Note: things seem to continue to unravel in Sinaloa. Pressure from
govt. and zetas? Or is El Chapo right sizing? Could have unpleasant
consequences for AZMEX border area as some routes are still being
contested.
Official: suspected Sinaloa cartel leader nabbed
By E. Eduardo Castillo / Associated Press
Posted: 05/13/2011 11:27:22 AM MDT
http://www.elpasotimes.com/newupdated/ci_18056969
MEXICO CITY (AP) - Soldiers have captured the nephew and suspected
successor of a Sinaloa drug cartel leader who was killed last year in
a gunbattle with troops, a Defense Department official said Friday.
Martin Beltran Coronel, alias "The Eagle," was arrested along with
four other people in an exclusive neighborhood of Zapopan, a suburb
of the western city of Guadalajara, said Gen. Edgar Luis Villegas.
It is the same suburb where his uncle, Ignacio "Nacho" Coronel, died
in a battle with soldiers who raided his mansion in July 2010. The
elder Coronel had been considered one of the top three leaders of the
powerful Sinaloa cartel, along with Ismael "El Mayo" Zambada and
Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman, who remain among the world's most-wanted
men. Ignacio Coronel's death was the biggest blow against the Sinaloa
gang since President Felipe Calderon intensified a crackdown on
cartels in late 2006.
Martin Beltran took over his uncle's trafficking operations in a
promotion approved by "El Chapo," Villegas told a news conference. He
oversaw cocaine trafficking from South America through Mexico's
Pacific routes in the states of Jalisco and Colima, Villegas added.
One of Beltran's alleged lieutenants, Juan Francisco Lopez Coronado,
was also captured. The three others arrested, including two women,
were in charge of Beltran's security, Villegas said. Nine guns, six
cars, jewelry and $400,000 in cash were seized at the house.
Masked soldiers paraded the five suspects one-by-one
in front of journalists, a practice the government routinely uses to
tout its drug war victories but that has been criticized by human
rights activists and some opposition politicians.
Beltran, wearing a red shirt and sporting a dark mustache and beard,
looked grim as cameras flashed in his face.
Although Villegas said Beltran had reached the top ranks of the
Sinaloa cartel, the Mexican government had not publicly mentioned him
before his arrest. Villegas, however, said soldiers had been
searching for Beltran for months. In January, soldiers raided a
Guadalajara house owned by Beltran, seizing guns and tens of
thousands of dollars and pesos in cash.
Calderon's government has brought down an unprecedented number of
capos since he deployed tens of thousands of federal police and
soldiers to root out drug cartels in their strongholds.
Drug-gang violence has surged as increasingly fractured cartels fight
gruesome turf battles, claiming at least 35,000 lives since late 2006.
In one of the most horrifying discoveries, soldiers continue digging
for corpses in mass graves found last month in the northern state of
Durango, a battleground between the Sinaloa and Zetas cartels.
Five more bodies were unearthed Thursday night, bringing the total to
201, the state Public Safety Department said in a statement.
Investigators have said some victims have been dead as long as four
years, while others were killed as recently as three months ago.
Many are likely drug gang members killed by rivals, but others may be
missing police officers or ordinary citizens who were victims of
kidnapping or extortion, Durango state Interior Secretary Hector Vela
has said.
The excavations in the Durango capital have exceeded the number of
bodies found in the northeastern state of Tamaulipas, where security
forces unearthed 183 corpses from 40 pits throughout April. Many of
the victims appear to be people kidnapped from passenger buses by the
Zetas.
Capturan a familiar de Nacho Coronel
El sujeto detenido es sucesor de Nacho Coronel en la zona del
Pacífico, que incluye Sinaloa, Jalisco y Nayarit.
2011-05-13•M.P.
http://impreso.milenio.com/node/8958270
Presentan a El Águila, presunto sucesor de Nacho Coronel
De acuerdo con la Sedena, el ascenso de Martín Beltrán Coronel fue
avalado por El Chapo Guzmán, lo que le permitió colocarse dentro de
la cúpula de poder del cártel de Sinaloa
Ciudad de México | Viernes 13 de mayo de 2011
Francisco Gómez | El Universal
08:40
http://www.eluniversal.com.mx/notas/765268.html
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