Boozy Hill Country golf course tees off in New Braunfels, What to know about the invasive hammerhead flatworms in Texas, Cardi B speaks out on viral 'mean girls' TikTok at Astros game. [59] The Mexican police declined to comment if the killing was drug-related, but Felipe Caldern's response was remarkably different from the Villas de Salvrcar massacre, where he claimed that the massacre was most likely due to internal adjustments between the cartels. By the early 2000s, the gang controlled prisons in Chihuahua, and has since continued to grow. Then they light the whole thing on fire. Secure .gov websites use HTTPSA lock ( The gang's key ally is the Jurez Cartel and its armed wing, La Linea. By Fred Burton and Ben West On Nov. 3, a U.S. District Court in El Paso, Texas, began hearing a case concerning members of a criminal enterprise that calls itself Barrio Azteca (BA). Witnesses also testified to the extensive communication web of the BA, including utilizing coded letters, contraband cell phones within state and federal prison facilities, and distribution of membership rosters and hit lists. [43][44][45], Initial reports stated that unknown gunmen of a drug trafficking organization shot and killed a pregnant U.S. consulate woman and her husband at broad daylight in Ciudad Jurez on 13 March 2010, leaving a baby wailing in the back seat of the car. A cross-border drug gang born in the prison cells of Texas has evolved into a sophisticated paramilitary killing machine. [77] Soto was also revealed to be the leader of the La Empresa cartel at the time of his arrest, and that his successor was identified as "The Gnome. [17] The informant said that Ravelo was taken to a house in El Paso where a gang member was being held, his mouth, wrists, and ankles bound with duct tape. Main tasks to coordinate the process of employees accommodation and logistics. [21] Once they took the guards hostage, Barrio Azteca members went into high-security blocks where the rival members were in, forced the guards to open them, and went about killing the rival inmates. Coachella 2023: What to pack for a weekend in the desert, Preorder 'The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom' today, Create a bonsai tree out of bricks with this $40 LEGO set, Dyson's air purifying headphones have finally arrived, Save on AeroGarden indoor herb growing kits at Amazon. [12] When the Sinaloa Cartel made its first incursion into Ciudad Jurez in 2008, Barrio Azteca was called to defend the plaza. [65] In March 2010, the FBI and the police department in El Paso stated that Barrio Azteca was more powerful than Los Zetas in the Jurez plaza. WASHINGTON, D.C. - A leader and two soldiers in the Barrio (BA), a transnational border gang allied with the Juarez Cartel, were sentenced in El Paso, Texas, to life, 30 and 20 years in prison, respectively, announced DEA Administrator Michele M. Leonhart, and other federal officials. According to court documents and information presented in court, Galindo was a top Lieutenant in the BA. The U.S. Attorneys Office for the District of New Mexico provided significant assistance in this case, including by Assistant U.S. Attorney Sarah Davenport. [34][36] The parents of the victims hung huge placards outside their houses accusing Caldern of failing to solve the massacre and explicitly saying that "until those responsible are found, [he was] the murderer. We encourage readers to copy and distribute our work for non-commercial purposes, with attribution to InSight Crime in the byline and links to the original at both the top and bottom of the article. [18] Today, the gang has expanded into a large criminal gang with presence in both the United States and Mexico, besetting by drug trafficking and human smuggling. As Barrio Azteca grew in power, it began to work directly with the Juarez Cartel and their alliance grew stronger. The attacks brought down a great deal of pressure from the US government, which issued a federal indictment of 35 Barrio Azteca members in Texas in March 2011 on counts of extortion, murder, drug trafficking and money laundering. In a relatively low-security area inside the prison, the gang members began to produce knives and force other guards to liberate 150 fellow members. [54] With his arrest, all 35 suspects named by the U.S. Justice Department in 2011 for involvement in the consulate killings had been captured. The Barrio Azteca ( Spanish pronunciation: [barjo asteka] ), or Los Aztecas ( pronounced [los astekas] ), is a Mexican-American street, and prison gang originally based in El Paso, Texas. [60] The killing in Horizontes del Sur bore striking similarities with the massacre in the Villas de Salvrcar neighborhood earlier that same year, which took place just a mile away and where 15 were gunned down at a party too. A committee of "generals," both in and out of prison rule by consensus. [24] According to The Guardian, the video suggests that the guards may have allowed the assassins to kill the inmates, proving that the prison was plagued by "weak controls, disorganisation and possible corruption. While incarcerated in the Texas Department of Corrections, he served as the right hand man to BA Captain Manuel Cardoza. RELATED:21 alleged members of drug cartel-affiliated Barrio Azteca gang arrested in West Texas. A total of 35 BA members and associates based in the United States and Mexico were charged in