Mexican Drug Cartels: Final of 5 Part Series: What the Future will Hold.

<div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5v7Vp1ZmfDajVmdOn9vHDVZc8NtyFO9o3NtO7SM5cU7WaTQ_4JiCfC8x38jWLlINJwyI2CSaqG_AZM0IQeZVqGZBdgmqK3Jx-8Qnx8mNAPMZWlRuATevSn52AaEKkINbPj7VyYFPRSc9n/s1600/mexamericanflagfinal.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" nx="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5v7Vp1ZmfDajVmdOn9vHDVZc8NtyFO9o3NtO7SM5cU7WaTQ_4JiCfC8x38jWLlINJwyI2CSaqG_AZM0IQeZVqGZBdgmqK3Jx-8Qnx8mNAPMZWlRuATevSn52AaEKkINbPj7VyYFPRSc9n/s1600/mexamericanflagfinal.jpg" /></a></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">What the future will hold involving the United States and the activities of the various Mexican Drug Trafficking Organizations is extremely difficult to say. What is known is that in the last several years the carnage that they have raged across Mexico has reached into the United States. In just 2009 there were 9000 deaths in Mexico associated with the battles between the Cartels and with the Mexican Government’s efforts to stop the violence. The future for both Mexico and the United States is very uncertain on who will win the war, whether it is the Cartels or the two governments attempting to control them.</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"></div><br /><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">To gauge the impact here of how the U.S. is effected by the Cartels one only needs to turn to local media in certain regions of the country. But the National Drug Intelligence Center did release a report detailing the effects back in 2008 just when the war began ramp up in Mexico. According to an April 2008 National Drug Intelligence Center report, Mexican drug cartels are operating in 195 U.S. cities. “Mexican DTOs [Drug Trafficking Organizations] are the most pervasive organizational threat to the United States,” the report said. “They are active in every region of the country and dominate the illicit drug trade in every area except the Northeast</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br /></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">The activities are of such a concern that even the Department of Homeland Security Director Janet Napolitano says that the drug cartels and the violence associated with them are a threat to U.S. Security. If DHS believes that the issue of the cartels needs to be address from a Security standpoint then why has the Obama Administration not proposed a new strategy?</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br /></div><strong><u>What is at stake?</u></strong><br /><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">There is money to be lost on both sides of this war. But to better understand what the costs may be one has to understand what the margins for loss and profit are. </div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br /></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">Mexico is the number one source of Marijuana into the United States. This accounts for roughly 50-60% of the MDC”s profits annually. The $320 billion annual global drug industry now accounts for 1 percent of all commerce on the planet. Mexico is a major provider of methamphetamine and heroine. The United States consumption of these drugs revenues range from 13 billion to 38 billion annually. </div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br /></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">With a figure in 2010 dollars of $320 billion globally at stake and the United States being the largest consumer of the world’s illegal narcotics trades the profits are staggering. A full 10 percent of Mexico's economy is built on drug proceeds - $25 billion smuggled in from the United States every year, of which 25 cents of each $100 smuggled is seized at the border. Thus there's no incentive for the kind of financial reform that could tame the cartels. </div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br /></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">The profits at stake rival some medium sized countries and some large size global corporations.</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br /></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">However, what is frequently forgotten is that beyond the costs of what the drug trade makes on the sale and distribution of their illegal products. But also what other criminal activities the Drug Trafficking Organizations and their support organizations immerse themselves in as well. Many of these crimes adversely affect legitimate businesses on both sides of the border.</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br /></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">How does that affect us here in seeking to come to the United States for a better life. Gangs extort money from drug and illegal aliens transiting the U.S. Mexican border.</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br /></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">The Mexican Drug Cartels have also become extremely good at recruitment, both here in the U.S. and in Mexico. Los Zeta’s, and enforcer gang turned to Drug Cartel has utilized new methods to recruit young people either to be drug couriers or into their organizations as employees. Mexican Drug Cartels are utilizing recruiting including the use of the underground radio stations, Internet advertisements and print ads to recruit young people to work within the cartel or to transport narcotics across the U.S. Mexican Border. </div><br /><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><strong><u>The Risk to American Businesses</u></strong></div>The impact on the U.S. economy is also being effected. Through higher cost passed on to the consumer as the cost of doing business. As well as increases in taxes at the local, state and federal level which further burden to general public.<br /><br />Industries impacted in the United States include the Oil Industry, tourism, Military, Politics, Education, Housing, Crime Rate, Banks and the Firearm Industry. For example, Mexico is a major provider of oil to the U.S. providing one third of all imported oil. Several of the drug cartels have interdicted oil from the oil producing companies for their own their own profit, costing the oil companies millions. The U.S. automotive industry has been impacted as well. General Motors was extorted by the MDC’s for months before GM finally paid. This ultimately impacts the consumer here in the U.S. through higher costs. One could speculate since the United States taxpayer now owns 51% of General Motors that they are now extorting money from the United States Government, and we have now made a dramatic policy shift of “Paying ransom.”