- coordinate teams logistics (plan the trips, book tickets) - organize and analyze the data of the accommodation/travels expenses. In the 2000s, the BA formed an alliance in Mexico with La Linea, which is part of the Juarez Drug (also known as the Vincente Carrillo Fuentes Drug Cartel or VCF). Barrio Azteca - InSight Crime However, the 2018 arrest of Ravelo, the gang's reputed top leader, suggests authorities are aware of the threat posed by the group and are working to confront it. [70] Several other members of the Barrio Azteca were arrested with Ravelo as well. The Barrio Azteca (Spanish pronunciation:[barjo asteka]), or Los Aztecas (pronounced[los astekas]), is a Mexican-American street, and prison gang originally based in El Paso, Texas. The relationships between gangs and cartels are constant, but show no particular loyalties or allegiances. Valuable assistance was provided by the Criminal Divisions Offices of International Affairs and Enforcement Operations. The area of El Paso and Ciudad Jurez is in many ways one community, with families, friends, businesses and even gangs joined in the same urban sprawl. 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., As members of the Barrio Azteca gang, Hector Galindo, Ricardo Gonzales and Adam Garcia participated in a brutal criminal enterprise dedicated to spreading fear and violence on both sides of the border, said Assistant Attorney General Lanny Breuer. According to evidence presented in court, witnesses testified to the brutality of the BA. At that point, the triggermen opened the doors of another room, and that is when the firing began. Many of the members are in U.S. and Mexican prisons and. The gang is highly structured and has an estimated membership of 2,000. [34] The mayor of Ciudad Jurez said that the massacre was a random act of violence by Mexico's drug gangs because the victims had no apparent ties with organize crime. 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. Violent Border Gang Indicted FBI - Federal Bureau of Investigation [65] The locus of power of Barrio Azteca is based inside prisons, prompting worries that the operational capacity of the gang is not hindered when its leaders are imprisoned. [63] In and outside of prison, from gang beatings to drive-by shootings, Barrio Azteca disciplines its own members and rivals. 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. The list of 10+ barrio azteca tattoo meanings None of the threats were materialized, however. Witnesses also testified to the Barrio Aztecas practice of extorting quota or taxes on non-BA drug dealers who sold illegal narcotics in El Paso and the greater West Texas and Eastern New Mexico area. Specifically, during todays hearing, one witness recalled an instance in which Gonzales tried to collect an extortion fee from a New Mexico drug dealer, and when the dealer refused to pay, Gonzalez pulled a gun, put it to dealers head, and threatened to kill him. Witnesses testified that Renteria was a BA Captain, the highest rank of the Barrio Azteca, and the only U.S.-based Captain not currently serving a life sentence in prison. Below them, captains control mini-plazas that are run by lieutenants. 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. [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. Barrio Aztecaknown as BAis an extremely violent gang, with as many as 3,500 members on the street and in jail, both in El Paso and across the Rio Grande in Juarez, Mexico. Much of the rest of the Barrio Azteca leadership is based in US jails, where leaders use telephones, the postal service and secret messages filtered to visitors to communicate with members on the outside. The US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is currently offering a reward of up to $100,000 for information leading to the arrest of Barrio Azteca leader Eduardo Ravelo, who has a place on the FBI's " Top Ten Most Wanted List ." InSight Crime Analysis "[33], 2010 was the most violent year in the history of Ciudad Jurez, where more than 3,000 people were killed. The. [citation needed], The Mexican authorities concluded that there were two possible explanations for the massacre: Either La Lnea and Barrio Azteca were responsible for the killings; or "independent gunmen" paid to kill a person nicknamed El Ratn, an alleged member of Artistas Asesinos. Lotyn Amerikos stiliaus bistro Vilniaus Centre, "Go9", Gedimino pr. The gang expanded after 1996, due in part to increasing deportations of imprisoned Mexican criminals by the United States. Rta Starkien - Chief People & Culture Officer - Lewben | LinkedIn [citation needed] Numerous media outlets around the world considered Ciudad Jurez as one of the most dangerous if not the most dangerous city on the planet in 2010. The Barrio Azteca Trial and the Prison Gang-Cartel Interface - Stratfor Through the ongoing and joint efforts of the law enforcement community we will continue the fight to bring to justice predators such as Galindo, Gonzales and Garcia., This investigation highlights an unfortunate reality: leaders within growing trans-national prison and street gangs like the Barrio Azteca continue to promote violence and manage their drug trafficking activities even after the cell door closes, said DEA Administrator Leonhart. Ravelo was believed to issue orders for the organization in Jurez, to move back and forth across the US border, and to be responsible for a great deal of the violence that has wracked the border state. Twenty-one of 22 U.S.