The huge blaze broke out overnight at the port of Ancona. In 2014, years after the conviction of the Orejuela brothers, the US government declared that the Cali cartel was no longer a threat, lifting sanctions that had been imposed by the Clinton administration in 1995 (via ABC news/Insight Crime). It was the first time the Attorney Generals Office declassified documents relating to the incidents, and proved authorities not only tolerated cartel activity but assisted it. How could such a tragedy occur in San Fernando not once but repeatedly? In the human smuggling business, migrants pay $100 to $200 upfront, then pay the rest once theyve reached the United States. A red Blackberry phone belonging to De Leon was examined by computer forensics experts with Homeland Security Investigations. Yarrington is reported to have allowed the Gulf and Los Zetas cartels to operate in his state without hindrance in return for bribes. Based in the western state of Jalisco, CJNG was founded by Nemesio Oseguera Ramos, whose ongoing leadership has placed him on Mexican and American most wanted lists, both of which offer millions of dollars for information. Today, the cartel retains a small presence in southern Mexico. However, PBS wrote that the Cali cartel did not inherit Escobar's public flair for violence, preferring to adopt a business faade in their international operation. It had only been a year since officials in the Mexican city found 72 victims of the Los Zetas drug cartel buried in the dirt. "The first time [I was kidnapped], they took me with a group of about seven people. Attorney Jeff Blackburn, a crusader for the innocent, fought injustices across Texas in his improbable, utterly original, and often profane life. Want to bookmark your favourite articles and stories to read or reference later? Zetas Follow @NewsHourWorld Los Zetas control a wide swathe of territory ranging from the Texas border to Guatemala. WebCIUDAD VICTORIA, Tamaulipas -- Gunmen with the Los Zetas cartel butchered close to 20 victims over the weekend, three of those victims were Texas residents who had been Among these provincial traders and smugglers wasJoaqun Guzmn Loera, better known as "El Chapo.". He created a company, Tremor Enterprises, to purchase racehorses for American contests, winning millions in prize money through fixing races and doping horses. Jurors broke down in tears when De Leon described a mother and father being pulled by their hair and forced to watch their 6-year-old daughter dismembered alive before they faced the same, brutal death. In 2006, severalLa Familia hit men, who said they had a "divine right" to kill, dumped five severed heads on a dance floor, yet this didn't alienate them in the public eye (via Insider/Insight Crime). Omnion Cultural fights for the independence of Catalonia, The Moria refugee camp, two days after Greece's biggest migrant camp, was destroyed by fire. His evil career was so incredibly successful that he made Forbes' billionaire list from 1987 to 1993. De Leon said that he helped Los Zetas stash drugs, transport firearms and deliver marijuana to drug mules along the river to be smuggled to the U.S. Curiously, no bus line reported their buses or passengers missing. Founded by the Orejuela brothers, the Cali cartel earned billions a year, inheriting the Medellin cartel's 80% market share and multi-ton shipments to the United States (via Seattle Times/Insider). With their archenemy established, La Familia Michoacana set out to publicize themselves. De Leon said that his mother sold her house for $20,000 to help him, and that the Zetas let him loose with the stipulation that he must pay $100,000 more in one week. The Most Brutal Execution Methods Used by Mexican Cartels 2011 San Fernando massacre Drug cartels influencing politics paints a picture of total disaster. Men were beaten, hacked apart, flung from windows, hanged, and decapitated. WebIn 2010, the Zetas killed 72 undocumented immigrant workers in the San Fernando massacre. In the end, the legacy of the 2011 San Fernando Massacre is one of blood money, corruption, and wanton murder. Pope Francis prays with priests at the end of a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican, A girl's silhouette is seen from behind a fabric in a tent along a beach by Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip, A Chinese woman takes a photo of herself in front of a flower display dedicated to frontline health care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic in