[270] Since February 2010, the major cartels have aligned in two factions, one integrated by the Jurez Cartel, Tijuana Cartel, Los Zetas and the Beltrn-Leyva Cartel;[271] the other faction integrated by the Gulf Cartel, Sinaloa Cartel, La Familia Cartel (now extinct) and the Knights Templar Cartel.[272][273]. [176] The arrests of Marco Antonio Cortez Rodrguez alias Escorpin 37 and of Josu Gonzlez Rodrguez alias Escorpin 43the two who were hospitalized after the shootout of 5 November 2010allowed for the Mexican forces to understand the structure of Los Escorpiones. [174], However, his brother Osiel Crdenas Guilln disapproved the existence of this mercenary group, since he had created Los Zetas, the parallel version of Los Escorpiones, and they had turned against the organization. [355] Another avenue that they have implemented is to construct tunnels to get their product across the border. Reports mention that Antonio Crdenas was being protected by the Los Escorpiones (The Scorpions), the alleged armed wing of the Gulf Cartel and the personal army of Antonio Crdenas, who was serving as snipers and bodyguards for him. [343] Prostitutes are also used as informants and spies, and provide their sexual favors to extract information from certain targets. Those who were more loyal to the Crdenas family stayed with the Rojos, while those loyal to Jorge Eduardo Costilla Snchez, like Flores Borrego, defended the Metros. [13] The members of the Gulf Cartel are known for intimidating the population and for being particularly violent.[14]. [30] Juan Garca brego is currently serving 11 life terms in a maximum security prison in Colorado, U.S.[31] In 1996, it was disclosed that Garca brego's organization paid millions of dollars in bribes to politicians and law enforcement officers for his protection. That official also spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak about the case. The cartel believed responsible for the armed kidnapping last week that killed two American tourists and a Mexican woman in Matamoros, Mexico, issued an apology letter and handed over five of . Photographs from the scene viewed by the AP show a white minivan with the driver's side window shot and all of the doors open. [95], The arrest and extradition of Crdenas, however, caused for several top lieutenants from both the Gulf Cartel and Los Zetas to fight over important drug corridors to the United States, especially the cities of Matamoros, Nuevo Laredo, Reynosa, and Tampicoall situated in the state of Tamaulipas. Mexico's security secretary identified the surviving Americans as Latavia "Tay" McGee and Eric James Williams. [49] He did not have the leadership skills nor the support of the Colombian drug-provisioners. [120] On the other hand, other sources reveal that Los Zetas separated from the Gulf Cartel to ally with Beltrn-Leyva Cartel, which led to conflict between them. [64] They were enticed with salaries much higher than those of the Mexican Army. The state of Tamaulipas is the stronghold of the Gulf Cartel, one of the oldest and most powerful of Mexico's criminal groups. [58], As confrontations with rival groups heated up, Osiel Crdenas Guilln sought and recruited over 30 deserters of the Mexican Army's elite Grupo Aeromvil de Fuerzas Especiales (GAFE) to form part of the cartel's armed wing. In addition, he was under observation and was widely known, since his surname meant more of the same. In addition to trafficking drugs, Garca brego would ship cash to be laundered, in the millions. Cabeza de Vaca has been for 11 years a public servant, which questions according to El Financiero, the origin of its wealth. El reportaje revel presuntos conflictos entre las Fuerzas Armadas. [193] Reports indicated that the Gulf Cartel was using the BlackBerry smartphones to communicate with 'Ndrangheta, since the texts are "normally difficult to intercept". condemned the violence and purportedly will turn over its own members. [225] PRI's main opposition party, the PAN, claimed that government elections in Tamaulipas are likely to encounter an "organized crime influence. [78] The group operated similar to Los Zetas, but with less complexity and success. When the hostilities began, the Gulf organization joined forces with its former rivals, the Sinaloa Cartel and La Familia Michoacana, aiming to take out Los Zetas. Williams reportedly received a gunshot wound to the leg. Matamoros, founded in 1824, was the scene of bitter fighting in the Mexican-American War and was occupied by U.S. troops in 1846. [54] His luck ended in November 2000 when he was captured in Tampico, Tamaulipas and imprisoned in La Palma. [254], According to CNN, more than 400 prison inmates escaped from several prisons in Tamaulipas from January 2010 to March 2011 due to corruption. On the southern . Ambassador to Mexico Ken Salazar said in astatementMonday that the Americans were kidnapped at gunpoint and that an "innocent" Mexican citizen died in the attack. The Americans kidnapped by a cartel were found in days but