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Tuesday, September 10, 2013

Zetas Money Laundering Trial-Story Behind the Story and Courtroom Notes

by Havana and Chivis Martínez for Borderland Beat
U.S Attorney Team
Notes from the courtroom

The Austin, Texas federal courtroom filled early and soon faced a blur of facts, initials, figures, names of horses, stables, races, LLCs, informants, and so much previously presented testimony all heads were spinning and emotions frazzled. Standing room was not allowed, so there was a jockeying for the limited seats, and even for press, who had to follow the strictly enforced rule of no electronics in the courtroom.
For over a year and a half,  Judge Sam Sparks remarked; he'd worked the case lugging around more paper than he could carry and by the look of his courtroom podium no one doubted it.

Sentence recommendations precede the sentencing hearings, filed both by defense and prosecution teams, however, sentencing hearings are mini trials in themselves, with evidence, and testimony presented.  Eleven convicted defendants and over forty attorneys were a part of the long process.

There was much talk about the dollar amount funneled through the quarter horse operation as being a very conservative estimate.  The US attributed it to the sophistication of the Zetas money laundering scheme. If factors didn't add up 100% proof, it was not included. Judge Sparks commented that even if the dollar figure might have been relatively conservative, there was overwhelming resounding amount of evidence to convict the participants.

At one point Sparks marveled, "one of the remarkable things about this case is that not one of the defendants had a criminal history and they participated in it for greed, fear or intimidation."

Ramon Segura was the first witness whose  testimony was supposed to help lighten Francisco Colorado Cessa’s lengthy sentence.
Before the court Ramon Segura Flores stated he was a founding member of ADT Petrolservicios in 2001, so obviously, Francisco Cessa Colorado's business partner. While working for ADT from 2002-2007, Segura’s job was procuring RFPs, fulfilling contracts and tracking income. He purchased machinery and said all of Pemex money was deposited directly into the " Bancomer  #989835 account." "I handled all acquisitions and knew about all the funds to cover them"

When asked about Pemex's corruption, he said "that is something I cannot comment on, I just do my job.....I was aware of their reorganization because of corruption within Pemex and aware of money awarded to fulfill my contracts." 

Segura discounted a referred to 6 million loan from Efrain Torres aka Z14 as something very traceable, that more or less couldn't have happened under his watchful eye. And the 50 million given to Colorado Cessa, he was not aware of either.
Ramon Segura said he speaks daily with Colorado Cessa and has not been involved in fraudulent activities for the company. When asked by the prosecution if he participated if he participated in criminal activities for Colorado Cessa, he replied no but was reminded by Assistant US Attorney, Michelle Fernald that he was under oath.  He acknowledged that and was adamant when repeating “no”.

There was much discounting of testimony by the defense throughout the trial and also continuing on the first day of sentencing by the defense on the familiar subject of information provided from confidential informants to the government. One of Colorado Cessa's lawyers (Sanchez Ross) asked the witness for the prosecution, Scott Lawson, about El Pitufo's  credibility, an infamous informant, having testified in numerous cases  (over 80 cases) and is living boarded by the Office of Attorney General with a $5,000 a month salary. El Pitufo was initially going to be used by the American government in this case but was not used.

Case FBI Investigator Scott Lawson and Steve Pennington, criminal investigator for the IRS each took the stand, one after the other for the government.  Scott Lawson went over previous testimony in the case reminding us that testimony showed that two businessmen had been killed by the Zetas for cooperation in this case.
It was sobering to learn Victor Lopez; an integral part of the case had been killed by the Zetas for cooperating with authorities. 
Victor Lopez picked up some of the slack after Carlos Nayen returned to Mexico.  Lopez set up LLCs with Fernando Solis Garcia and was deeply involved in money structuring, as well as smuggling cash over the border for payments to Southwest Stallion in Elgin Texas. 
Additionally, there was previous testimony, a massive paper trail, and  photos of his flying from Laredo to Oklahoma for a money drop and returning to Laredo in the same day. Lawson testified Treviño told the Zetas that Lopez attracted attention. Lopez was detained in March 2012 and provided information to the Government. 
Lawson told the court Victor Lopez was later killed.

On Friday morning a breaking news event quickly overshadowed the sentencing hearings, when it was revealed that Segura and Francisco Colorado Cessa Jr. were arrested in a charge of attempting to bribe  the judge in Francisco seniors case, for 1.2 Million dollars.
That made Thursday’s little back and forth between a U.S. Attorney and Segura, during his testimony, more relevant.  Having declared, under oath,  that he had never participated in illegal activities with Colorado Cessa. 
 Hours later Segura and Colorado’s son were arrested in the bribery case.
On Friday at the Colorado/Segura bribery preliminary hearing, Judge Austin told the defendants   as he was referring to the charges on the affidavit that they had the right to an attorney; Ramon Segura replied offhandedly, "I don't understand US Law."

Then he added he was trying to retain Colorado Cessa's attorney, Mike DeGeurin, as was

Francisco Colorado Jr. It was suggested they might want to alert the Mexican Consulate of their crime as was typically done in similar instances or they could have their lawyer attend to it. They both said they would leave that to their attorney.

Commenting on the bribery case, U.S. Attorney Robert Pitman said;  "The latest allegation, if proven, demonstrates that individuals associated with the most violent drug cartel believe that they can corrupt what we hold as the bedrock of American justice - the United States Courts," said U.S. Attorney Robert Pitman said in a statement.

"We are one step ahead of them and if they continue to try to function as they do in Mexico, we will find them, we will stop them, and we will do whatever it takes to ensure that they are punished to the full extent of the law."

Sentencing
 Adan Farias represented by Daniel Wannamaker Sentenced to 3 years’ probation 3600 dollar fine.
Farias, of Norco California, a bedroom community of ranches and horse stables in southern California, is a top notch horse trainer, his company LA Horses was a success, but far from the aspirations he once held of becoming an FBI agent.  Some around Los Alamitos Race Track say his success in the last 2 ½ years of his career, at the minimum, were the result of running his horses doped on zilpaterol. 
As with many of the peripheral characters of the Zetas saga,   there is as much to make an argument for Farias being a sympathetic character, as there is to frame him as a scoundrel.
For starters the doping, secondly, 11 dead horses in 2 ½ years, racing horses in his care.
Yet his supporters point to his actions before the Zetas, a professional, driven, hardworking, a family man, willing to give of himself in charitable causes, creating a youth program.

In 2011, a 17 year old boy named Emanuel connected with the ‘Make A Wish Foundation’ saying his dream was to meet his idols, Paul Jones and  Adan Farias. Farias spent a day with Emanuel.  This was a year before his ‘idol’ had his license revoked for doping.
Farias was contacted by Carlos Nayen, who eventually contracted Farias to train 10 Zetas horses in the United States.  Nayen asked Farias to travel to Mexico to meet someone Nayen referred to as “The Boss”.
 
