Gradually, the BLO began to weaken in this battle of attrition, losing many members to jail or death. Yarrington is reported to have allowed the Gulf and Los Zetas cartels to operate in his state without hindrance in return for bribes. Elizabeth Shell The Horrific True Story Of The 2011 San Fernando Massacre. These types of brutal dealings by Los Zetas originally a bodyguard group for another cartel upset the status quo. Want to bookmark your favourite articles and stories to read or reference later? 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). The macabre bloodsport was detailed in The Houston Chronicle. They immediately went to war with the Los Zetas and proudly claimed responsibility for a swathe of mass killings, including the massacre of 15 Mexican cops in a single ambush. He said that cartel members kidnapped him again and held him captive for 13 days until he found the money. Countries militaries are dedicated to defense from external aggression and the protection of peoples lives and properties. However, the Gulf remains entrenched in theirTamaulipas stronghold, which provides steady revenue from narcotics and migrant smuggling (via Insight Crime). Los Zetas called Mexico's most dangerous drug cartel By the early 1990s, Medellin was the most violent city not just in Colombia but the entire world, and much of that was because of the Medellin cartel's war with the government (via Rapid Transition). The two cartels enjoyed over a decade of business until the late 1990s, when the Gulf cartel had become self-sufficient. The Juarez cartel is another relatively old organization dating back to the early 1980s (via Insight Crime). The implication of this is that Los Zetas continues to bolster its criminal operations through nontraditional and unexpected means. He also forced captured Mexican migrants into gladiatorial fights to the death. Killed: Oct. 7, 2012 According to World Atlas, Tijuana had the highest homicide rate in the world in 2020, with 138 murder per 100,000 residents. Torture, beheadings, and narcocultos Reyna never heard back from the cartel, so he said that he contacted the Mexican government. Cartel: Los Zetas Their vicious feud affects ordinary people, too, such as Juan Manuel Delgado Crdenas, a 23-year-old student who was murdered for refusing to cook synthetic drugs (via Mexico News Daily). The 2010 San Fernando Massacre bore similarities to the June 2011 confession of Zetas member dgar Huerta Montiel. 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. Human smugglers often use buses to transport migrants north to the Texas-Mexico border. Sadist Los Zetas Cartel Set Brutal Standard in Drug War If you dont pay them, they will take your merchandise, he says. During their enforcer period, theUS Drug Enforcement Agency(DEA) described Los Zetas as perhaps "the most technologically advanced, sophisticated and violent of these paramilitary enforcement groups.". Los Zetass status as the largest drug cartel in Mexico carries additional implications. They told me to stop doing that," Reyna said in court. Put in pairs and given sledgehammers, they were forced to fight each other. 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). 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. Then, in December 2015, Insider reported that La Familia founderCarlos Rosales Mendoza was found dead baring torture wounds. As La Familia Michoacana expelled Los Zetas, they took territory across Guerrero, Morelos, Guanajuato, Queretaro, Jalisco and Mexico City. The fact that Los Zetas and other Mexican gangs sponsor politicians in Mexico is a huge problem. SAN ANTONIO, Texas - In San Antonio today, a federal judge sentenced 34-year-old Marciano Millan Vasquez, a high ranking member and a former sicario for the Los Zetas drug cartel, to seven consecutive life imprisonment sentences for committing and aiding and abetting the commission of numerous murders and other acts of violence, They ordered the informant be killed along with anyone and everyone associated with him. His body was stolen from the funeral home. Brutal Mexican Zetas cartel leader chopped up girl, 6, with an axe You have to keep up with the Joneses. Site made in collaboration with CMYK. [CDATA[ Then, in December 2009, Arturo Beltrn Leyva was killed by Mexican marines. On Aug. 24, 2010, however, Mexican Armed Forces unearthed the bodies of 72 undocumented immigrants who were simply executed. In August 2017, the cartel kidnapped 17 people and kept them in a stash house in Nuevo Laredo. WebZetas behead and dismember four women from the Gulf Cartel. The traditional cartels buy off politicians, establish traffic routes for smuggling and make money. He holds dual bachelor's degrees from