<br /><br />There are more than 18,000 U.S. based companies doing business in Mexico.<br /><br />The impact on businesses operating and investing in Mexico has been severely impacted in 2009. A survey conducted by the American Chamber of Commerce of Mexico found that over 58% of their members felt less safe in 2009, then in previous years.<br /><br />Twenty-seven percent were reconsidering investments in Mexico due to security concerns, according to a poll of the American Chamber's members. <br /><br />Of particular concern is the impact domestically that the Mexican Drug Trafficking Organizations have within the United States. Because many street gangs are exclusively involved in narcotics sales, either at the retail level or wholesale level the improved transportation and distribution that the MDTO’s provide are lucrative. Additionally, because of the vast profit margins the MDTO’s have also began to squeeze out competition from other major distributors, which has resulted in hundreds of kidnappings, executions and home invasions on rival’s distributors safe houses.<br /><br />In the NDIC’s 2009 Gang Threat Assessment they indicated that MDTO’s and street gangs, including prison gangs have moved into new relationships for distribution. American gangs will continue to develop and build upon existing relationships through material support, smuggling, and transportation on a regular basis into the United States. In addition, because of the United States failure to address the immigration issue, street gangs and the MDTO’s continue to exploit those who are both sides of the border. <br /><br /><strong><u>Risk to Law Enforcement</u></strong><br />Since the violence has continued to increase in Mexico and routinely spills over in to the United States, the increase risk to law enforcement continues to grow. Many of these Law Enforcement Agencies and their officers’ may not realize the risk that they are facing. Of particular are the increased use of military style weapons, including grenades and Rocket Propelled Grenades (RPG’s), but also in military style tactics. Los Zetas add a level of sophistication not seen by law enforcement previously. This includes intelligence gathering, with insider information, coordinated military actions, deployment with concentrated levels of fire power.<br /><br />Recently reported by the Mexican Government was the discovery recently that several MDTO’s have begun using Improvised Explosive Devices(IED). In February, the Mexico Military disabled an IED in Oaxaca. In March the Mexican Military seized 50 rifles, 60 hand grenades and eight IED’s. <br /><br />One only has to wonder how long it will take for either American Street Gangs to utilize this technique here in the United States or for the MDTO’s to use it to protect their investments here?<br /><br />As an additional industry for the MDTO’s to be involved in is their involvement in Ransoms and Extortion in Mexico. Because the MDTO’s see a large profit in these two crimes the volume of kidnappings for Ransom and Extortion have gone up each year. As a result Mexico has passed a law that all cellular telephones must be registered to a name. This was initiated to impact the use of pay as you go phones that have been used for ransoms, drug dealing and extortion activities in Mexico. How would that work here in the United States, where we are already seeing this occur in several of our border or destinations states for the Drug Cartels? The NAACP would never allow such an action to be put into law. <br /><br />The risk to American Law Enforcement is extremely grave when you factor in the economic down turn that has hit so many communities. Resulting in the reduction of police officers through layoffs and hiring freezes imposed by reduced tax revenues. Law Enforcement is already spread thin and the line gets thinner as the economy continues to falter. American Law Enforcement Officers are already being tasked with increased responsibilities involving the threat of terrorism, but now coupled with a potential risk from in reality what are Narco-terrorists, the ability to effectively deal with the threat locally is almost impossible. <br /><br />If not to make things worse, the MDTO’s may be utilizing tactics that are utilized in Special Warfare training manuals, such as what Los Zeta’s would have knowledge of. A series of actions that the MDTO’s may be contributing to either indirectly as a group or individually will continue to de-stabilize Mexico and should be considered a direct threat to the security of the United States. <br /><br />These tactics include infiltrating enemy ranks and organizations, which would point to Mexican government, law enforcement and military organizations. Gang order of battle, intelligence, penetrates security systems and disrupting supply lines. Create damage, dissension and demoralization, which they MDTO’s have done extremely well through the execution of Police Chiefs, Prosecuting Attorneys, Generals as well as executions of rival MDTO’s and the general public. <br /><br />The last area of control or disruption is the media. The media in Mexico and abroad has been dramatically impacted both domestically and internationally. The editor of the Mexican paper “Reforma”, based out of Monterrey Mexico must commute from Texas to Mexico weekly out of fear for his life and his family after being threatened. If you control the media you control the method and way to get information out to the masses. That is why in almost every coup, radio, print and television are always seized. Could the MDTO’s be very close to actually taking over Mexico and dividing the country up into MDTO, City States?<br /><br /><strong><u>Conclusion</u></strong><br />The perilous state that Mexico is in, poses a direct threat to the security of the United States. Failure on the part of the Federal Government to act within a timely manner may result in a dangerous financial impact to the United States. Through increased drug addiction, violence at a volume never seen before and increased corruption and criminal activity. Only time will tell if our legislators and those who have sworn to protect us act for the good of the people.

