Eventually, this group broke away to become a drug cartel of their own, which is now the notorious Los Zetas. 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. 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). If Mexican governors have been indicted as Los Zetas collaborators, then there is a possibility that one day, the criminal organization could produce a governor from its ranks. // ]]>. Prosecutors will not seek the death penalty. 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. Subscribe to Here's the Deal, our politics newsletter. Former Los Zetas worker: I was forced to witness brutal killings Jamie founded Listverse due to an insatiable desire to share fascinating, obscure, and bizarre facts. In early April, Mexican military officials made another grisly discovery in the once sleepy farming community of San Fernando: a series of mass graves among the mesquite brush. 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. While the Gulf cartel remains a danger to society, their influence has been diminished by Los Zetas, their wayward spawn. He said that they spoke over the phone every day. On Tuesday, Rodriguez testified about a bloody massacre involving more than 300 people. 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. However, in the late 1990s/early 2000s, a set of El Milenio lieutenants rebelled and created their own cartel. Los Zetas - Wikipedia This is a unique and distressing fact about the deadly gang. Former Los Zetas worker: I was forced to witness brutal killings However, despite its success in cocaine and methamphetamine, La Familia Michoacana's power was curtailed by yet another splinter group, The Knights Templar. 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. Inside The Brutal 2011 San Fernando Massacre That Left 193 Dead [2] It is a fact that some of the cartels initial members were elite Mexican troops who were trained in the early 1990s by Americas 7th Special Forces Group. Largely funded by the international drug trade, Mexican cartels wield military-grade weapons in firefights with Mexicos Armed Forces that often leave collateral damage. To set the records straight, Los Zetas was formed by Mexican ex-military men. Los Zetas is a criminal gang that manufactures and smuggles illegal drugs like cocaine, heroin, methamphetamine, ecstasy, and marijuana, among others. 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. GRAPHIC EXCLUSIVE: Mexican Border State Prison Site made in collaboration with CMYK. WebTubutama Gun Battle On July 1, 2010, Sinaloa Cartel gunmen clashed with their rivals from the Beltran Leyva and Los Zetas Cartel leaving more than 20 dead near the rural town of This savagery is nothing new. In August 2010, Zetas executed 72 migrants in Tamaulipas, which was followed by 2011 attacks in San Fernando and a Monterrey casino, killing a combined 245 people. As part of the threats, the Vieja Escuela faction has ordered that the relatives of the CDN leadership leave Ciudad Victoria or face a sure death. Morales liked to betand bet bigon the horses. 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. Curiously, no bus line reported their buses or passengers missing. Navarro from Ciudad Victoria. In1997, PBS described the Tijuana drug cartel as "one of the most powerful and aggressive drug trafficking organizations operating from Mexico," adding that it is "undeniably the most violent." Then, learn about the Mexican boys forced to eat human flesh as a cartel initiation. Instead, they were raped and beaten to death or vanished into a new life as cartel soldiers. Zetas Border / Cartel ChroniclesBreitbart TexasCartel ChroniclesCartel ViolenceCDNCiudad VictoriaGrupo BravoLos ZetasVieja Escuela. 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.. Former governor Humberto Moreira was also singled out by former Mexican President Felipe Calderon has having protected Los Zetas in his state. They robbed stores, they broke into an auto repair shop and stole cell phones and several vehicles, all with the goal of spreading terror.". Its origins are traced toEl Milenio, a group that was allied to the Tijuana cartel. Arson investigation underway after cars catch fire at west Houston apartment complex, Mother of 15-year-old shot at a house party wants someone held accountable, Houston forecast: Grab your jacket as you head to the rodeo, it's a cool and breezy Friday, Damage reported throughout North Texas area during severe weather. Then come the Zetas, with no background in narcotics, and they start chopping peoples heads off, Grayson said. Gore video - four women dismembered by the gang - xgore The FBI and the IRS eventually built a case against Morales and others, leading to his arrest. The cartel's influence has declined like many of its fragmenting peers, but their power remains strong inCiudad Jurez and the Valle de Jurez, which are key trafficking locations. 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. 