Pace University and a master's degree from New York University. The Gulf's cocaine business started when they brokered a deal with the Cali cartel, which was looking for new routes from Colombia to the United States. A red Blackberry phone belonging to De Leon was examined by computer forensics experts with Homeland Security Investigations. The two men who were also gunned down have been identified as Cruz Felipe Pizana Saldivar and Angel Carrizales Amaya. Officials are still counting the dead, but, as of this writing, the bodies numbered nearly 200. And these lives are often innocent civilians caught up in the dreadful violence and corruption, such as the shootout in Tulum, which killed two tourists and injured three more, according toThe Guardian. She was known for being the crazy white one. 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As the cartel made connections across Mexico and the world, their death toll increased exponentially. The rest of us agreed.". The memo indicated that local police acted as lookouts and helped in the interceptions of persons across all cases. He has been a guest speaker on numerous national radio and television stations and is a five time published author. In August 2010, the Mexican military stumbled upon the bodies of 72 people bound and executed. With Americans running the organization, winning the war against Los Zetas would be much more difficult. He said that the Zetas commanders ordered the killings because there was a government informant in the group. Multiple witnesses have testified that Millan-Vasquez controlled the region of Piedras Negras for Los Zetas and is responsible for hundreds of killings and disappearances. There were only a few bullet casings at the scene, but one sledgehammer and bodies showing blunt trauma to the head. With nearly all of the bodies lacking identification, authorities transported them to the Matamoros morgue for family members to hopefully identify. Reporter-producer Larisa Epatko contributed to this report. Families across Mexico reported that relatives had disappeared after boarding passenger buses bound for the Texas-Mexico border. Example video title will go here for this video. 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). With the Medellin leader gone, Insider noted how the rival Cali cartel took the reins of Colombia's booming cocaine industry. It had only been a year since the 2010 CJNG's battles with the Los Zetas and CRSL cartels are similarly brutal. According to information provided to Breitbart Texas by the Tamaulipas government, the children have been identified as Galilea Garcia Amaya, Mariana Garcia Amaya (both from Texas), Maria Pizana Carrizales and Estephania Guadalupe Pizana Carrizales. Melissa is a 2016-17 Lannan Fellow at The Investigative Fund at The Nation Institute. In the same month, heavily armed gunmen fired upon Omar Garcia Harfuch, Mexico City's public security secretary, injuring him and killing two bodyguards and a passerby (via Insight Crime). Their operations in Colombia and Guatemala can be taken for granted because these countries have homegrown drug cartel problems of their own. Her work has been featured in various national and international media outlets, including the Guardian, PBS, NPR and Marie Claire. 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. De Leon will serve time in jail after pleading guilty to a marijuana charge. Since 2011, there have been numerous scandals exposing the collusion between politicians and drug cartels. 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 Attorney Jeff Blackburn, a crusader for the innocent, fought injustices across Texas in his improbable, utterly original, and often profane life. The fact that Los Zetas was able to grow and nurture $2 million worth of marijuana in Texas is quite distressing. He made a mistake in his greedbelieving he was invincible and untouchable. How could such a tragedy occur in San Fernando not once but repeatedly? Los Zetas Mexicos National Human Rights Commission estimated that 20,000 migrants were abducted in 2010, alone. 