Antonio Ortiz asked Rivera-Beltran over a call if he had received the "chocolates," believed to be heroin, and asked for "two," believed to be two kilos, according to the indictment. The gangs appear to be targeting stores, vehicles and bystanders in response to disputes or attempts to capture gang members. Authorities believe a woman accessing the safe-deposit boxes faked pregnancies to make deposits, carrying the cash inside of a false belly.. Around 6:36 p.m. that evening, Tarango-Rodriguez called Rivera-Beltran and asked if he could use a truck inside Rivera-Beltran's carport for five minutes, according to the indictment. The Sinaloa Cartel Is Controlling Water in Drought-Stricken Mexico "Water is now a valuable asset for us, and as it becomes more scarce, the more we will fight to make sure we have enough," a. The rest of the funds were smuggled back in secret vehicle compartments. The file also showed that the five victims tested positive for sodium rhodizonate, a sign they may have been carrying weapons and shot at the soldiers during the pursuit. Most were never released. Victor Alvarez Farfan, a native of Michoacn, Mexico, headed the Portland drug ring blamed for bringing large amounts of meth, heroin and fentanyl across the border beginning in October 2017. However, his mother, Jennifer Castillo, showed proof of a Texas-issued temporary license plate and said she had title of the vehicle, which Surez purchased in February. Police believe the shooting was tied to a drug deal that took place along West Monica Drive near . In late June, the indictment says Zytacua continued speaking to multiple customers about selling cocaine, meth and heroin. "The Sinaloa Cartel exports and distributes wholesale amounts of methamphetamine, marijuana, cocaine, and heroin in the United States by maintaining key distribution hubs in Phoenix, Los Angeles, Denver, and Chicago, among other cities," the DEA reports. It alleges that El Potosino was a front company used to funnel drug money through Mexican restaurants in Colorado and Wyoming. Founded in the late 1980s, it was for many years headed by the notorious drug. Also in June, Tarango-Rodriguez continued to make calls on a third phone number that was being monitored by agents, and the indictment says he told a user he was going to sell 500,000 "small blue ones," which investigators believed to be 30-milligram fentanyl pills, in Kansas. "In recent years, the Gulf cartel has weakened due to the arrest of key leaders in Mexico and intra-cartel conflict, which has led to a decline in its drug trafficking influence in the United States.". During the call, the indictment says, Rivera-Beltran mentioned being "hot" and that "they were going to do better," and that three loads had been taken by law enforcement. A third photograph showed Mata smiling and flashing a thumbs up inside a jail cell. In a conversation with Beltran-Beltran later that day, Rivera-Beltran said that things were bad and the police had gotten Jorge Escamilla and his brother Antonio Lorenzo Escamilla on their way to Arizona, according to the indictment. I can buy a pound in texas for 300 to 400 and bring it to MN and sell for 1000-1500 and thats where all the shit brick trees go, Mexican drug cartels are getting into the game of hydroponics. (YouTube) Mexican authorities believe a body found wrapped in plastic and left . POLL: How will the Rockies fare this season in the NL West? The Jalisco New Generation cartel, which reportedly provided security for the Sinaloa cartel before splintering off, is considered by the Drug Enforcement Agency to be a top US threat and the best-armed criminal group in Mexico, according to a report from the Congressional Research Service. "Consistent with previous years, the Sinaloa Cartel maintains the widest national influence, with its most dominant positions along the West Coast, in the Midwest, and in the Northeast. Give us another trillion $$$$$$$$$$$ to 'serve and protect' you!Tele '9Wants to Know examined a situation report from the US Department of Justice National Drug Intelligence Center, which says the Juarez and Sinaloa cartels are active in five Colorado cities. Sure you did. The notoriously violent Jalisco cartel has responded to Mexico's "hugs, not bullets" policy with a policy of their own: the cartel kidnapped in mid-May 2021, several members of an elite police force in the state of Guanajuato, tortured them to obtain names and addresses . BLO activities remain more dispersed throughout the United States, with heavier concentrations in areas with large heroin markets," said the DEA. The CJNG is believed to be engaging multiple rival organizations, the Sinaloa cartel in particular, in violent turf wars in several areas on Mexico's west coast. Vanda Felbab-Brown Sunday, May 29, 2022 Mexico Today Editor's Note: In a new series, Vanda