over 112,000 Mexicans have been missing for years . MATAMOROS, Mexico, March 9 (Reuters) - Suspected drug cartel members on Thursday handed over five purported henchmen as a would-be apology for the abduction of four Americans . [342], Prostitution network 18 Colima - A Previously Peaceful Paradise Foto: Sedena. The van sits on the side of the road after apparently colliding with a red SUV. The Americans were found as a result of joint search operations, according to the attorney general in Tamaulipas, but how officials ultimately located and rescued them remains unclear. "I understand we may have more to share from the FBI at the appropriate time.". The move comes at a time when the criminal organization has been linked to a wave of fear that continues to sweep through the border city of Matamoros as numerous kidnapping and extortion cases go unreported . In 1989 Claude was removed from the case for unknown reasons, retiring a year later. [82][83], On 9 November 1999, two U.S. agents from the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and FBI were threatened at gunpoint by Crdenas Guilln and approximately fifteen of his henchmen in Matamoros. [91] However, it was believed that Crdenas still controlled the Gulf Cartel from prison,[92] and was later extradited to the United States, where he was sentenced to 25 years in a prison in Houston, Texas for money laundering, drug trafficking and death threats to U.S. federal agents. Throughout 2020, Los Metros were increasingly on the defensive as the Matamoros faction continued to consolidate power in Ro Bravo and make incursions in Reynosa. [192], The Gulf Cartel is believed to have ties with the 'Ndrangheta, an organized crime group in Italy that also has ties with Los Zetas. [251] Consequently, the federal government did not hesitate to assign the Mexican Army and the Federal Police to vigilate the prisons until further notice; they were also left in charge of searching for the fugitives. [213] However, remnants still exist in Tamaulipas. [59] Los Zetas, as they are known, served as the hired private mercenary army of the Gulf Cartel. Court documents indicated that Garca brego was bribing several law enforcement officials, prosecutors, and politicians on both sides on the border to keep himself impune and untouched. [177], In the late 1990s, Osiel Crdenas Guilln, the former leader of the Gulf cartel, had other similar groups besides Los Zetas established in several cities in Tamaulipas. Malherbe tried to bribe officials $2million for his release, but it was denied. Local media often avoid reporting on such incidents out of safety concerns. [328] They were reported to have stolen around 40% of the oil products in 2011 in northern Mexico and then selling it illegally in Mexico and in the American black market. ", "Mexico: Gulf Cartel lieutenant, his right-hand man captured", "Gulf Cartel lieutenant linked to various incidents on U.S side of border", "U.S. Assistance Has Helped Mexican Counternarcotics Efforts, but the Flow of Illicit Drugs into the United States Remains High", "DTOs Have Expanded Operations in the United States", "Arrests of Mexican drug cartel leaders in Texas raise concerns", "FBI: Trucking 'significant' in cartels' U.S. profitability", "High Ranking Gulf Cartel Member Sentenced in Washington, D.C., to 35 Years in Prison for Drug Trafficking", "Former Gulf Cartel Leader Convicted of International Drug Trafficking Conspiracy", "Narco-mafia se comunican por Blackberry", "Undermining Mexico's Dangerous Drug Cartels", "Mexican Cartels Exploit North Africa Turmoil", "Latin American drug cartels find home in West Africa", "Gulf Cartel vs. Los Zetas One year later", "La ley del silencio en Reynosa slo la rompe Twitter", "La guerra Golfo-zetas, en 11 municipios tamaulipecos; nueve son fronterizos con EU", "Los Zetas y el crtel del Golfo se pelean por Monterrey", "La batalla del crtel del Golfo y "Los Zetas" por la Huasteca", "Two Zetas executed in Brownsville, Texas", "La guerra del crtel del Golfo y Los Zetas, maana 24 de febrero se cumple un ao", "Enfrentamientos entre el crtel del Golfo y Los Zetas paralizaron Nuevo Laredo", "Sicarios de los Beltrn Leyva y Zetas atacan a gente del Chapo en Sonora", "Facciones del Crtel del Golfo y Los Zetas buscan aliarse para poner fin a agresiones contra la poblacin", "Why the Jalisco Cartel Does Not Dominate Mexico's Criminal Landscape", "Tamaulipas, en camino de convertirse en un estado fallido? [228][229] The municipal president of Tampico, Tamaulipas, scar Prez Inguanzo, was arrested 12 November 2011, due to his "improper exercise of public functions and forgery" of certain documents. Authorities believe that Gonzlez Pizaa reincorporated in organized crime and decided to join with the Gulf Cartel to end the war with Los Zetas, and bring back the "old school" ways when they were together. [362], On 30 June 2019, Mario Alberto Crdenas Medina, the son of Osiel's brother Mario, was arrested in the state of Mexico. Meaning of Matamoros. [142] When