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DEA
Congressional Testimony Statement
of CONTENTS The
Damage to the United States
Mr. Chairman, Members
of the Senate: I appreciate this opportunity to appear before the Committee
today to discuss the issue of drug trafficking in Mexico and the existence
of the powerful organized criminal syndicates headquartered in Mexico.
As I have done in past years, I will provide the Committee with information
on how these major drug trafficking organizations impact on the United
States, and present you with an insight into why these trafficking groups
have become so powerful in a relatively short period of time. The information
that I will provide is based on a comprehensive and detailed analysis
of every major narcotics investigation conducted by the Drug Enforcement
Administration that involved organized crime drug trafficking activity
in Mexico. In addition, we have consulted with Federal, state and local
law enforcement agencies prior to preparing this report for you today.
The organized crime
syndicate leaders, who are currently based in Mexico, pose the greatest
challenge to law enforcement agencies in the United States that are enforcing
narcotics laws today. Since the mid-1990's we have watched with concern
as powerful organized crime syndicates based in Mexico began to dominate
the distribution of drugs within virtually every community in the United
States. Through the dedicated efforts of Federal, state and local law
enforcement agencies, we now have a clear picture of how these drug lords
direct the sale of drugs within the U.S., how they collect their billions
of dollars in drug profits, and how they arrange for the assassination
of witnesses in both Mexico and the United States. These Mexico-based
criminal organizations have rapidly become the primary entities responsible
for distributing drugs to the citizens of the United States. We have not only
identified the drug lords themselves, but in most cases, the key members
of their command and control structure. The combined investigations of
DEA, FBI, the U.S. Customs Service and members of state and local police
departments have resulted in the seizure of hundreds of tons of drugs,
hundreds of millions of dollars in drug proceeds and most importantly,
the indictment of virtually every one of the leading drug lords. In fact,
some of the leaders of these organizations---Ramon and Benjamin Arellano-Felix,
Jesus Amezcua, Vicente Carrillo-Fuentes----have become almost household
names in every major law enforcement department in the United States.
Despite this evidence of the crimes they have committed within the U.S.,
and the notoriety these traffickers have gained, they have been able to
continually evade arrest and prosecution. The primary reason they have
been able to avoid arrest and continue to ship drugs into the United States
is attributable to their ability to intimidate witnesses, assassinate
public officials and, as is well-documented, their ability to corrupt
many of the civilian law enforcement agencies in Mexico on a systemic
basis and often at the command level. Unfortunately in
the past, my testimony on the subject of organized crime in Mexico has
been misinterpreted by some as a criticism of the people of Mexico, and
of the Government of Mexico. That is not true. I have great respect for
the citizens of Mexico and the public officials I have met. However, I
have taken an oath to protect the citizens of the United States and over
my thirty nine year career in law enforcement, I have dedicated my life,
and sometimes risked it, for these principles. As a result, my primary
concern has always been what these vicious, amoral criminals have done
to the citizens of the United States. When they order members of their
criminal organizations to distribute tons of drugs into our nation, they
are directly involved in the addiction, injury and death of our citizens.
My intention today, as it has been in past appearances before the U.S.
Congress, is to shed some light on the power of these organized criminal
groups in Mexico, and to provide testimony on how these organizations
have transformed many Americans communities into places of despair. The Damage to the United StatesMost Americans are
unaware of the vast damage that has been caused to their communities by
international drug trafficking syndicates, most recently by organized
crime groups headquartered in Mexico. In order to understand the extent
and nature of this damage, it is instructive to look at how these organizations
work, and how they infiltrate and establish themselves in U.S. communities
in order to further their goals. On any given day
in the United States, business transactions are being arranged between
the major drug lords headquartered in Mexico and their surrogates who
have established roots within the United States, for the shipment, storage
and distribution of tons of cocaine and hundreds of pounds of methamphetamine
and heroin to trafficking groups in the United States. In the past, Mexico-based
criminal organizations limited their activities to the cultivation of
marijuana and opium poppies for subsequent production of marijuana and
heroin. The organizations were also relied upon by Colombian drug lords
to transport loads of cocaine into the United States, and to pass on this
cocaine to other organizations who distributed the product throughout
the U.S. However, over the past five years, Mexico-based organized crime
syndicates have gained increasing control over many of the aspects of
the cocaine, methamphetamine, heroin and marijuana trade, resulting in
increased threats to the well-being of American citizens as well as government
institutions and the citizens of their own country. In the recent past,
traffickers from Mexico had maintained dominance in the western part of
the United States, and in some midwest cities. Today, after several years
of amassing critical investigative information, the Drug Enforcement Administration,
along with other law enforcement agencies, has developed convincing evidence
that surrogates of organized crime groups in Mexico have now established
themselves on the East Coast of the United States, and for the first time,
virtually dominate the nationwide drug trade. Statistics tell part
of the story. From 1994 to 1998, Mexican citizens detained by U.S. authorities
at the Southwest Border in connection with drug seizures increased dramatically
from 594 in 1994 to 4,036 in the first ten months of 1998. DEA arrests
of Mexican nationals within the United States increased 65% between 1993
and 1997. Most of these arrests took place in cities that average Americans
would not expect to be targeted by international drug syndicates in Mexico---cities
such as Des Moines, Iowa, Greensboro, North Carolina, Yakima, Washington,
and New Rochelle, New York. The damage that these
traffickers have caused to the United States is enormous. Cities and rural
areas from the east coast to the west are living with the havoc and erosion
of stability that these individuals and organizations have caused. By
understanding how organized crime groups in Mexico have infiltrated communities
here, it is helpful to examine their role in the distribution of cocaine,
and in the production, trafficking and distribution of heroin, marijuana
and methamphetamine. Approximately two-thirds
of the cocaine available in the United States comes over
the U.S.-Mexico border. Typically, large cocaine shipments are transported
from Colombia via commercial shipping and "go fast" boats and off-loaded
in Mexican port cities. The cocaine is transported through Mexico, usually
by trucks, where it is warehoused in cities like Guadalajara or Juarez,
for example, which are operating bases for the major organizations. Cocaine
loads are then driven across the U.S.-Mexican border and taken to major
distribution centers within the U.S., such as Los Angeles, Chicago or
Phoenix. Surrogates of the major drug lords wait for instructions, often
provided over encrypted communications devices-- --phones, faxes, pagers
or computers---telling them where to warehouse smaller loads, who to contact
for transportation services, and who to return the eventual profits to.
