If a debtor refused, Escobar deployed his team of lethal "sicarios.". The chief and 16 of his 25 men were questioned under suspicion of helping the Zetas abduct, kill, and bury the passengers. Photo by Yuri Cortez/AFP/Getty Images. Gradually, the BLO began to weaken in this battle of attrition, losing many members to jail or death. You can contact her at [emailprotected]. Based in the western state ofMichoacn, La Familia Michoacana is known for its history of violence as well as its quasi-religious trappings (via Insight Crime). The gunmen used a large hammer to break down the door before storming the house shooting indiscriminately at the women and children inside. Three of them are In June 2021, The Independent reportedinfighting between Gulf factions the Metros, the Scorpions and the Cyclonesresulted in 19 deaths, 15 of them innocent civilians. The gunmen injured 4 others in the attack. With nearly all of the bodies lacking identification, authorities transported them to the Matamoros morgue for family members to hopefully identify. The Most Dangerous Cartels To Ever Exist - Grunge.com It is disheartening to hear that the founding fathers of a criminal organization like Los Zetas received training from US military officers. A former Mexican drug cartel kingpin who dismembered a six-year-old girl with an axe in front of her parents has been sentenced to seven consecutive life terms in a US prison. Los Zetas is indeed the worst Mexican drug cartel in history. The defendant in this case is Mariano Millan-Vasquez, known to everyone as "Chano." He has been in detention since his arrest in Texas in 2015. Groups like Los Zetas have also been known to operate abroad, buying raw materials from Argentina and operating in Asian countries like Malaysia. The LA Times found that from January 1988 to November 1991, drug traffickers killed up to 219 people in this area, disposing of their bodies in rivers. The Los Zetas cartel gunmen even executed the family dog. The 34-year-old, known as "Chano", was a regional boss in the Mexican border town of Piedras Negras. Millan-Vasquez was found guilty last July of murder, violence, drug and weapons trafficking, and employing minors in a drug crime a total of 10 counts. In August 2010, the gang massacred 72 kidnapped migrants at a remote ranch in Northeastern Mexico after they refused to pay a ransom for their release or take jobs as hit men. You can chip in for as little as 99 cents a month. Favors were done under threat of death, while higher-ranking officials were paid off. To make matters worse, the gang is also into migrant smuggling. Los Zetas Mostly Central American immigrants, they were traversing the state of Tamaulipas to cross into Texas. Besides drug smuggling, the cartel is involved in every facet of trade in its territory including human trafficking. WebLos Zetas have also carried out multiple massacres and attacks on civilians and rival cartels, such as: the 2010 San Fernando massacre (24 August), where 72 migrants were found Sadism was their brand. Melissa is a 2016-17 Lannan Fellow at The Investigative Fund at The Nation Institute. Some had been killed by sledgehammer. Their vicious feud affects ordinary people, too, such as Juan Manuel Delgado Crdenas, a 23-year-old student who was murdered for refusing to cook synthetic drugs (via Mexico News Daily). Captured: Sept. 26, 2012 Known for his brutality, one technique he allegedly favored was the guiso, or stew, in which enemies would be placed in 55-gallon drums and burned alive. Mainly, Grayson notes a Zetalisation starting to occur among the other cartels. Drug cartels influencing politics paints a picture of total disaster. Multiple witnesses have testified that Millan-Vasquez controlled the region of Piedras Negras for Los Zetas and is responsible for hundreds of killings and disappearances. In 2017, the Mexican government extradited Joaqun "El Chapo" Guzmn, a The heartless drug lord is claimed to have personally killed 2,000 people, in addition to ordering and supervising thousands of other murders. If you support this mission, we need your help. The huge blaze broke out overnight at the port of Ancona. He created a company, Tremor Enterprises, to purchase racehorses for American contests, winning millions in prize money through fixing races and doping horses. There have been several arrests of purported Zeta members in the region but no trials. Top 10 Disturbing Facts About Los Zetas - Listverse Locals also reported of the many corpses found in the Cauca River, which runs through Cali. Months after the casino attack, 49 decapitated bodies were dumped on a Monterrey highway (via Insight Crime/The World). Los Zetas is a Mexican drug cartel known for its sophisticated crime