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. newsletter for analysis you wont find anywhereelse. Even the Sinaloas are now decapitating people, he said. The cartels brutal murders came to a head under the leadership of Miguel Angel Trevino Morales. Former Zetas members testified Tuesday, claiming the cartel is responsible for a bloody massacre in Piedras Negras in 2011. Insight Crime catalogued the numerous violent acts of this period, including the cartel's failed assassination of Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman in 1993, which went awry when the gunmen erroneously targeted the car of a Catholic cardinal, shooting him to death. So how does Morales, who came into power just last year after his predecessor was shot and killed by authorities and his Los Zetas fit into the underworld that is Mexican cartels? In the 1990s, the aforementioned Cali cartel took the mantle from their Medellin rivals, becoming the most powerful cartel in the world. Mexico's largest and most powerful drug gangs are the Zetas and the Sinaloa cartel. Ronaldo Schemidt/AFP/Getty ImagesSan Fernando woman Alma Miriam Ruiz holding a photo of her daughter Dalia missing since 2010. It was one of the deadliest attacks ever on Mexican Consequently, several Mexican cities such as Los Cabos, Tijuana, and Acapulco have recorded some of the highest murder rates in the world, according toStatista. The winners got to become Zetas recruits, while the losers got death. Former Los Zetas worker: I was forced to witness brutal killings The heartless drug lord is claimed to have personally killed 2,000 people, in addition to ordering and supervising thousands of other murders. All Rights Reserved. Captured: Sept. 26, 2012 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. However, in the late 1990s/early 2000s, a set of El Milenio lieutenants rebelled and created their own cartel. Brutality and inhumanity are the most noticeable traits of drug cartels all over the world, but Los Zetas has taken them to a new high. The gunmen used a large hammer to break down the door before storming the house shooting indiscriminately at the women and children inside. In fact, CNNreported that Cali mobsters even invested in four 500-pound bombs, which they intended to somehow drop on Pablo Escobar. Millan-Vasquez faces multiple charges, including conspiracy to distribute narcotics, enticing minors to sell drugs, giving a false identification to authorities, and charges for at least nine murders in South Texas and Northern Mexico. The gang often kidnaps and holds poor migrants who try to operate outside the system for ransom. [1] The deadly organization started out as the enforcement branch of the Mexican Gulf Cartel. While the Gulf cartel remains a danger to society, their influence has been diminished by Los Zetas, their wayward spawn. Los Zetas was described by the US government in 2009 as "the most technologically advanced, sophisticated and dangerous cartel operating in Mexico". WebLos Zetas have also carried out multiple massacres and attacks on civilians and rival cartels, such as: the 2010 San Fernando massacre (24 August), where 72 migrants were found A depressing fact about Los Zetas is that they are sometimes aided by Mexican police in the commission of unspeakable crimes. While older cartels were more interested in smuggling drugs than anything else, Los Zetas apparently has its sights set on any type of crime that translates into quick and steady cash. This article was written by M.A. This wasnt the first time such a tragedy had visited San Fernando. Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies. Graphic from a 2011 NDIC national drug threat assessment. There is a popular consensus that Los Zetas is the most brutal and inhuman drug cartel in history. [3] By the end of 2011, Los Zetas had eclipsed the Sinaloa Cartel as the largest operating in Mexico by virtue of their geographic presence. The violence has ebbed and flowed since that decade, including a shootout with Mexican police in 2008 which led to the arrest of Eduardo Arellano Felix (via Reuters). Then, in May, SinEmbargo reported that the cartel had destroyed a military helicopter with an RPG, killing 5 soldiers. 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). By that point, however, more bodies had surfaced. As the two factions continue their fierce fighting, gunmen from the two groups have taken to social media and banners to deliver threats to each other. Los Zetas is a criminal gang that manufactures and smuggles illegal drugs like cocaine, heroin, methamphetamine, ecstasy, and marijuana, among others. Authorities had been notified of missing passengers from Highway 101 on May 24 and May 29, with soldiers following a tip that led them to the La Joya ranch a few miles off the road. The CJNG split from the Sinaloa Cartel after the killing of Ignacio Coronel, a capo whose death caused a power vacuum(via Insight Crime). A rival of the Sinaloa cartel, the Juarez group has been responsible for thousands of murders across its territory, which included 21 states at the height of its power. With population of 60,000, San Fernando is near the Texas border and epitomizes cartel carnage. But Los Zetas stands out. Colombian National Police/Wikimedia Commons, ShareAlike 4.0 International/BaptisteGrandGrand. Then, on April 21, 2011, police arrested San Fernandos police chief and got a little closer to the truth. Some had been killed by sledgehammer. Los Zetas is a powerful Mexican drug cartel that has made special use of fear to achieve its business goals. While police arrested 76 suspects, including senior Los Zeta member Martin El Kilo Estrada, there was no victory there. His evil career was so incredibly successful that he made Forbes' billionaire list from 1987 to 1993. "They did this so I would tell my family if they didn't obtain the money, this would happen to them," he said in court. 