A discussion on FREEREPUBLIC.com regarding a DALLAS MORNING NEWS article via KANSAS CITY STAR: "FBI BULLETIN OUTLINES POSSIBLE TERRORIST PLOT AT TEXAS BORDER" (ARTICLE SNIPPET: "The plot, according to uncorroborated information provided by an FBI informant, involves a man, described as an Arab who goes by the nickname "El Espanol," and Ernesto Zatarin Beliz, also known as El Traca, a reputed Mexican drug trafficker and member of the Zetas, the feared enforcers of the notorious Gulf cartel.") (July 17, 2005) (Read More...)
WorldNetDaily.com: Washington - "MEXICAN DRUG COMMANDOS EXPAND OPS IN 6 US STATES" (ARTICLE SNIPPET: "The ultra-violent, U.S.-trained elite, Mexican paramilitary commandos known as the "Zetas," responsible for hundreds of murders along the border this year, have expanded their enforcement efforts on behalf of a drug cartel by setting up trafficking routes in six U.S. states. A U.S. Justice Department memo says the U.S.-trained units have recently moved operations into Houston, San Antonio and the states of California, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Georgia and Florida. They have been operating in Dallas for at least two years, according to the feds.") (June 21, 2005) (Read More...)
A Discussion on FREEREPUBLIC.com regarding a July 12, 2005 article in THE TIMES (N.W. INDIANA): "POLICE ARREST MS-13 GANG MEMBER IN MONTICELLO" (July 13, 2005) (Read More...)
ON THE NET...
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/keyword?k=zetas
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/keyword?k=ms13
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/keyword?k=gangs
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1468043/posts
"Mexican cattle business linked to drug cartels"
Houston Chronicle ^ | August 22, 2005 | MICHAEL HEDGES, Houston Chronicle Washington Bureau
Posted on 08/22/2005 12:52:12 AM PDT by Cincinatus' Wife
ARTICLE SNIPPET: "WASHINGTON - The Treasury Department, trying to block an elaborate money-laundering scheme, has announced that two Mexican cattle companies are fronts for drug-trafficking cartels.
The action means that cattle sold by the companies to Texas ranchers after Friday's announcement are subject to seizure by the federal government, said a high-ranking Treasury official who asked not to be named.
"Cattle already purchased and owned before the companies were identified as tied to the drug cartels are not going to suddenly be blocked," the official said.
The Treasury Department plans to inform cattle associations and other groups later this week of the action taken against the Mexican companies, officials said. The Treasury also will provide other information, such as the brands used by the cattle companies linked to the drug cartels.
For now, buyers are expected to practice due diligence when purchasing cattle.
Two Mexican drug cartels were named in the Treasury Department's statement, the Arriola Marquez organization and the Arellano Felix cartel based in Tijuana. The Arriola Marquez group, based in Mexico's Chihuahua state, is linked to Mexican drug kingpin Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman, the department said. Guzman leads one of the factions fighting for control of Nuevo Laredo and its smuggling routes into Texas, officials have said.
'Another blow' to cartels Treasury officials said the Arriola Marquez group developed the idea of laundering cash from drug deals by buying large herds of cattle in Mexico.
Identifying the companies laundering drug money "deals another blow to the notorious Mexican drug cartels by targeting their financial webs," said Robert Werner, director of Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control.
The two Mexican cattle companies named by the Treasury Department are Corrales San Ignacio S.P.R. de R.L. de C.V. and Del Nortes Carnes Finas San Ignacio S.A. de C.V., both of Mexico's Chihuahua state.
A U.S. company in Presidio called Corrales San Ignacio L.L.C. was identified by the Treasury Department as a "mirror" entity — an organization that exists on paper to give a foreign company a U.S. outlet — officials said. "I don't know that (the Presidio) company has any cattle pens or feed lots," the Treasury official said.
Representatives of the companies could not be reached."