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People began to disappear, said San Fernando priest Ramon Ruiz. WARNING GRAPHIC: The Most Brutal Murders Linked to El Chapo The Los Zetas cartel gunmen even executed the family dog. Besides drug smuggling, the cartel is involved in every facet of trade in its territory including human trafficking. WebThere is a popular consensus that Los Zetas is the most brutal and inhuman drug cartel in history. He claimed that the drugs came from the Zetas "comandantes" or commanders, which included Millan-Vasquez. 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. Jair Cabrera/NurPhoto/Getty ImagesTributes to the 2011 San Fernando Massacre. The Horrific True Story Of The 2011 San Fernando Massacre. The handful of passengers lucky enough to be rescued confirmed their captors intended to recruit them. One former member of the cartel told the court Millan-Vasquez had taken part in a 2011 massacre in which up to 300 people were allegedly kidnapped, with many never seen again. Specific forms of torture are discussed as well as the most likely victims and perpetrators. The Times wrote how Escobar had always dreamed of being the President of Colombia, and this ambition showed in his twisted flair for governance. Since 2011, there have been numerous scandals exposing the collusion between politicians and drug cartels. According to reports in the BBC and Insight Crime, the latest cartel trend is the fragmentation of the drug trafficking landscape, especially in Mexico. There is a huge consensus that Mexican drug cartels are responsible for the drug epidemic in the United States. We rely on the generosity of our readers who believe that this work is important. However, despite the logistical sophistication and the massive financial success, the history of cartels is fraught with betrayal, splinter groups, and brutally shortened lives. WebLos Zetas are blamed for last week's brutal killings of the police chief in the southern Mexican city of Veracruz, his wife and four children. Victims were piled on top of one another haphazardly before the cartel used a backhoe to cover up their resting place. Sadist Los Zetas Cartel Set Brutal Standard in Drug War 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. Torture, beheadings, and narcocultos This gang violence occurs in their stronghold of Ciudad Jurez, where 1,200 people were murdered in 2018. This radio communication technology has given them a edge over Mexican law enforcement agencies for years. Relatives of the victims have begun a Go Fund Me campaign in order to take the bodies of Garcia and her two daughters Galilea and Mariana to South Texas for burial. Cartel leader who dismembered six-year-old girl The CJNG split from the Sinaloa Cartel after the killing of Ignacio Coronel, a capo whose death caused a power vacuum(via Insight Crime). Lazcano was the leader of the Los Zetas cartel. With population of 60,000, San Fernando is near the Texas border and epitomizes cartel carnage. The winners got to become Zetas recruits, while the losers got death. Her work has been featured in various national and international media outlets, including the Guardian, PBS, NPR and Marie Claire. Imagine how tragic it would be for such a respected and honored organization to become an evil one like Los Zetas. 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". Prosecutors asked De Leon why it took him so long to point out the defendant. In August 2010, the Mexican military stumbled upon the bodies of 72 people bound and executed. Do you think free access to journalism like this is important? Tamaulipas Lieutenant Governor Morelos Jaime Canseco Gmez admitted police were still looking for another bus of passengers. Melissa is a 2016-17 Lannan Fellow at The Investigative Fund at The Nation Institute. Somewhere near San Fernando, which lies on the interstate to Matamoros, the buses were hijacked, and convoys of armed men snatched passengers. Busloads of people were declared missing in 2011 when their luggage went unclaimed in Reynosa and Matamoros. Read more about illegal drugs and those who deal in them on 10 Atrocities Committed By Mexican Drug Cartels and 15 Notable Drug Traffickers. 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. 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. While police arrested 76 suspects, including senior Los Zeta member Martin El Kilo Estrada, there was no victory there. With the Medellin leader gone, Insider noted how the rival Cali cartel took the reins of Colombia's booming cocaine industry. "The first time [I was kidnapped], they took me with a group of about seven people. Originally a security detail for the Sinaloa cartel, BLO seceded in 2008 and a fierce conflict ensued. Drug cartels influencing politics paints a picture of total disaster. Piedras Negras, in the state of Coahuila, has a reputation as a hotbed for drug smuggling and violence. 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. The military gunned four Zetas members down, before capturing nine others and finding five abducted passengers inside the ranch. 