The purpose of the BA-La Linea alliance was to battle the Chapo Guzman Cartel and its allies for control of the drug trafficking routes through Juarez and Chihuahua. ) or https:// means youve safely connected to the .gov website. The case was investigated by the FBIs El Paso Field Office, Albuquerque Field Office (Las Cruces Resident Agency), DEA Juarez and DEA El Paso. They were sentenced yesterday in the Western District of Texas. The Department of Public Safety has released its 2015 Texas Gang Threat Assessment report. "[33], 2010 was the most violent year in the history of Ciudad Jurez, where more than 3,000 people were killed. Hector Galindo, 38, aka "Silent," of El Paso, currently serving a 25-year Texas state sentence for murder, was sentenced to life in prison. RELATED:Feds: Fugitive Texas elementary teacher tied to hit men, drug running and kidnapping. [20] This massacre had come after a rare experience of 24 hours without any drug-related assassinations in Ciudad Jurez and after a large military buildup during that weekend. The violence resulted in the deaths of 20 inmates. - coordinate teams logistics (plan the trips, book tickets) - organize and analyze the data of the accommodation/travels expenses. [12] In addition, Barrio Azteca controls most of the drug sales for the Jurez Cartel in Ciudad Jurez's streets and prisons, although other gangs and independent operators abound. Roughly 33 percent of gang members entering the Texas Department of Criminal Justice system in 2014 were from the southeast Texas region, with 90 percent of those coming from Greater Houston. Hector Galindo, 38, aka Silent, of El Paso, currently serving a 25-year Texas state sentence for murder, was sentenced to life prison. By the early 2000s, the gang controlled prisons in Chihuahua, and has since continued to grow. [74], In January 2020, Juarez police arrested the leader of the group's "Old Guard" fraction, Jesus Alfredo Martinez Mendoza, alias "El Freddy or El Ferro. A locked padlock The killings angered the White House, who had quietly allowed the families of the U.S. consulate workers to live across the border in Texas even before they were killed. Texas Mexican Mafia comes in a distant second with 4,700 members, followed by the Texas Syndicate (3,400 members), Latin Kings (2,100 members) and MS-13 (800 members). [46] The weapons used in the attack and the style the U.S. officials were killed pointed to drug traffickers as suspects; evidence provided from American intelligence and Mexican authorities then pointed to Barrio Azteca as the perpetrators. He also unveiled a billboard facing traffic in El Paso, Texas heading into Mexico that reads "No More Weapons," and criticized the United States for not renewing a ban on the sales of assault weapons that expired in 2004. The gang's control over Jurez puts it in a position to move into major transnational drug trafficking. March 16, 2010. Witnesses specifically implicated Galindo, then incarcerated in the Coffield Unit of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice, as the central leader within the organization who kept track of membership records, hit lists and gang treaties for the BA. [69] Drug-sniffing dogs were also under a bounty. [29] As neighbors hid in their houses, some dialed the emergency services but the Mexican military and the Federal police did not arrive until after the killers had left. In that role, Galindo maintained communication with other BA Captains and Lieutenants in the United States and Mexico and was specifically in charge of BA operations in Texas. While gang activity is widespread, only about 15 percent have more than 11 members. [64] Officials on both sides of the border have observed how Barrio Azteca locate their targets, stalk them and finally ambush them in multiple car chases, using coded radio communications, coordinated blocking maneuvers, and with well-trained shooters wearing ski masks and body armor. Barrio Azteca - unitedgangs.com [34], Four days after the massacre, a suspect identified as Jos Dolores Arroyo Chavarra was arrested by the Mexican military. Its members, or soldiers, are governed by captains, various lieutenants and numerous sergeants in the United States and Mexico. According to US estimates, it had around 3,500 members in 2011. Under the tutelage of Ravelo, the gang moves narcotics along the border with the aid of Vicente Carrillo Fuentes' cartel. Marshals Service; U.S. Customs and Border Protection; Federal Bureau of Prisons; U.S. Diplomatic Security Service; the Texas Department of Public Safety; the Texas Department of Criminal Justice; El Paso Police Department; El Paso County Sheriffs Office; El Paso Independent School District Police Department; Texas Alcohol and Beverage Commission; New Mexico State Police; Dona Ana County, N.M., Sheriffs Office; Las Cruces, N.M., Police Department; Southern New Mexico Correctional Facility and Otero County Prison Facility New Mexico. The Barrio Azteca came out of Texas prisons but has since formalized its structure to become a drug trafficking cartel. [49] Gallegos targeted the American officials because he believed they had given visas to members of a rival gang, although some say it was a case of mistaken identity. [15], On April 5, 2012, the authorities concluded that the Barrio Azteca murdered the three U.S. consulate members as part of an agreement with Jos Antonio Acosta Hernndez (El Diego), a former top lieutenant of the Jurez cartel who was imprisoned after being convicted and receiving a life sentence. The so-called "hybrid members" allow the gangs to grow their empires with increased influence both in prisons and on the streets. [72] Santana is accused of being a major force in the recent bloodshed which occurred in Jurez. The Barrio Azteca was able to quickly grow in large numbers without much problems. We encourage readers to copy and distribute our work for non-commercial purposes, with attribution to InSight Crime in the byline and links to the original at both