Thread: 35 Members Barrio Azteca Gang Charged

Thirty-Five Members and Associates of Barrio Azteca Gang Charged with Racketeering and Other Offenses, Including 10 Charged in U.S. Consulate Murders in Juarez, Mexico

U.S. Department of Justice
March 09, 2011 Office of Public Affairs
(202) 514-2007/TDD (202)514-1888

WASHINGTON—Thirty-five members and associates of the Barrio Azteca (BA) gang have been charged in a third superseding indictment unsealed today with various counts of racketeering, murder, drug offenses, money laundering, and obstruction of justice, announced Attorney General Eric Holder. Of the 35 defendants, 10 Mexican nationals were charged with the March 13, 2010 murders in Juarez, Mexico of U.S. Consulate employee Leslie Ann Enriquez Catton; her husband, Arthur Redelfs; and Jorge Alberto Salcido Ceniceros, the husband of a U.S. Consulate employee.

Attorney General Holder was joined in announcing the charges by Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney John E. Murphy for the Western District of Texas, FBI Executive Assistant Director Shawn Henry, and Administrator Michele Leonhart of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA).

Today, teams of U.S. federal, state, and local authorities arrested in Texas and New Mexico 12 of the charged defendants not already in custody.

Seven of the 10 defendants charged with the March 13, 2010 murders and two other indicted defendants are in custody in Mexico. U.S. authorities are working with Mexican authorities regarding extradition and other matters related to this ongoing prosecution.

“The indictment unsealed today represents our continued action to ensure safety along our Southwest border, to seek justice for victims of violent crime in this region, and to weaken dangerous criminal organizations currently operating in Mexico and the United States,â€

[quote]“Trans-border violence is a serious threat that we are using the power of partnerships to combat and prevent,â€