They began to recruit new inmates coming into the prison for violent gang crimes. The most extensive database on organized crime in the Americas. The purpose of the BA-La Linea alliance was to battle the Chapo Guzman Cartel and its allies for control of the drug trafficking routes through Juarez and Chihuahua. [26] Moreover, the prison was highly overcrowded, with over 2,700 inmates in a facility with a capacity of only 850 prisoners. The group also helped the Jurez Cartel to move people and drugs as well as to acquire weapons and vehicles. The group has control over other local gangs, has members across the border, and already moves drug shipments across the border. [52] The speculation of this hypothesis was bolstered by the fact that the second victim was also in a white SUV, but U.S. authorities do not discard the possibility that the gunmen were searching for someone else in the second attack and coincidentally happened to be a white vehicle too, killing the consulate workers by mistake. Twenty-four of those defendants have pleaded guilty, one defendant committed suicide while imprisoned during his trial and six others are pending extradition from Mexico. [64] The "life-blood" of the gang is the drug sale, which they buy at a low cost due to their alliance with the Jurez cartel and profits from its own importation to the U.S.[64] They also tax ("quota") independent drug dealers in El Paso, in other parts of West Texas, and in the Eastern part of New Mexico. [56][61] This attack came just a week before several gunmen stormed two houses, killing 7 at a party and 2 at a nearby house. [23] Although there was no audio in the video, the footage shows how two gunmen order the guards to leave. [18], A fierce battle between rival drug trafficking organizations broke loose inside a prison on the outskirts of Ciudad Jurez on 5 March 2009. In Ciudad Jurez, however, the gang is known as Los Aztecas. [41] Despite the arrests, many of the family members were unhappy with the efforts of the Mexican government and said that they were planning to abandon Mexico and seek safe haven in Texas to protect their children. Get fresh updates on organized crime from across the region delivered to your inbox. He previously covered real estate, economic development, retail and tourism. [32], One by one, the coffins of the victims were carried out from their homes on 4 February 2010, as their families demanded for justice. 6 on a list of border crime suspects sought by U.S. and Mexican authorities. An official website of the United States government. Ravelo, who was under pressure from La Linea . [63] In and outside of prison, from gang beatings to drive-by shootings, Barrio Azteca disciplines its own members and rivals. "[26] Their reports state that the inmates had broken the rules of the jail and held large parties, possibly with the guards' permission. Barrio Azteca - InSight Crime The. [46] Later on that same day, gunmen killed the husband of another consulate worker and wounded his two young children. Family launches GoFundMe to help man shot during Fiesta in S.A. 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[33] The governor of the state of Chihuahua, Jos Reyes Baeza Terrazas, showed up at the funeral unexpectedly to pay his respects to the families. Barrio Azteca ~ Borderland Beat Vilnius. [28] Some of the teenagers were shot as they tried to flee and their corpses were found in the neighboring houses. Below them, captains control mini-plazas that are run by lieutenants. According to court documents and information presented in court throughout this case, the Barrio Azteca is a violent street and prison gang that began in the late 1980s and expanded into a transnational criminal organization. An alleged leader of the Barrio Azteca (BA), a transnational border gang allied with the Juarez Cartel, was extradited from Mexico to the United States to face charges related to the March 2010 U.S. Consulate murders in Juarez, Mexico, Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the Justice Department's Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Robert Pitman for the Western District of Texas, FBI . 10 facts about the Barrio Azteca, one of the most dangerous - mySA The US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is currently offering a reward of up to $100,000 for information leading to the arrest of Barrio Azteca leader Eduardo Ravelo, who has a place on the FBI's " Top Ten Most Wanted List ." InSight Crime Analysis Restoranas "El Barrio" | Vilnius - Facebook The organization, also known as Los Barrios, derives some of its strength through alliances with Mexican drug cartels. [17] In El Paso Ravelo's gang is known as Barrio Azteca, a gang originally morphed from the so-called Mexican Mafia prison gang. "[29][31] What was troubling for the authorities was that the victims were not gathered inside a bar or at a rehab center, but rather at a private home. The Barrio Azteca gang, also known as "Los Aztecas," was formed in the El Paso, Texas prison system in 1986. [12] In addition, Barrio Azteca controls most of the drug sales for the Jurez Cartel in Ciudad Jurez's streets and prisons, although other gangs and independent operators abound. To update those lists, members and other leaders would contact Galindo on his contraband prison cell phone to verify the status of persons claiming to be BA members and ensure that they were in good standing with the criminal organization. The violence resulted in the deaths of 20 inmates. [14], Barrio Azteca is also reported to have kidnapped people in El Paso and drive them south into Ciudad Jurez to kill them. We want to sustain Latin Americas largest organized crime database, but in order to do so, we need resources. [42] Massacres, shootings, beheadings, torture videos on YouTube, and even car bombs were recorded in Ciudad Jurez that year. The Department of Public Safety has released its 2015 Texas Gang Threat Assessment report. Witnesses