the top and bottom of the article. Barrio Azteca Gang Poised for Leap into International Drug Trade However, the successful prosecutions of Galindo, Gonzales and Garcia, and the conviction of other Barrio Azteca members reinforce another reality: that wherever these dangerous organizations operate, DEA and its partners will aggressively follow, investigate and prosecute.. Barrio Azteca, a prison gang born in the Texas jail system, is becoming a major player in the Mexican underworld and the "X-factor" in the battle for Ciudad Juarez, Mexican officials told InSight Crime. The gang expanded after 1996, due in part to increasing deportations of imprisoned Mexican criminals by the United States. The attacks brought down a great deal of pressure from the US government, which issued a federal indictment of 35 Barrio Azteca members in Texas in March 2011 on counts of extortion, murder, drug trafficking and money laundering. A total of 35 BA members and associates based in the United States and Mexico were charged in the third superseding indictment for allegedly committing various criminal acts, including racketeering, narcotics distribution and importation, retaliation against persons providing information to U.S. law enforcement, extortion, money laundering, obstruction of justice and murder, including the 2010 Juarez consulate murders. [72] In November 2019, three members of La Empresa were arrested. Besides drug trafficking, they have been charged with a medley of different crimes. Nevertheless, the FBIs 2015 National Gang Report says Barrio Azteca remained one of the most active gangs in the US border region, and will likely remain a major criminal actor for the foreseeable future. During its initial years, the gang's aim was street robbery to collect funds to liberate prisoners in jail. The DPS projects Bandidos members will attempt to change their public perception by adding new members with clean criminal backgrounds and organizing charity events. Tango Blast, Texas Syndicate, Bloods, Crips, Gangster Disciples and MS-13 all were identified as active in human smuggling operations in 2014. [21] Once they took the guards hostage, Barrio Azteca members went into high-security blocks where the rival members were in, forced the guards to open them, and went about killing the rival inmates. [52] The speculation of this hypothesis was bolstered by the fact that the second victim was also in a white SUV, but U.S. authorities do not discard the possibility that the gunmen were searching for someone else in the second attack and coincidentally happened to be a white vehicle too, killing the consulate workers by mistake. [17] The informant said that Ravelo was taken to a house in El Paso where a gang member was being held, his mouth, wrists, and ankles bound with duct tape. The gang also allies with other gangs including the Mexican Mafia and MS-13. By 1996, the Barrio Azteca had grown to become the one of the most powerful criminal enterprises of southern Texas. [18] When drug loads go missing while being smuggled, suspects are kidnapped and taken to Ciudad Jurez. [66] Members of Barrio Azteca tend to have both Mexican and U.S. citizenship, and authorities believe they carry out crimes in Ciudad Jurez and then return legally to the United States. According to the February 2014 testimony of one jailed Azteca member serving as a witness in the trial of former leader Arturo Gallegos, members of the gang have received training from the Zetas in assassination, extortion and security. These prison sentences send a strong message that even the most powerful and ruthless gangs cannot evade justice. [52] Others had other speculations on the attack; it was unclear whether the consulate worker was targeted for being slow with the visas of some cartel members; whether the worker had angered some members inside a Texan prison; whether the attack intended to be a message to the American drug agents; or whether simply case of mistaken identity. Is the Stanley Quencher tumbler worth its TikTok hype? In that role, Galindo maintained communication with other BA Captains and Lieutenants in the United States and Mexico and was specifically in charge of BA operations in Texas. The group already controls local drug distribution, smuggles drugs across the border, and has members in Texas, providing it with essential connections to expand operations. [22], At around 9:00p.m. on 26 July 2011, the Barrio Azteca carried out an attack on Los Mexicles, a street gang of the Sinaloa cartel, which left 17 dead and 20 injured inside a prison in Ciudad Jurez. [12] The Barrio Azteca has long sold drugs moved by the Jurez Cartel. "[26] Their reports state that the inmates had broken the rules of the jail and held large parties, possibly with the guards' permission. Upon graduating from Moody College of Communication at the University of Texas at Austin in 2014, Joshua joined the Express-News in 2014 as a breaking news reporter. The recent arrest of a top Barrio Azteca leader in Mexico offers additional insight into the criminal and drug trafficking dynamics along the US-Mexico border at a time when US President Donald Trump continues his rhetorical onslaught against the MS13. The gang's key ally is the Jurez Cartel and its armed wing, La Linea. Secure .gov websites use HTTPS Barrio Azteca members are suspected of carrying out the March 2010 assassination of a U.S. Consulate employee, her husband and the husband of another U.S. Consulate employee. [11], The Barrio Azteca gang was formed in the jails of El Paso in 1986 and gained an image of being a tough and loyal gang willing to commit murder of civilians in order to keep fear in the minds of its members and ensure their loyalty/obedience. [19] It took the guards, police, and Mexican military more than three hours to put down the unrest inside the prison. The purpose of the BA-La Linea alliance was to battle the Chapo Guzman Cartel and its allies for control of the drug trafficking routes through Juarez and Chihuahua.