Mexican Drug Cartels: Final of 5 Part Series: What the Future will Hold.

What the future will hold involving the United States and the activities of the various Mexican Drug Trafficking Organizations is extremely ...

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Mexican Drug Cartels - Part 4: The effects in the United States

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiO-RuGJ8kcc9OcETX1wt_92W8XWplAvbxScJTek2HsZi5u7MJ77jYYKSCbm0QDh6CJAy7Yx2r9WeGzk4l8-PM9709IM54EDG238FgiynCBBazYnLsY10qaW9VoOLMTEoFrG74KnYlgaEG/s1600/mexamericanflagpart4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" nx="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiO-RuGJ8kcc9OcETX1wt_92W8XWplAvbxScJTek2HsZi5u7MJ77jYYKSCbm0QDh6CJAy7Yx2r9WeGzk4l8-PM9709IM54EDG238FgiynCBBazYnLsY10qaW9VoOLMTEoFrG74KnYlgaEG/s1600/mexamericanflagpart4.jpg" /></a></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">The effects of the Mexican Drug Cartels beyond the distribution of narcotics into the United States has been encountered in every state in the nation. There have been numerous news articles and research studies </div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">recently released which indicate that the Mexican Drug Cartels are expanding their presence even more.</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br /></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">The Chicago Office of the Drug Enforcement Administration seized 250 kilograms of cocaine and $8 million dollars in a two year investigation which focused on the La Familia drug trafficking cartel based out of Michoacana, Mexico. The seizures were not located in the city of Chicago itself but rather in five western and southern suburbs of Chicago. The DEA was conducting an extensive operation involving the La Familia’s distribution network throughout the United States. The La Familia cartel had ties with trafficking routes in 19 states in the Nation. In Tuscon the effects are far worse than just narcotics trafficking. A series of brazen home invasions have been tied to a wave of drug crime. With over 200 home invasion, three-quarters linked to the drug trade alone the risks to innocent non involved persons is staggering. The majority</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">of these home invasions have occurred in suburban residential communities.</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br /></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">The crimes that have been quickly linked to the drug trade. Many are due to unpaid debts, some as few as a thousand dollars. But many of them are simply based upon green. One set of cartel linked criminals learns about a load of drugs in a location. They in turn “rip it” and then sell it. Quick profit for limited risk in their point of view. In March 2009, CNN ran a story regarding a drug debt owed by a Mexican national. The dealer was kidnapped and locked in the basement of a home. He was chained, gagged and beaten. He was in the basement for six days without food. This kidnapping didn’t occur in Mexico but in suburban Atlanta.</div><br /><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">Atlanta has a growing Hispanic population. Gwinnet County, a community just 20 miles north of Atlanta has seen a dramatic increase in their population. In 1990 a mere 8,470 to 63,727 in 2000. By the 2010 </div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">census they are expected to number approximately 140,000.</div><br /><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">Most of the drug related violence in Atlanta is linked to the Mexican Drug Cartels in Sinaloa and Gulf. As these two groups continue to battle over drug routes. In mid 2008 in Phoenix Arizona investigated a shooting in which six Mexican nationals killed a man in a local neighborhood. The victim was shot over 100 times, by Los Zetas, once an enforcement arm of one of the Mexican Drug Cartels now rumored to be running their own distribution network. See the October issue of the Gateway Gazette for information on the Enforcer Gangs.</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br /></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">Officers arrested three suspects all Mexican nationals, who were planning on ambushing officers who arrived on scene of the shooting but had run out of ammunition. When the three were taken into custody police recovered tactical clothing, Kevlar helmets and automatic weapons. Drug rip offs are becoming a greater risk for the public but for law enforcement officer’s as well. A robbery crew based out of Queens, New York would identify drug dealing competitors and then rip them off for their money and drugs. They would do this by using fake police badges and using vehicles that resembled police cars, complete with police lights an sirens. In some cases, when this crew couldn’t get the amount of drugs or money they wanted they would torture the victims to give up a bigger drug connection. Repeating  the process as they go. It is an all profit business that leaves a trail of injured and dead in it’s wake.</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br /></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">As the influence of these organizations continue to grow the involvement with local groups will also. In the 2010 National Drug Threat Assessment that the Mexican Drug Trafficking Organizations continue to increase </div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">their cooperation with U.S. based street and prison gangs to distribute drugs. In many areas, the gangs were </div>using their alliances with Mexican DTO’s to facilitate an expansion of their mid level and retail drug  distribution operations into more rural and suburban areas.<br /><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br /></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">The Chicago based Latin Kings street gang utilized their chapter operating out of Midland,Texas purchased cocaine from Mexican DTO’s in south Texas at substantially lower prices than from whole sale traffickers </div>in Chicago. This savings resulting in increased profits for the street gang and a new source for larger  quantities of narcotics. Federal authorities point to the Mexican drug cartels that are ultimately responsible <br />for border violence by having cemented ties to street and prison gangs like El Paso’s<br /><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br /></div>Barrio Azteca on the U.S. side of the border. Azteca like many other U.S. gangs retail drugs that they get from Mexican cartels and their gangs. One Of The Most Dangerous. Mexican gangs also run their <br /><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">own distribution networks in the United States, and they produce most of the methamphetamine used north of the border. They have even bypassed the Colombians several times to buy cocaine directly from producers in Bolivia, Peru and even Afghanistan.</div><br /><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">These same gangs often work as cartel surrogates or enforcers on the U.S. side of the border. Intelligence suggests Los Zetas.  They’re known as “Los Zetas have hired members of various gangs at different times </div>including, El Paso gang Barrio Azteca, Mexican Mafia, Texas Syndicate, MS-13, and Hermanos Pistoleros Latinos to further their criminal endeavors. What will unfold over time is unknown. As law enforcement learns more about the involvement the MDTO’s have within the United States and how they affect crime in their communities will ultimately lead to arrests, increased violence, and the risk to public safety. This very subject will be further explored in the final portion of our five part series later this month.<br /><br /><strong>11/19/2010 for the Final part of this 5 part series</strong>

