Cárdenas Guillén eventually let them go and threatened to kill them if they ever returned to his home turf. [12] Los Pelones emerged as an independent cartel during this fragmentation as well. [327], Money laundering [332], Arms trafficking [323], Theft [319], FBI agents have claimed that the Gulf Cartel moves millions of dollars in cash through the Rio Grande Valley each month, a tempting amount for many U.S. "[249] In a prison in the state of Zacatecas, on 16 May 2009, an armed commando liberated 53 Gulf Cartel members using 10 trucks and even a helicopter. [346] Among these gangs, that range from street gangs to prison gangs, are the Texas Syndicate, the Latin Kings, the Mexican Mafia, the Tango Blast (Vallucos), the Hermandad de Pistoleros Latinos, and the Tri-City Bombers—all based in the Rio Grande Valley and Webb County, Texas. [27] Juan García Ábrego is currently serving 11 life terms in a maximum security prison in Colorado, U.S.[28] In 1996, it was disclosed that García Ábrego's organization paid millions of dollars in bribes to politicians and law enforcement officers for his protection. [347], While the entire Mexico–United States border has experienced high levels of drug trafficking and other illegal smuggling activities for decades, this activity tends to be concentrated in certain sectors within Texas. According to El Universal, there are several music videos on YouTube that exalt the power of this armed group through narcocorridos. [57], In 1997 the Gulf Cartel began to recruit military personnel whom Jesús Gutiérrez Rebollo, an Army General of that time, had assigned as representatives from the PGR offices in certain states across Mexico. It was later proven after his arrest that the deputy attorney general in charge of Mexico's federal Judicial Police had accumulated more than US$9 million for protecting García Ábrego. A lock ( "[243] In Nuevo Laredo on 17 December 2010, about 141 inmates escaped from a federal prison. He is considered "at least as violent" as the leader of the notoriously brutal Zetas cartel… [322] In addition, due to the low-paying salaries of many policemen, the Gulf Cartel often "buys" many law enforcement officers in Mexico. [193], The Gulf Cartel and other Mexican drug trafficking groups are active in the northern and western parts of Africa. Organized crime groups opt for protection racketeering in an effort to control markets and "maintaining internal order. [36] Hours after the judge told García Ábrego that he was going to spend the rest of his life in prison, the death penalty was out of the question for the prosecutors. MATAMOROS, Tamaulipas – A leader of a faction of Mexico’s Gulf Cartel who faked his death in 2017 died this week in a fierce shootout with rival cartel gunmen. There is a circle of experts who believe that the start of the Mexican Drug War did not begin in 2006 (when Felipe Calderón sent troops to Michoacán to stop the increasing violence), but in 2004 in the border city of Nuevo Laredo, when the Gulf Cartel and Los Zetas fought off the Sinaloa Cartel and Los Negros. [324] 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. A regional leader of the Gulf Cartel, Jose Alfredo Cardenas Martinez a.k.a. [135], The confrontations started around 10:00 AM, and extended to 06:00 PM, around the time Cárdenas Guilén was killed. The incident escalated as Cárdenas Guillén threatened to kill them if they di… [340], Counterfeiting [55], As confrontations with rival groups heated up, Osiel Cárdenas Guillén sought and recruited over 30 deserters of the Mexican Army's elite Grupo Aeromóvil de Fuerzas Especiales (GAFE) to form part of the cartel's armed wing. [312] The newspaper La Vanguardia mentioned that the Gulf Cartel receives "large sums of money by extorting businesses" all around Tamaulipas. [85] He was one of the FBI Ten Most Wanted Fugitives, which was offering $2 million for his capture. Booksurge, 2008. [54] After this, Osiel Cárdenas Guillén took control of the cartel in July 1999 after assassinating Salvador Gómez Herrera alias El Chava, co-leader of the Gulf Cartel and close friend of him, earning his name as the Mata Amigos (Friend Killer). [131] Government sources claimed that this operation—where more than 660 marines, 17 vehicles, and 3 helicopters participated—left 8 dead: three marines, one soldier, and four gunmen, including Antonio Cárdenas. [272] In addition, within the Gulf Cartel there is believed to be two groups—the Rojos and the Metros. Moreover, the Mexican drug traffickers often use small boats to transport drugs through the coastal areas of South Texas, usually operating at night to prevent them from being spotted by law enforcement officials. [12], The drug violence and political corruption that has plagued Tamaulipas, the home state of the Gulf Cartel and Los Zetas, has fueled thoughts of Tamaulipas becoming a "failed state" and a haven for drug traffickers and criminals of all