the third superseding indictment for allegedly committing various criminal acts, including racketeering, narcotics distribution and importation, retaliation against persons providing information to U.S. law enforcement, extortion, money laundering, obstruction of justice and murder, including the 2010 Juarez consulate murders. [10] By June 2020, the Sinaloa Cartel's Los Salazar cell, and not Barrio Azteca, was the only other organized crime group which was considered on par with La Linea for control of the Ciudad Jurez drug trafficking market. The Barrio Azteca prison gang - which has chapters in El Paso, Texas, and Juarez, Chihuahua, Mexico - has historically been linked to the Juarez Cartel. Its members, or soldiers, are governed by captains, various lieutenants and numerous sergeants in the United States and Mexico. In the 2000s, the BA formed an alliance in Mexico with La Linea, which is part of the Juarez Drug Cartel (also known as the Vincente Carrillo Fuentes Drug Cartel or VCF). [34], Four days after the massacre, a suspect identified as Jos Dolores Arroyo Chavarra was arrested by the Mexican military. Inside and outside of prison, the gang thrives on violence - from gang beatings to drive-by shootings to murder - all in order to discipline its own members or fight against rivals. Our work is costly and high risk. According to US estimates, it had around 3,500 members in 2011. According to the February 2014 testimony of one jailed Azteca member serving as a witness in the trial of former leader Arturo Gallegos, members of the gang have received training from the Zetas in assassination, extortion and security. None of the threats were materialized, however. The gangs alleged leader Eduardo Ravela is on the FBIs Top Ten most wanted list. The Barrio Azteca gang is known to engage in a wide range of criminal activity including contract killing, murder, torture, drug trafficking and human trafficking among other offenses. Currently one of the most violent gangs in the United States, they are said to have over 3,000 . Galindo, Gonzales and Garcia were charged in a 12-count third superseding indictment unsealed in March 2011. [52] Others had other speculations on the attack; it was unclear whether the consulate worker was targeted for being slow with the visas of some cartel members; whether the worker had angered some members inside a Texan prison; whether the attack intended to be a message to the American drug agents; or whether simply case of mistaken identity. Barrio Azteca also works with the Zetas. The U.S. Attorneys Office for the District of New Mexico provided significant assistance in this case, including by Assistant U.S. Attorney Sarah Davenport. The DPS projects Bandidos members will attempt to change their public perception by adding new members with clean criminal backgrounds and organizing charity events. The case was investigated by the FBIs El Paso Field Office, Albuquerque Field (Las Cruces Resident Agency), DEA Juarez and DEA El Paso. [1] The killings angered the White House, who had quietly allowed the families of the U.S. consulate workers to live across the border in Texas even before they were killed. [18] When drug loads go missing while being smuggled, suspects are kidnapped and taken to Ciudad Jurez. Initially formed in El Paso jails in 1986, the Barrio Azteca gang expanded to a transnational criminal organization, allying itself with the Juarez Cartel (pictured). An official website of the United States government. Some, however, are beheaded. Some of these trainings took place further south of the border, in Torreon, Coahuila, indicating the group has expanded its reach into Mexico and is building its connections. 10 facts about the Barrio Azteca, one of the most dangerous gangs in Texas, Mark Lambie/AP Photo/El Paso Times, Mark Lambie. [3] The gang was formed in the jails of El Paso in 1986 and expanded into a transnational criminal organization. "[33], 2010 was the most violent year in the history of Ciudad Jurez, where more than 3,000 people were killed. On October 20, 2009, he was named by the FBI as the 493rd fugitive to be placed on the Ten Most Wanted list. "[36] The federal government of Mexico responded to the massacre by implementing the "Todos Somos Jurez" program, which aimed to improve education and social development, create jobs, and improve the health benefits in Ciudad Jurez. While Barrio Azteca remains the dominant gang in El Paso, it lost in power in the city in 2014 as the Jurez Cartel continued to decline, according to the 2014 Texas Gang Threat Assessment, and a competitor gang called Sureo 13 grew as a result of a relationship with the Sinaloa Cartel. In that role, Galindo maintained communication with other BA Captains and Lieutenants in the United States and Mexico and was specifically in charge of BA operations in Texas. According to court documents and information presented in court, Galindo was a top Lieutenant in the BA. [15], Eduardo Ravelo, the current leader of the Barrio Azteca, began his criminal career in the year 2003, amassing a list of charges for racketeering and numerous conspiracy charges with the intent to distribute narcotics. The case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorney Joseph A. Cooley of the Criminal Divisions Organized Crime and Gang Section, Trial Attorney Brian Skaret of the Criminal Divisions Human Rights and Special