Mexican Drug Cartels - Part 4: The effects in the United States

The effects of the Mexican Drug Cartels beyond the distribution of narcotics into the United States has been encountered in every state in t...

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The Mexican Drug Cartels: Part 3 - the Failing of A State?

The growth and dramatic character of the violence, particularly the targeting of government and law enforcement officers and direct battles with police and military units have led some political analysts to speculate about the strength of the Mexican government, some actually using the title of a “failing” state.<br /><br />Of particular concern was a report released in December 2008 by the Joint Forces Command has indicated that because of the drug cartels ability to corrupts, distort and damage the region’s potential that the instability in Mexico, “represents a homeland security problem of immense proportions to the United States.” However, the Director of National Intelligence asserted to reports in an address in March 2009, “Mexico is in no danger of becoming a failed state.”<br /><br /><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">Although there is continued continuity within the Mexican government which provides education, health, security and other government services to millions of people, the instability brought by the violent </div>activities of the Cartels may impact the Mexican tourism industry, further jeopardizing their economy.<br /><br /><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHiNvD_ri9yAPATSY5ugUUvNk4tET7-RdmleWMbpxseee0DnecryMeBT98qDRHKXXchja-12u9jq0HplU7jhoB4jH_625WNeu9teEYySusetIUGgI5eYBuhkLxECImoNXVCzhpgHj25wBT/s1600/imagesCAM91WZQ.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" nx="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHiNvD_ri9yAPATSY5ugUUvNk4tET7-RdmleWMbpxseee0DnecryMeBT98qDRHKXXchja-12u9jq0HplU7jhoB4jH_625WNeu9teEYySusetIUGgI5eYBuhkLxECImoNXVCzhpgHj25wBT/s1600/imagesCAM91WZQ.jpg" /></a>Although the goal may not be to not to take over the Mexican state as a whole, but to “subvert it.” according to report released in May of 2009 by the Congressional Research Service. The report theorizes that the competition to control drug trafficking routes frequently puts the Mexican Drug Trafficking groups in battles with state security forces. Effective control of trafficking routes depends on corrupt government officials and law enforcement. With he estimated sums of money generated by drug sales in the United States to Mexico estimated between $15 billion to $25 billion annually the ability of the DTO’s to subvert , corrupt law enforcement and government officials is almost a certainty.</div><br />The level of violence caused because of the wars between rival gangs and the DTO’s that they support is staggering. From 2007-2009 was there were 16,491 Cartel related deaths. Because the DTO are taking on the army directly rather than avoiding confrontations has risen. Unofficial estimates place the number employed by the major <br /><br />DTO’s up to or more than 100,000 which puts them roughly at parity with Mexican armed forces. <br />As conflicts continue both inter-cartel and intra-cartel the level of violence can continue to rise. Especially with the break up of the Sinaloa Federation and the Gulf Cartel as well as the transition of the Los Zetas from an enforcer group to a competing cartel signifies possibly a new rise in violence in coming months.<br /><br />Violence is a tool of the drug trafficking business, the objectives of the use of that violence vary from one group to the next. The conflict over territory, punish betrayals and inflict revenge against government <br />success to name a few. The violence that is being seen now may be used not to overthrow or bring down a government but rather to subvert a government.<br /><br />An intimidated government can deflect law enforcement initiatives and it allows the drug cartels to operate unhampered. The use of violence against the government may be an attempt to reestablish patterns of corruption that were prevalent in Mexico in the past.<br /><br />Since 2008, the increase of kidnappings for money have risen significantly. In the past targets have been the wealthy and influential family members, but now even the middle class and poor have been asked to pay as little as $500 in ransom.<br /><br />The effect on the Mexican government towards this newest trend has prompted demonstrations call for government action against the escalation of violence. This tactic, the kidnapping of family is a trend that is starting to appear here in the United States, particularly in the Southern United States, wherever the Cartel’s may have ties are also potentially affected. <br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAR7Z32xEUA4Yeqb9xaAX7dHpGBA3yQYGqm2Q4z7dMidqa-D9GaYt_KJQ-hkPzceoPTPR7-GV-dFseHraNotNqmG-WhjkC6rni-ecUF3ssDScMAHpDDsTWiPdInQsIxUZtzvzRK3tPgxbF/s1600/Seal_of_the_Government_of_Mexico.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="316" nx="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAR7Z32xEUA4Yeqb9xaAX7dHpGBA3yQYGqm2Q4z7dMidqa-D9GaYt_KJQ-hkPzceoPTPR7-GV-dFseHraNotNqmG-WhjkC6rni-ecUF3ssDScMAHpDDsTWiPdInQsIxUZtzvzRK3tPgxbF/s320/Seal_of_the_Government_of_Mexico.png" width="320" /></a></div>It has also been implicated that Mexico is sliding toward lawlessness that Columbia experienced, through drug-funded bribery and gun-barrel intimidation. In a move that has many speculating that Mexican government is losing control. On February 3, 2010, President Calderon called off primary elections in the northern state of Tamaulipas. In Chihuahua, the government is redeploying troops from the embattled city of Juarez to the countryside because of fears that the Cartels are cementing their control in smaller border<br />towns. The reason because drug traffickers had infiltrated the election process. Calderon actually described the crackdown as a fight for territory and “the very authority of the state.”<br /><br />In the past several months, public officials in a half dozen cities and towns have been gunned down, kidnapped. In the town of Tancitaro, seven police officers and a top town administrator were murdered in 2009. <br />In the town of Puerto Palomos, the police chief fled to the United States, asking for asylum, saying the  Mexican official could not protect him. In October, the traffickers killed a town administrator there as well. A <br />further indicator that this trend will seep across the U.S. border and effect the United States population.<br /><br />In March, 2009, the financial magazine Forbes included Joaquin “Chapo” Guzman it its list of the worlds billionaires for the first time. Guzman is the head of the Sinaloa Cartel and his net worth is listed at $1 billion. It is further estimated that Guzman’s Cartel brings in $3.8 billion just to Sinaloa state alone and employees and indirectly or directly employs some 520,000 people which is one fifth of the 2.6 million population.<br /><br />What is your opinion is Mexico a “Narco State” or a state near to failing. Send your opinion to <a href="mailto:gazette@openthegate.org">gazette@openthegate.org</a>. We would love to hear it.<br /><br /><strong>11/15/2010 Part 4 of 5: Mexcan Drug Cartels and The Effects in the U.S.<iframe align="left" frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=gateamerica&o=1&p=8&l=bpl&asins=1412811511&fc1=000000&IS2=1&lt1=_blank&m=amazon&lc1=0000FF&bc1=000000&bg1=FFFFFF&f=ifr" style="align: left; height: 245px; padding-right: 10px; padding-top: 5px; width: 131px;"></iframe></strong>

