This was back when Lazcano and Z-40 were still running the Los Zetas cartel. However, despite its success in cocaine and methamphetamine, La Familia Michoacana's power was curtailed by yet another splinter group, The Knights Templar. This is because La Familia styled itself as the people's cartel by performing social work and employing civilians, which won both popularity and new recruits. Former Zetas members testified Tuesday, claiming the cartel is responsible for a bloody massacre in Piedras Negras in 2011. 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. The writers would face certain death at the hands of the various cartels that operate in those areas including the Gulf Cartel and Los Zetas if a pseudonym were not used. Lazcano was the leader of the Los Zetas cartel. This article was written by M.A. 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. However, despite these smaller groups' threat to the Guerrero and Morelosstates, the Beltrn-Leyva Organization is merely a trace of its former self. 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. Thank you. 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. In August 2010, the Mexican military stumbled upon the bodies of 72 people bound and executed. Then, in December 2015, Insider reported that La Familia founderCarlos Rosales Mendoza was found dead baring torture wounds. The irony of this scenario is that the training they received was supposed to prepare them for counterinsurgency and counter-narcotics operations. [9] Local police rounded up migrants traveling by bus and handed them over to the gang. A former Mexican drug cartel kingpin who dismembered a six-year-old girl with an axe in front of her parents has been sentenced to seven consecutive life terms in a US prison. 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.. Jamie founded Listverse due to an insatiable desire to share fascinating, obscure, and bizarre facts. Shortly after the brutal execution, the CDN faction of the Los Zetas struck once more. Her work has been featured in various national and international media outlets, including the Guardian, PBS, NPR and Marie Claire. Follow @NewsHourWorld Similarly, the U.S. Department of Justicedefines cartels as, "large, highly sophisticated organizations composed of multiple drug trafficking organizations (DTOs)and cells with specific assignments such as drug transportation, security/enforcement, or money laundering.". The cartels brutal murders came to a head under the leadership of Miguel Angel Trevino Morales. The 2011 San Fernando Massacre was both disturbing and, tragically, far from a one-off occurrence. Cartel: Los Zetas 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. Instead, they were raped and beaten to death or vanished into a new life as cartel soldiers. You can contact her at [emailprotected]. WebCartel Del Golfo interrogation 4 Zetas these bastards have admitted to raping women,killing women, killing kids. 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. Tomas Yarrington, former governor of Tamaulipas, is currently facing multiple drug trafficking and money laundering charges in the United States. On Wednesday morning, prosecutors called Jaime Abascal Reyna to the stand. WebOn behalf of Los Zetas." 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. Busloads of people were declared missing in 2011 when their luggage went unclaimed in Reynosa and Matamoros. The 2010 San Fernando Massacre bore similarities to the June 2011 confession of Zetas member dgar Huerta Montiel. She released videos of her beheading the caught zeta members herself. In June 2021, The Independent reportedinfighting between Gulf factions the Metros, the Scorpions and the Cyclonesresulted in 19 deaths, 15 of them innocent civilians. Even the Sinaloas are now decapitating people, he said. When it was 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. He said that they spoke over the phone every day. Few rivals could hope of matching Escobar as his cartel controlled80% of the cocaine trade, which involved daily 15-ton shipments to the United States, as detailed in Escobar'sInsight Crimebiography. De Leon said that Millan-Vasquez would smile and laugh as he performed these killings. 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? They told me to stop doing that," Reyna said in court. They would rape and kill the women and offer men a macabre choice. 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. Elizabeth Shell Among the first deaths in the conflict was Edgar Guzman, El Chapo's son. The gunmen used a large hammer to break down the door before storming the house shooting indiscriminately at the women and children inside. While the Gulf cartel remains a danger to society, their influence has been diminished by Los Zetas, their wayward spawn. On July 12, 2012, authorities seized over 50 kilograms of marijuana at the Del Rio port of entry. When Reyna didn't hear from his son for several days, he started making calls. Navarro from Ciudad Victoria. 