By Durkin-Richer, Alana
Washington (AP) Years ago, two drug dealers were involved in a car accident in a small Tennessee town, which sparked the inquiry. Following a series of covert wiretaps, a police gunfight, and the finding of cocaine concealed in a tractor trailer, federal investigators were eventually able to track down the Mexican cartel leaders.
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Three leaders and two senior enforcers of the United Cartels, a major adversary of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel, were charged with crimes by the Justice Department on Thursday, marking the conclusion of the investigation.
In addition to multimillion-dollar prizes for the four other individuals, the U.S. government is offering a reward of up to $10 million for information that leads to the arrest of Juan Jos Far, also known as El Abuelo, the grandpa and the top head of United Cartels. It is thought that all five are in Mexico.
According to court filings, the trials provide light on how drugs made by deadly gangs in massive Mexican labs cross the border and end up on American streets. They also draw attention to the terrible aftermath that drug trafficking causes along its route, which stretches from the Mexican highlands to small American communities.
In an interview with The Associated Press, Matthew Galeotti, acting assistant attorney general in charge of the Justice Department’s criminal division, stated that these instances in particular are a potent reminder of the pernicious effects that international cartels can have on our local American communities. The chain began with a murderous cartel in Mexico and finished with a tiny community shooting at law enforcement.
Smaller cartels that have served various organizations over the years have come together to form United Cartels. It has a strong influence on Mexico’s Michoacan state in the west.
Although United Cartels is not as well-known as Jalisco New Generation, U.S. law enforcement has made it a high priority because to its role as a major manufacturer of methamphetamine. The Trump administration just designated it as one of eight international terrorist organizations.
According to a search warrant affidavit submitted to the court, the case began in 2019 when two dealers were involved in an automobile accident in a tiny hamlet outside of Knoxville, Tennessee. According to court filings, they dumped a meth-filled hardened protective container behind a building as they were escaping the crash scene before being apprehended by police.
Using wiretaps, search warrants, and surveillance, authorities started their investigation and were able to identify Eladio Mendoza, a guy thought to be in charge of a significant drug ring in the Atlanta region.
Law authorities arrived at a motel close to Atlanta in early 2020 as part of their investigation into Mendoza’s alleged narcotics business. Authorities saw a man departing with a big bag of Doritos while they were conducting surveillance. After the man drove from Georgia into Tennessee, troopers attempted to stop him, but he escaped and shot cops with an AK-style weapon, striking one in the leg before being shot by another trooper. According to court documents, investigators discovered heroin and meth in the bag and determined that he was a low-level distributor for Mendoza’s drug ring.
A few weeks later, police confiscated phones and searched homes connected to Mendoza. According to court documents, they found correspondence between Mendoza and a close friend of El Abuelo, the head of United Cartels, indicating that the drugs were coming from Mexico. Investigators discovered a tractor trailer that had crossed from Mexico a few days prior on one of Mendoza’s farms. According to court documents, when they searched it, they found 850 kilograms of meth concealed under the truck’s floor and additional drugs inside a bus and a house on the site.
According to prosecutors, Mendoza left the United States shortly after and went back to Mexico, where he was murdered by cartel bosses who were upset that American officials had taken their money and narcotics.
The lawsuit is the most recent attempt by the Republican administration to increase pressure on cartels by imposing sanctions in addition to indicting the group’s leaders.Economic sanctions are also being imposed by the Treasury Department on the five defendants, the United Cartels collectively, and another cartel, Los Viagras.
Galeotti stated that in order to prevent violence and drug distribution on our streets, we must go after these criminals at every stage of the chain.
El Abuelo is not the only person facing U.S. accusations; prosecutors also claim that Nicols Sierra Santana, also known as El Gordo, and Alfonso Fernandez Magallón, also known as Poncho, are in charge of minor gangs under the United gangs umbrella. According to officials, the other two accused are Edgar Orozco Cabadas, also known as El Kamoni, who was in contact with Mendoza, and Luis Enrique Barrag n Chavaz, also known as Wicho, who is Magall’s second-in-command.
In recent months, Mexico has cooperated significantly with the Trump administration in handing over cartel leaders that the United States authorities are pursuing.
Drug lord Rafael Caro Quintero, who was responsible for the 1985 murder of a U.S. DEA agent, was one of 29 drug cartel leaders that Mexico surrendered to the United States in February. Additionally, the Mexican authorities moved 26 other high-ranking cartel executives and members, including a man accused of killing a Los Angeles County sheriff’s sergeant, to American custody on Tuesday.
To find these people, we’re collaborating with the Mexican government, Galeotti stated. We are still keeping up our aggressive efforts with them, and we anticipate their assistance in ensuring these people appear in American courts.
