U.S. main supplier of cartels' weapons

By Darren Meritz / El Paso Times
Article Launched: 06/15/2008 12:00:00 AM MDT


Juarez can be seen over the El Paso skyline. (Mark Lambie / El Paso Times)Related

The rise in cartel violence in Juárez has made U.S. law enforcement officials all too aware that many of the weapons used for crimes in Mexico come from the United States.

Insiders have come to describe illegal gun trafficking from the U.S. to Mexico as the Iron River, a trade route that extends well beyond the border as illegal gun dealers are pulling weapons from U.S. cities

"The flow of weapons are going from the United States to Mexico," Tom Crowley, a special agent and public information officer for the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, or ATF. "It's supply and demand."

Experts estimate that more than 90 percent of the weapons recovered from narcotraffickers in Mexico come from the U.S.

The ATF has traced more than 62,000 firearms seized in Mexico since 1996 using computer technology -- evidence that thousands of guns each year are illegally sent to criminal elements south of the border.
The ATF also has seized thousands of firearms used by or intended for use by Mexican cartels.

The weapons heading south are becoming more powerful. Among the weapons seized that are used by drug traffickers are AK-47 and AR-15 rifles, .45-caliber pistols, 9 mm pistols and .38-caliber super pistols. Crowley said agents also have seized .50-caliber sniper rifles and armor-piercing ordnance.

Gun trafficking has found its way to El Paso. In April, a man was arrested in Arizona after a cross-border investigation linked him to a weapons seizure at a safe house discovered following a February shootout. Two men were arrested in El Paso in May are accused of participating in a scheme to buy guns and rifles in El Paso and export them to Mexico.

Crowley said that the cross-border illegal gun trade has caused the ATF to make the border region a key priority and to implement programs such as Project Gunrunner, which aims to stop illegal weapons trafficking.

The ATF has also dedicated about 100 special agents to the U.S.-Mexico border initiative during the past two years.

Mexico is also stepping up its efforts. Last week, Juárez officials said Mexican soldiers would begin checking for weapons and other contraband at international ports of entry

The U.S. Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement is also partnering with Mexico customs to establish Operation Armas Cruzadas, an initiative to bolster information sharing between the two nations.

Darren Meritz may be reached at dmeritz@elpasotimes.com; 546-6127.

http://www.elpasotimes.com/ci_9589341