Nayen was deep in the Zetas U.S. operations, drugs, weapons, money laundering and every aspect of the Zetas quarter horse operation. Nayen’s boss Miguel Treviño, wanted the best trainers for his horses, and Farias was a star in the field of quarter horse training.
On a June day in 2010, he travelled from SoCal to San Antonio where he was picked up by Nayen’s people and driven to the border.  He hadn’t a clue who the people were who were taking him, where he was going, or who this “boss” was, a man that Nayen once referred to as”40”.  He did later report that he felt an uncomfortable feeling, a  leeriness from the time he was picked up in San Antonio.....continues on next page

Nayen’s men took him across the border into Mexico. He was blindfolded at times when nearing  the destination.   They finally arrived and Farias was presented to 40.  Farias only heard "40" reference once, but it meant nothing to him, he, as the majority of Southern Californians, didn’t know anything much about Zetas, let alone the Zetas organizational structure.  Therefore, when the man introduced himself as Miguel Treviño his mind drew a blank.  He shook his hand thinking- "am I supposed to know who the fuck this guy is?"
He saw AK47s and guns he was unfamiliar with,  and asked about them. 40 being the cordial host, showed him the guns and gave him a little education about the weapon.  Then it was all about horses....later, time for  goodbyes,  back with the blindfold, over the border, on the plane, and home.

Upon arriving back home in California, Farias immediately fell asleep.  He told the jury It was the next day that he sat at the computer to figure out who Treviño was, he googled Zeta 40....and discovered the man he met in Mexico called “40”, was a superior leader of one of the world’s most powerful organized criminal organizations, Los Zetas..

Three years after first meeting Treviño, Farias faces an uncertain future. Banned from the sport for a series of doping violations, pleading guilty, he was forced into bankruptcy, Farias, 34, was sentenced Friday in U.S. District Court in Austin, Texas. He received the recommended sentence of probation in return for testifying for the government.
Addressing the court Farias apologized and was thankful and said "nothing like that would happen again."

His wife speaking on his behalf,  said that she would keep him on the straight and narrow during his probation period.  She told the judge they had had many talks and he is very sorry

"Chevo" Huitron: Represented by Richard Esper, sentenced: 97 months and 3 years supervised release with no forfeiture of property.
Eustebio Huitron, the brother of "Jesse" Huitron, Jesse is  the only defendant in the case found not guilty, “was facing a potential 121-151 months in jail.  Many case watchers expected that Chevo would receive a light sentence, as his role appeared to be relatively small and hard evidence equally light.  Any role Chevo played in the conspiracy was limited to the span of time he trained horses for the Zetas operation. 

In addressing the seemingly large sentence request, U.S. Attorney Douglas Gardner acknowledged Chevo's role was small but "he knew where their money came from and received over a half a million dollars.  He was one of the people they utilized...And he had met with "Z40" directly."  Gardner asked the judge for 97 months, and the request was granted.
Huitron's attorney Richard D.Esper said, "Crime is a tragedy but not all tragedy is a crime. The crime here is that he is standing in court incarcerated." Esper wanted the court to know Eusebio Huitron's role was really so minimal. He is a simple man with a sixth grade education from Mexico which Chevo himself honestly once admitted that he scarcely attended.
 
Esper went on to say that Chevo didn't control anyone or play a leadership role. The attorney mentioned even though Chevo wishes to serve his sentence in the Bastrop jail nearest his family, Esper would prefer him to be incarcerated in Dallas Federal Prison which is a jail with a medical facility because Chevo has health issues. He asked for 41 months for Chevo Huitron saying when he has completed his commitments, he will be deported back to Mexico since he isn't a citizen.

When Chevo faced the Judge Sam Sparks, he asked "...to be forgiven that I became involved with these people...." He blamed it as part of life training horses. "You work 365 days a year, 24 hours a day, for whoever gives you the work....  I am before you and ask forgiveness. My family is back there and I want them to know I love them and for them to forgive me."
Sam Sparks replied, "Forgiveness is a matter between you and the Lord."

Sparks gave him 97 months and 3 years supervised release with no forfeiture of property
Felipe Alejandro Quintero represented by Gerardo Montalvo-Sentenced to 3 years’ probation and 3600 dollar fine

Quintero is a U.S. citizen, born in Bellower California, a small city in Los Angeles County.  He trained horses at the Los Alamitos stables.  He trained horses for Carlos Nayen until the fall of 2012.  Quintero says he met Nayen at the Ruidoso racetrack in New Mexico.  In a police interview in 12-12-12, he stated he purchased 5 horses for Jose and Nayen at a Oklahoma yearling sale
 
Quintero stood before the judge and apologized to him, and to his family for embarrassing them.  "It affected them so much," he said while sobbing, “I just wanted to say it would never happen again."  His wife came up beside him and spoke for him to the judge and said that Quintero wouldn't do anything like that ever again and he has definitely repented. Quintero told the judge they are working to rebuild their life.  He said that he was working as a cashier at a restaurant. And that he and his wife had also started a cake baking business at his.

Carlos Miguel Nayen Barbolla pleaded guilty under seal
Everyone was escorted out of the courtroom. US Attorney, Mr. Gardner objected to the sealing, "It is the right of the people to understand the justice system." A motion was filed Thursday to get it unsealed" In two weeks it should be unsealed and we will return to court to finally know Nayen's fate and hopefully understand some of the mystery surrounding him. 
Nayen worked directly  for Efrain Teodoro Torres aka “Z14” until Teodoro was killed, ironically,  at a horse race, at which time Nayen began working for Miguel Treviño.

Nayen who is referred to as “Piloto” in the indictment, was an integral character in the Zetas operations in the U.S., his responsibilities entailed weapons and ammunition into Mexico for the Zetas, and drug profits into the U.S. using various methods of transfer, but primarily using the favored method of organized crime, bulk cash transfers/smuggling to move illicit proceeds across U.S. Borders.

Congress criminalized the act of smuggling large amounts of cash as part of the PATRIOT Act.

U.S. law requires a notification to the IRS of any transfer greater than 10k USD using the FinCEN form.  Another method used  to circumvent the 10k requirements is the structured deposits spoken about in length during trial testimony, multiple deposits, at various bank institutions, of amounts under the 10k USD limit, thereby skirting the reporting requirement.
Bulk transfers are large illicit transfers into the U.S. via vehicle, watercraft, truck, postal service, aircraft or covertly in shipping containers.

Nayen was in a lead position in the Zetas operation in the U.S. taking orders directly from “40”.
Zulema Treviño represented by Clinton Broden sentenced to 3 years’ probation
Looking contrite in somber black, standing beside her attorney the wife of Jose Treviño faced Judge Sparks.  Zulema was charged in the indictment for “conspiracy to launder” and subsequently pled guilty rather than go to trial.