Felbab-Brown outlines the way Mexico's two largest cartels the Sinaloa Cartel and Cartel Jalisco. Mexico's president, Andrs Manuel Lpez Obrador, rode to power in 2018 on the slogan "hugs not . The organization also predicted that drug trafficking revenueswould fall 20 to 30 percent, and the Sinaloa cartel, which would be the most affected, would lose up to 50 percent. More information about the case was not available on Wednesday, as some of the court documents remained sealed. Escamilla then had a conversation with Nancy Vargas, and told her he had a suitcase/bag in his house that she needed to remove, as well as guns and money, according to the indictment. Since the 1980s, they have dominated the international narcotics trade. Sign up for the 9NEWSLETTERright now to get cant-miss stories, Next and Broncos content, weather and more delivered right to your inbox. DENVER Twenty-one people have been charged in Colorado for their alleged involvement in a drug trafficking ring linked to a Mexican cartel, according to law enforcement officials. A report by the agency's National Drug Intelligence Center says the Juarez and Sinaloa. DENVER Details of an eight-month investigation into a Colorado-based drug trafficking organization with links to a Mexican cartel have been released in a grand jury indictment. He was shot 12 times and died, Luis Martnez survived after he was shot twice by the Mexican military following a high-speed chase in the border city of Nuevo Laredo, across from Texas. That would be one way to break up with someone you don't like, huh? Prez's brother, Alejandro Prez, was unharmed and told Univision that he saw the moment his sibling was shot at point-blank range. The money was seized from alleged members of the Guzman Loera drug cartel . A money transfer station at the grocery store was used to send some of the proceeds back to Mexico. The covert operation saw police drop the fake shipment about 40 nautical miles west of Perth, where a shore party allegedly made multiple efforts to locate and retrieve it. Through these calls, the agents determined Tarango-Rodriguez was Padilla-Romo's source of drugs, according to the indictment. Last week, the US government also took action against a network of Sinaloa Cartel members and associated entities for their involvement in providing chemicals to super labs that produce illicit drugs like fentanyl and methamphetamine for the cartel once run by the notorious drug lord Joaquin El Chapo Guzmn. Gulf Cartel is the only Mexican cartel that uses Detroit as a major hub. The identity of that cartel is not being released as it remains the subject of an ongoing criminal investigation.. We are committed to dismantling and removing the threat posed by these criminal organizations flooding American communities with dangerous narcotics, said Attorney General Jeff Sessions. Discovery Company. A short time later, the indictment says Austin Peterson and Anita Bateman arrived in a vehicle used to transport cocaine to Denver. The Biden administration has sanctioned eight Mexican companies it says are involved in a timeshare fraud scheme benefiting the Jalisco cartel, a notorious drug organization that the US government says traffics a significant proportion of the illegal fentanyl and other drugs that enter the US. On, Oct. 29, the indictment says Rivera-Beltran called Rodriguez and asked him to fly to Phoenix and drive the pills to Denver, and GPS pings show he flew from Denver to Phoenix that night. Sinaloa cartel, international crime organization that is among the most-powerful drug-trafficking syndicates in the world. In Colorado Springs, those are three Taco Star eateries, at 318 N. Wahsatch Ave., 7434 Ridgewood Drive and 605 N. Circle Drive; two Monicas Taco Shops, at 30 E. Fillmore St. and 5829 Palmer Park Blvd. Seven of the defendants are considered fugitives. A lot of "somebody's" are buying this stuff cause the shipments keep coming and the dollars keep going to the cartels? "They have found that it's easier to grow and process marijuana in Colorado, ship it throughout the United States, than it is to bring it from Mexico or Cuba," Elder said. Cartels, especially the Juarez and Sinaloa, who have a strong presence in Colorado, could not have been happy with the estimated $1 million in sales Jan. 1, the first day of legalized retail sales. This is a very significant operation that took a massive amount of drugs and a large number of drug traffickers off our streets, United States Attorney Jason R. Dunn said in a statement. Faced with such losses, the violent cartels could force their way in as black market wholesalers or simply rob pot dispensaries, which take only cash and have not been able to establish accounts with banks because of lenders' fears of violating federal laws. ", RELATED: A mom lost her son to an overdose. Jonathan Aguilar did not survive after he was struck in the temple. 