Gangs now contest human-smuggling turf, officials say
By Daniel Borunda / El Paso Times
Article Launched: 11/15/2007 12:00:00 AM MST


A prison gang in Chihuahua is growing noticeably and street gangs in the El Paso-Juárez region have become involved in human smuggling, law enforcement authorities revealed during a gang seminar this week.
Dozens of law enforcement agents from El Paso, Juárez and Chihuahua City gathered Tuesday for the seminar at the El Paso County sheriff's training academy.

A U.S. Border Patrol intelligence agent, according to a Juárez police news release, told seminar participants that gangs charge $100 to $500 to cross people from Juárez to El Paso but that prices can leap to $5,000 to $10,000 for migrants from Central America or other countries.

El Paso County sheriff's spokesman Rick Glancey said Wednesday that profit is motivating gangs to become involved in immigrant smuggling. "We'd see gangs one day working narcotics and the next day (human) smuggling. It's whatever commodity is paying the highest price of the day in that pipeline," he said.

Supervisory Border Patrol Agent Ramiro Cordero said there are "turfs controlled by specific groups of alien smugglers" along the Rio Grande.

Jaime Aviles of the CIPOL, a branch of the Chihuahua preventive state police, said recruitment takes place across Chihuahua by the Mexicles gang, which has an ongoing battle with the rival Aztecas for control of the Juárez prison. In 2004, there were 60 identified Mexicles, but now there are 1,500 members in and out of prison, and membership is expected to rise to 8,000 next year, Aviles said in the news release.

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