Judge Sparks said he felt Zulema was doing as her husband instructed.
Prosecutor Douglas Gardner told the court "the government received information that they had (members of the Trevino family) been applying pressure on Zulema and Alejandra, and blaming the lengthy sentence Jose faced on their cooperation.  This is just another case of the leaders showing a sense of entitlement." 
The government made it clear that that Alexandra and Zulema absolutely refused to provide information for this case.
He believed Zulema was acting at her husband's demand. "Mrs. Trevino cut a deal only to protect her family."  With the removal of ill-gotten gains, forfeiture of property, living in a modest ranch house within the bounds of probation, she has been working at a cafeteria for the single school district and a Subway at night having to provide for her family."

She declined the offer to speak in court.  Her lawyer said she was nervous and Judge Sam Sparks said he'd never known a sole that wasn't nervous standing in an American Federal court and asked to speak.
Zulema received three years’ probation but doesn't have to pay the $3,600 fine due to having forfeiting  all assets. The judge said that at two years with a written request to him, he probably would release her if she has had exemplary behavior.

Alexandra Garcia Treviño represented by Frank Ivy sentenced to two years’ probation
Alexandra, the daughter of Jose Treviño, was charged in the indictment with “failure to report”, and was facing up to 27 months in prison.  Evidence had proven that the young newlywed had only been involved with the operation for a few months before the bust.
 
Judge Sam Sparks said age was a big factor most likely causing some of her bad decisions.

Prosecutor Douglas Gardner stressed that Alexandra Treviño most assuredly has a mind of her own as exhibited in an early meeting with her and her parents in that she immediately realized the severity of their offenses and she readily took steps to remove herself from her family environment and is now living near the Marine base at Camp Pendleton, in Oceanside, California, 35 miles north of San Diego.
Alexandra was a hardworking teen, she worked all through high school and graduated among the highest percentile in her class.  

On June 2, 2012, Alexandra’s parents presented her with a lavish, wedding at   Adolphus, 1912 Baroque style, five star hotel in Dallas Texas.  The extravagant nuptials included music played by  the popular Mexican band "Bando Recodo".  In his testimony, "Mamito" stated he thought the band fee was 250 thousand dollars.   

Zulema, in her June 25th, 2012 FBI interview, she spoke of her daughters recent wedding at the Adolphus, and that it was paid for by she and her husband Jose.

The agent asked her how the family was able to afford such an extravagant  wedding.  Zulema replied, that she was uncertain, but that "Jose took care of it", but he had told her it was paid for by "bonuses" the family had received.

One can imagine Alexandra’s excitement over her dream wedding, which was followed by a European honeymoon.
Then just nine days later, her world came crashing down, and the dream dissipated into a real life nightmare, when hundreds of DOJ, FBI  and DEA agents descended on the family home and businesses in a raid that would confiscate  voluminous amounts evidence and conduct arrests of scores of defendants with charges relating to money laundering and other crimes benefiting  the Los Zetas cartel.

In the motions in Limine for Bruton Objection, is an interesting IM exchange between Alexandra and her then fiancé, Marine Luis Garcia, it is a dialog discovered after a forensic analysis of a computer found at the José Treviño family residence in Balch Springs Texas.  In the IM exchange, Alexandra and Garcia were engaged in a lengthy instant message dialog, in which Alexandra was speaking to Garcia about the “family business”.  The language used in the IM conversation  could be construed that she was  attempting to lay a seed of interest, in  that he may want to go into the business  and one day “run it”. 
 
She also told Garcia that her father wanted her to take over the business that he trusted her, and her capability, and that in the José Treviño will, she would get the bulk of “everything”. The government argued to offer into evidence in the case, this discovery and other statements, on the grounds of Alexandra being a “co-conspirator” thereby the evidence is not hearsay and should be allowed into evidence under the Federal Rules of Evidence.  What happened that caused her role in the scheme to be downgraded is a bit of mystery.  Perhaps further evidence supported her role as insignificant and one of obliviousness, for now, this part of the scenario has few answers, but many questions.
One thing is clear, she gave up no information. 

In the sentencing,  Judge Sparks said that he wasn't confident she could follow a longer than 2 year supervised probation period due to the situation of her Marine husband who was to be stationed different places.

Alejandra Garcia Trevino confidently said that her husband has vowed to keep her following the letter of the law and thanked the judge.
He waved drug testing and said she was to provide all financial information is to be provided.

Raul Ramirez represented by Robert Harris-sentence 12 months and 1 day, 3 years’ probation no forfeiture of property
Raul Ramirez, 21 years old, played a small role in the money laundering scheme.  He had called Scott Lawson saying  he was too scared to testify.

Raul, an American citizen, was born in El Paso Texas, though grew up in the Mexican town of San Augustin.  It is accurate to state that he was born into horse racing, having been introduced to the sport at an early age, his family owned a business of caring for horses for many years.  His father and brother Edgar also are involved in horse racing.
He moved to New Mexico in 2010 to work for who he identified as “Fernando Garcia”, (Solis Garcia) after brother Edgar had been working for Fernando for several months.  Raul was paid 500USD per week, cash, to train and care for Fernando’s horses.  Unbeknownst to Raul and his brother, the true nature of his employment was revealed early 2011 at a Ruidoso N.M. horse auction. 

Just prior to entering the auction, Fernando and Carlos Nayen asked Raul and his friend Rene Ruiz to bid on horses for them.  Nayen explained the request by saying that he and Fernando were from Mexico, and if other people saw they were bidding, they would hike the prices on them.  He assured Raul and Ruiz he would pay for the horses.  In effect Ramirez was being used to front shell companies in the bidding for quarter horses.
After the auction STALLIONSSEARCH.COM ran a post indicating that Raul was the lead buyer at the auction. 

He did not stay long in N.M. and after a brief stay in SoCal, training horses with Felipe Quintero, he returned home to El Paso.  Raul said he was unaware of Zetas involvement by Nayen or Fernando, until after August 2010.  Raul’s brother Edgar was the jockey riding “Mr. Piloto”, owned by Fernando, in the American Futurities Race, winning big time. 

To celebrate, Fernando held a huge cookout in N.M. where Raul was introduced to Jose Treviño, brother of 40 and 42 and he learned that “Mr. Piloto” was in reality owned by Jose Treviño’s company Tremor Enterprises.

Raul, in his FBI interrogation said that it is not uncommon for drug traffickers to also be involved in horse racing.  In Mexico they go hand and hand.
A little over a year ago, the then 20 year old Ramirez was arrested  while trying to enter the United States from Mexico through the international crossroads of Fabens, Texas.

To read more information relating to this story link here and here
 

101 comments:

  1. Well, this is very significant coverage here. You should see the US Attorneys get this

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  2. W.T.F.!!!!! The mom and daughter should be gang raped and set on fire.!!!! How much Money and jewelry is hidden? Why are my tax dollars supporting this Skank? The government should also arrest the Marine, he knew of the family,and enjoyed the perks that Money can buy.