The Mexican Drug Cartels: Part 3 - the Failing of A State?

The growth and dramatic character of the violence, particularly the targeting of government and law enforcement officers and direct battles ...

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Mexican Drug Cartels Series: Part 2—Enforcer Gangs

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDzdA3dU67abpQD2Nh0GPim0CJbn5jOqJEfXsxhhazPzovrtukAEMhSutXYH2MOIJwbRO4ILEziPRkMxgn2KtK5lV35j0FoZyRn0YpiyjjzFtyUjCspAz35Da3QiT2k9XMG4MTtyDArmhf/s1600/mexamericanflagpart2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" nx="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDzdA3dU67abpQD2Nh0GPim0CJbn5jOqJEfXsxhhazPzovrtukAEMhSutXYH2MOIJwbRO4ILEziPRkMxgn2KtK5lV35j0FoZyRn0YpiyjjzFtyUjCspAz35Da3QiT2k9XMG4MTtyDArmhf/s1600/mexamericanflagpart2.jpg" /></a></div>The crime spree that is continuing to occur in Mexico is being fueled by enforcer gangs at the behest of the Mexican Drug Cartels. Historically the Drug Cartels employed their own people to handle internal matters or problem with distributors, law enforcement officers and political figures. But that model has changed in the last several years, resulting in a major increase in deaths, some of which are horrific in nature being perpetrated.<br /><br /><br />Because of the various Mexican Drug Cartels have subcontracted their enforcement activities, the actual Cartels have turned to criminal street gangs, former military and corrupt law enforcement officers. In Spanish to enforcers are known as <em>sicarios</em>, and they are part of organizations like Los Zetas, Los Negros, La Familia Michocoan, MS-13, Los Pelones and Kaibiles. <br /><br />Some of these organizations are connected to street gangs active here in the United States, including MS-13, Surenos, 18th Street (Calle-18), Mara 18 as well as prison organizations such as the Mexican Mafia. <br /><br />Each one of the enforcer gangs are tied to a specific Drug Cartel, the battles by these groups to rest control of the lucrative drug trafficking trade is what has fueled the murder wave that is racing across Mexico and may lead to destabilizing the country further. <br /><br />So who are these organizations, what do they do?<br /><br /><strong><u>Los Zetas</u></strong><br />Los Zetas was initially the criminal mercenary army for the Gulf Cartel. Los Zetas started our as a special forces unit with the Mexican Military.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfD51GW4frkmFkPbPRL2du-4EidGP3bZ05Ee5Meb9jPIdDJhToxny0c4DZMG6ctkKJbj30k8LkXskFWI79XQbF9wdwv-2gd1LOBVBFVTAQHwXTuG2ygs2wLKHhS5X4fFuc-l915Q38rvpM/s1600/escudo_de__los_zetas.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" nx="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfD51GW4frkmFkPbPRL2du-4EidGP3bZ05Ee5Meb9jPIdDJhToxny0c4DZMG6ctkKJbj30k8LkXskFWI79XQbF9wdwv-2gd1LOBVBFVTAQHwXTuG2ygs2wLKHhS5X4fFuc-l915Q38rvpM/s200/escudo_de__los_zetas.jpg" width="176" /></a></div>Los Zetas were started recruited to work for the Gulf Cartel, they were initially known as GAFE, which stood for the elite <em>Grupo Aeromovil-de-Fuerzas-Especiales</em>. They were trained in counter-insurgency and locating and apprehending drug cartel members. They were originally trained in the United States at the military school, School of the Americas, as well as by France and Israel. Some of the skills they learned was rapid deployment, aerial assaults, marksmanship, ambushes, small-group tactics, intelligence collection, prisoner rescues, counter-surveillance and the use of sophisticated communications.<br /><br />In the late 1990s, the Gulf Cartel leader Osiel Cardenas Guillen wanted to track down and kill rival cartel members as a from of protection. He recruited members of GAFE to do just that. The group started out with a Lieutenant Arturo-Guzman-Decena, who brought an initial 30 deserters to the Gulf Cartel. <br /><br />Throughout the 1990s and early 2000’s the groups conducted numerous raids, murders and kidnappings in the name of the Gulf Cartel to attempt to control the trafficking corridors. By 2003, the group had begun transporting their own drug shipments through former Gulf Cartel routes and made a collaboration with the Beltran-lyva-brothers gang to head the Cartel. <br /><br />Current estimates put Los Zetas at around 4000 members. According to estimates made by the Congressional Research Service, Los Zetas has substantial stakes in both the Gulf Cartel as well as the Sinaloa Cartel.