kinds. Cano Flores, also known as "Yeyo", was a former Mexican police officer and is the highest-ranking Gulf Cartel member to be convicted by a U.S. jury in 15 years. [288] The Gulf Cartel operates in a similar way, and often extorts businesses for protection money in the areas where it operates, pledging to kill those who do not agree to pay the fee. Some experts believed that the death of Antonio Cárdenas would be dreadful for the Gulf Cartel, and that Los Zetas would overthrow them and eventually take control of Tamaulipas. [22][23], García Ábrego's business had grown to such length that the FBI placed him on the Top Ten Most Wanted in 1995. The agents tried to reason with him that killing U.S. federal agents would bring a massive manhunt from the U.S. government. [209], In June 2020, Insight Crime journalist Victoria Dittmar that the Gulf Cartel had undergone "fragmentation" at some point in time. [53] The next in line was Sergio Gómez alias El Checo, however, his leadership was short lived when he was assassinated in April 1996 in Valle Hermoso, Tamaulipas. In August 2007, La Maña gang, an alleged sub-group of the criminal group Los Zetas and the Gulf Cartel, was reported to have controlled the extortion business in Matamoros, Tamaulipas. They also fought for coastal cities Acapulco, Guerrero and Cancún, Quintana Roo; the state capital of Monterrey, Nuevo León, and the states of Veracruz and San Luis Potosí. [108] In exchange for another life-sentence, Cárdenas agreed to collaborate with U.S. agents in intelligence information. The once mighty Gulf Cartel has declined significantly in recent years, losing ground to rival organizations along with a number of key leaders. "El Contador," has been apprehended. Reports indicate that gunmen from the Gulf Cartel often impersonate law enforcement officers, using military uniforms to confuse rival drug gangs and move freely through city streets. [298][299][300] Investigators believe that more unreported kidnappings have occurred in nearby locations. [178], InSight Crime explains that the fundamental disagreement between the Rojos and the Metros was over leadership. 1:15. The Gulf cartel is one of Mexico's oldest, dating back to the Prohibition era. [184] The arrest of several Gulf Cartel lieutenants, along with the drug-related violence and kidnappings, have raised concerns among Texas officials that the drug war in Mexico and the drug cartels are taking hold in Texas. "[252] They also reported that in Aguascalientes, a state where violence levels are much lower, policemen are paid five times more than in Tamaulipas. The majority of the commerce between the United States and Mexico passes through the state of Texas. [105] The proceedings took place in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Texas in the border city of Brownsville, Texas. [117] On the other hand, other sources reveal that Los Zetas separated from the Gulf Cartel to ally with Beltrán-Leyva Cartel, which led to conflict between them. [35] According to The Brownsville Herald, García Ábrego went into the courtroom grinning and talking animatedly with his lawyers who helped him translate his words from Spanish into the English language. Unbelievable! A man believed to be the leader of the Gulf drug cartel, which controls some of the most valuable and violently contested smuggling routes along … "[229] Luebbert Gutiérrez later recognized the work of the federal troops and acknowledged that his city was experiencing "an escalation in violence. [132] Other sources mention that one news reporter was also killed in the crossfire. Although its founder Juan Nepomuceno Guerra smuggled alcohol in large quantities to the United States during the Prohibition era,[11] it was not until the 1980s that the cartel was formed and shifted to drug trafficking—primarily cocaine, methamphetamine and heroin—under the command of Juan Nepomuceno Guerra and Juan García Ábrego. While in prison, Cárdenas and Arellano formed an alliance to defend themselves from the Sinaloa and Juarez Cartels,[263] who had also allied with each other, and were planning to take over the smuggling routes and territories of the Gulf and Tijuana Cartel. The main areas of demand and drug consumption are in Eastern Europe, the successor states of the Soviet Union. In fact, they are paid around $3,618 pesos (about US$260) a month in all of Tamaulipas. [169] After the rupture between the Gulf Cartel and Los Zetas (which until then had served as the cartel's armed wing), Los Escorpiones became the armed wing of the entire Gulf organization. [107], Nearly $30 million of the former drug lord's assets were distributed among several Texan law enforcement agencies. [246] The 5 guards that were supposed to supervise have not been found, and the Federal government urged the state and municipal authorities to strengthen the security of their prisons. [320] Much of the money stays in the area, which has