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    1. On the plus side of the two women being set free is that once the gvt targets u free or not u are always in their crosshairs.one wrong move slipup or otherwise they get u.they will be known and watched closely as long as they live.

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    2. The publicity is their worst enemy for this family ,they are probably being hunted down as we speak by rival assasins

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    3. The most important thing that the Trevino family does not understand is that there are hundreds of individuals who will retaliate against the Trevino family for the harm they had caused to these individuals' family members. Trevino's wife and daughter are not in the clear. They are in the government's crosshairs and the victim's crosshair. Sooner or later, they will be dropped. For the rest of their lives, they will have to look over their shoulders.

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    4. same for the trevinos in Mexico,sisters,brothers, in-laws,the cats and the dogs,each and everyone a target,and z40 forking the ass in jail

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  3. That took me an hour to read this and look at the links. Must have taken you longer! Good, interesting stufff, Borderland Beat. Thanks for the effort.

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  4. The latest allegation, if proven, demonstrates that individuals associated with the most violent drug cartel believe that they can corrupt what we hold as the bedrock of American justice.

    unless you're Sinaloa (i.e. la reyna del pacifico, El JT,) or the thousands of smugglers that get caught at the border but are then let go because the DEA feels that their "loads aren't big enough". (http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-18563_162-57593386/drug-smugglers-set-free-for-lack-of-money-to-prosecute/). Or an offshore drilling company that spills oil all over the gulf. Or Enron. Or Monsanto. Other than that American justice will prevail.

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    1. at any rate YEAP! none of those assholes killed so many people so openly,and they do NOT publicize their misdeeds on narcomantas.FUCK THE ZETAS anywhere!

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  5. If Raul Ramirez had testified he'd not have to serve that year in jail.

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  6. The book was thrown at these Zetas and associates. Although some of the top capos in the world have probably found ways to circumvent American law enforcement by investing in the U.S.A., for the most part they keep their investments for money they generated from drug proceeds to Mexico and other nations. This way they avoid sanctions that are applied to them and their businesses by OFAC through the RICO and FNKD Acts, and to any American individuals and companies that might want to do business with them. In other words, Z40 and his brother fucked up. Regardless of what the future holds for Z40, he can't be to pleased that his money will end up in the hands of U.S.A. DOJ, DEA, FBI, District Attorneys, Prosecutors, banks, etc.

    A person who downloaded a documentary on Youtube titled, Narcos Mexicanos and Colombianos: Titeres del Bilderberg, made an interesting comment. In the comment he states: Only 7.8% of $300busd made annually from the trafficking of cocaine goes to Colombia. Probably a little more to Mexico and that's it. Most of the money stays in the U.S.A. and Europe - and into the hands of Banks/Banksters. Blood, sweat, and tears is paid by drug traffickers, and sometimes innocents,. However, banksters and the elite are the ones who benefit from the fruits of that labor!

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    1. all the legitimate money our politicians steal go to American and European banks,Arab banks, hsbc,to mitt romney's Cayman islands secret Panamanian investments,Mexico can't even eat nopales anymore,they are for export

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  7. Too bad jail time won't affect the behavior of the other 999,999 other Zetas. None of these guys were Zetas except Carlos Nayen but he'll get his later this month.

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    1. a bullet up the ass of the leader works wonders, the moment the head pops up, the moment the ass gets clipped,why do you think the fucking tuta la puta is crying and hidding?

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  8. The US government would crush the zetas. Can you say seal team 6 + predator drone = dead zetas

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    1. Here we go again with the seal team 6 crap

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    2. Can't u say sh.t the f up with ur sealteam 6.to many video games buddy .

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    3. video games?maybe,seals too much,al its took was a few communitary police and these assholes are on the run,on top of everything their own lieutenants have their eyes on the "leadership" position...

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  9. hey chivis this is excellent.

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  10. @5:42 if you look at the Zetas operation as an entity, that was what became destroyed. The 60M was a tiny figure of what it represented. As stated this was a very sophisticated structure and impossible to tell just how much of a monetary figure was impacted. But this was all Zeta and the more of the cases that are prosecuted and becomes known, and people are subjected to punitive action, then the public arena will become leery of helping cartels in any cap city, no matter how tempted one may become.

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  11. About Nayen....I am not getting that one. They are really protecting him and he copped a plea, so I am assuming he cut a deal for a massive amount of info for the feds. Because I would have loved to see him get the max. He goes back to Teodoro meaning he has great narco longevity and he was 40's right hand guy for the last letter's US operation of weapons, drugs, money laundering, contracting etc.

    too bad he will get off easy-how can there be justice served if Chevo gets 9 years and this lowlife less? If that happens I will be deeply disappointed ...paz chivis

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  12. @2:23

    Man I could not agree with you more except with your recommended brand of punishment.

    I kept asking "why???" This part of sentencing is the biggest mystery. I think it is a miscarriage of justice to go that far and not include the mother and daughter when handing out incarceration sentences!

    1. Daughter knew exactly what was going on. and she was about to prime her marine fiancé (then he was fiancé) for the business. if you look at post here http://www.borderlandbeat.com/2013/04/week-onetrevino-money-laundering-trial.html

    you will see an instant message transcript where she hints about the business. That is how I understood, and remembered the evidence, and last night I accessed all the government docs and saw that is how the government saw it at the time. It is in the complaint. and they fought to keep the IM narrative in. then something changed and they went soft. why???? The government says Zulema and Alex did not give any information to them, so what did we get for the ultra soft sentences?

    2. Jose and family have money, you can bet on that fact, they have property in Tamps and Coahuila, they will be well taken care of, forever.. do buy this "working at subway" sob story. It is a plan to present themselves as broken, contrite and humbled. They are the family of 40's and 42, you can bet this eventuality was preordained..."if you are arrested we will take care of you"

    3. not only do they have assets in Mexico and most likely CA, planning for the possible arrest was heavily calculated. If you look at the FBI interviews with Jose and Zulema, each of the interviews are scripted the same. "we are hardworking, humble people, we have instilled strong work ethics in our children, who they themselves have been made to work since the age of 14" and that hard work and Zuelma's 8K inheritance is how they started the horse business

    3. Then the theme is they distance themselves from brothers Miguel and jose "neither me or my husband keep contact with them" and Jose said "I don't not keep contact with them, and for years law enforcement has made my life hell, because of who my brothers are" and " I can pick my friends but I can't pick my family"

    etc etc etc. So I do not understand why the women got off, largely, "free". That was a huge error in my opinion. and justice was thrown into a wind storm, for no apparent reason that I can determine.