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. The two claimed credible fear, telling agents that they feared for their lives if they were to stay in Mexico. De Leon said that his two superiors were let go after they paid, but that he didn't have the $100,000 the cartel needed. In the early 1990s, El Chapo steered the Sinaloa Cartel to dominance through his use of tunnel smuggling and widespread bribes. Escobar's luck ran out on December 2, 1993, when he was gunned down as part of a joint U.S.-Colombia effort. 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). 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.". Following the murder of 72 kidnapped migrants in August 2010, a subsequent investigation revealed that some Mexican policemen assisted the Zetas in committing the slaughter. She specializes in reporting on immigration and the U.S.-Mexico border. More terrifying is their ease of operations in countries like the US. Los Zetas had begun to hijack buses along Federal Highway 101. During the trial, witnesses said he had hacked apart his victims with an axe and burned their bodies in barrels, according to the San Antonio Express-News. https://www.pbs.org/newshour/world/sadist-los-zetas-cartel-set-brutal-standard-in-drug-war, according to this graphic by the National Post, Mexican Marines Kill Drug Lord Known as The Executioner. The fact that Los Zetas and other Mexican gangs sponsor politicians in Mexico is a huge problem. The 2010 San Fernando Massacre bore similarities to the June 2011 confession of Zetas member dgar Huerta Montiel. The way in which the killers carried They were believed to have been killed for refusing to pay a ransom or join the Marciano Millan-Vasquez, who was a member of the 'Los Zetas' organised crime gang, "brutally murdered anyone and everyone as it suited him and his cartel", the prosecuting lawyer said. 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. WebOn behalf of Los Zetas." CIUDAD 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 visiting relatives. He also forced captured Mexican migrants into gladiatorial fights to the death. Mexicos National Human Rights Commission estimated that 20,000 migrants were abducted in 2010, alone. It was found in Webb County, near the border city of Laredo. This was back when Lazcano and Z-40 were still running the Los Zetas cartel. 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. At this juncture, it is safe and reasonable to conclude that Los Zetas is one of the biggest headaches of the American people. Los Zetas is indeed the worst Mexican drug cartel in history. The office's purpose was to collect debts from Escobar's extensive trafficking network. The criminal indictment claims that the former governor took bribes from drug cartels in exchange for official protection. If you dont pay them, they will take your merchandise, he says. With countless reports emerging of mayors and cops across Mexico collaborating with the cartels, it appears tragically unsurprising that many who knew the truth were either put into hiding or killed to keep them quiet. 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). Months after the casino attack, 49 decapitated bodies were dumped on a Monterrey highway (via Insight Crime/The World). In August 2010, the gang massacred 72 kidnapped migrants at a remote ranch in 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. He has been in detention since his arrest in Texas in 2015. [1] The deadly organization started out as the enforcement branch of the Mexican Gulf Cartel. 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). It would occur to many as an unacceptable surprise that Los Zetas recruits members in the United States. His evil career was so incredibly successful that he made Forbes' billionaire list from 1987 to 1993. In June 2021, The Independent reportedinfighting between Gulf factions the Metros, the Scorpions and the Cyclonesresulted in 19 deaths, 15 of them innocent civilians. [8] Los Zetas has been linked to several other mass murders in Mexico. This has led to savage fighting between some 400 splinter gangs, each killing and maiming for scraps of territory (via Business Insider). The Shrinking actor talks mental health, being queer, and why the Lone Star State is the perfect home for his new play Silver Foxes. 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. Then, in December 2009, Arturo Beltrn Leyva was killed by Mexican marines. He has been a guest speaker on numerous national radio and television stations and is a five time published author. With all this being said, the power and brutality of the gang seem to be waning. With nearly all of the bodies lacking identification, authorities transported them to the Matamoros morgue for family members to hopefully identify. There have been several arrests of purported Zeta members in the region but no trials. He claimed that he was blindfolded, handcuffed, driven to random locations around Piedras Negras, stripped of the blindfold, and forced to kneel and watch these brutal murders. In this pivotal year, Zetas occupied territory in 405 Mexican municipalities, which Insight Crime found was more than double that