Individuals sent to the United States from Mexico, often here illegally,
contract with U.S. trucking establishments to move loads across the country.
Once the loads arrive in an area which is close to the eventual terminal
point, safehouses are established for workers who watch over the cocaine
supplies and arrange for it to be distributed by wholesale dealers within
the vicinity. These distributors have traditionally been Colombian nationals
or individuals from the Dominican Republic, but recently, DEA has evidence
that Mexican nationals are directly involved in cocaine distribution in
New York City. A recent DEA case
illustrated just how broad-based and well-organized and efficient traffickers
from Mexico have become in the cocaine trade. The operation targeted a
Mexicali-based transportation and distribution organization associated
with the Arellano-Felix organization. They arranged for the shipment of
ton quantities of cocaine from Mexico, operating from safe locations in
Tijuana and Mexicali, Mexico. They delivered multi-ton amounts of cocaine
to Mexican and Colombian traffickers in Los Angeles, Tucson, Chicago,
Detroit, New York
and Greensboro, North Carolina. The investigation ended this past summer
with the seizure of 3,500 kilograms of cocaine, $15 million and the arrest
of 55 defendants. Additional documentary evidence that was discovered
as part of this investigation revealed that one facet of this trafficking
organization had distributed approximately 7 tons of cocaine and returned
$90 million dollars to Mexico within a 90-day time frame. Methamphetamine
trafficking works in a similar fashion, with major organized
crime groups in Mexico obtaining the precursor chemicals necessary for
methamphetamine production from sources in other countries, such as China
and India, as well as from "rogue" chemical suppliers in the United States.
"Super" methamphetamine labs, capable of producing hundreds of pounds
of methamphetamine on a weekly basis, are established in Mexico or in
California, where the methamphetamine is provided to traffickers to distribute
across the United States. It is common now to find hundreds of traffickers
from Mexico, again, most of them illegal aliens, established in communities
like Boise, Des Moines, Omaha, Charlotte and Kansas City, distributing
multi-pound quantities of methamphetamine. The impact of methamphetamine
on numerous communities has been devastating. In Iowa, health experts
have expressed grave concerns over the 4000 infants affected by drugs,
ninety-percent of which were exposed to methamphetamine. An expert associated
with Marshall County Iowa's Juvenile Court Services estimated in 1998
that one-third of the 1,600 students at Marshalltown High School have
tried methamphetamine. The public safety
is also affected by methamphetamine production. There have been numerous
incidents where children have been injured or killed by explosions and
fires resulting from their parents' methamphetamine cooking. In a major
DEA case, a working methamphetamine lab established by traffickers from
Mexico was discovered in an equestrian center where children were taking
riding lessons. In another case investigated by the DEA, an operational
methamphetamine lab, capable of producing 180 pounds of methamphetamine,
was discovered within a thousand feet of a junior high school. Just two weeks ago,
the DEA office in Fresno, working with the California Bureau of Narcotics
Enforcement, discovered working methamphetamine laboratories in Squaw
Valley and Fresno. Six Mexican nationals were arrested, only one of whom
was in the United States legally. Over 46 pounds of methamphetamine were
seized, and we learned that the ultimate destinations for the methamphetamine
were Oregon, Washington and states in the midwest. Heroin
from Mexico now represents 14% of the heroin seized in the United States,
and it is estimated that organized crime figures in Mexico produced 6
metric tons of heroin last year. A current study being conducted by DEA
indicates that as much as 29% of the heroin being used in the U.S. is
being smuggled in by the Mexico-based organized crime syndicates. Mexican
"black tar" heroin is produced in Mexico, and transported over the border
in cars and trucks. Like cocaine and methamphetamine, it is trafficked
by associates of the organized criminal groups in Mexico, and provided
to dealers and users in the southwest, northwest, midwest areas of the
United States. At one time it was commonplace for couriers to carry two
pounds or so of heroin into the United States; recently, quantities of
heroin seized from individuals has increased as is evidenced by larger
seizures in a number of towns in Texas. This heroin is extremely potent,
and its use has resulted in a significant number of deaths, including
the deaths of 25 individuals in Plano, Texas in the last 18 months. Mexican black tar
heroin is also common in the Pacific Northwest. Last January, officers
from the California Highway Patrol working near Sacramento, stopped a
speeding car driven by a sixteen year old Mexican national. He and a passenger
were from Michoacan, Mexico. A search of the car yielded six kilogram
packages of Mexican black tar heroin intended for distribution in Yakima,
Washington. Seattle, Washington
has suffered from a dramatic increase in heroin overdose deaths. According
to health experts, heroin deaths increased in 1998 to a total of 138.
