Mica for cartelinsider.com
Since 1985, the government of the United States has closely followed the steps of Rafael Caro Quintero, co-founder of the Guadalajara Cartel, whom they seek to bring to trial for the death of Enrique Camarena Salazar, an agent of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA). To date, the agency has not been successful in getting Mexico to approve his extradition, but they have managed to destabilize him through other actions.
One of the most recognized triumphs of the American justice system over the empire built by the ‘Narco of Narcos’, as he is also known, was the seizure of five properties that the Sinaloa boss owned in Zapopan, Jalisco.
For the US Department of Justice, it was a big victory, since before securing the properties its request had to be approved by the judicial authorities of Mexico.
The case began in April 2021, when a United States District Court ordered the confiscation of two houses, two apartments and a commercial property on the grounds that they were acquired by the boss with profits derived from drug trafficking.
“Between January 1980 and March 2015, the narco-trafficking organization of Caro Quintero was involved in the transportation of several tons of marijuana, various kilograms of methamphetamine, and various kilograms of cocaine from Mexico to the USA,” reads the accusation.
The Department of Justice also pointed out that the properties were registered under the names of various members of his family, in order to conceal the use of his illegal profits. Finally, after a year and seven months, they succeeded in getting the seizure order approved.
On Thursday, November 17, 2022, it was announced, through the Office of the Attorney General of the Republic (FGR), that the US confiscation order had been approved by a Mexican court.
The agency also noted that the five properties were in the name of the ‘Narco of Narcos’ and his ex-wife, María Elizabet Elenes Lerma.
All of the properties are located in Zapopan, Jalisco, although in different subdivisions.
After the approval, the Eastern District of New York prosecutor, Breon S. Peace, assured that through said seizure they would send a powerful message to members of organized crime.
“There are no limits to prosecute bad actors and locate their ill-gotten assets anywhere in the world. This office will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to take economic advantage of crime through all available resources, including asset forfeiture,” warned.
Caro Quintero was arrested for the murder of ‘Kiki’ Camarena in 1985. In 1989, he was sentenced to 40 years in prison for homicide and drug-related crimes.
In 2013, after spending 28 years behind bars, the former leader of the Caborca Cartel also obtained his freedom through a court ruling. Shortly after, the Supreme Court of Justice of the Nation (SCJN) specified that the drug trafficker should not have been released, so a new arrest warrant was issued against him.
His second capture was registered on July 15, 2022 in the municipality of Choix, Sinaloa. After that, he was admitted to the Federal Social Rehabilitation Center (Cefereso) No. 1, ‘El Altiplano’, where he remains detained.
During this time, they have filed various judicial appeals in order to avoid their extradition to the USA.
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Mica
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