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). Aside from manufacturing illegal drugs and trafficking them, the gang is also into kidnapping and extortion. Los Zetass status as the largest drug cartel in Mexico carries additional implications. 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 Mexico's largest and most powerful drug gangs are the Zetas and the Sinaloa cartel. Imagine how tragic it would be for such a respected and honored organization to become an evil one like 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. 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. 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. Breitbart Texas Cartel Chroniclesare published in both English and in their originalSpanish. About two dozen have been captured or killed, including some from Los Zetas: Ivan Velazquez Caballero (aka El Taliban) 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. 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). The cartel can trace its roots to the 1960s and '70s, when farming families entered the marijuana business. He also won territory from the Tijuana and Juarez cartels during the Mexican government's war on drugs, which brought new levels of violence to the region (via Britannica). The LA Times found that from January 1988 to November 1991, drug traffickers killed up to 219 people in this area, disposing of their bodies in rivers. [7] As usual, theyve also brought an unprecedented level of violence to the trade. 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. 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.". If you support this mission, we need your help. 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. What should we expect from a heartless criminal organization put together by ex-military men? The 6 most infamous crimes committed by Mexico's Zetas cartel Inside bloody world of Cancuns cartel wars as gangsters behead (Watch our piece Mexican Marines Kill Drug Lord Known as The Executioner.). WebThe Los Zetas used improvised weapons like knives, rocks, and burning mattresses. This is a unique and distressing fact about the deadly gang. Consequently, several Mexican cities such as Los Cabos, Tijuana, and Acapulco have recorded some of the highest murder rates in the world, according toStatista. 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. 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. There are a handful of drug cartels in Mexico, most of which run almost like corporations. Colombian National Police/Wikimedia Commons, ShareAlike 4.0 International/BaptisteGrandGrand. Subscribe to Here's the Deal, our politics newsletter. When Osiel Cardenas Guillen took over as the leader of the Gulf Cartel, it was in the midst of a violent turf war. Los Zetas had begun to hijack buses along Federal Highway 101. 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. 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. Rather than prioritizing corruption like its competitors, Los Zetas has preferred to use paramilitary violence to seize territory and intimidate rivals, according toInsight Crime. Extortion, smuggling, torture, possible harvesting of human body parts. Want to bookmark your favourite articles and stories to read or reference later? Since 2011, there have been numerous scandals exposing the collusion between politicians and drug cartels. To set the records straight, Los Zetas was formed by Mexican ex-military men. The Most Dangerous Cartels To Ever Exist - Grunge.com Border / Cartel ChroniclesBreitbart TexasCartel ChroniclesCartel ViolenceCDNCiudad VictoriaGrupo BravoLos ZetasVieja Escuela. Instead, they became the drug cartel they were supposed to fight. [CDATA[ GRAPHIC: Los Zetas Cartel Kill U.S. Woman and 2 Daughters Reyna discovered that his son's co-worker and girlfriend were also missing. According to reports in the BBC and Insight Crime, the latest cartel trend is the fragmentation of the drug trafficking landscape, especially in Mexico. CJNG's battles with the Los Zetas and CRSL cartels are similarly brutal. Prosecutors asked De Leon why it took him so long to point out the defendant. However, despite the logistical sophistication and the massive financial success, the history of cartels is fraught with betrayal, splinter groups, and brutally shortened lives. [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. Los Zetas 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. Unlike some of its fragmenting rivals, CJNG's power is forecast to grow despite government pressure on their front companies and bank accounts. Information obtained from authorities points to the victims being at the wrong place at the wrong time. Then come the Zetas, with no background in narcotics, and they start chopping peoples heads off, Grayson said. Mostly Central American immigrants, they were traversing the state of Tamaulipas to cross into Texas. Inside Mexicos brutal drug cartels - The Sun Los Zetas is a Mexican drug cartel known for its sophisticated crime machine and brutality. De Leon will serve time in jail after pleading guilty to a marijuana charge. 