This figure represents triple the number of heroin deaths in Seattle during
the 1980's. Experts also estimate that there are 20,000 heroin addicts
in Seattle and the surrounding area. Traffickers from Mexico use the I-5
highway to bring their product to cities and suburbs in Washington State.
Marijuana
from Mexico dominates the U.S. import market. Seizures of Mexican marijuana
have increased from 102 metric tons in 1991 to 742 metric tons in 1998.
Marijuana organizations from Mexico are very powerful and violent. In
some places, traffickers from Mexico have established growing operations
within the United States. In a recent case in Idaho, the DEA Boise office,
working with other Federal, state and local law enforcement, arrested
a group of illegal aliens from Zacatecas, Mexico. 114,000 marijuana plants,
weighing almost 20 tons, were seized. This operation represented the largest
marijuana seizure ever in Idaho. It is important to
note that although many of the transactions relating to the drug trade
take place on U.S. soil, the major international organized crime bosses
headquartered in Mexico direct the details of their multi-billion dollar
business step by step. They are responsible not only for the business
decisions being made, but ultimately for the devastation that too many
American communities have suffered as a result of the influx of cocaine,
methamphetamine, heroin and marijuana. Violence Associated with Traffickers from Mexico in the United StatesOrganized crime groups
from Mexico rely on violence as an essential tool of the trade. Much of
the drug-related violence which has become commonplace in Mexico has spilled
over to communities within the United States. Listed below are a few examples
of recent violence committed by traffickers associated with major organized
criminal groups in Mexico. Many of these acts of violence have been aimed
at U.S. law enforcement personnel working along the Southwest Border.
Since September 1996, DEA has recorded 141 threats or violent incidents
against U.S. law enforcement personnel, their Mexican counterparts, public
officials, or informants in Mexico or on the Southwest Border. Of this
number, 93 were received between March 1997 and January 14, 1999.
The American Experience with Organized CrimeThe United States'
experience with organized criminal activity provides some useful parallels
to the situation we are currently facing as we deal with international
organized criminal drug trafficking syndicates based in Mexican cities.
Since the 1950's, American law enforcement, and the American public began
to understand how organized crime groups operating in the United States
used violence, intimidation and corruption to achieve their ends. During
the 1963 Senate hearings conducted by Senator McClellan, and later in
the 1986 report of the President's Commission on Organized Crime, it was
obvious that organized crime could not flourish in America without the
collaboration of corrupted law enforcement officials who protected the
criminals and condoned their criminal activities. The 1986 report states
that: "Corruption is the central tool of the criminal protectors.
The criminal group relies on a network of corrupt officials to protect
the group from the criminal justice system. The success of organized crime
is dependent upon this buffer, which helps to protect the criminal group
from both civil and criminal government action." Through our long
history with organized crime, it was also apparent that violence and the
threat of violence were essential tools of these criminal organizations.
The 1986 Presidential report also noted that: "Both are used as means
of control and protection against members of the group who violate their
commitment and those outside the group to protect it and maximize its
power. Members were expected to commit, condone or authorize violent acts."
Under the leadership
of Attorney General Robert Kennedy in the 1960's, the U.S. Government
launched a major attack on organized crime through a series of important
measures, including toughening laws, providing law enforcement with essential
tools such as wiretap investigations, and establishing multi-jurisdictional
law enforcement approaches to ensure that organized criminal groups could
not find safehavens anywhere in the United States. Through diligent and
consistent law enforcement actions, American organized crime has for all
intents and purposes, been reduced to a shadow of its former self. It
is important to note that it took U.S. law enforcement several decades
to eliminate the once-powerful American organized criminal groups, whose
existence was denied until 1957. While there are major
parallels between American organized crime and today's international organized
criminal groups based in Colombia and Mexico, there are some important
differences. Even at the zenith of their power, American organized crime
leaders did not wield the power and influence that the international drug
trafficking organizations do at the current time. Unlike the American
organized crime leaders, organized crime figures in Mexico have at their
disposal an army of personnel, an arsenal of weapons and the finest technology
that money can buy. They literally run transportation and financial empires,
and an insight into how they conduct their day-to-day business leads even
the casual observer to the conclusion that the United States is facing
a threat of unprecedented proportions and gravity. Organized Criminal Drug Trafficking Syndicates Based in MexicoIn my view, the Mexico-based
drug trafficking organizations operating today are a perfect model for
the description of organized crime that was offered in the President's
Commission on Law Enforcement and Justice in 1967: "a society that seeks
to operate outside the control of the American people and their Government.
