Thread: Mexican drug cartel chief Leyva killed

Mexican drug cartel chief Leyva killed

Posted 8m ago

MEXICO CITY (AP) — One of the most wanted figures in the drug war was killed in a shootout with the Mexican navy Wednesday, an official said.
Arturo Beltran Leyva and three members of his drug cartel died in the gunbattle in a gated, upscale apartment complex in Cuernavaca, just south of Mexico City. A fifth suspect committed suicide during the shootout, said the official, who under navy rules could not give his name.

One sailor was injured, he said.

Beltran Levya, known as the "boss of bosses," was one of four brothers who split from the Sinaloa cartel several years ago and aligned themselves with Los Zetas, a group of former soldiers hired by the Gulf Cartel as hit men.

That split is believed to have fueled much of the bloodshed across Mexico, where more than 14,000 people have been killed in the past three years.

The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration says the Beltran Leyva cartel is a key organization in importing and distributing tons of cocaine in the United States, as well as large quantities of heroin.

The Mexican government lists Arturo Beltran Leyva as one its 24 most-wanted drug lords and had offered a $2.1 million reward for his capture.

The navy official said more than 200 sailors raided the apartment complex as part of a crackdown on the Beltran Leyva cartel in central Mexico. The raid sparked a gunbattle that lasted nearly two hours.

The raid followed another on a party Friday in the nearby town of Tepoztlan, in which sailors detained Ramon Ayala, a Texas-based norteno singer, and 11 alleged Beltran Leyva members.

http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/2009 ... eath_N.htm

They finally got him.

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/ap/ ... 74585.html

Mexican navy kills top cartel kingpin in shootout
By OSWALD ALONSO and ALEXANDRA OLSON Associated Press Writers © 2009 The Associated Press
Dec. 17, 2009, 12:17AM


CUERNAVACA, Mexico — Two hundred sailors raided an upscale apartment complex and killed one of Mexico's top kingpins in a two-hour gunbattle Wednesday, one of the biggest victories yet in President Felipe Calderon's drug war.

Arturo Beltran Leyva, the "boss of bosses," and three members of his cartel were slain in the shootout in Cuernavaca, just south of Mexico City, according to a navy statement. A fifth cartel member committed suicide during the shootout.

Cartel gunmen hurled grenades that injured three sailors, the navy said. An Associated Press reporter at the scene heard at least 10 explosions.

During the gunbattle, sailors went door-to-door to evacuate residents of the apartment complex to the gym, according to a woman who said she was speaking by cellphone to her husband inside. She would not give her name out of fear for her safety.

Beltran Levya is the highest-ranking figure taken down under Calderon, who has deployed more than 45,000 troops across Mexico to crush the cartels since taking office in December 2006. The offensive has earned Calderon praise from Washington even as 14,000 people have been killed in a wave of drug-related violence.

The last time Mexican authorities killed a major drug lord was in 2002, when Ramon Arellano Felix of the Tijuana Cartel was shot by a police officer in the Sinaloa resort of Mazatlan.

Beltran Levya was one of five brothers who split from the Sinaloa Cartel several years ago and aligned themselves with Los Zetas, a group of former soldiers hired by the rival Gulf Cartel as hit men. The split is believed to have fueled much of the bloodshed of recent years.

The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration says the Beltran Leyva Cartel is key in the importation and distribution of tons of cocaine in the United States, as well as large quantities of heroin. Mexico considers the group one of its six major cartels.

The Mexican government had listed Arturo Beltran Leyva as one its 24 most-wanted drug lords and had offered a $2.1 million reward for his capture.

Born in the Pacific coast state of Sinaloa, the Beltran Leyva brothers worked side by side with Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman, the leader of the Sinaloa Cartel, before they broke away after Gulf Cartel leader Osiel Cardenas was arrested in 2003. They soon seized the lucrative drug routes in northeastern Mexico.

U.S. officials say the Beltran Leyva Cartel has carried out heinous killings, including numerous beheadings. The gang also has had great success in buying off public officials, police and others to protect their business and get tips on planned military raids.

The U.S government added Beltran Leyva and his cartel to the Foreign Narcotics Kingpin Designation Act last year, a movement that denied him access to the U.S. financial system.

The state of Morelos, where Cuernavaca is located, and neighboring Guerrero have seen a spike in violence in recent months, with dozens of people killed. Some of the mutilated bodies have appeared with pieces of paper signed "boss of bosses," Beltran Leyva's nickname.

On Friday, sailors raided a party in the mountain down of Tepotzlan, near Cuernavaca, where they killed three alleged Beltran Leyva Cartel members and detained 11. They also detained Ramon Ayala, a Texas-based norteno singer whose band was playing at the party. Ayala is being held on suspicion of ties to organized crime.

___

Olson reported from Mexico City. Associated Press writer Julie Watson also contributed to this report from Mexico City.

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/ap/ ... 74585.html

A timeline of arrests, deaths of Mexican druglords

By The Associated Press
Thursday, December 17, 2009 at 12:11 p.m.

MEXICO CITY — The death of reputed drug lord Arturo Beltran Leyva in a shootout with Mexican marines is the latest in a long list of Mexican cartel leaders captured or killed by authorities. Some earlier cases:

- Osiel Cardenas, the former Gulf Cartel drug lord was captured in 2003 after a shootout with Mexican troops in the border city of Matamoros. He was extradited to the U.S. to face drug charges in 2007.

- Ramon Arellano Felix, once Mexico's most-wanted drug lord, was fatally shot by police in the Pacific coast resort of Mazatlan in February 2002. His brother Benjamin was arrested at a home east of Mexico City a month later and is fighting extradition to the U.S.

- Juan Garcia Abrego, head of the Gulf Cartel. Garcia Abrego was arrested in 1996 in northern Mexico and is serving 11 life terms in the United States.

- Hector Palma, a partner of Sinaloa Cartel leader Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman, was arrested in 1995 after a plane crash. He was sentenced to 33 years for trafficking drugs and other charges.

- Guzman, possibly Mexico's most powerful trafficker, was arrested in 1993, but escaped prison in a laundry truck in 2001 and has eluded recapture.

- Miguel Angel Felix Gallardo, a founder of the Sinaloa cartel, was arrested in 1989. The gang split, and Guzman took control of Sinaloa's operations.

- Rafael Caro Quintero was arrested in Costa Rica in 1985 and extradited to Mexico, where he was sentenced to a 40-year prison term for the 1985 torture-slaying of undercover U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration agent Enrique "Kiki" Camarena Salazar.

- Ernesto Fonseca Carrillo, a leader of the Sinaloa Cartel, was arrested in 1985 and convicted of trafficking, kidnapping, criminal association, and ordering the murder of Camarena as well as of two U.S. tourists.

http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/2009 ... druglords/

They always seem to get people from every other cartel but the Sinaloa Cartel!

Originally Posted by feduphispanic

They always seem to get people from every other cartel but the Sinaloa Cartel!

- Hector Palma, a partner of Sinaloa Cartel leader Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman, was arrested in 1995 after a plane crash. He was sentenced to 33 years for trafficking drugs and other charges.

- Miguel Angel Felix Gallardo, a founder of the Sinaloa cartel, was arrested in 1989. The gang split, and Guzman took control of Sinaloa's operations.

- Ernesto Fonseca Carrillo, a leader of the Sinaloa Cartel, was arrested in 1985 and convicted of trafficking, kidnapping, criminal association, and ordering the murder of Camarena as well as of two U.S. tourists.