Military announces TJ arrest of La Familia operative

By Sandra Dibble
Originally published January 12, 2011 at 7:51 p.m., updated January 12, 2011 at 8:10 p.m.

TIJUANA — Mexico’s military on Wednesday announced the detention in Tijuana of a key member of La Familia, a drug trafficking organization based in the central Mexican state of Michoacán that manufactures crystal methamphetamine and smuggles it to the United States.

Rigoberto Andrade RenterÃ*a was in charge of the group’s smuggling operations, according to a statement issued by Mexico’s Defense Department in Mexico City. Since 2010, the government had offered a reward of $415,000 for information leading to his arrest.

Authorities said that Andrade’s brother in Michoacán, Ignacio, manufactures the drug in clandestine laboratories. They are offering close to $830,000 for information leading to his arrest.

At the time of his detention on Sunday, Andrade identified himself as Roberto Sánchez Padilla. Military authorities said that Andrade and two other suspects were caught with nearly 60 pounds of methamphetamine in eastern Tijuana.

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