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    1. men,will do that and more for a woman that knows what is up,alejandra must have captivated the judge with the nice body and the eyes,she must know the game very well,to turn a man into her paladin,now everytime she is with her husband she will remember the judge,his reward, for a woman's pretty ass has more pulling power than a team of mules,or una yunta de gueyes...

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  13. Yep I missed that one.

    They did get off almost scot-free. Pittman says the US government wants to send a message but on the other hand, they release vultures who were anything but humble, while living on proceeds of drug/blood money.

    That wedding says it all. that was a million dollar wedding. People with hard work ethics don't thrown money away on such grandiose spending.

    sign me 'disgusted'

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  14. Wow, this thing keeps going and going... when I was in s.a this last year this thing was just gaining traction. It makes me wonder, because it was front page news but here in n.m things are quiet as kept

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  15. "American justice will prevail". WTF!!! What a joke. The judges here will be bribed one after the other just like in Mex (they'll coma a bit more expensive though), just like the cops and the border agents are brided here.

    Think about it: all the drugs south of the border ends up with us. Why??? Are our cops lazier or less equipped than the mexicans???
    How come the whole country is flooded with illegal drugs??? Answer: because everybody has been bought off!!!

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  16. @4:33 I just could not agree more with you. The real criminals are white collar executives and they get off scott free.

    With regards to the banks: the cartels do the dirty work but the money lands with the bankers who are pleased to provide a laundry service for a 30% commission.

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  17. Yup! Working at subway while millions are buried in the backyard. Another scam the POS family is perpetrating. 40 and 42 has and will continue to feed jose and his family millions.
    This time make sure it is well hidden...fools

    ReplyDelete
  18. Thanks for the summary and for all the amazing coverage throughout this trial!! I followed every bit of every article :) I'm very interested in the Zetas and happy to hear about any and all justice that any of their members (and their greedy non-Zeta brothers) face.

    ReplyDelete
  19. @ chivis who is the marine its like he won the lottery with this girl

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. @ chivis He can also take over the zetas in a couple of years he getting millitary training allready

      Delete
    2. I totally agree agree. This Marine is a US citizen, and he will have strategic advantage. He will be able to enter and exist US freely and will have advantage of military training.

      Delete
  20. Thanks for the Zetas updates! Does anyone know if Miguel Trevino's trial might be public like this one was? Any way to know?

    ReplyDelete
  21. I wonder if Jose feels resentful towards his brothers.
    And I wonder how his daughter Alejandra feels. Probably something along the lines of "I was past age 15 in Mex and hadn't had even one lavish wedding yet, so we needed this money. It's someone else's fault that my father got in trouble for it."

    ReplyDelete
  22. What I've seen time and time again is that criminals who acted out of greed justify their actions in their own minds to the very end, because they've spent their entire lives practicing justifying worse and worse things. I wonder whom Jose blames for his incarceration?

    ReplyDelete
  23. Thanks for your continued reporting Chivis! You've done a great job here, and it's been well worth it since the Zetas, and the Trevino family in particular, are really what intrigues this community the most.

    ReplyDelete
  24. Havana and Chivis great team thank you

    ReplyDelete
  25. 2013 ▪ 09 ▪ 11

    Ramon Segura replied offhandedly, "I don't understand US Law."

    ~ ~ I chuckled a bit as this should be the new MANTRA for all sicarios, capos, foot soldiers, etc. when apprehended by the United States of America:

    "I don't understand US Law"


    Good investigative work as always to Madame Chivis et al. That's a h*ll lot of documentation & articles and papers to comb through...


    /\__/\
    (=';'=)
    (")_(")

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. They get the jist of it pretty quick after theyre incarcerated!

      Delete
  26. I've read all this coverage over the past year. It is the most comprehensive. Definitely as far as the trial coverage. It has made me more interested in the whole process. Another thing to be interested in and suck my time down the drain. Thank you Chivis

    ReplyDelete
  27. I don't know about the marine winning the lottery, he is in the bullseye of suspicion, unfairly, as it has not been even suggested he did anything wrong.

    His name is Luis Garcia, and he was not a part of the trial. I think Alexandra loves him very much and she has an opportunity to stay apart from her family and create a new family with him. My point was I don't see many people getting those chances for a lot less crime, I feel she should have served time.

    ReplyDelete
  28. I wish I could be privy to the extent of José's resentment towards his brothers now. I wonder what his days are like. Will he get any special treatment? Will he be respected or have to constantly look over his shoulder. He should write a book and publish it online and have it for sale like Badanov.

    ReplyDelete
  29. At the end of the day, Zulema and Alexandra willl go on with their lives without their husband/father, without the wealth acquired by Z40, and with the scrutiny of law enforcement watching their everymove. I don't think they got off that scott free. The mastermind behind all the wealth was Z40 not Jose, Zulema, or Alex. Those Z40's benefit proceeds were cut off the moment the FBI dismantled their quarter race horse operation - the government sold all the assests seized and kept the proceeds. The IRS got their payments for all the back taxes. This operation wasn't as sophisticated as some would like to think. Fernando was running around for 6 hours trying to make structured deposits. They were having trouble paying their company's bills if I recall. Sophisticated not at all! The company had just been started not long after they were raided. Jose stated that the the authorities were always scrutinizing him because of who his brother's
    were. So your telling me with all the spying the govt. does, through the NSA for example, that they weren't watching Jose from the beginning waiting for him to build up the wealth before they carried out the bust.

    Again, Zulema and Alex might not have received a prison sentence, however, their father/husband is in prison for 20yrs., the lavish wealth is gone, and with the law watching their every move. They might have some wealth in Mexico, however, with all the enemies they've made they would risk their lives trying to enjoy it. The Trevino Morales clan is one brother away from their lives being in clear and present danger in Mexico. TO MUCH HARM TO INNOCENTS.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. they got scott free compared to all the innocent men,women and children killed just by having a family member being in los zetas bad side.not just talk you could somebody investigate the hundreds of innocent people that have been disappeard in cd. mier tamaulipas.z-40 is the modern day hitler of our days.the differance that the u.s. went to stop him almost half the world and z-40 did alot damage being a few miles from u.s. soil.

      Delete
    2. 9/11/13@4:37

      Alex and Zulema did not carry out any murders of innocent men, women, children, rivals, contras, soldiers, police, etc. That job went to Z40 and the cartel de los Zetas.
      They were convicted of failure to report/conspiracy to launder respectively and were given a slap on the wrist as punishment. They were guilty of benefiting from money gained from the misery of others that was given to them. They didn't lift a finger to earn that money. That in itself is not crime. The laundering part is.