It involves thousands of criminals working within structures as large
as those of any corporation." A brief review of
how these organized crime groups rose to power testifies to their adaptability
and ruthlessness, two traits essential to their success. Traffickers from
Mexico have traditionally been poly-drug smugglers, operating heroin and
marijuana distribution organizations in the midwest and southwest regions
of the United States. After a sustained period of intense law enforcement
pressure during the 1980's, cocaine traffickers from Colombia entered
a partnership with drug traffickers in Mexico who agreed to transport
loads of cocaine into the United States, thus insulating Colombian traffickers
from law enforcement attention. Eventually, traffickers from Mexico demanded
payment in cocaine, rather than cash, from their sources in Colombia,
and then assumed a direct trafficking role which they retain today. After
the incarceration of the leaders of the Cali criminal group in 1995 and
1996, traffickers based in Mexico assumed positions of major suppliers
of cocaine in numerous U.S. cities. Additionally, Mexico-based traffickers
also began producing methamphetamine on a very large scale, establishing
production facilities in Mexico and California. The organizations based in Mexico work much the same way that their predecessors and mentors from Cali worked over the years. By maintaining their headquarters in foreign countries, and by conducting all the details of their business in a protected environment, the heads of organized criminal drug trafficking organizations in Mexico have been able to avoid arrest in the United States. Like their Cali counterparts, Mexico-based traffickers have developed an intricate system of cells within the United States through which the day-to-day operations in the U.S. are carried out. Thousands of employees
within the U.S., many of them here illegally, are responsible for transporting
and storing drugs, distributing and, in some cases, manufacturing the
product, and returning the organizations' profits to Mexico and Colombia.
The Arellano Felix OrganizationThe Arellano-Felix
Organization (AFO) remains one of the most powerful, aggressive and arguably
the most violent of the drug trafficking organizations in Mexico. From
strongholds in Tijuana and Mexicali, the AFO orchestrates the transportation,
importation, and distribution of multi-ton quantities of cocaine, marijuana
and large quantities of heroin and methamphetamine into the U.S. Violence,
intimidation and corruption are the AFO trademarks. Utilizing these "tools
of the trade," the AFO has developed an internal security apparatus to
ensure not only the loyalty of fellow AFO members, but also to ensure
compliance by non-AFO traffickers operating in Baja California corridor.
Reportedly, in addition to being responsible for the murder and intimidation
of numerous informants, Mexican law enforcement officials, rival drug
traffickers and innocent citizens, the AFO's aggression has also crossed
over the border into the U.S. The Arellano-Felix
family, headed by Benjamin, has evolved into one of Mexico's most powerful
criminal drug enterprises responsible for smuggling multi-ton quantities
of drugs yearly. While Benjamin manages this multi-million dollar business,
his brother Ramon heads security-related operations. His functions include
the recruitment of enforcers and killers from the streets of San Diego,
such as the "Logan Calle 30" street gang, as well as Tijuana's affluent
youth, known as the "Narco Juniors" and "Los Culiches", a group of prominent
AFO assassins with roots in Culiacan, Sinaloa. For his notoriety, Ramon
has been on the FBI's Ten Most Wanted list since September 1997. The AFO's cocaine
and marijuana distribution network has expanded to U.S. cities in the
mid-west and the East coast during recent years. A recent DEA investigation
revealed that a single AFO cell group based in Los Angeles, California
was responsible for the distribution of cocaine in over 14 cities throughout
the U.S. During raids executed in June 1998, the manager of this cell,
Jorge Castro, and five of his associates were arrested by DEA in Los Angeles.
These arrests followed the nationwide seizures of 3,500 kilograms of cocaine,
$15 million USD, and the arrest of 55 organizational members. Beyond Mexico,
the AFO has extended its ever growing sphere of influence into source
countries in South America such as Colombia and Peru, as well as transhipment
countries such as Panama. In spite of existing
U.S. warrants, Government of Mexico indictments and actionable investigative
leads being provided to the GOM by US law enforcement, limited enforcement
action has taken place within the last year against the AFO. The problem
as it relates to the AFO is a consistent lack of success in gaining evidence,
locating those already indicted, and arresting any major figures. The
few arrests to date have not included the leaders and command structure
of the AFO syndicate. The truly significant principals have not been arrested,
and appear to be immune to any law enforcement efforts. Additionally,
the DEA requested the Mexican Government's assistance in apprehending
another GOM and U.S. target, however, law enforcement officials told U.S.