Beijing, China. There have been several arrests of purported Zeta members in the region but no trials. The first one they asked, he didn't want to work, and [cartel members] said, that's fine. He turned around, and they shot him in the head. He alleged that the victims were abducted from buses and killed for refusing to join the cartel or pay their way out. They kidnapped a local farmers son and demanded $10,000, and when he gave them $5,000 everything he had they sent him half of his son.. (Watch our piece Mexican Marines Kill Drug Lord Known as The Executioner.). However, the Gulf remains entrenched in theirTamaulipas stronghold, which provides steady revenue from narcotics and migrant smuggling (via Insight Crime). WebThe 2011 San Fernando massacre, also known as the second massacre of San Fernando, was the mass murder of 193 people by Los Zetas drug cartel at La Joya ranch in the municipality of San Fernando, Tamaulipas, Mexico in March 2011. Mexican government security spokesman Eduardo Sanchez (C) speaks during a press conference, accompanied by Mexican Navy General Jorge Victor (L) and Mexican Army General Martin Terrones (R) to present details of the military operation in which Miguel Angel Trevino Morales, the alleged drug lord behind the cartel Los Zetas, was arrested. 2021 The Texas Observer. Its origins are traced toEl Milenio, a group that was allied to the Tijuana cartel. Jeffrey Morris is a researcher and freelance writer with a passion for history and rarities. The gunmen used a large hammer to break down the door before storming the house shooting indiscriminately at the women and children inside. It had only been a year since the 2010 Zetas The Sun Morales liked to betand bet bigon the horses. WebMarciano 'Chano' Millan Vasquez, 34, was jailed in San Antonio, Texas, for 29 killings carried out for notorious northern Mexican gang Los Zetas between 2009 and 2015, as well as More terrifying is their ease of operations in countries like the US. According to reports in the BBC and Insight Crime, the latest cartel trend is the fragmentation of the drug trafficking landscape, especially in Mexico. The gunmen murdered a young girl by the name of Estefania Martinez Diaz, a woman by the name of Mara Campillo Mata and a man by the name of Miguel Angel Mendoza. However, despite their swift and brutal success, Insight Crime reports that Los Zetas has experienced fragmentation since 2012, especially when the Trevino brothers fell out and split the group into rival clans,the Northeast Cartel and the Zetas Old School. Prosecutors will not seek the death penalty. She specializes in reporting on immigration and the U.S.-Mexico border. President Felipe Caldern deployed the military against Mexicos cartels in 2007, and despite $1.6 billion in U.S. support, 35,000 civilians were now dead by 2011, with thousands missing. They also acted as lookouts for the cartel and turned a blind eye to their illegal activities. Subscribe to Here's the Deal, our politics newsletter. Reyna discovered that his son's co-worker and girlfriend were also missing. Elizabeth Shell. Prosecutors asked De Leon why it took him so long to point out the defendant. The Zetas were involved in 20 different criminal activities, George Grayson, an expert on the Zetas and professor of government at the College of William & Mary, said. Melissa is a 2016-17 Lannan Fellow at The Investigative Fund at The Nation Institute. Besides drug smuggling, the cartel is involved in every facet of trade in its territory including human trafficking. All rights reserved. During his peak in the mid-1980s, Escobar established a debt collection service called "Oficina de Envigado," which was based in the town hall of Envigado. Facebook beheading video: Who was Mexico's Jane Doe? - BBC He frequently supervised killing experiments wherein new recruits were ordered to kill people with a machete or sledgehammer. In the early 1990s, El Chapo steered the Sinaloa Cartel to dominance through his use of tunnel smuggling and widespread bribes. Captured: July 15, 2013 The last time Reyna saw his son was Sept. 11, 2011. In April 2015, the group killed 15 police officers just weeks after killing five federal officers, which involved the use ofmachine guns and grenade launchers. It was the second time in eight months that the town of 57,000 in the border state of Tamaulipas had been the site of mass graves. Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies. Web270p Video: Notorious Mexican Los Zetas cartel boss, Moises Escamilla May, 45, who was jailed for a string of ruthless beheadings, dies in jail from coronavirus Jalisco Cartel No one charges under $2,000 these days to get into the United States and [the Zetas] get $400 to $500 for each migrant smuggled through their territory, he says. Then come the Zetas, with no background in narcotics, and they start chopping peoples heads off, Grayson said. While the Gulf cartel remains a danger to society, their influence has been diminished by Los Zetas, their wayward spawn. US attorney Richard L Durbin Jr told the court in San Antonio, Texas, the killer had acted "without mercy or compunction". Gore video - four women dismembered by the gang - xgore In August 2010, the gang massacred 72 kidnapped migrants at a remote ranch in Northeastern Mexico after they refused to pay a ransom for their release or take jobs as hit men. WARNING GRAPHIC: The Most Brutal Murders Linked to El Chapo WebOn behalf of Los Zetas." If the lawmakers are puppets to drug cartels, then there is very little hope that the war against the cartels will be won. China will celebrate national day marking the founding of the People's Republic of China on October 1st, The Glass Mountain Inn burns as the Glass Fire moves through the area in St. Helena, California. Cartel: Los Zetas WebIn August 2011, armed men affiliated with the Zetas cartel set fire to a casino in the Mexican city of Monterrey, killing 52 people. // ]]>. The field was linked to the Los Zetas cartel. Perhaps the most heinous La Linea crime occurred in Bavispe, where the group attacked a Mormon family inNovember 2019, killing nine people including several children, according to ABC. Mexico's CJNG Following However, recently, theyve taken their drug manufacturing activities to highly advanced countries like the United States. Alliances were formed on both sides, with the BLO allying with Los Zetas and the Sinaloa cartel working with the Gulf and Familia Michoacana cartels (via Insight Crime). The macabre bloodsport was detailed in The Houston Chronicle. Outlets must also tag the Observer in all social media posts. Instead, they were raped and beaten to death or vanished into a new life as cartel soldiers. Yet the Cali cartel was still a powerful drug cartel that used violence if it had to, especially during its conflict with the Medellin cartel, which took many lives on both sides. The memo indicated that local police acted as lookouts and helped in the interceptions of persons across all cases. Human smugglers often use buses to transport migrants north to the Texas-Mexico border. Based in the western state ofMichoacn, La Familia Michoacana is known for its history of violence as well as its quasi-religious trappings (via Insight Crime). Moreover, the extremely violent gang has made connections and collaborated with U.S. gangs all over the country since 2010. The import of this for the American people is that no matter what measures the US government takes to destroy the vast network of drug smuggling within the country, the effort may be fruitless, as it is no longer a case of fighting a foreign entity. The two claimed credible fear, telling agents that they feared for their lives if they were to stay in Mexico. Rogue policemen are believed to have played a role in the deaths of 193 people, whose bodies were found in hidden graves in San Fernando in 2011, and 49 in Cadereyta in the state of Nuevo Leon in 2012. Piedras Negras, in the state of Coahuila, has a reputation as a hotbed for drug smuggling and violence. The cartel member he spoke with was Jose Luis Rodriguez. Tamaulipas Lieutenant Governor Morelos Jaime Canseco Gmez admitted police were still looking for another bus of passengers. Abe announced he will resign over health problems, in a bombshell development that kicks off a leadership contest in the world's third-largest economy, Residents take cover behind a tree trunk from rubber bullets fired by South African Police Service (SAPS) in Eldorado Park, near Johannesburg, during a protest by community members after a 16-year old boy was reported dead, People scatter rose petals on a statue of Mother Teresa marking her 110th birth anniversary in Ahmedabad, An aerial view shows beach-goers standing on salt formations in the Dead Sea near Ein Bokeq, Israel, Health workers use a fingertip pulse oximeter and check the body temperature of a fisherwoman inside the Dharavi slum during a door-to-door Covid-19 coronavirus screening in Mumbai, People carry an idol of the