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. Breitbart Texas has consulted with relatives and friends of the Garcia family who said the Texas family had traveled to Ciudad Victoria with the children for the summer vacation. The rest of the video is a gruesome 40 seconds of cold-blooded murder, which caused international controversy recently when it was posted on Facebook. Only in 2014 was this dynamic officially exposed in a memo from the Mexico Attorney Generals Office on the 2010 San Fernando Massacre, the 2011 San Fernando Massacre, and the recovery of 49 human torsos in 2012. It would occur to many as an unacceptable surprise that Los Zetas recruits members in the United States. In 2017, the Mexican government extradited Joaqun "El Chapo" Guzmn, a Jeffrey Morris is a researcher and freelance writer with a passion for history and rarities. Sadism was their brand. Los Zetas control a wide swathe of territory ranging from the Texas border to Guatemala. However, despite these smaller groups' threat to the Guerrero and Morelosstates, the Beltrn-Leyva Organization is merely a trace of its former self. Los Zetas is the largest drug cartel in Mexico in terms of scale of operations. I know that police and transit officials in San Fernando help the Zetas organization, because rather than take detainees to the Pentgano, which is to say the municipal jail, they would deliver them to the Zetas, said lvaro Alba Terrazas, one of the 17 detained police officials. "The first time [I was kidnapped], they took me with a group of about seven people. He created a company, Tremor Enterprises, to purchase racehorses for American contests, winning millions in prize money through fixing races and doping horses. WebCartel Del Golfo interrogation 4 Zetas these bastards have admitted to raping women,killing women, killing kids. With the Los Zetas fighting the Gulf Cartel for control of human trafficking networks, police corruption was no surprise. Rodriguez said that when he asked a commander about Reyna's son who disappeared, the commander said for him to stop asking about it, because they just finished "cooking him". 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. Since then, BLO members have either been killed, jailed or defected to new splinter groups, such as the Guerreros Unidos and Los Rojos, which dabble in extortion, kidnapping and lethal violence. During a particularly emotional testimony on Wednesday, a former worker for Los Zetas said that he was kidnapped twice by the cartel and was forced to witness several violent acts. [7] As usual, theyve also brought an unprecedented level of violence to the trade. However, despite the logistical sophistication and the massive financial success, the history of cartels is fraught with betrayal, splinter groups, and brutally shortened lives. The gunmen injured 4 others in the attack. The group was originally made up of 34 Mexican Special Forces soldiers. Initially formed by about 30 former members of an elite Mexican army unit, the gang used fear and intimidation to conduct business in defiance of government operations. Yuri Cortez/AFP/Getty ImagesAn armored police vehicle carrying Los Zetas member dgar Huerta Montiel in June 2011. "[The government] told me not to go asking questions about my son. 4 There are a handful of drug cartels in Mexico, most of which run almost like corporations. The Sun These cases have highlighted the growing interest of Mexican cartels in influencing politics.[5]. You cannot underestimate the capabilities of a cartel whose founding fathers were trained by the U.S. military. San Fernando woman Alma Miriam Ruiz holding a photo of her daughter Dalia missing since 2010. the Mexican boys forced to eat human flesh as a cartel initiation. In 2015, U.S. law enforcement discovered a marijuana field in Texas with a market value of $2 million. Among these provincial traders and smugglers wasJoaqun Guzmn Loera, better known as "El Chapo.". 