caused several officials—both federal and state—to succumb to the "easy money aspect" the drug money has to offer. "[214], Although drug-related violence has existed since the early beginnings of the Gulf Cartel, it often happened in low-profile levels, while the government agreed to "look the other way" while the drug traffickers went about their business—as long as they behaved. While in prison, Cárdenas and Arellano Félix formed an alliance to defend themselves from The Sinaloa Cartel and The Juarez Cartel, who had also formed an alliance with each other, and were planning to take over the smuggling routes and territories of the Gulf and The Tijuana Cartel. The two agents traveled to Matamoros with an informant to gather intelligence on the operations of the Gulf Cartel. [314] --> [274] Below is the basic structure of the cartel: It's worth noting that there are other operating groups within the drug cartels. Secure .gov websites use HTTPS [258] On 7 November 2011, about 1,660 policemen were released from their duties because they had either failed their control tests or refused to take them. [172] El Universal reported that Mexican authorities identified the gunmen that where engaging in confrontations against the troops in Matamoros, Tamaulipas as members of the Los Escorpiones group. [123][124], Osiel Cárdenas' brother, Antonio Cárdenas Guillén, along with Jorge Eduardo Costilla Sánchez (El Coss), a former policeman, filled in the vacuum left by Osiel and became the leaders of the Gulf Cartel. [114] Also, Los Zetas mentioned that the Gulf Cartel also kills innocent civilians, and then blames them for their atrocities. [255] In June 2011, the state government of Tamaulipas requested the federal government to send in troops to combat the drug cartels in the area, in order to "consolidate actions on public safety" and "strengthen the capacity of their institutions. [110], It is unclear which of the two – the Gulf Cartel or Los Zetas – started the conflict that led to their break up. [181], The Gulf Cartel has important cells operating inside the United States—in Mission, Roma, and Rio Grande City—for example, and their presence is expanding. [262], In 2003, the arrest of several high-profile cartel leaders, including the heads of the Tijuana Cartel and Gulf Cartel, Benjamín Arellano Félix and Osiel Cárdenas Guillén, turned the war on drugs into a trilateral war. Monterrey who was arrested in January 2012 for working in a kidnapping ring within the Gulf Cartel. "[20], García Ábrego's ties extended beyond the Mexican government corruption and into the United States. They began to organize kidnappings;[71] impose taxes, collect debts, and operate protection rackets;[72] control the extortion business;[73] securing cocaine supply and trafficking routes known as plazas (zones) and executing its foes, often with grotesque savagery. "[286] It is generally seen as a way where criminals change the legal face of security and provide their own form of "insurance". [344], Transportation [21], Garcia Abrego's reach became known when a United States Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) agent named Claude de la O, in 1986, stated in testimony against García Ábrego that he received over US$100,000 in bribes and had leaked information that could have endangered an FBI informant as well as Mexican journalists. Due to the Gulf Cartel's territory in northern Tamaulipas, primarily in the border cities of Reynosa and Matamoros, they have been able to establish a sophisticated and extensive drug trafficking and distribution network along the U.S.–Mexico border in South Texas. [114], Nevertheless, other sources also reveal that Antonio Cárdenas Guillén, brother of Osiel and one of the successors of the Gulf Cartel, was addicted to gambling, sex, and drugs, leading Los Zetas to consider his leadership as a threat to the organization. [40] Two men from the Rio Grande Valley were charged before the drug lord's arrest for laundering more than $30 million for García Ábrego. According to the National Drug Intelligence Center, drug traffickers commonly use private vehicles and commercial trucks to traffic narcotics throughout the state. The drug organizations usually use the Interstates 10, 20, 25, 30, and 35, as well as U.S. The Clan del Golfo (English: The Gulf Clan), self-referred to as Autodefensas Gaitanistas de Colombia (English: Gaitanist Self-Defense Forces of Colombia), and formerly called Los Urabeños and Clan Úsuga, is a Colombian drug cartel and right-wing neo-paramilitary group involved in the Colombian armed conflict. [294][295] Omar Ortiz, best known for his nickname El Gato, was a former soccer star from C.F. Both the Mexican and U.S. government increased their efforts to apprehend Cárdenas Guillén. [94] Lieutenants that were once loyal to Cárdenas began following the commands of Lazcano, who tried to reorganize the cartel by appointing several lieutenants to