Wednesday, May 12, 2010
TJ's back!
Richard Marosi of the LA Times had a good piece the other day on Tijuana's apparent revival. Worth a read (link in title of post)
Tuesday, May 11, 2010
Chapo documents
The Reforma story on Chapo's documents continues to make headlines; of course, we already knew he had informants high up in law enforcement, but this latest evidence simply reaffirms just how well-connected the man and his organization are.
The most interesting thing about Chapo's connections is how they came about. In the 90s, Amado Carrillo Fuentes was the man who had all the contacts. He had generals, air logistics experts, and government officials in his pockets.
Chapo, meanwhile, didn't have all that much besides local officials. But he went to work, deploying the Beltran Leyva brothers to begin the corruption process. They apparently went about it slowly – first lower level federal officials, then mid-level. They apparently didn't even try to go right to the top – where Carrillo Fuentes and Juan Garcia Abrego of the Gulf cartel already had connections – because they were betting on the long-term. They were betting that their guys, not yet on the radar, would rise up the ranks and one day be on top.
How far did they get? So far, the highest ranking official arrested for alleged links to Chapo is Noe Ramirez, the former anti-drug prosecutor who is still being held for allegedly agreeing to take payments of $450,000 a month from the Beltran Leyva brothers.
Ramirez started working in the PGR in 1995; given their track record, chances are good that the Beltran Leyva brothers started working on him at around the same time.
The other element of corruption that I think is undercovered is just who these guys go after. They don't go on fishing expeditions, they pick their mark and then approach him with an offer. How do they know who to pick? I have no particular insight into their methods, but my guess is that they pick just like any predator would – but instead of the weak, they go after the ambitious. The ambitious young official who wants to rise up will do just about anything his boss says, but at the same time, will leave himself susceptible because rather than thinking with the law in mind, he'll think of getting ahead, moving up the ladder and getting rich. He'll effectively be too ambitious for his own good, so ripe for corruption.
Then there's the jaded old burned out law enforcement officer or investigator who's just fed up with his life going nowhere (and his official pension, which is likely close to non-existent).
Anyway, those are my thoughts. I also wonder how many of the officials/cops/generals who were signed up by the Beltran Leyva brothers jumped ship to work directly for Chapo when he and the brothers fell out in 2008.
PS - New York Times has a good summary of the document news (link in title) with some opining from yours truly.
The most interesting thing about Chapo's connections is how they came about. In the 90s, Amado Carrillo Fuentes was the man who had all the contacts. He had generals, air logistics experts, and government officials in his pockets.
Chapo, meanwhile, didn't have all that much besides local officials. But he went to work, deploying the Beltran Leyva brothers to begin the corruption process. They apparently went about it slowly – first lower level federal officials, then mid-level. They apparently didn't even try to go right to the top – where Carrillo Fuentes and Juan Garcia Abrego of the Gulf cartel already had connections – because they were betting on the long-term. They were betting that their guys, not yet on the radar, would rise up the ranks and one day be on top.
How far did they get? So far, the highest ranking official arrested for alleged links to Chapo is Noe Ramirez, the former anti-drug prosecutor who is still being held for allegedly agreeing to take payments of $450,000 a month from the Beltran Leyva brothers.
Ramirez started working in the PGR in 1995; given their track record, chances are good that the Beltran Leyva brothers started working on him at around the same time.
The other element of corruption that I think is undercovered is just who these guys go after. They don't go on fishing expeditions, they pick their mark and then approach him with an offer. How do they know who to pick? I have no particular insight into their methods, but my guess is that they pick just like any predator would – but instead of the weak, they go after the ambitious. The ambitious young official who wants to rise up will do just about anything his boss says, but at the same time, will leave himself susceptible because rather than thinking with the law in mind, he'll think of getting ahead, moving up the ladder and getting rich. He'll effectively be too ambitious for his own good, so ripe for corruption.
Then there's the jaded old burned out law enforcement officer or investigator who's just fed up with his life going nowhere (and his official pension, which is likely close to non-existent).
Anyway, those are my thoughts. I also wonder how many of the officials/cops/generals who were signed up by the Beltran Leyva brothers jumped ship to work directly for Chapo when he and the brothers fell out in 2008.
PS - New York Times has a good summary of the document news (link in title) with some opining from yours truly.