      Yes Z40 is a genocidal murderer! However, tell that to the corrupt PRI politicians/powerful elite who aided and abetted Z40 and co. He was allowed to murder with impunity - and let me tell you - if it weren't for him falling behind on his bribe payments, which went up I might add after the Zetas murdered the son of a ex-governor, he would still be a free man on a murdering rampage. The job of investigating the murder of innocents in Cd. Mier/ Nava/Allende belongs to the correspondent state and federal authorities
      in Mexico. If Z40 had carried out an attack on U.S.A. in sort of fashion - there is no doubt the U.S. would have gone after Z40. Hitler and Nazi Germany attacked a U.S.
      Naval Sub. and declared war on the U.S.A. after Pearl Harbor. The rest as we say is history!

      Delete
    3. well my point is that the u.s. can threat with attacking syria and go to war with russia china and arab nations because supposedly they killed their people with chemical weapons.z-40 killed people by burning them alive,dismemberd them also alive,killed anyone they found.there way of thinking if they are not ours they are contras so kill everybody.women and children.it would have been great for those innocent people that they could also would have gotten probation.in cd.mier tamaulipas not where your stating is a few minutes from the u.s. people got disapeard by the hundreds if not thousands counting the out of town siccarios.the rumor is that the fosas or gravesites in san fernando tamaulipas are not even a small percent of what are supposedly around in cd. mier tamaulipas.the pri just got in.the puppets1 are different the puppet masters are the same.i say that those lady got it easy because of their relation and someother people that got savagely massacared by their kin got it worst.that is my humble opinion.cdg same humanwaste by the way.may god bless all of u.s. and gjve comfort to every one that has a loved one dissapeard

      Delete
    4. The U.S.A. is not going to war with Russia, China , or Arab countries over Syria. The U.S is wanting to intervene in Syria on humanitarian grounds inorder to prevent a genecide by Syrian dictator Assad through the use of chemical weapons. However, Syrias allies happen to be Russia and China. That gives Al Assad strong military support in the form of weapons supplies along with. political support; as a result, Russia prevents any consensus on a plan of action to stop the violence by the U.N. security council since Russia and China hold 2 of 5 permanent seats. Russia has 4000 nuclear missles armed with 12000 warheads. We're not going to war with Russia - that would be the end of the world! Ditto China!

      The last I remember Mexico is sovereign nation. Thus the work of bringing to justice Z40 for all the murders by him and his henchmen belongs to correspondent authorities in Mexico - not the U.S.A. Of course it would behoove the U.S.A. to have stability on its southern border instead of worrying about what's going on half a world away; however, we have allies in the region, like Israel and the Gulf States, who need and want our help. The U.S.A. wants to guarantee no chemical attack is carried out against our allies, and we want to make sure nothing destabilizes the regions/world's economy.

      Yes Zulema and Alex got off lightly. However, this is not Mexico buddy! Since they are on probation, they can't just leave the country unless they ask the judge for permission. Don't quote me on that. Their every move will be watched. I think since their cuñado/tío was caught might have something to do with them receiving light sentences. Who knows - maybe they gave up crucial information that led to the location or hiding places of Z40 that led to his capture. Zulema and Alex are done! They weren't the narco traffickers. They didn't generate no wealth from drug sales - which happened to be the main family business!




      Delete
    5. well sorry mr. or ms. trevino but you do not get the point.so the israelites are more imporant then the mexicans.but it was only to get a point across.

      Delete
    6. No Mexicans are not more important than Israelis. There is 35 million Americans of Mexican heritage plus another 16 million Latinos - not counting the undocumented. Keep in mind though, that Israel is a strong ally of the U.S.A. and practically on overseas province. With sovereignty I might add. Irregardless, Israel is totally dependant on U.S.A. aid for its survival since its receives $3bilusd annually and another $2bilusd from the Jewish lobby made up of Christians and Jews. Many Israelis and American Jews have dual citizenship. Both nations have strong ties to each other. That goes with Mexico, probably more so because of common border, economic ties , and common ethnic ties amongst some of our people, too but we must keep in mind that
      Mexico is a sovereign nation well capable of solving its own problems. Or am I wrong! Happy 213th birthday México!

      Delete
    7. I live in the U.S.A. The Chinese and Russians are now giving Americas jobs. The Chinese have begun investing in the U.S. and have opened businesses in América. We won the Cold War. Thanks to the U.S.A.s openness and freedoms, we were able to encourage Americans ideas and creativities that led to the development of technologies in all different type of industries. U.S.A. decline has been greatly exaggerated. China and Russia have social that they will soon have to address that the U.S. does not: like China's discrepancy in relation to mens ratio with women - to many more men compared to women due to the one child policy; Russian will begin to dwindle in significant numbers within the next 50yrs. Guess what - the U.S. will not have those problems. Again, there is no coming war between Russia/China vs. U.S.A. The idea of MAD deters that. If you have any religious beliefs the way I do, there is only two sides that will exist at the end. Try figuring out what two sides are those!?

      Delete
    8. who said that mexicans are more important read first.want to disrtact from my point.mr. trevino or ms. trevino i think you want to change the subject with all those fancy words.

      Delete
    9. for the communist,revolution is permanent, more so for the chinese communist,they setting up bases in mexico,remember the Chinese nationalized Mexican,they found in his house 250 million dollars in cash?that alone proves them chinese are all up to something,watch your back...

      Delete
    10. Iam not a Trevino buddy. I'am man however. Yes I adressed your comments. The U.S.A. won the Cold War! Irregardless, if you really think about it China and Russia still present threats militarily. There is something called MUTUALLY ASSURED DESTRUCTION that acts as a deterrence to any potential hostilities between the great powers.

      Delete
    11. 1:40 the Chinese and the Russians giving jobs to the intelligence services trying to track down the bullshit,and minimum wages at Walmart and Chinese buffett where Chinese setbacks work for tips only,and have to split the tips with the manager...if you can list any other Chinese companies or jobs and how many people they employ,do it,pirated goods do not qualify...

      Delete
    12. DRAGON MART gets green light,(pagina 24) that will be a giant shopping center,workers to be Chinese nationals,in Mexican soil,like a little China and real close to the USA ...

      Delete
    13. 9/14/13 12:18a.m.
      Yeah! Don't you see all those restaurants?!lol. Look up Tianjin Pipe Co.; Yahung Business District; Russia's Lukoil mainly in the northeast. They want to get a hold of the oil and gas that's getting extracted from Eagle Ford Shale. Money talks bullshit walks.

      On a side note. Cuba has a Chinese community of approximately 100,000. Who's to say they haven't/have been pulling the strings of the U.S.A. - Cuba conflict for 54yrs. Somebody is benefiting from that conflict. Just like Japan is benefiting from the division of the Koreas!