Hindu god Ganesh, the deity of prosperity, to immerse it off the coast of the Arabian sea during the Ganesh Chaturthi festival in Mumbai, India, Firefighters watch as flames from the LNU Lightning Complex fires approach a home in Napa County, California, Members of the Israeli security forces arrest a Palestinian demonstrator during a rally to protest against Israel's plan to annex parts of the occupied West Bank, A man pushes his bicycle through a deserted road after prohibitory orders were imposed by district officials for a week to contain the spread of the Covid-19 in Kathmandu, A car burns while parked at a residence in Vacaville, California. Millan-Vasquez was found guilty last July of murder, violence, drug and weapons trafficking, and employing minors in a drug crime a total of 10 counts. Breitbart Texas Cartel Chroniclesare published in both English and in their originalSpanish. Besides carrying $2 million in cash and eight guns, Trevino Morales, the alleged kingpin of the feared cartel Los Zetas, was wanted for a spate of crimes in the U.S. and Mexico, ranging from the mundane to the horrific. De Leon said that he didn't voluntarily start working with the cartel; he was kidnapped and forced to participate. When it was WebLos Zetas is a powerful Mexican drug cartel that has made special use of fear to achieve its business goals. Top 10 Disturbing Facts About Los Zetas - Listverse The fact that Los Zetas and other Mexican gangs sponsor politicians in Mexico is a huge problem. He also forced captured Mexican migrants into gladiatorial fights to the death. In this ghastly murder, the CDN faction appears to have struck first murdering the relatives of a state police officer and a farmers union leader. Led by the infamous Pablo Escobar, the Medellin cartel is said to have killed thousands of people, including three Colombian presidential candidates, many judges and over 1,000 police officers (via Biography). This article was written by M.A. FROM brutal beheadings to violent kidnappings, the cartel wars of Cancun have unleashed horror on Mexico's Caribbean coast as gangsters wreak havoc yards away from luxury resorts. They told me to stop doing that," Reyna said in court. The heartless drug lord is claimed to have personally killed 2,000 people, in addition to ordering and supervising thousands of other murders. 1996 - 2023 NewsHour Productions LLC. Velazquez started out stealing cars in his hometown of Nuevo Laredo, Tamaulipas, and was jailed there. Los Zetas was formed in 1997 to serve as enforcers for the Gulf Cartel. Los Zetas The Shrinking actor talks mental health, being queer, and why the Lone Star State is the perfect home for his new play Silver Foxes. These cases have highlighted the growing interest of Mexican cartels in influencing politics.[5]. Los Zetas is the largest drug cartel in Mexico in terms of scale of operations. De Leon will serve time in jail after pleading guilty to a marijuana charge. Get our latest in-depth reporting straight to your inbox. Los Zetas called Mexico's most dangerous drug cartel The cartels brutal murders came to a head under the leadership of Miguel Angel Trevino Morales. Los Zetas is a powerful Mexican drug cartel that has made special use of fear to achieve its business goals. The defendant in this case is Mariano Millan-Vasquez, known to everyone as "Chano." Inside The Brutal 1955 Murder Of 14-Year-Old Emmett Till That Galvanized The Civil Rights Movement, 101-Year-Old Woman Who Began Trapping Lobster Before The Great Depression Has No Plans To Retire, What Stephen Hawking Thinks Threatens Humankind The Most, 27 Raw Images Of When Punk Ruled New York, Join The All That's Interesting Weekly Dispatch, Following the 2011 San Fernando Massacre, Federal Highway 101 was colloquially dubbed the highway of death or the devils road.. They were the victims of a brutal new evolution in Mexican cartel violence. WebFrom March 24 to March 29, 2011, the Los Zetas drug cartel viciously slaughtered nearly 200 Central American migrants in Tamaulipas, Mexico. Reporter-producer Larisa Epatko contributed to this report. On Wednesday morning, prosecutors called Jaime Abascal Reyna to the stand. According to World Atlas, Tijuana had the highest homicide rate in the world in 2020, with 138 murder per 100,000 residents. Consequently, several Mexican cities such as Los Cabos, Tijuana, and Acapulco have recorded some of the highest murder rates in the world, according toStatista. GRAPHIC EXCLUSIVE: Mexican Border State Prison