<br /><br /><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><strong><u>Los Negros</u></strong></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhK10lzkNMO0Ml2FL0hMI9LvZWnJ1LCEdKtrLrk6o9RxZGpox9NvBSIfvjiCHeIPFNTc6aMHQbg26FtetD7ScbpbjM_bdALAymuyM2hpMXVU9LRQ_JgOov2smMdx6Q6rkKxQGQo7XEXoGs2/s1600/BARBIE-articleLarge.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="168" nx="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhK10lzkNMO0Ml2FL0hMI9LvZWnJ1LCEdKtrLrk6o9RxZGpox9NvBSIfvjiCHeIPFNTc6aMHQbg26FtetD7ScbpbjM_bdALAymuyM2hpMXVU9LRQ_JgOov2smMdx6Q6rkKxQGQo7XEXoGs2/s320/BARBIE-articleLarge.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>Originally formed to counter the Los Zetas from the Gulf Cartel. They are also known as the Beltran Leyva Cartel. During their activities Los Negros utilized such gangs as the Mexican Mafia and MS-13 to carry out murder and other illegal activities. Los Negros was known for recruiting members from Los Zetas. <br /><br /><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">Los Negros is lead by Edgar Valdez Villarreal. Los Negros and Los Zetas have had brutal feuds over the Nuevo Laredo, Tamaulipas region. That battle was over the regions important drug trafficking corridor as 40% of all Mexican exports, pass through this region via trucks en-route to the United States.</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br /></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">In the recent past the Cartels have utilized the enforcer gangs to assassinate local journalists who were critical of the drug trafficking groups. This was an attempt by the cartels to intimidate the media. </div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br /></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">The drug war spread to the tourist region of Acapulco. Five members of Los Zetas were caught while trying to kidnap Sinaloa Cartel members, they were taken to a safe house, beaten, videotaped and murdered in 2006. </div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><strong><u>Kaibiles</u></strong></div> <br /><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">Kaibiles originally were a special operations force of the Military of Guatemala. The specialized in jungle warfare and counter insurgency operations. </div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAgcVt_yThBPexEIrYwEmJbpTlBONWLt0yonwKeqEKilByX5fV1DGQZQHv-hkC4cofKmo-1rSuTcIP8nppOAdBDIpLo8OSITxFOpFUkUlW2fT4vHp-uBY5MeSQGKdJsR92Jqthw7VX_dLR/s1600/KaibilesCongoUN.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" nx="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAgcVt_yThBPexEIrYwEmJbpTlBONWLt0yonwKeqEKilByX5fV1DGQZQHv-hkC4cofKmo-1rSuTcIP8nppOAdBDIpLo8OSITxFOpFUkUlW2fT4vHp-uBY5MeSQGKdJsR92Jqthw7VX_dLR/s200/KaibilesCongoUN.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">Kaibiles derived their name from the name of their training center Kaibel Special Operations Training Center (<em>Centro de Adiestramiento y Operaciones Especiales Kaibil)</em> The name “Kaibil” was derived from Kayb’il B’alam<em> (Kaibil Balam),</em> a Mam indigenous leader who evaded capture by the Spanish conquistadors under Pedro de Alvarado.</div><br />In 1996 the President of Guatemala in an attempt to redirect their Kaibiles during peacetime operations, put them into the battle against Drugs. The actions of Kaibiles in the period from 1996 through April 1998 led the Roman Catholic Church to urge that the unit be disbanded because of numerous human rights violations.<br /><br />Most recently some former members of the Kaibiles in cooperation with MS-13 have formed a relationship with Los Zetas and now have close ties to the Gulf Cartel. <br /><br />Los Zetas has international ties to Italian Organized crime group <em>NDrangheta</em>. This organization is known for its trafficking of cocaine. This surely elevates the level of the Los Zetas to a narco-trafficking organization instead of solely an enforcer gang. <br /><br /><strong>Coming 11/8/2010 Part 3: The Failing of a State? </strong><br /><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"></div>

