence that authorities, including the police and military, conspired with cartel members in the crimes; the government launched a new inquiry after the students families, human rights groups, and independent experts questioned the handling of the previous investigation. Monaco highlighted the need to combat drug trafficking and fentanyl proliferation on social media, telling reporters on Friday that she and DEA Administrator Anne Milgram met with social media companies last week discuss how social media companies "must do more to stop the sale of fentanyl on their platforms.". Melted in acid and faces stitched on footballs - The Sun NEWS RELEASE SUMMARY - April 30, 2021. The spiralling cartel wars have left a backlog of 30,000 unidentified corpses languishing in . Guzman was extradited to the U.S. in 2017. U.S. officials estimate that CJNG supplies more than one-third of the U.S. drug market. Mario Iglesias-Villegas, also known as the Grim Reaper, and Arturo Shows Urquidi,also known as Chous,were convicted on several drug trafficking, weaponand money laundering charges. A further 35 military personnel were injured and 21 gunmen were arrested, Defence Minister Luis Cresencio Sandoval said on Friday. 2023 CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved. The Chapitos allegedly used cargo aircraft, private aircraft, submarines and other submersible and semi-submersible vessels, container ships, supply vessels, go-fast boats, fishing vessels, buses, rail cars, tractor trailers, automobiles, and private and commercial interstate and foreign carriers to transport their drugs and precursor chemicals. He was sentenced to 27 years in prison. This timeline traces the role of the outside forces that have beleaguered eastern Congo since the end of the colonial era. President Obama widened the scope of aid to target fundamental reforms to Mexicos justice system and to develop crime-prevention programs at the community level, among other efforts, in what became known as Mrida 2.0 [PDF]. Families and communities across our country are being devastated by the fentanyl epidemic. Please include a contact number if you are willing to speak to a BBC journalist. Gabino Salas-Valenciano, Jesus Rodrigo Fierro-Ramirez and Emigdio MartinezJr. died while their cases werepending in federal court, court records show. More:Reputed drug cartel boss 'El Jaguar' wounded, arrested in Mexican army shootout, More:'The worst it's ever been.' Ivan Sanchez-Hernandez, a former memberofthe Jurez municipal police force, pleaded guilty Feb. 28, 2020, to one count of continuing criminal enterprise.

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