investigators that it would be difficult to apprehend this individual
because he was too dangerous to pursue due to the number of bodyguards
and corrupt law enforcement officials he employs. In addition to this
lack of effort or willingness on the part of law enforcement in Mexico
to target the leaders of the AFO is the lack of prosecution or extradition
for those that have been arrested. Despite numerous promises, the extradition
case of Arturo Paez-Martinez, an AFO lieutenant, languishes on appeal
in Mexico. Additionally, in an effort to assist law enforcement in Mexico,
on May 8, 1998, AFO Associate Oscar Compillo-Valles was extradited from
the U.S. to Mexico, for his involvement in the conspiracy to off-load
17 tons of cocaine in La Paz, Baja California Sur, in November 1995. Compillo
was sent from San Diego, California to Almoloya high security prison in
Mexico City for only a few days, before being released by a Mexican judge
in Toluca, Mexico for "lack of evidence" linking him to the indictment
in Mexico. News Accounts, as well as sources of information for U.S. law enforcement, indicate that an estimated one million dollars per week is paid to Mexican federal, state and local officials to ensure the continuous flow of drugs to gateway cities along the Southwestern border of the U.S. The Carrillo Fuentes Organization (CFO)The remnants of the
Carrillo-Fuentes Organization (CFO) continue to be one
of the most powerful drug trafficking organizations operating in the Republic
of Mexico, despite the untimely death of its leader, Amado Carrillo-Fuentes,
in July 1997. The CFO has maintained its influence in drug smuggling operations
throughout Mexico and the United States. Vicente Carrillo-Fuentes, brother
of Amado, is now considered the leader of the CFO, or Juarez cartel. Intelligence
sources indicate that Vicente Carrillo-Fuentes now oversees cartel operations,
in association with regional managers who were loyal to the cartel before
Amado's death. Vicente Carrillo-Fuentes is wanted in Mexico and is under
indictment in the Western District of Texas in the United States for operating
a Continuing Criminal Enterprise. Unfortunately, he has not been located
or arrested. In January 1998,
the Government of Mexico secured arrest warrants against 65 members of
the CFO under the 1996 Mexican new Organized Crime Law. Further, in March
1998, the Mexican Government announced a reward offer for the capture
of six of the Juarez cartel main leaders. However, since the issuance
of these arrest warrants, no significant cartel manager has been apprehended.
Arrests have been limited to lower-to mid-level organizational members.
U.S. law enforcement and Mexican investigations indicate that the Yucatan
peninsula has become the gateway for drugs transiting Mexico en route
to the United States by the Juarez cartel. Intelligence gained in these
investigations shows that Alcides Ramon-Magana, "El Metro," and other
former CFO associates have become increasingly powerful within the cartel
and now controls the resort area of Cancun, Mexico. Due to increased cocaine
trafficking in Cancun, the Government of Mexico has focused recent investigative
efforts there. In June 1998, Mexican authorities conducted a series of
raids in Cancun, which led to the seizure of documents that corroborated
the fact that this organization was transporting multi-ton quantities
of cocaine via Mexico to various U.S. cities. One of the documents seized
was a faxed copy of a criminal complaint filed in the U.S. District Court
and made by a New York City detective assigned to the DEA New York Task
Force. The complaint outlines three seizures of cocaine totaling 1,892
kilograms, and the arrest of four Mexican nationals which occurred in
the New York area in February and March of 1997. These documents illustrate
the magnitude of the Juarez cartel operations and their impact on the
United States. Despite the Mexican
Government's counterdrug efforts in the Yucatan area, the organizational
leaders have yet to be apprehended. Additionally, on more than one occasion,
officials observed Ramon Magana and other significant cartel members,
but failed to take any type of enforcement action against them. Information
also indicates that Ramon Magana has gained strength by corrupting numerous
police, military and political officials at various levels. Despite the death
of Amado Carrillo-Fuentes in July 1997, his organization has continued
to flourish. This organization's drug shipments to the U.S. continue unabated
under the leadership of his brother, Vicente Carrillo-Fuentes. The proximity
of cities such as Ciudad Juarez, Mexico and Reynosa, Mexico to the United
States allows the CFO command structure to maintain a "hands on" approach
in conducting cross border operations. Lower-echelon members travel back
and forth between Mexico and the U.S., while the leaders rarely venture
into the U.S., preferring the sanctuary that Mexico provides. The CFO
controls a significant portion of cocaine through Mexico into the U.S.