      Delete
  30. Hi Chivis- As far as Alexandra's sentence, one's youth being interpreted as the biggest factor of making bad decisions doesn't typically positively influence a sentence this way. But add it to a previously clean record, being intelligent, an outstanding high school record while holding down a job throughout, acting professional and grown up with law officials, immediately grasping the severity of the crime, admitting the error of her ways, being sorry she contributed to the scheme, taking the initiative to relocated away from her family (even if it was probably to conveniently follow Luis Garcia, her American Marine husband), all that can make a difference and positively influence the sentence and it did. Judge Sam Sparks valued Alexandra's potential and banked on it. Was there more to it than people in the courtroom were led to believe. Oooh, I'm sure there was. I'd bet my life on that.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. her us marine husband,Louie Garcia,looks naco,y muy trompudo,Alejandra will be FAT in two or three years...

      Delete
  31. Wow Zetas came up fast and went right back DOWN even faster
    Thats what happens when you steal and cheat your bosses

    ReplyDelete
  32. @Chivis I agree 100% that Zulema and Alejandra should have served time. But did you really think it was likely that they would from the outset? I would have been extremely surprised if they had convicted the women.

    And I agree with 9:49 AM, the BB community has really expanded with your publishing of all the news about the Trevino's over the last year. Whether or not everyone's interested just because they want to hear about what a bad guy Z40 is, Zetas/Trevino's are the most popular topic by far. I'd love to hear more about them over the coming years.

    Thanks again to Chivis and Havana for your thorough, accurate, and highly-informative coverage.

    ReplyDelete
  33. @ Chivis and Havana, regarding Alexandra, I think it's safe to say courts go easier on women, especially young ones. That's not to say that that's the only reason neither Zulema nor Alexandra got penalized, but I do think it's a factor that is overlooked because it's a bit taboo. Similarly, I think they may have been an element of bias against Jose because they had pent up anger at his brothers.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Alejandra and her mother were not so angry when they took the money,OK?now at the crying time, try and leave some room for repentance... and go and sin no more,paying 250 000 thousand dollars for a live chun-ta-ta-chun band,will get you fucked up,even donald trump don't go for that...

      Delete
  34. I agree with Chivis they should have not given favor to anyone unless the united states were given good information in exchange.

    ReplyDelete
  35. Yoga Tantra..
    as did Havana and Me! But I love the court room questioning of Segura even better..right before he was cuffed and jailed.


    Havana nor I got much sleep....
    Havana was in the courtroom and did an outstanding job of getting texts to me as soon as she could get the sentences and main trial tidbits to me. I have a template ready with backstory and info from the filed documents, ready, so we could post quickly.

    We are a team and learning as we go, we are not journalists we just care about the US getting information about the interworking's of the drug war, info not readily available in English. Paz amigo, chivis

    don't forget ...it is Chivis AND Havana


    Havana
    yup I get that and we have discussed this privately I prob made you sick of my "BUT..."

    "But" again...I have read every sentence of every document and US was pushing hard to get the IMs in because they said in the filing it is hard proof that Alexandra was priming her fiancé to get into the business, and proof she knew whats up.

    That my dear is a puzzlement. IF Zulema and Alexandra they had given info in exchange I could justify it, but they did not, they actually refused to get information.

    as for age, we see latino, white and black kids getting busted and serving time for a lot less every day of the week.

    if you want to send a strong message to cartels that the US is not Mexico, then you remain hard-assed. Being female or young should not make a difference. I know it exists, I say it is wrong.

    what this says is put your wife and daughters to work because their sentences will be lighter. IMO

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. That could turn into the MO for family criminals knowing the wife will have to support the kids, she will get probation, light probation especially if she appears overworked and it is made to look like or she was made to do something illegal and didn't have control of the situation. Z played the weak feminine card here to their advantage and it worked. I bet they had a pile of money stashed in Texas in case this whole thing blew up in Lexington. I hope so cause working for a cafeteria and a Subway is not rolling in it.

      Delete
    2. Havana AND chivis,any 15 year old pimp knows the courts go lightly on women,the younger and prettier the better, using that kind of weaponry is not nice, but what can you do?,OK don't party too hard girls,and no black strippers!

      Delete
  36. Seriously I know, immediately as they were sentenced, I was struck by the familiar reaction of "Hmmmmm something ain't adding up here for me." Later I kept explaining what I heard in court to Chivis." But that didn't mean I could understand why the prosecutor's statement about not cooperating, getting pressured by the family, needing to provide for the family etc. and the judge's explanations correlated with that much lighter sentences for both of them any better than anyone else. Especially in light that they DIDN'T cooperate. It was like they were being rewarded for not cooperating. I know, I was the one sitting there with an mouth open and puzzled, wrinkled brow looking like, HUH?. They copped a plea something had to be given up besides admitting they were guilty. That was more than obvious. There must be different levels of cooperation. I'm still puzzled. Enlighten me on this please.

    ReplyDelete
  37. Everyone is in the same boat on this one, Havana. A puzzled boat. It is a good wild ride you BOTH took us on. I also followed the trial all the way through and commend your patience, perseverence, and resilience. It is time for your boss to give you a raise. You do good work.

    ReplyDelete
  38. Chivis and Havana, Great coverage! This is really interesting to read, and I have learned a lot. I can't wait to read more. Thank you.- El Paso Ro

    ReplyDelete
  39. Hey Ro....

    Our Narco-News Newbie...see ya next week
    Big hug for lil "A"

    Paz,

    Chivis

    ReplyDelete
  40. I'm a Havana and Chivis fan. Chivis send l'il Havana down to cover Z-40's trial and see if she comes back.

    ReplyDelete
  41. HAHAHA ok we will tell Buggs we want a raise.

    Double pay....double if Zero is double zero:)

    None of us earn money for our work, that includes Buggs. BTW if you want to read some early work, go to BB beginning someday, when it was Buggs and I think Gerardo. Not very much help back then, he produced a lot of original material.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. What? You should be paid a million dollars for everything you do!

      Delete
  42. This story must have taken forever to put together. Good work-you should do more like this Borderland Beat.

    ReplyDelete
  43. US gov is as corrupt as mexican gov you just have to know who you have to buy or negotiate with.

    ReplyDelete
  44. why do you guys talk about this case so much? Everyone got probation. What a waste of tax dollars. These guys weren't money launderers, they just loved racing horses and financed the purchase with drug money. It was just a hobby for them.

    ReplyDelete
  45. jajaja ok..first off I don't send her anywhere secondly, you're a fan and you want her at the Z40 trial in Mexico?

    Seriously, trials are not open to the public and there isn't a jury. I posted a good movie not too long ago titled "Presumed Guilty", that is real, it is a documentary, unprecedented that a trail was videotaped. Check it out.

    I heard something the other day that is mind-boggling. Another BB reporter, told me that Mexican judges get paid many times more than US judges, with many pricy perks, such as a new automobile.

    I looked it up to see what federal judges are paid in the US, the scale is 174-215k

    ReplyDelete
  46. Hi Chivis and Havana, wonderful reporting as always :) I've been away for a bit so I have some catching up to do! I'll reply more thoroughly pronto. There are many readers, even those who don't comment, who have totally appreciated your coverage of this entire Zeta fiasco.
    Thanks again!