machine and brutality. Rogue policemen are believed to have played a role in the deaths of 193 people, whose bodies were found in hidden graves in San Fernando in 2011, and 49 in Cadereyta in the state of Nuevo Leon in 2012. Thank you. No one charges under $2,000 these days to get into the United States and [the Zetas] get $400 to $500 for each migrant smuggled through their territory, he says. 330 76 comments Best Add a Comment ComfortableSoup5 2 yr. ago Tamaulipas Lieutenant Governor Morelos Jaime Canseco Gmez admitted police were still looking for another bus of passengers. Killed: Oct. 7, 2012 Former Los Zetas worker: I was forced to witness brutal killings 2011 San Fernando massacre The cartel member he spoke with was Jose Luis Rodriguez. In 2006, severalLa Familia hit men, who said they had a "divine right" to kill, dumped five severed heads on a dance floor, yet this didn't alienate them in the public eye (via Insider/Insight Crime). The handful of passengers lucky enough to be rescued confirmed their captors intended to recruit them. Los Zetas Inside The Brutal 1955 Murder Of 14-Year-Old Emmett Till That Galvanized The Civil Rights Movement, 101-Year-Old Woman Who Began Trapping Lobster Before The Great Depression Has No Plans To Retire, What Stephen Hawking Thinks Threatens Humankind The Most, 27 Raw Images Of When Punk Ruled New York, Join The All That's Interesting Weekly Dispatch, Following the 2011 San Fernando Massacre, Federal Highway 101 was colloquially dubbed the highway of death or the devils road.. Cartels have dominated the international drugs trade since the 1980s, earning many billions of dollars and killing tens of thousands of people in Mexico and Colombia alone (via Al Jazeera and Britannica). Los Zetas is the largest drug cartel in Mexico in terms of scale of operations. However, despite their swift and brutal success, Insight Crime reports that Los Zetas has experienced fragmentation since 2012, especially when the Trevino brothers fell out and split the group into rival clans,the Northeast Cartel and the Zetas Old School. This radio communication technology has given them a edge over Mexican law enforcement agencies for years. Melissa del Bosque joined the Texas Observer staff in 2008. The U.S. State Department issued warnings not to travel to or within Tamaulipas, as a result. De Leon said that during his captivity, he witnessed Zetas commanders dismember people while they were still alive and throw the body parts into a flaming barrel. Imagine how tragic it would be for such a respected and honored organization to become an evil one like Los Zetas. He was recruited to Los Zetas, where he rose to commander. Los Zetas are blamed for last week's brutal killings of the police chief in the southern Mexican city of Veracruz, his wife and four children. https://www.pbs.org/newshour/world/sadist-los-zetas-cartel-set-brutal-standard-in-drug-war, according to this graphic by the National Post, Mexican Marines Kill Drug Lord Known as The Executioner. 1996 - 2023 NewsHour Productions LLC. De Leon said that he didn't voluntarily start working with the cartel; he was kidnapped and forced to participate. More terrifying is their ease of operations in countries like the US. Marciano Millan-Vasquez, who was a member of the 'Los Zetas' organised crime gang, "brutally murdered anyone and everyone as it suited him and his cartel", the prosecuting lawyer said. Traditionally, Mexican cartels like Los Zetas only grew and manufactured drugs in Mexican territory and other less advanced countries where government officials were collaborators or incapable of disrupting their operations. On July 12, 2012, authorities seized over 50 kilograms of marijuana at the Del Rio port of entry. However, despite its success in cocaine and methamphetamine, La Familia Michoacana's power was curtailed by yet another splinter group, The Knights Templar. Families across Mexico reported that relatives had disappeared after boarding passenger buses bound for the Texas-Mexico border. Los Zetas was formed in 1997 to serve as enforcers for the Gulf Cartel. In 2018, analystParker Asmann dubbed the Sinaloa Cartel "Mexico's top crime group," despite El Chapo's arrest, trial and eventual detention in the United States. The Times wrote how Escobar had always dreamed of being the President of Colombia, and this ambition showed in his twisted flair for governance. Victims were piled on top of one another haphazardly before the cartel used a backhoe to cover up their resting place. Initially formed by about 30 former members of an elite Mexican army unit, the gang used fear and intimidation to conduct business in defiance of government operations. Most are extorted and let go or sold into prostitution. Several