This organization continues to maintain drug transportation and distribution
cells in U.S. cities such as Los Angeles, Houston, Chicago and New York,
with which it distributes its cocaine, or delivers the drug shipments
to Colombian groups operating in the U.S. Caro-Quintero OrganizationMiguel Angel Caro-Quintero
became the head of the Caro-Quintero organization after the 1985 imprisonment
of his brother, Rafael Caro-Quintero, on drug violations and his involvement
in the murder of Special Agent Enrique Camarena. In 1992, MCQ was charged
in Mexico with Federal drug trafficking violations. This prosecution was
to be conducted under the Article Four provision of the Mutual Legal Assistance
Treaty (MLAT), which allows the Government of Mexico to prosecute Mexican
nationals in Mexico for violations occurring outside of Mexico. After
the U.S. Department of Justice provided the Mexican Government with valuable
evidence to prosecute their case, it is alleged that Miguel Caro-Quintero
was able to use a combination of threats and bribes to have his charges
dismissed by a Mexican Federal Judge in Hermosillo, Sonora, Mexico. Since
thwarting the prosecution in 1992, he has operated freely throughout northwestern
Mexico, and runs his drug smuggling activities from Caborca, Sonora, Mexico.
U.S. investigations have corroborated the fact that Miguel Caro-Quintero
collaborates with some Mexican law enforcement officials as evidenced
by photographs which have shown him meeting with police officials at his
residence. Miguel Caro-Quintero's
actions over the past several years indicate that he apparently fears
no repercussions from law enforcement in Mexico. In May 1996, during the
14th International Drug Enforcement Conference (IDEC) in Mexico City,
Caro-Quintero was identified as one of several major drug traffickers
in Mexico. Shortly thereafter, he called a local radio station to complain
that his reputation was being tarnished. He then reportedly gave his address
and invited law enforcement officials from Mexico and the U.S. to visit
him. Furthermore, in February, 1997 he granted an hour long interview
with the Washington Post during which he claimed to be an innocent
rancher. In the article he said "every day, I pass by road blocks, police,
soldiers, and there are no problems. How can they not find me? Because
they are not looking for me." Miguel Caro-Quintero
controls the areas of Caborca, Sonora, Mexico, and works in conjunction
with his brothers, Jorge and Genaro Caro-Quintero, and his sisters Maria
Del Carmen Caro-Quintero and Blanca Lili Caro-Quintero. The organization
also has strong ties in Hermosillo, Sonora, Mexico where two of Miguel's
sisters, Melida Caro de Arce and Maria Manuela Caro de Sesteaga, reside
with their husbands, who also participate in the activities of the MCQ
Organization. The Caro-Quintero organization cultivates cannabis throughout
Mexico, and smuggles marijuana, heroin and cocaine from Mexico into the
U.S. To date Miguel Caro-Quintero has not been arrested. The Amezcua-Contreras OrganizationPrior to their arrest
by the Government of Mexico, the Amezcua-Contreras brothers operated from
Guadalajara, Mexico, and managed a methamphetamine production and trafficking
organization with global dimensions. The organization was directed by
Jesus Amezcua, and supported by his brothers, Adan and Luis. During the
height of the organizations existence, the Amezcua drug trafficking organization
was considered one of the world's largest smugglers of ephedrine and clandestine
producers of methamphetamine. Information developed by U.S. and GOM investigations
indicate that the Amezcua organization obtained large quantities of the
precursor ephedrine, utilizing contacts in Thailand and India, which they
supplied to methamphetamine laboratories in Mexico and the U.S. The organization
utilized trusted associates in the U.S. to distribute ephedrine to Mexican
methamphetamine traffickers operating in the U.S. The Amezcua brothers
were also known to supply methamphetamine to the Tijuana Cartel run by
the Arellano- Felix Organization. Because of their
direct impact on the United States, DEA financially supported the Government
of Mexico's investigation in Guadalajara for over three years. As a result
of this investigation, in January 1998, the Mexican Attorney General's
office issued a warrant for the arrests of 17 members of the Amezcua Organization
on charges of Organized Criminal Activity, and Operating with Resources
from Illicit Gains. Mexican arrest warrants were issued for Luis, Jesus,
and Adan Amezcua and several Amezcua family members. Following the arrest
warrants, 103 properties belonging to various members of the Amezcua Organization
were reportedly seized by Mexican authorities. On June 1, 1998,
Jesus and Luis Amezcua were arrested by Government of Mexico officials
for Organized Criminal Activity and Operating with Resources from Illicit
Gains. This was an important step on the part of the Mexican Government.
However, no drug charges were ever filed against Luis and Jesus by the
Government. Following their arrest, by October 1998, all criminal charges
were dismissed against Jesus and Luis by a Guadalajara judge. The Government
of Mexico re-arrested Jesus and Luis Amezcua on the USG Provisional Arrest
Warrants. These warrants are based on the June 1998 indictment originating
from the Southern District of California which charges Jesus and Luis
Amezcua with operating a Continuing Criminal Enterprise to Manufacture
and Distribute Methamphetamine and Conspiracy to Possess Ephedrine. The Government of
Mexico's efforts against the Amezcua brothers are noteworthy and they
should be commended. It is essential that the progress in this case be
followed up with extradition to the United States. Despite lengthy and
expensive investigations, there are no existing prosecutable cases in
Mexico. The ultimate success
of the commitment to the prosecution of the Amezcua brothers will be the
extradition of these criminals to the United States to face the pending
federal indictments. To date, the Mexican Foreign Ministry has approved
the extradition of Jesus Amezcua but has yet to rule on Luis Amezcua.