She was known for being the crazy white one. But Los Zetas stands out. Some believe the victims were simply killed for refusing to join the cartel but, ultimately, San Fernando had become so violent that few journalists ever entered to investigate. Led by the Beltran Leyva brothers Marcos Arturo, Carlos, Alfredo, and Hctor, the Beltran Leyva Organization (BLO)was a vicious drug cartel in the Mexican state of Sinaloa (via Insight Crime/Wilson Center). The 2010 San Fernando Massacre bore similarities to the June 2011 confession of Zetas member dgar Huerta Montiel. Terrazas said the most corrupt was an elderly police officer and another named scar Jaramillo, who receive money from the organization to collaborate. Most troubling, however, is that The National Security Archive examining this memo stated that all 17 detained police officers had vanished from the public eye. Learn more about Friends of the NewsHour. Some had been killed by sledgehammer. Their operations in Colombia and Guatemala can be taken for granted because these countries have homegrown drug cartel problems of their own. A staff writer for All Thats Interesting, Marco Margaritoff has also published work at outlets including People, VICE, and Complex, covering everything from film to finance to technology. Thats bad for the bottom line., Drug cartels have famously eluded capture by the Mexican government as the problem has crossed the border and headed north: 1,000 U.S cities reported the presence of a Mexican cartel in 2010, according to this graphic by the National Post. WebOn behalf of Los Zetas." You can contact her at [emailprotected]. On July 12, 2012, authorities seized over 50 kilograms of marijuana at the Del Rio port of entry. In fact, CNNreported that Cali mobsters even invested in four 500-pound bombs, which they intended to somehow drop on Pablo Escobar. Moraless most preferred method of killing was to stuff victims in oil barrels and set them ablaze. From the mid-1980s to his death in 1993, Pablo Escobar was the "King of Cocaine," earning an estimated $420 million a week, according to Insider. You cannot underestimate the capabilities of a cartel whose founding fathers were trained by the U.S. military. Tens of thousands of pro-democracy protesters massed close to Thailand's royal palace, in a huge rally calling for PM Prayut Chan-O-Cha to step down and demanding reforms to the monarchy, Supporters of Iraqi Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr maintain social distancing as they attend Friday prayers after the coronavirus disease restrictions were eased, in Kufa mosque, near Najaf, Iraq, A protester climbs on The Triumph of the Republic at 'the Place de la Nation' as thousands of protesters take part in a demonstration during a national day strike called by labor unions asking for better salary and against jobs cut in Paris, France, A fire raging near the Lazzaretto of Ancona in Italy. Instead, they became the drug cartel they were supposed to fight. The office's purpose was to collect debts from Escobar's extensive trafficking network. That's right the Wight bitch was the bad one and cut off heads with axes with her own hands. The following facts also illustrate the reality that an immediate defeat of the drug cartel may be far from feasible. WebSoon after the murder, Guzman became known as Z-1, and would become the founder of Los Zetas, literally The Zs: an organization that began as an elite security detail and would evolve across 12 years to become one of Mexicos most powerful criminal organizations. It would occur to many as an unacceptable surprise that Los Zetas recruits members in the United States. According to court testimony, from 2007 through 2011, Chavarria oversaw the shipment of enormous quantities of cocaine between Piedras Negras, Coahuila, Mexico, and Eagle Pass, Texas on behalf of the Los Zetas Cartel, in which he was a high-ranking member. There is a popular consensus that Los Zetas is the most brutal and inhuman drug cartel in history. They were forcibly recruited and haven't been paid or fed by their bosses. Officials exhuming the bodies noticed that many bore the marks of blunt trauma. De Leon is now cooperating with authorities. Former Los Zetas worker: I was forced to witness brutal killings The irony of this scenario is that the training they received was supposed to prepare them for counterinsurgency and counter-narcotics operations. The video shows four women on their knees in a field, their hands tied behind their backs.