His chances of surviving the amped up gunmen who are intent on killing him are slim at best. The strategy: Make it illegal for any U.S. citizen or company to spend money at a cartel-affiliated business. Investigators uncovered three main pieces of the puzzle that revealed a snapshot of how this drug ring thrived. Selling drugs in bulk to local traffickers, who then sold to area dealers. ", "Thats kind of hard to believe, but its true.". "And it is a football (soccer) player of a narco.". "And that his uncle had manipulated him and used him and his cousin. Market data provided by Factset. Provided by McCracken County Sheriff's Department. The Courier Journal's investigation into CJNG's surge comes during a recent wave of significantviolence among warring drug cartels in Mexico. In addition, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) has a $10 million bounty on El Mencho's head, given that his rule and his rapid rise to power also bears a devastating impact across the U.S. "While the distribution in U.S. markets is principally through affiliated gangs and proxy groups, the CJNG is thusindirectly responsible for the production of illicit drugs that kill thousands of Americans," Ellis said. "You ask almost any young boy in Jalisco what they want to be when they grow up," one former intel officer, now based in Mexico City, lamented. He handed the bag to Noe Antonio Machado-Medrano, then age 23. Tipped off that a police caravan was on its way to grab El Mencho, CJNGhitmen hidalong the route in April 2015 and ambushed fourpolice vehicles. A video allegedly showing El Cholo surrounded by CJNG captors was uploaded ahead of the mutilated body's discovery Credit: YouTube. John Walker in uniform (left), and Walker in his undercover look (right). Next steps crucial, experts say. And though few Americans know his name, authorities promise they soon will. There's a serious danger. In disturbing footage, thugs smash a man's face into a truck before kicking and punching him on the floor. In the past, student filmmakers have been kidnapped and tortured to death, journalists frequently killed before they can even begin to probe a likely CJNG crime, dozens of lawmakers and judges have been butchered and death threats have haunted scores of Mexican officials. Those who tried to run were tortured, killed and sometimescannibalizedby fellow recruits in what U.S. federal agents describe as a disturbing riteof passage. Using others to deposit drug profitsin cartel-controlled bankaccounts. He briefly worked as a police officer in Tomatln, a small town in Jalisco, learningthe inner workings of law enforcement,said DEA Special Agent Kyle Mori, who is heading the U.S. criminal investigationagainstEl Mencho fromLos Angeles. ", More:Ignoring cartel danger, Mexican families scour wilderness for missing loved ones' remains. "If you provide information to the Mexican government, its probably the last thing you would say.". "I know Im not that person," he said, refusing to elaborate. Walker realized he wasn't the only one watching this drug ring. Officials in Attorney General William Barr's office declined to comment on The Courier Journal's findings. On April 13, 2017, federal agents arrested Maciason his way to Calumet Farm. Hearing the word "cartel" uttered in open court instantly rattled Eduardo. The cartel's expansion into smaller, unexpected communities began to mushroom about five years ago as U.S. intelligence analysts tracked its movements far beyond border towns and major hubs. Jalisco New Generation, often referred to as CJNG, is another Mexican cartel that emerged in 2010. Robertois awaiting sentencing in Paducah in August for trafficking meth while armed with a gun. A cartel member even worked at Kentucky's famed Calumet Farm, home to eight Kentucky Derby and three Triple Crown winners. CJNG wasn't the only cartel in the Bluegrass State in 2017, but authorities say it was the main supplier of fentanyl when Louisville's Adam Cooley, who sought heroin, snorted 20 times a lethal . ", Get all the stories you need-to-know from the most powerful name in news delivered first thing every morning to your inbox. "I was surprised that CJNGs efforts and tentacles were reaching into Kentucky, that they had expanded their reach that rapidly, said Evans, who previously headed the Louisville Field Division. "Big cities have big police departments and DEA, FBI and (Homeland Security Investigations) and an ability to look at intelligence and focus on their cells and contacts, said the DEA's Donahue. For example, a Lexington waitress seekingcash to pay fordental assistant courses ended up making bank deposits that she didnt know were for CJNG, according to court transcripts. "Police and civilians are dying, and the CJNG and continues unfettered, flooding the U.S. with methamphetamine and other drugs," Tabor added. Eduardo began running errands for his uncle, including delivering a bag to an El Salvador native who flew in from Maryland. He and Helida Montes, his partner for 16 years, settled their two children in Oregon City as Farfan grew his business, roping in two of his nephews. But betrayal awaited, Will El Chapo son's arrest slow export of drugs to US? With a $10 million reward on his head, hes on the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administrations Most Wanted list. More:This small-town Oregon bricklayer had a side hustle: Gun supplier for Mexican drug cartel. "Our community is paying a steep price," said Carlos Guevara, a senior policy adviser for UnidosUS, Americas largest Latino civil rights organization. There, he built a thriving drug trafficking business, but the city's dominantcartel ordered him to leave when leaders became threatened by his success. 