The Amezcua brothers have filed appeals in Mexican courts fighting the
extradition order and this matter will most likely be a lengthy process
with an uncertain result. What is Required to Deal with Mexico-Based Organized Crime Syndicates that Commit Massive Criminal Activity in the United StatesAs our nation learned
during the long reign of the American mafia, it is imperative to have
strong institutions in place to minimize the damage that organized crime
can inflict on a society. Aggressive, honest law enforcement, sophisticated
legal tools and the will to mount a sustained attack against organized
crime are essential to combat organized crime. History has taught us that
organized crime groups depend on an environment of corruption and intimidation
to thrive. Until the environment is changed---as it was in the United
States, Italy and Colombia when the Colombian National Police emerged
victorious in their long-term campaign against the Cali mafia---leaders
of organized criminal drug trafficking syndicates are able to insinuate
themselves into national institutions, and damage the foundations of any
society they target. There are numerous
conditions in Mexico today that, unfortunately, have allowed the organized
criminal drug trafficking syndicates to grow even stronger than I predicted
a few years ago. It is almost as if members of the Arellano Felix, Amado
Carrillo-Fuentes, Caro-Quintero and Amezcua organizations have little
to fear except the slim possibility that they will be extradited to the
United States to face justice at the hands of a jury of their victims'
peers. Because there is little effective law enforcement activity leading
to the arrest of major traffickers in Mexico, investigations have been
compromised in some cases, U.S. law enforcement must be and has been more
aggressive in identifying, targeting and arresting the highest level drug
traffickers who are working in the U.S. at the behest of Mexican drug
lords and their Colombian counterparts. The U.S. was successful
in attacking organized crime over a period which spanned several decades.
This was done through a committed effort to professionalize law enforcement
organizations and ensure that corrupt officials were weeded out; passing
and enforcing laws which allowed us to mount effective investigations;
and working closely with other governments, where necessary, to ensure
that there were no safehavens for the heads of these criminal organizations.
Although I am not
an expert on other nations, I am an expert on organized crime and know
what is required to improve the dangerous environment we face today. If
the Government and people of Mexico are to be successful in their efforts
to eliminate organized crime from Mexico, it will take time, and many
changes need to be made in law enforcement institutions in order to ensure
that the rule of law is paramount in their struggle against these criminals.
As I have said on past occasions, law enforcement reforms can take many
years, and even under the best of circumstances, such change can be exceedingly
slow. The Drug Enforcement
Administration recognizes the contributions that have been made by the
Government of Mexico to this difficult struggle. The arrest of the Amezcua
brothers is a good indication that action can and will be taken against
the heads of the major organizations in Mexico. DEA was also initially
optimistic about the prospects for long-term change after the arrest of
General Rebollo in 1997, and the subsequent establishment of mechanisms
within the law enforcement infrastructure, such as Binational Task Forces
and the vetted unit program. We supported these programs financially and
with other resources in the hope that our efforts would result in a successful
attack against the drug lords who are creating so much damage to the citizens
and communities within the United States. However, continuing reports
of corruption and the rapidly growing power and influence of the major
organized criminal groups in Mexico cause us great concern about the long-term
prospects for success. In February 1997,
General Gutierrez Rebollo, the Director General of DEA's chief counterpart
agency in Mexico, the INCD, was arrested for collusion with top echelon
Mexican traffickers. As a result, the INCD was completely disbanded. At
that time, we believed that with the dissolution of the INCD, and the
subsequent creation of the elite FEADS and the vetted unit program, a
new era of successful investigations between the U.S. and Mexican Governments
would emerge. We worked diligently to train and equip these elite vetted
units in support of the new Government of Mexico's counter-narcotics initiative.
Accordingly, to date, DEA and the FBI have conducted 539 polygraph examinations
of FEADS personnel which has resulted in 343 FEADS personnel being vetted
under U.S. standards. DEA and the FBI working together have provided training
in the U.S. for 176 vetted agents and prosecutors during five separate
four-week schools. As of this date, 70 of these vetted and trained personnel
have been assigned to the eleven vetted units in Mexico. In our attempt
to improve cooperation and successful apprehensions, DEA has invested
$4.5 million in these programs. However, because
of recent allegations of corruption involving vetted unit personnel, the
ability of U.S. law enforcement agencies to share sensitive information
with these officials has again been adversely affected. Future attempts
to share important and sensitive investigative information will depend
on elimination of corruption in these key law enforcement units. In 1997, we entered
into a joint agreement between the DEA, FBI, U.S. Customs and federal
law enforcement in Mexico to establish joint binational task forces. Because
we could not provide the U.S.-based agents appropriate physical and legal
protections, this concept has been disbanded. In place of that program,
the Government of Mexico has set up unilateral programs called BIU's.
