[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. But increased cartel violence over the past 10 to 15 years has frightened away much of that business. The war expenses and diminished income amid the pandemic are pushing gunmen into crimes of opportunity which directly impact innocent locals. Copyright 2023 CBS Interactive Inc. All rights reserved. Stealing oil from PEMEX and selling it illegally has been one of the many funding activities of the Gulf Cartel. 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. [243] The authorities mentioned that the incident is "under investigation", but did not give further information. [289], Protection racketeering [259] In June 2011, the state government of Tamaulipas requested the federal government to send in troops to combat the drug cartels in the area, to "consolidate actions on public safety" and "strengthen the capacity of their institutions. [323], 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. [337][338][339] Nonetheless, there are indeed circles within the Gulf Cartel that coordinate the arms trafficking routes inside Mexico. Organized crime groups opt for protection racketeering in an effort to control markets and "maintaining internal order. [211], On 10 November 2014, a document from the Mexican government was released to the media and claimed that Los Rojos faction of the Gulf Cartel was planning to ally with Los Zetas. Learning that El Cacho had survived, the Gulf Cartel ordered a second attack inside the clinic. [17], By the 1980s, Garca brego began incorporating cocaine into the drug trafficking operations and started to have the upper hand on what was now considered the Gulf Cartel, the greatest criminal dynasty in the US-Mexico border. [248] The federal government "strongly condemned" the prison breaks and said that the work by the state and municipal authorities of Tamaulipas "lack effective control measures" and urged them to strengthen their institutions. On the southern . They pointedly noted that they had carried out executions and kidnappings under orders of the Gulf Cartel when they served as their enforcers, and they were created by them for that sole purpose. October 25, 2021. A videoposted on Twitteron Friday appears to show the moment the Americans were kidnapped, CBS News correspondent Christina Ruffini reports. Gunmen burst into the clinic and shot everyone inside, killing 7 innocent people. [105] The standoff the two agents had with the drug lord in 1999 in the city of Matamoros, Tamaulipas led for the U.S. to indict Crdenas and pressure the Mexican government to capture him. The main areas of demand and drug consumption are in Eastern Europe, the successor states of the Soviet Union. [219] Back in the days of the 71-year rule of the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI), it was believed that they ran exactly that show: if the drug cartels got off the line, the Mexican government would conduct some arrests, make some disappearances, and the drug lords would get their people straight and back on the line again. According to El Universal, there are several music videos on YouTube that exalt the power of this armed group through narcocorridos. By Chivis 9/25/2020 11:56:00 AM 73 comments. The consulate in Matamoros has posted at least four security alerts since February 2020, warning of drug cartel violence, crime, kidnappings and clashes involving armed groups. In the most recent manifestation of this newfound attention, Mexican and United States authorities have taken steps against the Scorpions, a splinter group of the Gulf Cartel (Cartel del Golfo - CDG), blamed for kidnapping and murdering two US citizens and a Mexican woman on March 3 in Matamoros. "[233] Luebbert Gutirrez later recognized the work of the federal troops and acknowledged that his city was experiencing "an escalation in violence. [72] This gang was controlled by Dionisio Romn Garca Snchez alias El Chacho, who had decided to betray the Gulf Cartel and switch his alliance with the Tijuana Cartel; however, he was eventually killed by Los Zetas. [28] He was quickly extradited to the United States where he stood trial eight months after his arrest. [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. [317] Many of the extortions are first carried out on the phone. The area that Meja Gonzlez wanted was given to Samuel Flores Borrego, suggesting that the Metros were above the Rojos. 