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. Navarro from Ciudad Victoria. Thailand has seen near-daily protests in recent weeks by students demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Prayut Chan-O-Cha, Members of the Kayapo tribe block the BR163 highway during a protest outside Novo Progresso in Para state, Brazil. This radio communication technology has given them a edge over Mexican law enforcement agencies for years. If their relatives do not pay for their release, they may be killed and dumped into mass graves. In and around Cali if the mafia doesn't like you, you just disappear.". Largely funded by the international drug trade, Mexican cartels wield military-grade weapons in firefights with Mexicos Armed Forces that often leave collateral damage. The way in which the killers carried Whatever the motivations, the mass killings show just how little control the federal government exerts over Tamaulipas. Moreover, the extremely violent gang has made connections and collaborated with U.S. gangs all over the country since 2010. At least two jurors broke down in tears as they listened to Jorge De Leon Navarro describe how Los Zetas killed their prisoners. He was told to contact someone in Los Zetas to see if they had information. !function(d,s,id){var js,fjs=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0];if(!d.getElementById(id)){js=d.createElement(s);js.id=id;js.src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js";fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js,fjs);}}(document,"script","twitter-wjs"); Between January 2009 and July 2015, Millan-Vasquez was responsible for the murders of at least 29 people, according to testimony from the trial reported by local broadcaster KSAT. WebLos Zetas, originally founded by Mexican special forces deserters, some with US training, started as the enforcement arm of the Gulf Cartel, a crime group from northeastern Extortion, smuggling, torture, possible harvesting of human body parts. Outlets must also tag the Observer in all social media posts. 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. Unlike some of its fragmenting rivals, CJNG's power is forecast to grow despite government pressure on their front companies and bank accounts. CJNG have also committed several assassinations, including the June 2020 murder of Jalisco judge Uriel Villegas Ortiz and his wifeVernica, who were shot some 20 times, according to a El Pais report. Traditionally, Mexican cartels like Los Zetas only grew and manufactured drugs in Mexican territory and other less advanced countries where government officials were collaborators or incapable of disrupting their operations. GRAPHIC EXCLUSIVE: Mexican Border State Prison Inside bloody world of Cancuns cartel wars as gangsters behead At one of the gory murders the horrific slaughter of a young girl he reportedly told her father the crime was "so you can remember me", before ordering the murder of both parents. Authorities expect more violence to ensue in the coming days. The cartel member he spoke with was Jose Luis Rodriguez. On July 12, 2012, authorities seized over 50 kilograms of marijuana at the Del Rio port of entry. Prosecutors asked De Leon why it took him so long to point out the defendant. The Zetas were notorious for their brutality, even by cartel standards. Drug lord Miguel Angel Z-40 Trevino Morales was arrested early in the morning Monday on a country dirt road after a Mexican Marine helicopter intercepted the pickup truck he was riding in. In 2009, the Mexican government identified the countrys 37 most wanted criminals. The chief and 16 of his 25 men were questioned under suspicion of helping the Zetas abduct, kill, and bury the passengers. Facebook beheading video: Who was Mexico's Jane Doe? - BBC When Reyna didn't hear from his son for several days, he started making calls. The witness said that the commanders kidnapped him and his two superiors until they paid what they owed for the seized load of marijuana. The Los Zetas cartel gunmen even executed the family dog. Media speculation on the motives for the kidnappings range from the cartels need for new recruits to fight its turf battles to the notion that passengers are being extorted for money. This is a unique and distressing fact about the deadly gang. All rights reserved. They picked us up and told us we had to work for someone, for Los Zetas, De Leon said in court. WebThe Most Brutal Execution Methods Reportedly Used By Mexican Cartels Beheading By Chainsaw. There have been several criminal organizations in the world that have perpetrated destructive acts against humanity without any form of military training, either formal or informal. Mail Online Videos: Top News & Viral Videos, Clips & Footage All of the Texas Observers articles are available for free syndication for news sources under the following conditions: You can chip in for as little as 99 cents a month.