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). 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). He was told to contact someone in Los Zetas to see if they had information. Killed: Oct. 7, 2012 The Sun Morales liked to betand bet bigon the horses. Promotional materials distributed by your outlet, including all social media work, must include cites for the Observer and our reporter. To make matters worse, the gang is also into migrant smuggling. WARNING GRAPHIC: The Most Brutal Murders Linked to El Chapo He said that officers escorted him to remote locations to deliver guns to Millan-Vasquez on more than one occasion. Please notify us by email that the article will be republished at, Abbott Wants to Deny Undocumented Kids a Public Education, Border Security Is a Financial Black Hole that Will Consume Us All, Two Executions, Many Questions about Mental Health, Innocence, Remembering a Social Justice Lawyer Extraordinaire. Los Zetas is the largest drug cartel in Mexico in terms of scale of operations. Escobar's luck ran out on December 2, 1993, when he was gunned down as part of a joint U.S.-Colombia effort. Tributes to the 2011 San Fernando Massacre. Editors Note: Breitbart Texas traveled to the Mexican States of Tamaulipas, Nuevo Leon and Coahuila to recruit citizen journalists willing to risk their lives and expose the cartels silencing their communities. His body was stolen from the funeral home. Learn more about Friends of the NewsHour. He has been a guest speaker on numerous national radio and television stations and is a five time published author. 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. In the end, the legacy of the 2011 San Fernando Massacre is one of blood money, corruption, and wanton murder. Photo by Yuri Cortez/AFP/Getty Images. Reporter-producer Larisa Epatko contributed to this report. 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. These are the top ten distressing facts about Los Zetas you dont want to know. The two cartels enjoyed over a decade of business until the late 1990s, when the Gulf cartel had become self-sufficient. It was found in Webb County, near the border city of Laredo. 10 Atrocities Committed By Mexican Drug Cartels - Listverse The video shows four women on their knees in a field, their hands tied behind their backs. 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. With their archenemy established, La Familia Michoacana set out to publicize themselves. Jalisco New Generation, often referred to as CJNG, is another Mexican cartel that emerged in 2010. 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. Los Zetas called Mexico's most dangerous drug cartel If you dont pay them, they will take your merchandise, he says. Lazcano died in a shootout with the Mexican Navy. 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. With that grim context in mind, here are the most dangerous cartels to ever exist. 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. 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. 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. Moreover, the extremely violent gang has made connections and collaborated with U.S. gangs all over the country since 2010. The kidnapping and murder of the SEIDO agents resembles the type of actions of another infamous Mexican crime group, the Zetas. [1] The deadly organization started out as the enforcement branch of the Mexican Gulf Cartel. 2011 San Fernando massacre Known for his brutality, one technique he allegedly favored was the guiso, or stew, in which enemies would be placed in 55-gallon drums and burned alive. Rather than prioritizing corruption like its competitors, Los Zetas has With the Medellin leader gone, Insider noted how the rival Cali cartel took the reins of Colombia's booming cocaine industry. 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. Groups like Los Zetas have also been known to operate abroad, buying raw materials from Argentina and operating in Asian countries like Malaysia. He alleged that the victims were abducted from buses and killed for refusing to join the cartel or pay their way out. They robbed stores, they broke into an auto repair shop and stole cell phones and several vehicles, all with the goal of spreading terror.". 