Mexican federal police and military units arrested Juan Manuel Álvarez Inzunza, aka “King Midas,” the alleged top money-launderer for the Sinaloa cartel of Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán, on Sunday in the southern Mexican state of Oaxaca. Álvarez Inzunza, who was on vacation in Oaxaca when he was captured without violence, was arrested on a provisional extradition…
Category: Drugs
Cartel Corner #69: Mini-Sub Caught Carrying 5.5 Tons of Cocaine
A mini-submarine carrying $200 million worth of cocaine was intercepted by authorities in the ‘Eastern Pacific Ocean’. Officials said they intercepted the semi-submersible vessel attempting to bring 12,800 pounds or 5.5 tons of cocaine into the US. The cocaine was on a mini-sub called a narco-submarine, vessels made of fiberglass that are extremely hard to detect using…
Modern Crime: The Case of the Gucci Heels and 66 Pounds of Cocaine
A flight attendant ditched her designer heels and fled the Los Angeles International Airport on Friday night, leaving behind two bags stuffed with 66 pounds of cocaine and many questions about her apparent role in a large-scale drug smuggling operation. The flight attendant, who has not been publicly identified, was still on the lam as…
Cartel Corner #68 : “Narconomics”
How The Drug Cartels Operate Like Wal-Mart And McDonald’s When Tom Wainwright became the Mexico correspondent for The Economist in 2010, he found himself covering the country’s biggest businesses, including the tequila trade, the oil industry and the commerce of illegal drugs. “I found that one week I’d be writing about the car business, and…
Cartel Corner #66: Drug Cartels Are Taking over the Mexican Tortilla Biz
Samuel ran down the steep dirt track lined with blue and pink houses desperate to escape. The 20-year-old took long strides and ran from one side to the other in a zigzag. He begged for someone to open the door of a house so he could hide, but nobody did. That mid-morning, the poor and…
Cartel Corner #65: Cartel Firefight Near TX Border Kills 10
REYNOSA, Tamaulipas — The residents of this border city had a rude awakening as cartel gunmen and authorities clashed in a fierce gun battles for more than three hours that left at least 10 dead. Rumors among residents point to the capture of a commander within the Gulf Cartel. The violence began shortly after 5:17…
Border Security: The Legacy of Pancho Villa’s Raid on America
Ever since “Black Jack” Pershing rode into Mexico to hunt for Pancho Villa, the United States started a pattern of personalizing Latin American security threats. In the words of one U.S. cavalry officer, Columbus, New Mexico in 1916 was little more than “a cluster of adobe houses, a hotel, a few stores and streets knee…
Cartel Corner #63: Peru Is Turning Into A Top Narco-State
Peru has long vied with Colombia as the world’s top producer of cocaine, but has only periodically produced high profile drug lords. Gerson Gálvez Calle — alias “Caracol” or Snail — is one of these. Caracol sprung to the nation’s attention late last year after news emerged that he was heading Peru’s largest and most violent…
Border Security Report: Mexican Meth on the Rise
A new report suggests Mexico‘s role in the production and trafficking of methamphetamine to the United States continues to grow, a reflection of how criminal groups throughout Latin America are diversifying their criminal portfolios to respond to market demands. According to a report (pdf) by the International Narcotics Control Board (INCB), an independent body tasked…
Cartel Corner #59: El Chapo Hates Mexican Prison So Much He Wants to Be Extradited
Or is it ole’ Sneaky El Chapo just wants the chance for a paid group of serious pipe hitters to break him out during the transfer? Hmmmm, Enquiring Minds want to know.-SF At the same time, the drug lord’s wife has warned the Mexican authorities that they will live to regret her husband’s extradition because of…