13 US Cities That Are Crowded By Mexican Drug Cartels, Death toll in strike on Ukraine's Zaporizhzhia rises to 11 - officials, UPDATE 1-Bankman-Fried can have flip phone, limited internet while on bail, US proposes, China's economy, government revamp in focus as parliament set to open, The U.S. government is turning up the heat on TikTok here's the latest, Bankman-Fried can have flip phone, limited internet while on bail, US proposes. Four soldiers were placed under arrest Thursday for the murder of the five men. Example video title will go here for this video. Mexican drug cartels control vast swaths of the US drug market, but that influence remains heavily slanted in favor of the vaunted Sinaloa cartel. In 2017, 16-year-old Nathaniel Czajkowski was shot to death in Albertacos while eating with three friends, two of whom also were shot. Market data provided by Factset. I want to congratulate the outstanding federal, state, and local law enforcement cooperation that resulted in this highly successful operation. The Sinaloa Cartel had its origin in 1989, after Miguel ngel Flix Gallardo, the main leader of the Guadalajara Cartel, was captured and transferred to a maximum security prison and could not continue with the control of his organization, causing a division that would give life to two new cartels, among them the one in Sinaloa. Troopers located the box and found about 728.8 grams of heroin, about 2.32 kilos of several pre-packaged blue 30-milligram fentanyl pills and about 32.3 grams of meth seized from Ernestina Montoya, a passenger in the car, according to the indictment. (File, courtesy of KKTV). Trucks with mounted machine guns and henchman with body armour rolled into the town in one of the bloodiest recent episodes in the drug war blighting Mexico. Boogie! The document alleged that Surez was also a member of the Cartel del Noreste. Luis Martnez, who was shot two times and remained in an induced coma as of Friday, was also an alleged member of the Cartel del Noreste, according to his Facebook account. Several agencies investigated the case: The FBI, the Drug Enforcement Administration, Homeland Security, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the IRS, the Douglas County Sheriff's Office, Colorado State Patrol, and the Aurora Police Department. (AP Photo/Eduardo Verdugo, File). Rivera-Beltran said he arrived in Phoenix that day around 5 a.m., which was confirmed by GPS, told him to hide the money well, and Escamilla to bring 55 stacks of $100 bills to reduce bulk, according to the indictment. The indictment says Trevizo's vehicle was pulled over by officers after it left the residence. Twenty-five people have been arrested on drug trafficking charges in the case and five others remain at-large, including four in Mexico. The following items were discovered when investigators searched the Kearney Street address, according to the indictment: According to the indictment, that Corvette was the same vehicle driven by Rivera-Beltran during the two drug deals with undercover officers, according to the indictment. "What is quite possible is that cartels will hire straw owners who have clean records who can apply for a license, then sell large quantities both legally and on the black market," Villasuso said. The Marijuana Enforcement Division of the Colorado Department of Revenue, the primary enforcement office responsible for overseeing the production and sale of the retail marijuana, did not return repeated attempts by Fox News.com for comment. Investigators also followed the vehicle driven by Peterson, watched him transfer the items into another truck, and pulled him over, the indictment says. Inside Matt Hancock's 41-hour battle to save his career when photo of 'a snog and heavy petting' Will Vladimir Putin's empress pay the ultimate price for his war on the West? "Much like the Sinaloa Cartel, CJNG is a poly-drug trafficking organization dealing in wholesale amounts of primarily methamphetamine, but also cocaine, heroin, and marijuana," the DEA notes, adding, "CJNG has drug distribution hubs in the US cities of Los Angeles and Atlanta.". Thursdays sanctions were accompanied by an alert issued by the Office of Foreign Assets Control in order to make the public aware of telephone, email, and letter scams involving individuals falsely claiming to represent OFAC and requesting payments. OFAC does not collect this type of payment from the public. Based in the city of Guadalajara, CJNG is the fastest growing drug cartel and the second biggest player in the United States. Seven of the defendants are considered fugitives. Ryan Saavedra is a contributor for Breitbart Texas and can be found on Twitter at @RealSaavedra. Claims of jury misconduct arose after a juror told VICE News in February 2019 report that several jurors