other executions and attacks during the weekend brought the total number of casualties to 19 and close to 24 wounded by gunfire. Inside The Brutal 2011 San Fernando Massacre That Left 193 Dead Alliances were formed on both sides, with the BLO allying with Los Zetas and the Sinaloa cartel working with the Gulf and Familia Michoacana cartels (via Insight Crime). WebFrom March 24 to March 29, 2011, the Los Zetas drug cartel viciously slaughtered nearly 200 Central American migrants in Tamaulipas, Mexico. Violent drug gangs are waging a bloody war in the tourist haven of Quintana Roo - visited by millions of British and American holidaymakers each year. There is a popular consensus that Los Zetas is the most brutal and inhuman drug cartel in history. Prosecutors will not seek the death penalty. Their wanton murders leave most civilians in silence. Ronaldo Schemidt/AFP/Getty ImagesSan Fernando woman Alma Miriam Ruiz holding a photo of her daughter Dalia missing since 2010. People began to disappear, said San Fernando priest Ramon Ruiz. Among the first deaths in the conflict was Edgar Guzman, El Chapo's son. Earlier in life, he was trained in a Mexican Special Forces unit to fight drug-trafficking organizations. Its origins are traced toEl Milenio, a group that was allied to the Tijuana cartel. The witness said that the commanders kidnapped him and his two superiors until they paid what they owed for the seized load of marijuana. Based in northwest Mexico's Sinaloa state, the Sinaloa Cartel is widely considered to be the most powerful drug trafficking organization in the Western Hemisphere, according to Insight Crime. You name it, the Zetas did it.. Millan-Vasquez was found guilty last July of murder, violence, drug and weapons trafficking, and employing minors in a drug crime a total of 10 counts. Drug lord Miguel Angel Z-40 Trevino Morales was arrested early in the morning Monday on a country dirt road after a Mexican Marine helicopter intercepted the pickup truck he was riding in. Subscribe to Here's the Deal, our politics newsletter. But Los Zetas stands out. Miguel Angel Trevino Morales (aka Comandante 40) Cartel leader who dismembered six-year-old girl Their operations in Colombia and Guatemala can be taken for granted because these countries have homegrown drug cartel problems of their own. They were believed to have been killed for refusing to pay a ransom or join the Partners must notify. All rights reserved. The Mexican military has been trying unsuccessfully for years to dismantle an extensive network of radio antennas built and operated by the Los Zetas drug cartel. When it was With the suspects revealing what they had done, excavations began. Do you think free access to journalism like this is important? // The Most Brutal Execution Methods Used by Mexican Cartels Want to bookmark your favourite articles and stories to read or reference later? Abstract. In August 2010, Zetas executed 72 migrants in Tamaulipas, which was followed by 2011 attacks in San Fernando and a Monterrey casino, killing a combined 245 people. Reyna discovered that his son's co-worker and girlfriend were also missing. Among these provincial traders and smugglers wasJoaqun Guzmn Loera, better known as "El Chapo.". The winners got to become Zetas recruits, while the losers got death. Some believe the victims were simply killed for refusing to join the cartel but, ultimately, San Fernando had become so violent that few journalists ever entered to investigate. Rather than prioritizing corruption like its competitors, Los Zetas has preferred to use paramilitary violence to seize territory and intimidate rivals, according toInsight Crime. Then, in December 2009, Arturo Beltrn Leyva was killed by Mexican marines. The rest of the video is a gruesome 40 seconds of cold-blooded murder, which caused international controversy recently when it was posted on Facebook. We rely on the generosity of our readers who believe that this work is important. Perhaps the most heinous La Linea crime occurred in Bavispe, where the group attacked a Mormon family inNovember 2019, killing nine people including several children, according to ABC. He claimed that he was blindfolded, handcuffed, driven to random locations around Piedras Negras, stripped of the blindfold, and forced to kneel and watch these brutal murders. Media speculation on the motives for the kidnappings range from the cartels need for new recruits to fight its turf battles to the notion that passengers are being extorted for money. On Tuesday, Rodriguez testified about a bloody massacre involving more than 300 people. The Juarez cartel's expansionist ambitions have been quelled in recent years, but they retain a strong grasp on their part of the US-Mexico