Prosecutions Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney George Leal of the Western District of Texas - El Paso Division. [31] The relatives and witnesses interviewed after the massacre insisted that the teenagers had nothing to do with the drug trade and were "good kids. [12] But in Ciudad Jurez, it is one of the more than ten corpses found dead on a daily basis. [15] Whatever the reasons, the attack sent shock waves and huge concern for the United States' role in Mexico, and how American street gangs are quickly adopting the violent tactics of Mexico's drug trafficking organizations and making alliances with them just across the border. [48], The leader of Barrio Azteca, Arturo Gallegos Castrelln, better known for his nickname El Farmero, ordered the execution of two American consulate workers and a Mexican with ties to the agency in Ciudad Jurez on 13 March 2010. The gang also allies with other gangs including the Mexican Mafia and MS-13. [6] Control of the routes in Ciudad Jurez, known as the "Jurez plaza," is vital for drug trafficking organizations, since they are a major illicit conduit into the United States. Once the money is collected, the Barrio Azteca members deposit it into the bank accounts of imprisoned leaders of their own organization, often using fake names and female associates by wire transfer. However, DPS downgraded the threat posed by the Barrio Azteca gang in 2015 after considering it among the state's most violent Texas-based gangs since 2010. [72] Santana is accused of being a major force in the recent bloodshed which occurred in Jurez. A lock (LockA locked padlock) or https:// means youve safely connected to the .gov website. Specifically, during todays hearing, one witness recalled an instance in which Gonzales tried to collect an extortion fee from a New Mexico drug dealer, and when the dealer refused to pay, Gonzalez pulled a gun, put it to dealers head, and threatened to kill him. Gangs like the Bandidos Outlaw Motorcycle Gang, Aryan Brotherhood of Texas, Bloods, Crips, Texas Chicano Brotherhood and Partido Revolcionaro Mexicano (PRM) lack the size and structure or larger gangs like Tango Blast, but are responsible for a disproportionate amount of crime. Tango Blast, Aryan Brotherhood and Aryan Circle are the most active prison gangs in the region. [64] To prevent officers from understanding their communication network, Barrio Azteca also created a secret language based on Nahuatl. They often use the letters "BA" or numbers "21" as their identifying symbols and tattoos. [75][76] On May 21, 2020, high ranking Barrio Azteca leader Jose Dolores Villegas Soto, who is known by his moniker "El Iraqui," and aliases "El Iraki" and "El Lolo," was arrested with 10 other suspected Barrio Azteca members. The gang operates with a hierarchical structure similar to that of the army. DPS also cited the 2014 indictment of 55 Barrio Azteca members and associates as handicapping the gang's effectiveness. [20] From a distance, family members awaited news as black smoke drifted from the prison and helicopters patrolled overhead. In that role, Galindo maintained communication with other BA Captains and Lieutenants in the United States and Mexico and was specifically in charge of BA operations in Texas. Den Held discussed gang dynamics in Medelln, Colombia, and approaches used by, Our extensive coverage of criminal activity in the border areas between Venezuela and Colombia has been referenced in areportby the Colombia-Venezuela RADAR project of the Konrad, InSight Crimes continued coverage of cocaine production and trafficking made a significant impact on the newly released UNGlobal Report on Cocaine 2023, with our work cited. [50] According to Reuters, the killings was an ongoing effort by Barrio Azteca to take control of the El PasoJurez drug trafficking corridor. Marshals Service; U.S. Customs and Border Protection; Federal Bureau of Prisons; U.S. Testimony also indicated that the BA is well-organized and militaristic in structure. Hector Galindo, 38, aka Silent, of El Paso, currently serving a 25-year Texas state sentence for murder, was sentenced to life prison. [68] They work day in and day out, often with a list of people to kill. [53], On March 9, 2020, Mexican police arrested Luis El Tio (The Uncle) Gerrado Mendez, a former member of Barrio Azteca who later became the reputed founder of La Empresa (The Company), for his connection to the consulate murders as well. Special assistance was provided by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; Immigration and Customs Enforcement; the U.S. [5] Outside of prison, members would contact imprisoned leaders to verify a status of a person using the name of Barrio Azteca to operate and see if they were in good standing with the organization. He is also a former fugitive wanted on several charges related to drugs and organized crime. Hector Galindo, 38, aka Silent, of El Paso, currently serving a 25-year Texas state sentence for murder, was sentenced to life prison. Official websites use .gov [21] Back in 2005, the Barrio Azteca gang had carried out a murderous attack against members of Los Mexicles inside the same prison, leaving six dead. Bruno Angel Rangel, 38, allegedly was a former high-ranking Barrio Azteca leader who allied himself with La Linea in the current conflict between the crime organizations, police said. [73] On March 5, 2020, 9 suspected La Empresa members were arrested. Because of the BAs alliance with the Juarez Drug Cartel, the gang receives illegal drugs at low cost and profits on its importation, sale and distribution within the United States. They were sentenced yesterday in the Western District of Texas. "[75] In addition to being the leader of this Barrio Azteca fraction, Mendoza was also target No. Twenty-one of 22 U.S.