    Feynman

    ReplyDelete
  47. I hope the courtroom does it's job. People like this shouldn't get away so easy. Make justice.

    ReplyDelete
  48. Hey chivis go on historias del narco manta was put up in Nuevo Laredo Tamaulipas zetas and cdg are back together idk if its legit or not check it out

    ReplyDelete
  49. could be, they need something, those rag a tags Zetaz can't do anything on their own, wonder why they wouldn't sign Zetaz, or pick another name.

    ReplyDelete
  50. I remember reading on here about the texted conversation between Alexandra and her husband. I believe she had no qualms about taking advantage of this money, and let the men do the work.
    It's unfortunate but most Mexican women I know (in my state of Michoacan) are exactly like this. Extremely shallow and don't really care about others, just about marrying the richest guy possible as young as possible, and ensuring he makes public displays of his wealth and commitment to spend it on his wife's appearance. And if that doesn't work out, it's someone else's fault.
    Seriously, I know only a handful of women who are NOT like this.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I am a Mexican woman. And I'm really sorry To say I see this very description more often than not to be the the case even with highly educated Mexican women. Often we can be shallow, self-serving and egocentric. We could do more for our communities and countries - that sociologically is the sad consensus with unbias scholars. It is said we need to pass on better values to our offsprings. We are getting the blame. We could be less superficial, I agree but we are no more greedy then men.

      Delete
  51. Thanks Chivis and Havana for the coverage, every bit of it is REALLY appreciated by this whole community! I'm always eager to hear more about the Zetas' schemes, and (guilty pleasure) stories about Z40.

    ReplyDelete
  52. Awesome, thank you Chivis and Havana! I've been checking BB every day since this trial started (and 3-4 times a day since Z40 was captured) to see updates. Seems like justice was mostly served.

    ReplyDelete
  53. I'm curious what it's like to meet Z40 and have him be a "cordial host"...

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Well, it must mean that he has his church clothes and manners on- the same ones he puts on when he really needs something that an AK or enforcers aren't appropriate to use procuring it. He might try to be polite and refrain from talking about torturing people, narcofosas, killing US agents, ordering people to swing off bridges, staging car accidents, killing over 300 families in Coahuila, paying off officials every month, holding up buses to 'fatten' the ranks and killing any kidnapped victims who might refrain from grabbing that opportunity immediately. In other words talking about just about anything he knows besides GREED and how he is motivated by GREED like the judge said these defendants were.

      Delete
    2. Good one! Exactly. I hope they are having a hard time adjusting to jail . Both Jose and -40.

      Delete
  54. The guy in the middle of the picture looks like he just ripped one and everyone else has to laugh or lose their jobs. I know these were filthy RataZZs, but is it appropriate for the prosecuters to be smiling and giggling like little girls outside court.

    ReplyDelete
  55. Active and retired Marines please keep an eye out for that dirty soldier Luis Garcia.

    ReplyDelete
  56. @ September 12, 2013 at 9:44 AM
    I'm on the same page as you. I've been a BB reader for a few years now but started getting more into the discussions and stuff when Z40 was caught. A few of my friends did too. Hopefully the attention that news stories like that bring will make the community more aware of the non-Zeta news as well, like learning about the Templario problem in Mich.

    ReplyDelete
  57. @ September 12, 2013 at 1:04 AM
    It's true that Zulema and Alexandra haven't murdered anyone, but neither have (presumably) Jose or any of the other convicts. I think the point is they were guilty of knowingly participating in the same crime as Jose, yet he got 20 years and they got none. So I agree with Havana that there was something else behind the scenes here. No legal system is perfectly honest right? The scary thing is that if there were underhanded deals in THIS case, how secure can we feel about what's happening with Miguel?

    ReplyDelete
  58. @ September 12, 2013 at 9:50 AM
    Yeah, that would be pretty shocking, to go from meeting a guy whom you didn't know had murdered kids, to realizing you'd just met a guy who had murdered kids...
    I'm a little skeptical that he had no idea who he was. May well be though.

    ReplyDelete
  59. Testified in 80 cases?? The number of years off his sentence that he gets per testimony must be asymptotically approaching zero...

    Thanks Chivis and Havana for awesome reporting. And that's a HUGE disappointment that Miguel's trial won't be public :(

    ReplyDelete
  60. I'm very disappointed that Z-40's trial won't be public.How will it possibly be fair? Or is that the point. Pretty soon he will be a footnote in Mexican Drugwar history. A black, ugly footnote.

    ReplyDelete
  61. Our US Attorney in San Diego would never take this case to trial. Congrats and great work Texas law enforcement!

    ReplyDelete
  62. @ Chivis
    Do you know what's happening with that 60M? Will it/has it been paid? Also, do you know if Jose's family has any money left now that he's locked up? I imagine whichever guy Alexandra married must be rich and whatnot, but what about Zulema?

    ReplyDelete
  63. 1:28
    Alexandra did not marry rich. remember she thought she was rich. all the assets were confiscated including money, the assets were old including all the horses of which 10 or so died because no one was caring for them including the government when the bust went down.


    As I said before I have not a doubt in the world that 40 assured his brother there would be money for Jose and his family put away in the event there was a bust This is how it works in Mexico. Investments in other countries that don't care who invests or where the money comes from, that is where money sits waiting.

    For example Caro Quintero, though in prison for decades has earned a fortune through investments managed by his family.

    ReplyDelete
  64. Even if there iwas money set aside incase Jose goes to jail. IQ 42 if he isn't resentful will have to somehow get it to her. She can't do one thing wrong during probation and I doubt she'll be traveling to Mexico w/o being checked on her return. Money can be put into Jose Jr's account opened for him by Zulema and Alexandra can send her money if she really gets broke provided it isn't very much.

    ReplyDelete
  65. It was indeed a very sophisticated scheme. The government admittedly knew what they got was no where near what was/is there. This is not the only game in town. One can't write the details and the entire story in a couple of posts. I was talking to Havana if maybe I should put the effort in and write a series about the zetas and the many players who enabled them to succeed and grow so fast. In reality monetarily it is peanuts, not even requiring a Band-Aid, but what it does do, hopefully, is send a message to cartels, in the US it is a different ballgame.

    About Z40:

    As I said his trial will not be public in Mexico, BUT and that is a big but, if he is ever extradited to the US, then yes it most definitely be public. If one can get in.

    I have to check his indictment to see what district and state it would be in. Prob Tex or Georgia

    ReplyDelete
  66. chivaaa! UR A KA ! found it, i always forget words,my words, other people's words, grammar, spelling, confuse the spanglish with the broken english, can't stay on point, and one word gives me away!
    a m a z i n g ,you have good memory and better skills, i wasn't wrong about
    you, "...of all the joints, in all the world, she walks into mine..."

    ReplyDelete

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