1 killer. And federal prosecutors alleged in court that convicted drug traffickerJesus Enrique Palomera, theleader of a cartel cell in Tacoma, Washington, ordered the kidnapping and murderof a manwhose fingers and toes werechopped off a commonmethod of torturein Mexico. Police grabbed him, finding two kilos of fentanyl stuffed in a backpack. More:He reached 'kingpin' status by selling Mexican cartel-supplied drugs. 2023www.courier-journal.com. The knives stabbed into the corpse fixed boards with messages to the body, one of which read "the traitor" in Spanish, Vice reports. The victim screamed in pain and begged them to kill him. Somewhere deep in Mexico's remote wilderness, the worlds most dangerous and wanted drug lord is hiding. While the CJNG makes no effortsto hide its beef with adverse cartels and Mexican military and law enforcement, civilians are all too often caught in the cryptic crossfire. A young woman en route to selling street food was also fatally struck by a stray bullet through a car window. Here you'll find all collections you've created before. Prosecutors say Parra Pedroza and Pineda Sanchezwould keepa percentage, with the rest going tocartel members in Mexico. "If an agent saw him, we couldnt say, 'Hey, were gonna grab El Mencho right now, take him and put him into custody.' But when the days chores were done, Maciasdidn'tsocializewith others over drinks or dinner. It has drug cells all across the U.S., even in tiny towns. Police arrested Farfan in October 2018 as he and Montes drove toward California on Highway 99 near Roseburg, nearly three hours south of Portland, while towing a car. The judge said Farfan's attorney negotiated "a very significant break for him," cutting his possible prison time in half, considering sentencing guidelines called for a sentence of 30 years. Mexico's CJNG is currently making a series of territorial incursions around the country to take control of key fuel theft, drug trafficking, and human smuggling regions. During his March sentence hearing, Farfan apologized for his crimes, but insisted, "I've never been a violent person. "Theyre killing the next generation, and one of them was my son," Brenda Cooley said. Two years earlier, they stumbled onto a drug business at the same auto repair shop allegedly run by suspect Jose Cruz Gutierrez Bustos. Known as "El Mencho," he's remained in hiding for years and is on the DEA's Most Wanted list. The Elite Group is the top tier enforcement wing of the Jalisco New GeneralCartel, often referred to as CJNG. Three of them are bare-chested. [CDATA[ He initially came to the U.S. to earn money as a mechanic for another relative. Mutual Fund and ETF data provided by Refinitiv Lipper. Market data provided by Factset. 1 / 6. Known as CJNG, the cartel is a global powerhouse, detected on every continent except Antarctica. Explore the investigation wall showing the connections of El Mencho and CJNG cartel. He paid couriers to return the drug profits to him. It has drug cells all across the U.S., even in tiny towns. Balaclava-clad members of the CJNG released a video claiming responsibility for the killings it later emerged that the victims had no connection to organised crime whatsoever. By the time of the hearing, the veteran was 560 days sober. on January 26, 2022. His attorney, Noel Grefenson, declined comment for this story. Alleged members of the Sinaloa Cartel arrested on smuggling charges in 2010 Credit: . Sheriff's investigators say a Paducah, Kentucky, business owner who fell behind on a drug debt was warned last year by the cartel: "If we dont get our money, were gonna kill you and your family.. Last year, a judge sentenced Eduardo to 30 months behind bars, followed by five years supervised release. He was thought to be one of the leaders of Carteles Unidos. Se le pudre el Gobierno de #Michoacan a @ARBedolla MASACRAN A 17 PERSONAS que se encontraban en un velorio. It also operated a tequila label, casinos, two shopping centers, a medical clinic, real estate companies and a Pacific Ocean resort frequented by Americans, according to U.S. Treasury Department records. CJNG, which routinely faces off with its No. Treasury Department officials stood with Sessions and announced more sanctions on businesses linked to CJNG and its affiliate, Los Cuinis. Alderete also is accused of asking a criminal informant in Paducahfor assault rifles andagrenade launcherto supplya cartel "war" in Mexico,saidJesseRiddle, the Narcotics Unit captain with the McCracken County Sheriffs Office in Paducah. "He spoke with Mexican-based members of the conspiracy, met interstate couriers and directed subordinates," prosecutors noted in a government motion to keep Farfan locked up pending trial. While some moves targeted the cartels finances, others were more personal. Powered and implemented by FactSet Digital Solutions. In mid-October, 13 Mexican police officers were killed in an ambush in El Mencho's home state of Michoacn in western Mexico. // Mn State Record Perch Length, Preble County Mugshots, Articles C