Mica for cartelinsider.com
When the body of Ramón Arellano Félix fell onto a curb in Mazatlán, Sinaloa, many knew it was a member of the drug cartel -the gun inches from his hand suggested it- but his shaved head and fake identification caused the authorities to take a month to confirm his identity.
When the authorities of Sinaloa arrived at the location where a Ministerial Police officer from Mazatlán ended Ramón’s life, they found his identification card that accredited him as an agent of the Attorney General’s Office (PGR), but under the name of Jorge Pérez López.
The credential found in Ramón Arellano Félix’s shorts had a photograph that matched the images disseminated by the DEA and FBI of the violent Mexican drug lord, but it was not enough to conclusively determine that he was one of the leaders of the Tijuana Cartel.
One more complication made everyone doubt: in the photographs that were known of Ramón, he always appeared showing off a long, straight hair over his shoulders; however, his body was crowned with a completely shaven head.
To confirm that the hitman killed on the afternoon of February 10, 2022 in Mazatlan was Ramon Arellano Felix, it was necessary to perform a DNA test on the body. They turned to Francisco Rafael – his brother – who was detained at that time in the La Palma prison, but he refused.
The investigations continued while local, state, and international media speculated that Jorge Pérez López was actually the drug lord who, along with his family, dominated Tijuana during the 1980s and 1990s; some reported that there were strong indications, while others took it as a given without concrete evidence. But it was a month later when everything became clear.
At the beginning of March 2002, the Mexican Army tracked down one of the close associates of Benjamín Arellano Félix to one of his houses in the state of Puebla: there he was with his wife and children – without security – when he was arrested.
Benjamin was not able to resist, so the soldiers allowed him to change his clothes before taking him to court; but while they were waiting, they noticed an altar with a photo of Ramon Arellano Felix on a table. Later, his brother confirmed that the hitman killed in Mazatlan was him.
It is said that Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada set a trap for Ramón – who had attempted to kill him on more than one occasion – and the Arellano Félix fell for it and went to the Mazatlán Carnival to finally put an end to the war they had with the Sinaloa Cartel.
But, as excited as he was, Ramon got into an argument with a police officer who detained him; he shot at him and the officer responded to the aggression by killing Jorge Perez Lopez and Hector Solorzano.
It was rumored that an enemy cartel (Sinaloa) had killed him, but if that were the case, they would have boasted about the achievement, which didn’t happen, and the delay in identifying the body confirmed it.
At the end of that February 10th, a carriage from Funeraria Calderón took the body of Ramón Arellano Félix, not his men as usually happens in those cases. The fallen leader’s body is never left behind, that was the code that was not followed.
Thanks for reading!
Mica
Email: mica@cartelinsider.com
Follow: https://twitter.com/cartelinsider1
Discover more from Cartel Insider
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