control specific territories.Morales Treviño was appointed to look over Nuevo León;[95] Jorge Eduardo Costilla Sánchez in Matamoros;[96] Héctor Manuel Sauceda Gamboa, nicknamed El Karis, took control of Nuevo Laredo;[97] Gregorio Sauceda Gamboa, known as El Goyo, along with his brother Arturo, took control of the Reynosa plaza;[98] Arturo Basurto Peña, alias El Grande, and Iván Velázquez-Caballero alias El Talibán took control of Quintana Roo and Guerrero;[99] Alberto Sánchez Hinojosa, alias Comandante Castillo, took over Tabasco. [175] Each of these groups were identified by their radio codes: the Rojos (The Red ones) were based in Reynosa; the Metros were headquartered in [Matamoros; and the Lobos (The wolves) were established in Laredo. Alleged Gulf Cartel Leader Killed in Reynosa. "[60] Consequently, Guzmán Decenas deserted from the Armed Forces and brought more than 30 army deserters to form part of Cárdenas' new criminal paramilitary wing. Garcia Abrego brokered a deal with the Cali Cartel, the Colombian mega-structure that was looking for new entry routes into the US market after facing a clampdown on their Caribbean routes by US law enforcement. [321] The Gulf Cartel also bribes journalists to persuade them not to mention any violent incidents in the media. [46] He did not have the leadership skills nor the support of the Colombian drug-provisioners. 1 of 63. [171], However, his brother Osiel Cárdenas Guillén 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. Authorities believe that González Pizaña 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. According to the media outlet, Baltazar Hinojosa brother in law, owns a shell company created by the law firm, where its board of directors' members is his wife and three daughters. Antonio Cárdenas Guillén, Jorge Eduardo Costilla Sánchez, Heriberto Lazcano Lazcano and 15 of their top lieutenants, have been charged in U.S. federal courts with drug trafficking-related crimes,[356][357] while the U.S. State Department announced rewards totaling US$50 million for information leading to their capture. [333][334][335] Nonetheless, there are indeed circles within the Gulf Cartel that coordinate the arms trafficking routes inside Mexico. More than 30 ex-soldiers were hired by the leader of the Gulf Cartel in the 1990s but, as mentioned above, they broke away and formed their own operation in 2010. "[34] He also had an official birth certificate that claimed García Ábrego was indeed born in Mexico. [330] Bank accounts inside the United States also launder millions of dollars for the drug lords of the Gulf Cartel. [234] Cabeza de Vaca is accused by a Bloomberg/El Financiero of having a big and unexplained wealth of 951 million pesos. [51] His luck ended in November 2000 when he was captured in Tampico, Tamaulipas and imprisoned in La Palma. The Gulf Cartel is one of the oldest and most powerful of Mexico s criminal groups but has lost territory and influence in recent years to its rivals, including its former enforcer wing, the Zetas. It is believed the Mexican government knew all García Ábrego's whereabouts all along and had refused to arrest him due to information he possessed about the extent of corruption within the government. [235] Cabeza de Vaca is accused of not reporting its total wealth and having properties both in Texas, Tamaulipas, and Mexico City. Read the DEA background on this cartel. "[311], Extortion [287] This practice of extorting money from people is also seen in the human trafficking business in Mexico; the cartels threaten smugglers to pay a fee for using the corridors, and if they refuse to pay, drug traffickers respond in a deadly form. [128][129], Costilla was often viewed as the "strongest leader" of the two, but collaborated with Antonio Cárdenas, who acted as representative of his jailed brother. [50] He was one of the top officials of the cartel for more than 40 years, trafficking about 20 tons of cocaine to the United States each month. In goes into the extent, in a recent book called Tamaulipas; La casta de los narcogobernadores: un eastern mexicano is accused of being present while former governor Tomas Yarrington, also accused of involvements with DTOs of the Gulf Cartel, received illicit money from the Gulf Cartel to finance its campaign for governor. [305], Before 2010, it was not clear whether the Gulf Cartel controls the human trafficking business in its territory or whether it simply taxes operators for using their smuggling corridors. [106] Cárdenas has been isolated from interacting with other prisoners in the supermax prison he is in. Army of the Gulf Cartel and commercial trucks to traffic narcotics throughout the state of Tamaulipas later ``... That the state, who also claims sovereignty over its territories YouTube that the. Violence generated between these two groups first happened in Reynosa, Tamaulipas and in. 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