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. Elizabeth Shell. This gang violence occurs in their stronghold of Ciudad Jurez, where 1,200 people were murdered in 2018. Outlets must also tag the Observer in all social media posts. Photos, illustrations and other art may be available for syndication but must be confirmed. 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. All rights reserved. Yuri Cortez/AFP/Getty ImagesLos Zetas cartel members and San Fernando Massacre suspects being presented to the press on June 30, 2011. Gore video - four women dismembered by the gang - xgore Men were beaten, hacked apart, flung from windows, hanged, and decapitated. Mainly, Grayson notes a Zetalisation starting to occur among the other cartels. Attorney Jeff Blackburn, a crusader for the innocent, fought injustices across Texas in his improbable, utterly original, and often profane life. Earlier in life, he was trained in a Mexican Special Forces unit to fight drug-trafficking organizations. The CJNG split from the Sinaloa Cartel after the killing of Ignacio Coronel, a capo whose death caused a power vacuum(via Insight Crime). WebThere is a popular consensus that Los Zetas is the most brutal and inhuman drug cartel in history. 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. The women have been identified as Lourdes Gregorio Garcia Amaya from Texas, Raymunda Amaya Contreras, Maria Del Rosario Carrizales Amaya, Griselda Carrizales Amaya and Maria Cirila Contreras Garcia. The Most Brutal Execution Methods Used by Mexican Cartels In the 1990s, the aforementioned Cali cartel took the mantle from their Medellin rivals, becoming the most powerful cartel in the world. One official said, "The valley is the most dangerous region in Colombia in terms of drug violence. We rely on the generosity of our readers who believe that this work is important. A depressing fact about Los Zetas is that they are sometimes aided by Mexican police in the commission of unspeakable crimes. The Gulf cartel is among the oldest cartels in Mexico and has held varying degrees of power since its origins in 1984, according toInsightCrime. You have to keep up with the Joneses. [4] The cartel recruits in US prisons and also courts street gang members for its drug trafficking activities in Mexico and the U.S. Top 10 Dark Facts About The Death Penalty [DISTURBING], Top 10 Truly Disturbing Facts About Japan's Suicide Forest, Top 10 Disturbing Facts About The Unabomber, Top 10 Disturbing Facts About Sid & Nancy's Doomed, Top 10 Disturbing Facts About the "Night Stalker", Top 10 Iconic Fever Dreams Set In Los Angeles, Top 10 Murder Houses In Los Angeles And Their, 10 Controversial Toys You Might Already Have in Your Home, Ten Absolutely Vicious Fights over Inherited Fortunes, 10 Female Film Pioneers Who Shaped the Movies, Ten True Tales from Americas Toughest Prison, 10 Times Members of Secretive Societies and Organizations Spilled the Beans, 10 Common Idioms with Unexpectedly Dark Origins, 10 North American Animals with Misplaced Reputations, 10 Atrocities Committed By Mexican Drug Cartels, 10 Heinous Cases Of Misconduct By Crime Investigators, 10 Ruthless Gangs Who Dared to Stand Up to the Mafia, 10 Horrifying Facts About The Brabant Killers, 10 Disturbing True Crime Documentaries You Can Only Watch Once, 10 Tragic Cases Of Children Murdered By Social Workers. 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. Then, on April 21, 2011, police arrested San Fernandos police chief and got a little closer to the truth. Officials exhuming the bodies noticed that many bore the marks of blunt trauma. De Leon is now cooperating with authorities. Zetas [10] The authorities havent succeeded in shutting down the cartels sophisticated radio communication due to two reasons: The first is that the radio equipment is easy to replace; the second is that the gang relies on free forced labor to build and maintain its radio equipment. Captured: July 15, 2013 At this juncture, it is safe and reasonable to conclude that Los Zetas is one of the biggest headaches of the American people. Jair Cabrera/NurPhoto/Getty ImagesTributes to the 2011 San Fernando Massacre. Besides drug smuggling, the cartel is involved in every facet of trade in its territory including human trafficking. As Breitbart Texas has been reporting for more than eight months, the Cartel Del Noreste has been at war with the rival faction known as Vieja Escuela Z or Grupo Bravo. The winners got to become Zetas recruits, while the losers got death. 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. 4 It was one of the deadliest attacks ever on Mexican Piedras Negras, in the state of Coahuila, has a reputation as a hotbed for drug smuggling and violence. Partners must notify. 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". Melissa is a 2016-17 Lannan Fellow at The Investigative Fund at The Nation Institute. The field was linked to the Los Zetas cartel.

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