The Base Intelligence Units (BIUs) operate in nine locations throughout
Mexico. The BIUs were originally envisioned and created to identify, investigate
and arrest leaders and members of major drug trafficking organizations
operating on both sides of the U.S. and Mexican border. In an effort to
assist these units, DEA has provided extensive funding from our budget
for screening and equipment. In addition, as a further attempt to improve
cooperation, we have offered to make space available at our key border
offices to improve joint investigations. The BIU's achievements
in attaining investigative goals to date have been minimal. Although the
original purposes of these units was to target the major traffickers ---
Arellano-Felix and Amado Carillo Fuentes ---there has yet to be a successful
investigation or arrest. Several of the BIUs collected useful intelligence
information against the Amezcua-Contreras methamphetamine trafficking
organization, but unfortunately all of the charges in Mexico were dismissed
for insufficiency. The Organized Crime
Units' Sensitive Investigative Unit (SIU) was created with a similar mission
in mind: to identify, investigate and arrest leaders and members of the
major drug trafficking organizations operating throughout Mexico. Although
the SIU was one of the first counter-narcotics units to conduct court-authorized
telephone intercepts under the new Organized Crime Law, there has been
little success. The discovery during the last several months that significant
drug-related corruption existed among law enforcement officials working
in Mexico's OCU and SIU has been a major setback. These allegations of
corruption were further corroborated during recent polygraph examinations
which reflected deception on the part of the OCU and SIU members. Such
corruption has damaged drug investigations in which the DEA provided support
to the vetted units. This represents a serious setback to the vision of
rebuilding the counter-narcotics units from the defunct units of the past,
and causes great concern for the sharing of sensitive law enforcement
information. Anti-Corruption
Initiatives: The ability of any government to attack powerful
criminal organizations is dependent upon the existence of honest, dedicated
law enforcement professionals. To attain this goal, meaningful anti-corruption
initiatives which lead to sound criminal investigations and prosecutions
of corrupt officials must be aggressively pursued. Only when implementation
of these measures results in widespread behavioral changes can success
be realized by a honest cadre of law enforcement officials against the
major Mexican drug trafficking mafias. Last year we were
hopeful that a number of integrity assurance programs initiated in concert
with law enforcement officials in Mexico would improve our ability to
share information. In fairness, we also recognized that this was a difficult
undertaking and would require a substantial period of time. Regretfully,
when it became known that high level officials of the vetted Organized
Crime Unit were associated with key lieutenants of one of Mexico's most
powerful drug trafficking organizations, the Carrillo Fuentes Organization,
it was a major setback for our efforts. Examples of corruption
include:
In 1997, the Government
of Mexico, as a result of continuing incidents of corruption in the civilian
law enforcement institutions, transferred much of the narcotics enforcement
efforts to the Government of Mexico military. We interact only with civilian
law enforcement agencies and are not able to evaluate properly the success
of this transfer of responsibility, There are numerous reports of drug-related
corruption involving military units and at least to date, they have not
been successful in locating and arresting the leaders of the criminal
organizations. Elimination
of Violence against Law Enforcement Officials and others: As
long as an environment of intimidation and corruption exists, traffickers
are able to prevent effective law enforcement efforts, silence witnesses
and exact revenge on rivals and sources of information. In 1998, several
incidents involving violence in Mexico were reported.
Conclusion:
Organized crime groups from Mexico continue to pose a grave threat to
the citizens of the United States. In my lifetime, I have never witnessed
any group of criminals that has had such a terrible impact on so many
individuals and communities in our nation. They have infiltrated cities
and towns around the United States, visiting upon these places addiction,
misery, increased criminal activities and increased homicides. There is
no doubt that those individuals running these organized criminal drug
trafficking syndicates today---the Arellano Felix brothers, Vicente Carillo
Fuentes, the Amezcua brothers and the Caro Quintero family---are responsible
for degrading the quality of life not only in towns along the Southwest
border of the United States, but increasingly, cities in middle America.
The threat that these
organized crime groups pose demands a decisive response. U.S. law enforcement
agencies are working every day to identify and target those individuals
associated with Mexico-based trafficking organizations. Because of the
unparalleled levels of corruption within Mexican law enforcement agencies
with whom we must work to ensure that these individuals are brought to
justice, our job is made that much more difficult. Until we can work with
our law enforcement counterparts in Mexico, in a relationship that is
free from suspicion, the burden to bring the drug lords before a jury
of their victims' peers will remain largely ours. I believe it is important
to note that every day we ask thousands of young law enforcement officers
throughout the United States to risk their lives to protect us from these
vicious international criminals. I cannot begin to list the numbers of
my friends, who as Deputy Sheriffs, troopers or agents were killed in
the line of duty. When I met with their families and loved ones, invariably
they asked if this loss was worth it. They ask if we will continue to
go after those who are responsible for this evil criminal activity. I
believe it will be difficult to assure these families that we are committed
if we allow those who are responsible for the control of this massive
drug trafficking to live in their palatial mansions with millions of dollars
in Swiss bank accounts, apparently virtually immune from sanctions. If
our commitment does not follow through on bringing these drug lords to
justice, it will be difficult to tell the survivors of these tragedies
that we are serious. Mr. Chairman, I appreciate this opportunity to appear before the Committee today. |