Monday, May 10, 2010
The State of Mexico
State of Mexico Gov. Enrique Pena Nieto said today that his state is a "narco-lair." Indeed, analysts say that his big test (like that of all contenders for the 2012 election) will be security.
So let's take a look at the State of Mexico. Since 2008, it's been a battleground between Zetas, Beltran Leyvas, Chapo's people and La Familia. At stake, as officials always say, is distribution in Mexico City.
Fair enough, but there's also another reason: drugs from Guerrero, Oaxaca and other parts of the south come through the State of Mexico en route to the north. Especially when roads are checked on the Pacific coast by the army, the State of Mexico becomes increasingly important.
Hence the fighting. It's not just a problem caused by Mexico City (and rival Marcelo Ebrard). State of Mexico towns like Cuautitlan Ixcalli have suffered serious waves of violence in the past couple of years, prompting curfews and army presence. Not much has been done to seriously quell the constant tussle between the various groups, either, which makes me wonder what exactly Pena Nieto and his crew are doing to combat the narcos. With all the talk about the PRI planning to look the other way if it takes office in 2012, I'm wondering if Pena Nieto hasn't begun to do that already.
PS - The Villanueva trial in New York should be interesting. Meanwhile, Reforma has an interesting report on high-level corruption, citing documents it says were seized by the army in Culiacan. I'm going to check into this, but I believe these are the same documents Reforma reported on a few months ago.
So let's take a look at the State of Mexico. Since 2008, it's been a battleground between Zetas, Beltran Leyvas, Chapo's people and La Familia. At stake, as officials always say, is distribution in Mexico City.
Fair enough, but there's also another reason: drugs from Guerrero, Oaxaca and other parts of the south come through the State of Mexico en route to the north. Especially when roads are checked on the Pacific coast by the army, the State of Mexico becomes increasingly important.
Hence the fighting. It's not just a problem caused by Mexico City (and rival Marcelo Ebrard). State of Mexico towns like Cuautitlan Ixcalli have suffered serious waves of violence in the past couple of years, prompting curfews and army presence. Not much has been done to seriously quell the constant tussle between the various groups, either, which makes me wonder what exactly Pena Nieto and his crew are doing to combat the narcos. With all the talk about the PRI planning to look the other way if it takes office in 2012, I'm wondering if Pena Nieto hasn't begun to do that already.
PS - The Villanueva trial in New York should be interesting. Meanwhile, Reforma has an interesting report on high-level corruption, citing documents it says were seized by the army in Culiacan. I'm going to check into this, but I believe these are the same documents Reforma reported on a few months ago.
Saturday, May 8, 2010
narco-corridos
In my three years in Mexico, I always knew there was something missing from the stories about narco-corridos. It was this song. (Link in title.)
Friday, May 7, 2010
Puerta grande
Where do Mexican prisoners in the war on drugs go?
Some go to the maximum security facilities in Ciudad Juarez, Culiacan, Matamoros and Reynosa. Some then escape, prompting prison wardens to become fugitives or be arrested themselves.
Some go to state facilities in the same cities, or elsewhere like Zacatecas. There, they mingle with members of rival organizations and quite often spark riots resulting in deaths. Some escape – in one instance last year, 53 walked out of the Zacatecas facility.
Some go to the medium-security facility in Nayarit. This is largely reserved for allegedly corrupt policemen, prompting jokes about how there are more policemen inside the facility than there are guarding it.
And then some go to either Almoloya de Juarez in the State of Mexico, or Puente Grande in Jalisco. The former houses MIguel Angel Felix Gallardo and Ernesto "Don Neto" Fonseca, among other aging dons of the Mexican drug trade.
The latter once housed Chapo Guzman, until he decided he'd had enough of being behind bars and hopped into a laundry cart and was wheeled out. The prison was unofficially renamed Puerta Grande.
Puente Grande received a "huge overhaul" after Chapo's escape, the government promised. But in 2008, a few prisoners escaped; last year, I believe there was another breakout.
Late last night, the Army searched Puente Grande. What did the soldiers find? Two AR-15 rifles, a kilo and a half of cocaine, 63 cartridges, 75 cellphones, two laptops, and a few more handguns.
The prison's chief of security is now missing. This was also the first time the Army had been asked to conduct a search on the prison, the regional commander said.
Everyone knows Mexico's prisons have long been problematic. But in the midst of a drug war in which some 121,000 people have been locked up, for this sort of thing to happen at Puente Grande is just inexcusable.