border, which should maintain their threat to the region for some time. "They did this so I would tell my family if they didn't obtain the money, this would happen to them," he said in court. Founded by the Orejuela brothers, the Cali cartel earned billions a year, inheriting the Medellin cartel's 80% market share and multi-ton shipments to the United States (via Seattle Times/Insider). Her work has been featured in various national and international media outlets, including the Guardian, PBS, NPR and Marie Claire. While police arrested 76 suspects, including senior Los Zeta member Martin El Kilo Estrada, there was no victory there. In the past year, gunmen from Los Zetas Cartel performed unique retaliatory killings in response to their allys videotaped sexual assault behind bars. Lazcano was the leader of the Los Zetas cartel. WebLos Zetas are blamed for last week's brutal killings of the police chief in the southern Mexican city of Veracruz, his wife and four children. WebOn behalf of Los Zetas." Photos, illustrations and other art may be available for syndication but must be confirmed. Inside Mexicos brutal drug cartels - The Sun He said that cartel members kidnapped him again and held him captive for 13 days until he found the money. WebMultiple witnesses have testified that Millan-Vasquez controlled the region of Piedras Negras for Los Zetas and is responsible for hundreds of killings and disappearances. SAN ANTONIO, Texas - In San Antonio today, a federal judge sentenced 34-year-old Marciano Millan Vasquez, a high ranking member and a former sicario for the Los Zetas drug cartel, to seven consecutive life imprisonment sentences for committing and aiding and abetting the commission of numerous murders and other acts of violence, They immediately went to war with the Los Zetas and proudly claimed responsibility for a swathe of mass killings, including the massacre of 15 Mexican cops in a single ambush. The fledgling cartel were trained by members of Los Zetas, yet they would turn on their mentors because of local resentment to Zetas' methamphetamine business. This is a unique and distressing fact about the deadly gang. All Rights Reserved. Facebook beheading video: Who was Mexico's Jane Doe? Los Zetas is a powerful Mexican drug cartel that has made special use of fear to achieve its business goals. Aside from manufacturing illegal drugs and trafficking them, the gang is also into kidnapping and extortion. In this ghastly murder, the CDN faction appears to have struck first murdering the relatives of a state police officer and a farmers union leader. De Leon said that his mother sold her house for $20,000 to help him, and that the Zetas let him loose with the stipulation that he must pay $100,000 more in one week. If the lawmakers are puppets to drug cartels, then there is very little hope that the war against the cartels will be won. Former Zetas members testified Tuesday, claiming the cartel is responsible for a bloody massacre in Piedras Negras in 2011. After the group's 1985 murder of DEA agentEnrique Camarena, the US and Mexico closed in on the cartel, causing several leaders to disperse across Mexico, leaving El Chapo and his partnerHctor Luis Palma Salazar as the Sinaloa chiefs. Start your Independent Premium subscription today. [3] By the end of 2011, Los Zetas had eclipsed the Sinaloa Cartel as the largest operating in Mexico by virtue of their geographic presence. ", The Gulf cartel's control in the northeast state of Tamaulipas has seen many violent incidents, both against rivals and each other. On Aug. 24, 2010, however, Mexican Armed Forces unearthed the bodies of 72 undocumented immigrants who were simply executed. During the late '70s and 1980s, the Sinaloa Cartel worked with the Medellin cartel, establishing lucrative cocaine routes to the United States that spanned land, sea and air. Most harrowing of all was the forensic evidence. They were given map reading courses, communications, and standard Special Forces training and instruction on how to use light and heavy weapons, machine guns, and several other automatic weapons. BBC News Los Zetas' Brutal Business Model However, despite the logistical sophistication and the massive financial success, the history of cartels is fraught with betrayal, splinter groups, and brutally shortened lives. Jesus Gonzalez/AFP/Getty ImagesFollowing the 2011 San Fernando Massacre, Federal Highway 101 was colloquially dubbed the highway of death or the devils road.. Jair Cabrera/NurPhoto/Getty ImagesTributes to the 2011 San Fernando Massacre. She was known for being the crazy white one. The find is indicative of cartel operations in Texas and the United States as a whole. With countless reports emerging of mayors and cops across Mexico collaborating with the cartels, it appears tragically unsurprising that many who knew the truth were either put into hiding or killed to keep them quiet. How could such a tragedy occur in San Fernando not once but repeatedly? Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies. An armored police vehicle carrying Los Zetas member dgar Huerta Montiel in June 2011. Originally a security detail for the Sinaloa cartel, BLO seceded in 2008 and a fierce conflict ensued. From the mid-1980s to his death in 1993, Pablo Escobar was the "King of Cocaine," earning an estimated $420 million a week, according to Insider. It was one of the deadliest attacks ever on Mexican They robbed stores, they broke into an auto repair shop and stole cell phones and several vehicles, all with the goal of spreading terror.". By the early 1990s, Medellin was the most violent city not just in Colombia but the entire world, and much of that was because of the Medellin cartel's war with the government (via Rapid Transition). The rest of the video is a gruesome 40 seconds of cold-blooded murder, which caused international controversy recently when it was posted on Facebook. And these lives are often innocent civilians caught up in the dreadful violence and corruption, such as the shootout in Tulum, which killed two tourists and injured three more, according toThe Guardian. In the end, the legacy of the 2011 San Fernando Massacre is one of blood money, corruption, and wanton murder. The gang often kidnaps and holds poor migrants who try to operate outside the system for ransom. Terrazas said the most corrupt was an elderly police officer and another named scar Jaramillo, who receive money from the organization to collaborate. Most troubling, however, is that The National Security Archive examining this memo stated that all 17 detained police officers had vanished from the public eye. With that grim context in mind, here are the most dangerous cartels to ever exist. Yarrington is reported to have allowed the Gulf and Los Zetas cartels to operate in his state without hindrance in return for bribes. Inside bloody world of Cancuns cartel wars as gangsters behead These are the top ten distressing facts about Los Zetas you dont want to know. Please notify us by email that the article will be republished at, Abbott Wants to Deny Undocumented Kids a Public Education, Border Security Is a Financial Black Hole that Will Consume Us All, Two Executions, Many Questions about Mental Health, Innocence, Remembering a Social Justice Lawyer Extraordinaire. Similarly, the U.S. Department of Justicedefines cartels as, "large, highly sophisticated organizations composed of multiple drug trafficking organizations (DTOs)and cells with specific assignments such as drug transportation, security/enforcement, or money laundering.". It is practically impossible to list all the atrocities that this extremely violent group has committed. One former member of the cartel told the court Millan-Vasquez had taken part in a 2011 massacre in which up to 300 people were allegedly kidnapped, with many never seen again. He was told to contact someone in Los Zetas to see if they had information. WebIn August 2011, armed men affiliated with the Zetas cartel set fire to a casino in the Mexican city of Monterrey, killing 52 people. The first one they asked, he didn't want to work, and [cartel members] said, that's fine. He turned around, and they shot him in the head. The Gulf cartel is among the oldest cartels in Mexico and has held varying degrees of power since its origins in 1984, according toInsightCrime. They recovered deleted material, which included death threats from the defendant and information regarding Zetas operations. On March 13, 2013, De Leon and his father were apprehended by Border Patrol agents about three miles from the border near Comstock, TX. [CDATA[ Los Zetas control a wide swathe of territory ranging from the Texas border to Guatemala. What should we expect from a heartless criminal organization put together by ex-military men? In August 2010, the gang massacred 72 kidnapped migrants at a remote ranch in Cartel: Los Zetas Then, learn about the Mexican boys forced to eat human flesh as a cartel initiation. Moreover, the extremely violent gang has made connections and collaborated with U.S. gangs all over the country since 2010. Captured: July 15, 2013 It was the second time in eight months that the town of 57,000 in the border state of Tamaulipas had been the site of mass graves. The cartel's influence has declined like many of its fragmenting peers, but their power remains strong inCiudad Jurez and the Valle de Jurez, which are key trafficking locations.
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