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. [34], Upon his capture outside the city of Monterrey, Nuevo Len, the drug lord was flown to Mexico City where U.S. federal agent took him on a private plane to Houston, Texas. In 2010, authorities discovered the bodies of 72 migrants from Central America who had been killed by the Zetas, a ruthless group that broke from the Gulf drug cartel in the mid-2000s. "[234], On 5 June 2016, citizens from Tamaulipas elected a governor from the opposition party, Fransico Javier Garcia Cabeza de Vaca member of Accion Nacional (National Action). Before the standoff, he was regarded as a minor player in the international drug trade, but this incident catapulted his reputation and made him one of the most-wanted criminals. [268] After a dispute, however, Crdenas ordered Arellano beaten, and the Gulf-Tijuana alliance ceased to exist at that point. The amount of fentanyl seized by Mexican authorities nearly quintupled between 2019 and 2020. . [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. Mexican President Andrs Manuel Lpez Obrador said that one person was in custody in connection with the abduction, the Associated Press reported. [214] The massacre of the 72 migrants and the clandestine mass graves with more than 250 bodies in San Fernando, Tamaulipas,[215][216] mounted with the assassination of the governor candidate Rodolfo Torre Cant (2010),[217] the increasing violence generated between drug groups, and the state's inability to ensure tranquility, has led specialists to conclude that "neither the regional nor federal government have control over the territory of Tamaulipas. Matamoros synonyms, Matamoros pronunciation, Matamoros translation, English dictionary definition of Matamoros. [181], InSight Crime explains that the fundamental disagreement between the Rojos and the Metros was over leadership. 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. [332] Bars and casinos are often the hubs for money laundering of the drug cartels. [133] However, Antonio died in an eight-hour shooting with the Mexican government forces on 5 November 2010, in the border city of Matamoros, Tamaulipas. Nevertheless, after the arrest and extradition of Crdenas, internal struggles led to a rupture between the Gulf and the Zetas. [201] The war then spread out through 11 municipalities of Tamaulipas, 9 of them bordering the state of Texas. [88] He was one of the FBI Ten Most Wanted Fugitives, which was offering $2million for his capture. 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. On March 3, theU.S. Consulate issued an alertabout violence in Matamoros and local authorities warned people to shelter in place. [95] And while his brother Antonio Crdenas Guilln led the Gulf Cartel, Crdenas still made vital orders from La Palma through messages from his lawyers and guards. The photos seem to match the video posted online, which was taken from another angle. said that she warned police when the group didn't return on schedule. [265] The federal government is also constructing three military bases in Tamaulipas: in Ciudad Mier, San Fernando and Ciudad Mante. [360], In May 2013, Aurelio Cano Flores (alias El Yankee) was sentenced to 35 years in prison for conspiring to import multi-ton quantities of marijuana and cocaine into the United States. At first, estimates mentioned that 148 inmates had escaped, but later counts gave the exact figures. For the most part, the arms trafficking circles of the Gulf Cartel operate directly across the border in the United States, just like most of the criminal groups in Mexico. A separate state security official said that five men had been found tied up inside one of the vehicles that authorities had been searching for, along with the letter. "[256] They also reported that in Aguascalientes, a state where violence levels are much lower, policemen are paid five times more than in Tamaulipas. [342], Prostitution network Garca brego was convicted for 22 counts of money laundering, drug possession and drug trafficking. [269], The Sinaloa-Juarez alliance ceased to exist as well due to an unpaid debt in 2007, and now the Sinaloa and Juarez Cartel are at war against each other. On 18 August 2013, Gulf Cartel leader Mario Ramirez Trevino was captured. Crdenas Guilln eventually let them go and threatened to kill them if they ever returned to his home turf. In 1989 Claude was removed from the case for unknown reasons, retiring a year later. [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. The Mexican criminal organizations like the Gulf Cartel launder money through counterfeiting, since they are free from taxes and more accessible to people who cannot buy original products. [334] Bank accounts inside the United States also launder millions of dollars for the drug lords of the Gulf Cartel. 