Some go to the maximum security facilities in Ciudad Juarez, Culiacan, Matamoros and Reynosa. Some then escape, prompting prison wardens to become fugitives or be arrested themselves.
Some go to state facilities in the same cities, or elsewhere like Zacatecas. There, they mingle with members of rival organizations and quite often spark riots resulting in deaths. Some escape – in one instance last year, 53 walked out of the Zacatecas facility.
Some go to the medium-security facility in Nayarit. This is largely reserved for allegedly corrupt policemen, prompting jokes about how there are more policemen inside the facility than there are guarding it.
And then some go to either Almoloya de Juarez in the State of Mexico, or Puente Grande in Jalisco. The former houses MIguel Angel Felix Gallardo and Ernesto "Don Neto" Fonseca, among other aging dons of the Mexican drug trade.
The latter once housed Chapo Guzman, until he decided he'd had enough of being behind bars and hopped into a laundry cart and was wheeled out. The prison was unofficially renamed Puerta Grande.
Puente Grande received a "huge overhaul" after Chapo's escape, the government promised. But in 2008, a few prisoners escaped; last year, I believe there was another breakout.
Late last night, the Army searched Puente Grande. What did the soldiers find? Two AR-15 rifles, a kilo and a half of cocaine, 63 cartridges, 75 cellphones, two laptops, and a few more handguns.
The prison's chief of security is now missing. This was also the first time the Army had been asked to conduct a search on the prison, the regional commander said.
Everyone knows Mexico's prisons have long been problematic. But in the midst of a drug war in which some 121,000 people have been locked up, for this sort of thing to happen at Puente Grande is just inexcusable.
Sunday, May 2, 2010
Cuernavaca sitrep
It's been a hairy few weeks in Cuernavaca. First, beheadings. Then emails warning residents not to go out at night. More killings. More messages. Terror, at its worst.
A couple of years ago, a US counter-drug official told me he hoped the people would "rise up and say 'No More!"
Well, it's happening here right now. It's Sunday night. For the past two Sundays, since the first email warnings, a rock band has played concerts for peace in the Zocalo. Then at night, it's been wonderful, people strolling the streets – kids in tow, in many cases – and people are going about their normal lives as if the narcos weren't here. Friday and Saturday nights have been the same. As I write this, at 9:50 on a Sunday night, this cafe is packed and everyone is dancing salsa. (OK, so they don't have jobs to go to tomorrow because of the unemployment, but that's a different story.) There isn't even that much of a military or federal police presence. The narcos have simply backed down. They're still killing each other in certain neighborhoods, but the people in general refuse to be affected.
This AP story (http://www.bostonherald.com/news/international/americas/view.bg?articleid=1250852&srvc=rss) would have you believe otherwise. Don't believe the hype.
Oh, and I hope I'm right, and nothing bad happens tonight.
A couple of years ago, a US counter-drug official told me he hoped the people would "rise up and say 'No More!"
Well, it's happening here right now. It's Sunday night. For the past two Sundays, since the first email warnings, a rock band has played concerts for peace in the Zocalo. Then at night, it's been wonderful, people strolling the streets – kids in tow, in many cases – and people are going about their normal lives as if the narcos weren't here. Friday and Saturday nights have been the same. As I write this, at 9:50 on a Sunday night, this cafe is packed and everyone is dancing salsa. (OK, so they don't have jobs to go to tomorrow because of the unemployment, but that's a different story.) There isn't even that much of a military or federal police presence. The narcos have simply backed down. They're still killing each other in certain neighborhoods, but the people in general refuse to be affected.
This AP story (http://www.bostonherald.com/news/international/americas/view.bg?articleid=1250852&srvc=rss) would have you believe otherwise. Don't believe the hype.
Oh, and I hope I'm right, and nothing bad happens tonight.
Calderon, right back at you
I find it weird that the very right-wing Washington Times has a very appropriate piece regarding the Arizona immigration law. (Link in title of pose.) It points out Mexico's hypocrisy. I believe some of the facts about Mexican enforcement are wrong, and the quotes from rabid republicans are gratuitous (as can be expected from this paper) but the overall point is a good one to make right now. (I tried with various liberal media, none accepted.) I wish the more liberal media outlets had the spine to point out hypocrisy when they see it, even if they condemn Arizona's law. It helps inform people of what's going on, of the politicking involved, and in this instance, could push both the government of Mexico and of the US to do something about treatment of immigrants in general, on a federal level.
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