-based defendants have pleaded guilty and have been sentenced, including another BA Lieutenant Roberto Angel Cardona, who was also sentenced to life by Judge Cardone on Feb. 17, 2012. Its members, or soldiers, are governed by captains, various lieutenants and numerous sergeants in the United States and Mexico. The. Those not in good standing were targeted by the BA for assault or murder. [35] But Caldern was widely criticized for his initial comments after the massacre, where he claimed that the investigations had showed that those killed were almost certainly targeted for being involved in organized crime. The Barrio Azteca was organized in the El Paso, Texas, County Jail in 1987 from where it moved to the streets and the Texas Department of Criminal Justice prison system. WASHINGTON - A Barrio Azteca (BA) gang leader was sentenced to life in prison without parole for his participation in a racketeering conspiracy, announced Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the Justice Department's Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Robert Pitman for the Western District of Texas, FBI Assistant Director of the Criminal The gang members then beat up their victims and throw them in the hole. - coordinate teams logistics (plan the trips, book tickets) - organize and analyze the data of the accommodation/travels expenses. Felipe Caldern, Mexico's president, also visited the family members and handed a memorial plaque to the parents of the victims. [29] As neighbors hid in their houses, some dialed the emergency services but the Mexican military and the Federal police did not arrive until after the killers had left. To update those lists, members and other leaders would contact Galindo on his contraband prison cell phone to verify the status of persons claiming to be BA members and ensure that they were in good standing with the criminal organization. Domestic Cannabis Suppression / Eradication Program, Red Ribbon Toolkit - Resources For Your Community, DEA National Prescription Drug Take Back Day, Intelligence Research Specialist Job Announcements, Schedule A Hiring Authority: Intelligence Research Specialist, Privacy Impact Assessment and Management Information Systems, Victim Witness Assistance Program Resources. [64] Officials on both sides of the border have observed how Barrio Azteca locate their targets, stalk them and finally ambush them in multiple car chases, using coded radio communications, coordinated blocking maneuvers, and with well-trained shooters wearing ski masks and body armor. Barrio Azteca gang member gave bone-chilling testimony Monday about his role in the violence that ignited Jurez during the drug cartel wars and left among its victims a U.S. Consulate employee and her husband, an El Paso County jail detention officer. "[10] Members usually have U.S. citizenship, making them ideal cross-border killers able to move back and forth across the U.S.-Mexico border. The gang began to directly buy large sums of cocaine from the cartel at cheaper rates, and in return the gang would buy weapons in so called straw purchases from Texan gun shops and then smuggle them across the border. Rangel. Scroll through the slideshow for 10 things you need to know about the Barrio Azteca gang. [27] Witnesses said that the cartel members arrived at the crime scene in seven cars with tinted windows, closed down the street and blocked the exits. In total, the gang had an estimated 5,000 members in Juarez and 3,000 in the United States in 2013, Insight Crime reported. [32], One by one, the coffins of the victims were carried out from their homes on 4 February 2010, as their families demanded for justice. [28] Some of the teenagers were shot as they tried to flee and their corpses were found in the neighboring houses. When quota is collected by the BA, members and leaders deposit the money into the commissary accounts of incarcerated BA leaders, often using fake names or female associates to send the money by wire transfer. The organization, also known as Los Barrios, derives some of its strength through alliances with Mexican drug cartels. At that point, the triggermen opened the doors of another room, and that is when the firing began. March 16, 2010. Evidence was presented that since 2003 the BA has trafficked hundreds of kilograms of cocaine and heroin. [18], A fierce battle between rival drug trafficking organizations broke loose inside a prison on the outskirts of Ciudad Jurez on 5 March 2009. The purpose of the BA-La Linea alliance was to battle the Chapo Guzman Cartel and its allies for control of the drug trafficking routes through Juarez and Chihuahua. > With a broad range of experience across engagement, performance management, HR systems, culture, learning and development . A principal enemy is the Sinaloa Cartel, along with its subcontractor, the Mexicles gang. Todays sentencing by U.S. District Judge Kathleen Cardone of the Western District Court of Texas marks the closure of the case against the U.S.