also testified that the sale of illegal drugs is the life-blood of the BA. Main tasks to coordinate the process of employees accommodation and logistics. [46] The attack came during a violent weekend across Mexico, were nearly 50 people were killed across the country. Witnesses specifically implicated Galindo, then incarcerated in the Coffield Unit of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice, as the central leader within the organization who kept track of membership records, hit lists and gang treaties for the BA. All 20 of the dead were members of Los Mexicles and Artistas Asesinos, indicating that the prison fight was instigated by members of the Barrio Azteca group. [69] Drug-sniffing dogs were also under a bounty. Mexico Rehab Center Massacre Tied to Conflict Over Local Drug Trade Texas Mexican Mafia comes in a distant second with 4,700 members, followed by the Texas Syndicate (3,400 members), Latin Kings (2,100 members) and MS-13 (800 members). Twenty-one of 22 U.S.-based defendants have pleaded guilty and have been sentenced, including another BA Lieutenant Roberto Angel Cardona, who was also sentenced to life by Judge Cardone on Feb. 17, 2012. Their members are behind the killing of a pregnant U.S. consulate and her husband. FBI New Top Ten - Barrio Azteca Leader At that point, the triggermen opened the doors of another room, and that is when the firing began. Hector Galindo, 38, aka Silent, of El Paso, currently serving a 25-year Texas state sentence for murder, was sentenced to life prison. Twenty-four of those defendants have pleaded guilty, one defendant committed suicide while imprisoned during his trial and six others are pending extradition from Mexico. [34] Caldern has met with young people and representatives of the federal program to discuss and analyze the city's achievements. Barrio Azteca members are suspected of carrying out the March 2010 assassination of a U.S. Consulate employee, her husband and the husband of another U.S. Consulate employee. By Fred Burton and Ben West On Nov. 3, a U.S. District Court in El Paso, Texas, began hearing a case concerning members of a criminal enterprise that calls itself Barrio Azteca (BA). Because of the BAs alliance with the Juarez Drug Cartel, the gang receives illegal drugs at low cost and profits on its importation, sale and distribution within the United States. 0:36. All of these factors create a very real possibility that, if the gang were to gain control over US-bound drug shipments moving through Jurez, Barrio Azteca could move into full-blown international drug trafficking. Todays sentencing by U.S. District Judge Kathleen Cardone of the Western District Court of Texas marks the closure of the case against the U.S.-based defendants charged in the superseding indictment. Tri-City Bombers, Latin Kings and Surenos are more active on a street gang level. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites. The gang, which refers to itself as the "Familia Azteca," requires members to prioritize gang activities over all else and has a set of "sacred rules," the breaking of which is grounds for harsh punishment and even death for gang members and their families. While incarcerated in the Texas Department of Corrections, he served as the right hand man to BA Captain Manuel Cardoza. Coachella 2023: What to pack for a weekend in the desert, Preorder 'The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom' today, Create a bonsai tree out of bricks with this $40 LEGO set, Dyson's air purifying headphones have finally arrived, Save on AeroGarden indoor herb growing kits at Amazon. According to US estimates, it had around 3,500 members in 2011. [34], Four days after the massacre, a suspect identified as Jos Dolores Arroyo Chavarra was arrested by the Mexican military. Its members, or soldiers, are governed by captains, various lieutenants and numerous sergeants in the United States and Mexico. The gang expanded after 1996, due in part to increasing deportations of imprisoned Mexican criminals by the United States. The group already controls local drug distribution, smuggles drugs across the border, and has members in Texas, providing it with essential connections to expand operations. Rangel. Barrio Azteca Leader's Arrest Casts Doubt on Trump Border Rhetoric [71] On November 7, 2018, Rene Gerardo Santana Garza, known as "El 300," was arrested in Chihuahua City. Some are shot dead, while others are tortured and then shot. Total of 24 Barrio Azteca Members and Associates Convicted to Date. Special assistance was provided by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; Immigration and Customs Enforcement; the U.S. [24], Initial reports had stated that the massacre had started as a clash between prison gangs,[25] but the surveillance video shows "cold-blood executions," and that the members of the Barrio Azteca gang carried out the shootout without any provocation from their enemies. [24] According to The Guardian, the video suggests that the guards may have allowed the assassins to kill the inmates, proving that the prison was plagued by "weak controls, disorganisation and possible corruption. [31] The relatives and witnesses interviewed after the massacre insisted that the teenagers had nothing to do with the drug trade and were "good kids. [18] When drug loads go missing while being smuggled, suspects are kidnapped and taken to Ciudad Jurez. On June 26, members of the Mexican army and a special investigative unit arrested Eduardo . The gang began to directly buy large sums of cocaine from the cartel at cheaper rates, and in return the gang would buy weapons in so called straw purchases from Texan gun shops and then smuggle them across the border. About. Violence in Mexico: Barrio Azteca gang leader gets 116 years in prison In the 2000s, the BA formed an alliance in Mexico with La Linea, which is part of the Juarez Drug Cartel (also known as the Vincente Carrillo Fuentes Drug Cartel or VCF).