of their biggest rivals. Earlier in life, he was trained in a Mexican Special Forces unit to fight drug-trafficking organizations. De Leon said that he didn't voluntarily start working with the cartel; he was kidnapped and forced to participate. Initially, the group was led by Osiel Crdenas Guilln, who recruited around 30 alumni from Mexico's special forces. The most dramatic episode of the weekend carnage took place on Saturday morning when gunmen with one faction of the Los Zetas cartel known as the Cartel Del Noreste burst into a home in order to murder four children, five women and two men. Ronaldo Schemidt/AFP/Getty ImagesSan Fernando woman Alma Miriam Ruiz holding a photo of her daughter Dalia missing since 2010. Several other executions and attacks during the weekend brought the total number of casualties to 19 and close to 24 wounded by gunfire. WebDuring 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. They also acted as lookouts for the cartel and turned a blind eye to their illegal activities. The Gulf cartel is among the oldest cartels in Mexico and has held varying degrees of power since its origins in 1984, according toInsightCrime. 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There are a handful of drug cartels in Mexico, most of which run almost like corporations. A significant part of this bloodshed is caused by the Tijuana cartel, which is in constant conflict with the Sinaloa cartel. Omnion Cultural fights for the independence of Catalonia, The Moria refugee camp, two days after Greece's biggest migrant camp, was destroyed by fire. In the 1990s, the aforementioned Cali cartel took the mantle from their Medellin rivals, becoming the most powerful cartel in the world. In the human smuggling business, migrants pay $100 to $200 upfront, then pay the rest once theyve reached the United States. Upon his release, he was put in charge of the cartel in Nuevo Laredo but then relocated to Zacatecas and rose through the ranks of Los Zetas. The rescue was made possible by an anonymous tip about gunmen bringing victims into a house in the Villas de la Fe neighborhood. "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. 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. Moreover, the extremely violent gang has made connections and collaborated with U.S. gangs all over the country since 2010. The 2011 San Fernando Massacre was both disturbing and, tragically, far from a one-off occurrence. The cartel leaders that subsequently took over after Moraless arrest were unable to stay in power for long, either being arrested or gunned down by a rival gang. WebMultiple witnesses have testified that Millan-Vasquez controlled the region of Piedras Negras for Los Zetas and is responsible for hundreds of killings and disappearances. Los Zetas control a wide swathe of territory ranging from the Texas border to Guatemala. Yuri Cortez/AFP/Getty ImagesLos Zetas cartel members and San Fernando Massacre suspects being presented to the press on June 30, 2011. Captured: Sept. 26, 2012 Former Zetas members testified Tuesday, claiming the cartel is responsible for a bloody massacre in Piedras Negras in 2011. Picture taken from a TV screen showing Miguel Angel Trevino Morales by Yuri Cortez/AFP/Getty Images. On July 12, 2012, authorities seized over 50 kilograms of marijuana at the Del Rio port of entry. 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. To protect himself from harm, Guillen hired a retired Mexican soldier as his bodyguard, who in turn solicited 30 Mexican Army deserters to form the cartels well-paid mercenary wing. Articles must link back to the original article and contain the following attribution at the top of the story: This article was originally published by the, Articles cannot be rewritten, edited or changed beyond alignments with house style books. Dozens of fires are burning out of control throughout Northern California as fire resources are spread thin, Students use their mobile phones as flashlights at an anti-government rally at Mahidol University in Nakhon Pathom. 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. Cartels have dominated the international drugs trade since the 1980s, earning many billions of dollars and killing tens of thousands of people in Mexico and Colombia alone (via Al Jazeera and Britannica). Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in, Marciano Millan-Vasquez 'brutally murdered anyone and everyone as it suited him and his cartel', Find your bookmarks in your Independent Premium section, under my profile. 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. All rights reserved. De Leon said that during his captivity, he witnessed Zetas commanders dismember people while they were still alive and throw the body parts into a flaming barrel. Moraless most preferred method of killing was to stuff victims in oil barrels and set them ablaze. ", The Gulf cartel's control in the northeast state of Tamaulipas has seen many violent incidents, both against rivals and each other. This wasnt the first time such a tragedy had visited San Fernando. //