Mexican Drug Cartels Series: Part 2—Enforcer Gangs

The crime spree that is continuing to occur in Mexico is being fueled by enforcer gangs at the behest of the Mexican Drug Cartels. Historica...

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Mexican Drug Cartels: Part 1 of 5 Part Series

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiN0aKe0_AnQ07e7Z_oetHw7J32PiRmE08khuBKLYa48i4p5tzBCi5btV7ODEXgC1HWt6FkYOHQDiye7_rwPkBTm86uZeKHePZGSPDLFeJh-fU0Qgi9joZavksCrr2kJ-0hm1T18spXl_8B/s1600/mexamericanflagpart1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="135" nx="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiN0aKe0_AnQ07e7Z_oetHw7J32PiRmE08khuBKLYa48i4p5tzBCi5btV7ODEXgC1HWt6FkYOHQDiye7_rwPkBTm86uZeKHePZGSPDLFeJh-fU0Qgi9joZavksCrr2kJ-0hm1T18spXl_8B/s400/mexamericanflagpart1.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><strong><span style="color: yellow;">UPDATED 11/4/2010 - Thank you to one of our readers for pointing out some issues regarding the New Federation. We were working off of an old document. Much appreciated.</span></strong><br />Much has been talked about in the news over the last several months in regards to the Mexican Drug Cartels. What sits in most peoples minds is the astronomical murder rate that is attributed to these organizations, inside Mexico and her in the United States. <br /><br /><br /><div></div><br /><div>The Mexican Drug Cartels are broken down into 6 distinct groups, bound currently into two loose alliances. </div><u><strong>New Federation Alliance</strong></u><br /><ol><li><strong>Sinaloa Cartel</strong> has operations in 17 states, and is lead by Joaquin Guzman Loera “El Chapo”. This Cartel created the two enforcer gangs Negros and Pelonies in direct response to the Gulf Cartel’s Los Zetas.</li><li><strong>La Familia Michoacana Cartel</strong> - based in the state of Michoacan. the current leader of the Cartel is Nazario Moreno Gonzalez "The Craziest One". </li><li><strong>Gulf Cartel</strong> based in Tamaulipas has operations in 13 states. The leader Osiel Ordenas Guillien who is incarcerated is rumored to still control the Cartel. The Gulf Cartel used to use Los Zetas as an enforcement arm, but no longer do as Los Zetas have branched out into their own organization.</li></ol><strong><u> Rival Alliance</u></strong><br /><ol><li><strong>Juarez Cartel,</strong> , based in Chihuahua has operations in 21 states and is the Largest of all the Cartels.  </li><li><strong>Tijuana Cartel</strong>, based in Baja California is led by the Arellana Felix family and has operations in 15 states. This cartel is considered one of the strongest and deadliest.</li><li><strong>Los Zetas</strong>, now considered its own cartel, their paramilitary training and ruthlessness is beyond compare.</li><li><strong>Beltran Leyva Cartel</strong> - a organization founded by four brothers: Marcos Arturo, Carlos, Alfredo and Hector. Formerly allied with eh Sinaloa Cartel they are now allied with Los Zetas.</li></ol>Of particular interest is that these groups will work together in certain areas of Mexico and the United States and they have created an organization called the New Federation. The New Federation is made up of the Sinaloa, Gulf and La Familia Michoacana Cartels.<br /><br /><div></div>In direct response to the New Federation the Juarez, Tijuana, Los Zetas and Beltran Leyva have formed an alliance. <br /><br /><div></div>Although the Cartels have agreed to work together on specific things they remain independent organizations.<br /><br /><div></div>Mexico is a major drug producing and transit country and is the main foreign supplier of marijuana as well as a major supplier of methamphetamine to the United States. <br /><br /><div></div>Although the Mexican Cartels have existed for many years, they have become more powerful as the Medellin and Cali Cartels in Colombia began to fall apart. The Mexican Cartels realized the immense profits they could make by cutting out the Colombian cartels. <br /><br /><div></div>According to the National Drug Intelligence Center they now consider the Mexican drug cartels as dominating the U.S. illicit drug market. The Mexican drug cartels use well established overland transportation networks to transport cocaine, marijuana, methamphetamine and heroin to drug markets throughout the United States. <br /><br />Although the Colombians still control South American cocaine and heroin smuggling to the eastern United States their role has diminished rapidly as the Mexican Cartels expand.<br /><br /><br /><div></div>The DEA believes that the Mexican cartels now have command and control over the drug trade and are starting to show the hallmarks of organized crime, such as organizing into distinct cells with subordinate cells that operate throughout the U.S. Because the Mexican cartels dominate the U.S. illicit drug market they are the leading wholesale launderers of drug money from the U.S. <br /><br /><div></div>Mexican cartels produced methamphetamine and marijuana in the United States and have long grown marijuana in the U.S. often on federal land in California. Many of these operations are increasingly being found to have linked up running very large grow operations across the country. <br /><br /><br /><div></div>As they groups continue to expand they are found to be involved with prison and street gangs in the United States. This was in an effort to facilitate their drug trafficking as well as dominate wholesale drug distribution. In 2006 the National Drug Intelligence Center reported that gangs such as the Latin Kings and Mara Salvatrucha buy methamphetamine from Mexican drug cartels for distribution in the southwestern United Sates. The FBI says the Mexican cartels focus on the wholesale distribution, leaving retail sales of illicit drugs to the street gangs. They cartels also work with multiple gangs, not picking sides in the U.S. gang conflicts. <br /><br /><div></div>In addition to drug trafficking, the Mexican Cartels have connections to both human trafficking and arms trafficking as well as auto theft and kidnapping. The Mexican drug traffickers smuggle money back into Mexico in cars and trucks, likely due to the effectiveness of the U.S. efforts at monitoring electronic money transfers. <br /><br />The Mexican drug cartels are now operating in over 200 cities in the United States. Currently from January 2007 to the printing of this series there have been 9, 728 murders attributed to the Mexican Drug Cartel drug war.<br /><br /><div></div><strong>Coming 11/5/2010 NEXT: Part 2: The Enforcer Gangs</strong><br /><br /><div></div><br /><div><iframe align="left" frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=gateamerica&o=1&p=8&l=bpl&asins=6130055544&fc1=000000&IS2=1&lt1=_blank&m=amazon&lc1=0000FF&bc1=000000&bg1=FFFFFF&f=ifr" style="align: left; height: 245px; padding-right: 10px; padding-top: 5px; width: 131px;"></iframe></div>