the Mexican authorities reached the spot where Antonio Crdenas (Tony Tormenta) was present, the gunmen received the soldiers and cops with grenades and high-calibre shots. Victims of violence in Matamoros and other large border cities of Tamaulipas often go uncounted, because the cartels have a history of disappearing the bodies of their victims. October 25, 2021. Highways 59, 77, 83, and 281. [333] Top leaders of the Gulf organization, like Juan Garca brego, Osiel Crdenas Guilln, Jorge Eduardo Costilla Snchez and Antonio Crdenas Guilln, among others, have been charged by the U.S. government for laundering millions of dollars. [140] Public transportation and school classes in Matamoros were canceled, along with the suspension of activities throughout the municipality, since the cartel members hijacked the units of public transport and made dozens of roadblocks to prevent the mobilization of the soldiers, marines, and federal police forces. [320] His former friends and associates mentioned that the drug lord was paying one of Carlos Salinas de Gortari's deputy attorneys general more than $1.5million a month for his protection. [22] During the 1990s, the PGR(Procuradura General de la Repblica), the Mexican attorney general's office, estimated that the Gulf Cartel was "worth over US$10 billion. [109] Crdenas has been isolated from interacting with other prisoners in the supermax prison he is in. The men then proceed to drag two people into the vehicle. MATAMOROS, Tamaulipas - A police raid targeting a narco-ranch led to protests and mass blockades this week. It is situated on the southern bank of the Rio Grande (Ro Bravo del Norte), 28 miles (45 km) from the Gulf of Mexico and across from Brownsville, Texas. It is believed the Mexican government knew all Garca brego's whereabouts all along and had refused to arrest him due to information he possessed about the extent of corruption within the government. Americans who survived Matamoros cartel kidnapping break silence on 'nightmare' in Mexico. Instead, he created warehouses along the Mexican's northern border to preserve hundreds of tons of cocaine; this allowed him to create a new distribution network and increase his political influence. "[23], Garca brego's ties extended beyond the Mexican government corruption and into the United States. [48], Humberto Garca brego, brother of Juan Garca brego, tried to take the lead of the Gulf Cartel, but ultimately failed in his attempt. [178][179] Other sources indicate that the infighting could have been caused by the suspicions that the Rojos were "too soft" on the Gulf cartel's bitter enemy, Los Zetas. Kidnappings And although there wasn't any visible confrontation between the two, the intensity of the situation was clear through the background noises of grenade explosions and automatic gunfire. "[290] It is generally seen as a way where criminals change the legal face of security and provide their own form of "insurance". According to El Universal, there are several music videos on YouTube that exalt the power of this armed group through narcocorridos. Unbelievable! And in doing so, they inherently become a "competitor" with the state, who also claims sovereignty over its territories. Matamoros Tourism: Tripadvisor has 1,211 reviews of Matamoros Hotels, Attractions, and Restaurants making it your best Matamoros resource. The amount of fentanyl seized by Mexican authorities nearly quintupled between 2019 and 2020. . By Ken Dilanian and Minyvonne Burke. [337][338][339] Nonetheless, there are indeed circles within the Gulf Cartel that coordinate the arms trafficking routes inside Mexico. [210] Consequently, Los Zetas joined forces with the Beltrn Leyva Cartel and the Tijuana Cartel to counterattack the opposing cartels. [312] It operates primarily on the TabascoVeracruzTamaulipas corridor. officials. ABBREVIATIONS; ANAGRAMS; BIOGRAPHIES; CALCULATORS; CONVERSIONS; DEFINITIONS; GRAMMAR; LITERATURE . "[37] He also had an official birth certificate that claimed Garca brego was indeed born in Mexico. "[226], The Exclsior newspaper reported that the former governors of Tamaulipas, Manuel Cavazos Lerma (19931999), Toms Yarrington (19992004), and Eugenio Hernndez Flores (20052010) have had close ties with the Gulf Cartel. However, being a border city, U.S. citizens who live in Brownsville or elsewhere in Texas frequently cross to visit family, get medical care or shop. [175] El Universal reported that Mexican authorities identified the gunmen that were engaging in confrontations against the troops in Matamoros, Tamaulipas as members of the Los Escorpiones group. [62] Among his first contacts was Arturo Guzmn Decena, an Army lieutenant who was reportedly asked by Crdenas to look for the "best men possible. Matamoros Tourism: Tripadvisor has 1,211 reviews of matamoros Hotels, Attractions, and 281 for being particularly violent [... From certain targets the road after apparently colliding with a red SUV Zetas joined with! 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