2425. Meaning of Matamoros. [329] One leader of the Gulf Cartel confessed after his apprehension that "drug trafficking is their main business, but due to the difficulties they have been encountering, oil theft has been an important financial cushion" for the cartel. [325] The Gulf Cartel also bribes journalists to persuade them not to mention any violent incidents in the media. [138], The confrontations started around 10:00am, and extended to 06:00pm, around the time Crdenas Guiln was killed. It was reported that after the fallout, Crdenas ordered Los Zetas to Baja California to wipe out the Tijuana Cartel. MATAMOROS, Tamaulipas - A police raid targeting a narco-ranch led to protests and mass blockades this week. [151][152][153][154][155] Although not confirmed, KVEO-TV, several online sources and witnesses, along with one law enforcement officer who preferred to keep his name anonymous, mentioned that more than 100 people died that day in Matamoros. [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. The U.S. State Department's travel advisory for Tamaulipas state warns U.S. citizens not to travel there. [32], Garca brego's arrest was even subject to allegations of corruption. [225] PRI's main opposition party, the PAN, claimed that government elections in Tamaulipas are likely to encounter an "organized crime influence. [220] After the PRI lost the presidency in 2000 to the National Action Party (PAN), the arrangement between the government and the cartels was lost, as well the pax mafiosa. officials. Washington McGee, Eric Williams, Shaeed Woodard and Zindell Brown were kidnapped on March 3 as they were driving to a medical appointment in Matamoros, Mexico. [141] The street confrontations generated a wave of panic among the population and caused the publication and broadcast of messages through social networks like Twitter and Facebook, reporting the clashes between authorities and the cartel members. [194] In 2009, the Gulf organization concluded that expanding their market opportunities in Europe, combined with the euro strength against the U.S. dollar, justified establishing an extensive network in that continent. 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. [207] Several witnesses claimed that many of the municipalities throughout Tamaulipas were "war zones", and that many businesses and houses were burned down, leaving areas in "total destruction". Antonio Crdenas Guilln, Jorge Eduardo Costilla Snchez, Heriberto Lazcano Lazcano and 15 of their top lieutenants, have been charged in U.S. federal courts with drug trafficking-related crimes,[360][361] while the U.S. State Department announced rewards totaling US$50million for information leading to their capture. [70] Between 2001 and 2008, the organization of the Gulf Cartel and Los Zetas was collectively known as La Compaa (The Company). [81] Los Zetas began to grow independently from the Gulf Cartel, and eventually a rupture occurred between them in early 2010. Mexican Natioanla Guard prepare a search mission for four U . / CBS/AP. In the video, one woman is forced by men armed with guns to climb into the bed of a white pickup truck. During a news briefing on Tuesday, State Department spokesperson Ned Price confirmed that the two survivors from the attack had been returned to the U.S. The state of Tamaulipas is the stronghold of the Gulf Cartel, one of the oldest and most powerful of Mexico's criminal groups. [39] Hours after the judge told Garca brego that he was going to spend the rest of his life in prison, the death penalty was out of the question for the prosecutors. It is the first time in 87 years, a governor from the opposition wins in the state. [343] Prostitutes are also used as informants and spies, and provide their sexual favors to extract information from certain targets. [230] In addition, La Jornada mentions that the Gulf Cartel owns "all of Matamoros", where they act as the State itself and conduct all forms of criminal activities. But the cartel has lost territory and influence in recent years to its rivals, according to the think tank InSight Crime. (Hector Vivas/Getty Images) The recent armed attack on four U.S. citizens in the Mexican border city of Matamoros, Tamaulipas state, illustrated well-documented security risks in Mexico's many crime hotspots, where gang and cartel violence disrupts daily life and hinders business operations. But on 24 February 2010, hundreds of trucks marked with C.D.G, XXX, and M3 (the insignias of the Gulf Cartel) began to hit the streets of northern Tamaulipas. What does Matamoros mean? By constructing a tunnel, the cartel can get their product across the tight border security with the possibility of no detection. [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. [178] Crdenas Vela had held a grudge on Flores Borrego and the Metros because he believed that they had led the Mexican military to track down and kill his uncle Antonio Crdenas Guilln on 5 November 2010. For years, a night out in Matamoros was also part of the "two-nation vacation" for spring breakers flocking to Texas' South Padre Island. 1:57. [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.

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