Mexican Drug Cartels: Part 1 of 5 Part Series

UPDATED 11/4/2010 - Thank you to one of our readers for pointing out some issues regarding the New Federation. We were working off of an old...

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Dial A Rock Convictions - Nice Cooperative Effort

For those of you not familiar with the <a href="http://www.chicagobreakingnews.com/2010/09/4-plead-guilty-in-dial-a-rock-drug-ring-investigation.html">Dial A Rock arrests</a>, it all started off of a traffic arrest for no valid drivers license. It blossomed into a federal investigation with far reaching implications into the depth of an operation distributing cocaine in the northwest suburbs for over teen years. What is even more of interest is the possible ties to the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mexican_Drug_War">Mexican Drug Cartels</a>.  These organizations have infiltrated all over the United States into major cities, including Chicago, Atlanta, LA and Dallas. The new head of the Chicago DEA<a href="http://www.dailyherald.com/story/?id=410823"> Jack Riley</a> has made these organizations and their links to local street gangs his number one priority.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.chicagobreakingnews.com/2010/09/4-plead-guilty-in-dial-a-rock-drug-ring-investigation.html"><img border="0" height="104" px="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg03MTF8RVRVgJrbEH0MZ9CbSGz1jIjZUGRQqe50VktZCZK-kGtr367lgGtqRXS6Ws7ONBep7gnSvQLpPXn462ta4s0S6Sg8andj-CNtPLfCfRIswJ-Z8b_B2C0hc6LFFf3TR5rE_Plg7zs/s320/_DrugDeal612.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>Now if only Chiefs of Police, Police Administrators, Mayors and politicians would understand that the effects of gangs and the strong influence from the Mexican Drug Cartels have on their communities safety, As evidenced in the Dial-A-Rock Investigation then perhaps law enforcement can begin to reduce the influence. The War on Drugs is no longer a war, it is now an insurrection! Time will only tell.

Dial A Rock Convictions - Nice Cooperative Effort

For those of you not familiar with the Dial A Rock arrests , it all started off of a traffic arrest for no valid drivers license. It blossom...

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