followed media accounts of the three month-long trial. Taking over a trade once ruled by drug cartels and turning it into an all-cash business could make pot shops prime targets for extortion, black-market competition and robbery. Joaquin Guzman, the Mexican drug lord known as "El Chapo," entered a Colorado prison known as "the Alcatraz of the Rockies" on Friday to begin a life sentence after being found guilty of a raft of crimes including conspiracy to commit murder. "Mexico is already in Colorado without the risks," the agent, who requested anonymity, said of the state's heavy pre-existing cartel presence. A seventh restaurant with ties to Colorado Springs also was named in the complaint. Ooooohhhh!!!!!! Agents saw Escamilla arrive at the rental car agency, and tracked him back to his home where he loaded the rental truck with several backpacks and a tan bag, the indictment says. According to the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA), the Sinaloa Mexican Drug Cartel is known to be the dominant drug cartel in both California and Colorado. San Diego's largest cash seizure ever may shed light on an overlooked aspect of the drug trade >>, In many instances, the Sinaloa cartel and other Mexican cartels partner with street gangs in the US particularly the MS-13 to sell the drugs to consumers. The DEA said 21 suspects were identified during the investigation into the organization linked to the Sinaloa Cartel in Mexico. A Mexican intelligence report alleges that he was linked to the Northeast Cartel's special forces 35th battalion, Alejandro Trujillo was one of five men who were shot dead by soldiers in Nuevo Laredo, Mexican. Quotes displayed in real-time or delayed by at least 15 minutes. Los Zetas Cartel is also the only Mexican cartel that uses Dallas as a major hub. On Oct. 28, the indictment says Rivera-Beltran asked a woman of she had anyone who could drive a stick shift, and that he had "50" in the car, which agents believed to be 50,000 fentanyl pills. Dunque also relayed the information that many Mexican drug cartels are now . Contests & Promotions, 2023, Pikes Peak Television, Inc. Colorado Springs, CO, USA, Special Forces soldier who never quit to receive Medal of Honor nearly 60 years after grueling firefight, DOJ ramps up its allegations that Texas is judge-shopping in cases against Biden, Germanys Olaf Scholz to meet Biden on Friday after transformative year, Woman pleads guilty to threatening Michigan 2020 election official. February 15, 2023 04:32 PM AUSTIN, Texas A county sheriff plans to sound the alarm before Congress about mass incursions of unidentified flying objects illegally entering U.S. airspace from. Vallejo-Gallo, a Mexican national, faces 20 years to life in prison. In the US, the Sinaloa cartel is one of six Mexican transnational criminal organizations in operation, joining the Jalisco New Generation cartel, the Juarez cartel, the Gulf cartel, Los Zetas cartel, and the Beltran Leyva Organization. "This group I put together is designed specifically to protect product, people, and money. Zambada now is assumed to head the Sinoloa Cartel. The indictment says Escamilla called Antonio Ortiz and told him "everything went to hell and that the police got them." They spoke about introducing Escamilla to another undercover agent as well as purchasing some "blues," which investigators knew to be fentanyl pills, the indictment says. Denver police are taking a wait-and-see posture as to what may emerge. The WORST care homes in England: Interactive map reveals the lowest-rated 2,530 residences - so is An intelligence report obtained by TV Azteca indicated that Wilberto Mata, one of the five young men killed by soldier in the northern border city of Nuevo Laredo, was an alleged member of the Cartel del Noreste ( Northeast Cartel), Gustavo Surez, an American from San Antonio, Texas, was a purported member of the Northeast Cartel, according to a Mexican intelligence report. Rivera-Beltran also said that he found customers in Arizona who were buying 5,000 to 7,000 fentanyl pills, according to the indictment. Legal Statement. Villasuso also said that even if legal stores do face extortion efforts by cartel groups it is unlikely law enforcement will even be made aware of it if merchants are too frightened to come to police. In a second picture that was posted online, Mata is seen with a rifle and an army fatigue green vest that appeared to have grenades concealed. Mexican cities have seen widespread arson and shootings by drug cartels. She is a proud Ohioan, champion for local libraries, volunteer reading tutor and an expert ice cream connoisseur (mint chocolate chip!). According to the indictment, the investigation began in April, when DEA agents learned that Samuel Padilla-Romo was selling methamphetamine in the 18th Judicial District and Denver metro area.