-based defendants charged in the superseding indictment. Evidence was presented that Gonzales and Garcia were BA soldiers, whose duties included distributing drugs, picking up money from dealers and enforcement operations within their area of responsibility. The boss' criminal career began in 2003, with the man eventually collecting a long list of charges both for traffic of narcotics and violent activities. "[67], Gang members in the organizations refer to each other as "carnal," a slang term for brother. Ricardo Gonzales, 44, aka Cuate, of Anthony, N.M., was sentenced to 30 years in prison, and Adam Garcia, 35, aka Bad Boy, of El Paso, was sentenced to 20 years in prison. By current estimates, more than 2,000 members make up their ranks. Witnesses specifically implicated Galindo, then incarcerated in the Coffield Unit of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice, as the central leader within the organization who kept track of membership records, hit lists and gang treaties for the BA. Eduardo "Tablas" Ravelo had been wanted for . In addition, the gang has reportedly fixed some tactical errors that put it at an initial disadvantage, including beginning to use older model vehicles to maintain a lower profile and providing better training to its members. [17] In El Paso Ravelo's gang is known as Barrio Azteca, a gang originally morphed from the so-called Mexican Mafia prison gang. [16] In the year 2005, an informant and former lieutenant of the gang testified that Ravelo was looking for a man who had stolen goods from the Jurez cartel. The most extensive database on organized crime in the Americas. [31] They gave no official statement for the motives behind the killing, but the massacre bore all the signs of the drug violence that Ciudad Jurez was living for the past three years. Vilnius. Their leader is one of the FBI's 10 most wanted criminals. [21], The Mexican authorities were able to militarize the area with more than 200 federal police officers, 50 soldiers, two helicopters, a plane, and an unknown number of state and municipal police forces. [54][55] Mendez, who was the El Paso FBI office's most wanted fugitive and the last person sought for the attacks, also made La Empresa a hybrid of Barrio Azteca. In 2010, Barrio Azteca members allegedly murdered 15 teenagers at a party, and later that same year, killed a US Consulate employee, her husband and the husband of another employee in Ciudad Jurez. A murder in Texas drives a huge investigation which often leads to an arrest. According to the testimony of an alleged Barrio Azteca member, gang members torture and kill their victims by digging up holes in the ground, throwing a bunch of mesquite, and then pouring in some gasoline. Some are shot dead, while others are tortured and then shot. We will continue aggressively to pursue the Barrio Azteca and other gangs so that communities in the United States and Mexico can live free from the violence and destruction of organized crime. These sentences represent the FBIs commitment to the aggressive pursuit of criminal enterprises such as the Barrio Aztecas whose presence pose a significant risk to citizens on both sides of the border, said FBI Special Agent in Charge Mark Morgan. The United States has sanctioned four suspected members of Mexicos powerful CJNG cartel, alleging that they controlled drug operations at, The Chapitos are winning the internal war for the Sinaloa Cartel and doing it in a different way than their, A package bomb that killed a restaurateur and his manager underscores the escalating use of explosives and the terror, This week, InSight Crime deputy editor, Juan Diego Posada, was interviewed by theAssociated Pressabout connections between theex-FARC mafiaand Brazilian criminal groups, and, As Ecuadors security crisis worsens, global media outlets have called on InSight Crime to provide expert knowledge on the criminal dynamics fueling the growing criminality.Americas Quarterly cited our work on, InSight Crime senior investigator Douwe den Held was interviewed by Chilean newspaperEl Mercuriothis week. He also unveiled a billboard facing traffic in El Paso, Texas heading into Mexico that reads "No More Weapons," and criticized the United States for not renewing a ban on the sales of assault weapons that expired in 2004. The case was investigated by the FBIs El Paso Field Office, Albuquerque Field Office (Las Cruces Resident Agency), DEA Juarez and DEA El Paso. [46] The weapons used in the attack and the style the U.S. officials were killed pointed to drug traffickers as suspects; evidence provided from American intelligence and Mexican authorities then pointed to Barrio Azteca as the perpetrators. By 2013, it reportedly had up to 5,000 in the Jurez area alone and an estimated 3,000 in the United States. > A hands-on and results-driven People & Culture leader with more than 17 years' experience working closely with CEOs and senior leaders to deliver innovative HR programs that generate tangible business outcomes. Generator vs power station: Which one is right for you? [citation needed], The Mexican authorities concluded that there were two possible explanations for the massacre: Either La Lnea and Barrio Azteca were responsible for the killings; or "independent gunmen" paid to kill a person nicknamed El Ratn, an alleged member of Artistas Asesinos.

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