FBIS3-60066
"jptdd003__l94031"
JPRS-TDD-94-003-L
Document Type:JPRS
Document Title:Narcotics
19 January 1994
LATIN AMERICA
MEXICO
Ramifications of Case Against Tijuana Cartel Members
Discussed
94WB0019E Mexico City EXCELSIOR in Spanish 8 Dec 93 pp 4-A,
43-A, 45-A
94WB0019E
Mexico City EXCELSIOR
Language: Spanish
Article Type:CSO
[Article by Rafael Medina]
[Excerpts] The attorney general of the republic, Jorge
Carpizo MacGregor, gave notice that "no one will deter us" in
fighting the drug trade, and claimed that "this battle is for
the nation's health." He also made a steadfast commitment to
implement the arrest warrants issued for the members of the
Tijuana Cartel, including the brothers Benjamin, Ramon, and
Javier Arellano Felix, thereby to eliminate one of the most
powerful rings engaged in drug trafficking.
The nation's attorney general declared: "We shall continue
to
intensify our unrestricted battle against organized crime,
particularly the drug traffic; because this battle is for the
health of our children and youth, and for the nation." He
provided details on the capture of Francisco Rafael Arellano
Felix, who is now confined in the maximum security federal
prison at Almoloya de Juarez, in Mexico State. [passage omitted]
Carpizo MacGregor revealed that the institution, backed by
the society, the National Institute to Combat Drugs, and even
international authorities, is conducting "an extensive
investigation to locate and apprehend those who are now
fugitives from justice."
Describing the capture of the oldest Arellano Felix brother
as a victory for Mexico, he claimed that the war against the
drug trade can be won only if the government and society act
together. He noted that such cooperation, through anonymous
reports, contributed greatly to that operation, during which
Luis Enrique Cortes Zatarain, Tomas Adan Velarde Espinosa,
Benjamin de la Pena Farias, and Diego Gonzalez Martinez were
captured as well. [passage omitted]
The assistant attorney for branch agencies and inspection,
Mario Ruiz Massieu, in turn, explained: "Arellano Felix had been
subject to three previous criminal suits: in 1978, with his
wife, for crimes against health; again in 1988, for the same
crimes; and a year later, for carrying a weapon reserved
exclusively for use by the armed forces." He added that, in all
three instances, the subject managed to evade the action of the
courts, because one of the orders for his formal imprisonment
was revoked and, on another occasion, the case records were
lost. Despite this, the accused himself declared that he had
been acquitted by a federal judge in Tijuana.
In the assistant attorney's opinion, Ramon, Javier, and
Benjamin Arellano Felix are the heads of the so-called "Tijuana
Cartel." He said that the PGR [Office of the Attorney General of
the Republic] has now fully identified the members of that
family who, although not directly linked with the drug traffic,
have been aiding their relatives in money laundering and in
managing the enormous fortune that they possess. [passage
omitted]
Espionage Team To Learn Police Action
During this investigation, culminating in the capture of one
of the Arellanos, it was discovered from the seizures made of
communications equipment and systems that the drug traffickers
had been following the activity, not only of the municipal and
state police, but also of the federal force, step by step, using
monitors.
Their equipment, of the most sophisticated type, besides
tapping phone calls anywhere in the country, also managed to
enter the authorities' restricted frequencies. In this way, the
traffickers were learning first-hand about the action being
planned against them.
Ruiz Massieu commented: "Through this discovery, it has been
proven that drug traffickers listen to and tape conversations of
PGR public servants. There is further evidence of this in the
case of several employees of the newspaper EL MANANA, in
Reynosa, Tamaulipas, who were remanded, and in the case
involving the Ochoa Bali Hai restaurant. In the confiscated
vehicles, cassettes with tapes of our officials' conversations
were discovered, and some of the spies even attempted to imitate
their voices."
He remarked that, in view of this situation, the authorities
have changed the codes and frequencies used by the PJF [Federal
Judicial Police]. [passage omitted]
Ruiz Massieu added that the exhaustive investigation of the
Arellano Felix brothers, presumed to be the material
perpetrators of the murder of Cardinal Jose Jesus Posadas Ocampo
and of six other persons, has made it possible to capture and
remand scores of members of various drug cartels. He commented:
"At the time of his arrest, in order to procure his release,
Francisco Rafael attempted to bribe the police agents with
$100,000. As a result, he was also remanded for the crime of
bribery in the degree of an attempt." [passage omitted]