-based defendants have pleaded guilty and have been sentenced, including another BA Lieutenant Roberto Angel Cardona, who was also sentenced to life by Judge Cardone on Feb. 17, 2012. When they are absolved from their sentences, they are sent back across the border into Mexico, where they quickly join the gang's ranks and carry out a number of crimes. The shootings took place in different locations, and it was the "first deadly attack" against U.S. officials and their families from the Mexican criminal organizations. A murder in Texas drives a huge investigation which often leads to an arrest. [12] But in Ciudad Jurez, it is one of the more than ten corpses found dead on a daily basis. The Barrio Azteca gang emerged in Texas prisons, later served as armed support to the Jurez Cartel, and has since evolved to control local drug trafficking in Jurez. [71] On November 7, 2018, Rene Gerardo Santana Garza, known as "El 300," was arrested in Chihuahua City. [10] By June 2020, the Sinaloa Cartel's Los Salazar cell, and not Barrio Azteca, was the only other organized crime group which was considered on par with La Linea for control of the Ciudad Jurez drug trafficking market. "[26] Their reports state that the inmates had broken the rules of the jail and held large parties, possibly with the guards' permission. [24] According to The Guardian, the video suggests that the guards may have allowed the assassins to kill the inmates, proving that the prison was plagued by "weak controls, disorganisation and possible corruption. He is also a former fugitive wanted on several charges related to drugs and organized crime. WASHINGTON - A Barrio Azteca (BA) gang leader was sentenced to life in prison without parole for his participation in a racketeering conspiracy, announced Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the Justice Department's Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Robert Pitman for the Western District of Texas, FBI Assistant Director of the Criminal Barrio Azteca has approximately 600 active members who engage in murder, assault, extortion, human and drug trafficking, and other crimes. 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. Galindo, Gonzales and Garcia pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit racketeering (RICO) on Jan. 26, 2012, Jan. 18, 2012, and Jan. 29, 2012, respectively. Witnesses also testified that the sale of illegal drugs is the life-blood of the BA. [23] The violence continued elsewhere throughout the prison until around 2 a.m. the next day. [24] Following their exit, the two men open a different door and allowed four other accomplices into the hallway, some of them who were carrying assault rifles. He allegedly pays his sicarios (hitmen) less than 500 pesos (or about $40 U.S. dollars) a week to carry out assassinations. Despite being armed, they seem to follow the orders of the gang members without any resistance. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate. Generator vs power station: Which one is right for you? Marshals Service; U.S. Customs and Border Protection; Federal Bureau of Prisons; U.S. [28] The Mexican authorities issued a money reward of $1 million pesos for anyone who could provide information that led to the arrest of the killers. Tango Blast, Texas Syndicate, Bloods, Crips, Gangster Disciples and MS-13 all were identified as active in human smuggling operations in 2014. 10 facts about the Barrio Azteca, one of the most dangerous - mySA [54][55] Mendez, who was the El Paso FBI office's most wanted fugitive and the last person sought for the attacks, also made La Empresa a hybrid of Barrio Azteca. A lock (LockA locked padlock) or https:// means youve safely connected to the .gov website. The Barrio Azteca gang, also known as "Los Aztecas," was formed in the El Paso, Texas prison system in 1986. Testimony also indicated that the BA is well-organized and militaristic in structure. > A hands-on and results-driven People & Culture leader with more than 17 years' experience working closely with CEOs and senior leaders to deliver innovative HR programs that generate tangible business outcomes. And, their numbers total in the thousands on both sides of the U.S.-Mexico border. 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. Because of the BAs alliance with the Juarez Drug Cartel, the gang receives illegal drugs at low cost and profits on its importation, sale and distribution within the United States. [25], Gunmen burst into a party in a small working-class neighborhood known as Villas de Salvrcar in Ciudad Jurez, killing 16 teenagers on 31 January 2010. [59] The Mexican police declined to comment if the killing was drug-related, but Felipe Caldern's response was remarkably different from the Villas de Salvrcar massacre, where he claimed that the massacre was most likely due to internal adjustments between the cartels. Barrio Azteca gang leader gets 116 years in murders of 2 state police agents in Jurez Daniel Borunda El Paso Times 0:00 2:15 A Jurez gang leader last week was sentenced to more than 116. The case was investigated by the FBIs El Paso Field Office, Albuquerque Field (Las Cruces Resident Agency), DEA Juarez and DEA El Paso. Tango Blast cliques along the Rio Grande Valley and in Corpus Christi are the region's major players, along with Texas Syndicate and Texas Mexican Mafia. Total of 24 Barrio Azteca Members and Associates Convicted to Date. The so-called "hybrid members" allow the gangs to grow their empires with increased influence both in prisons and on the streets. The Barrio Azteca began in the late 1980s as a prison gang but has since expanded into a transnational criminal organization with approximately 3,500 members, including 600 active members. Barrio Azteca Gang Poised for Leap into International Drug Trade Witnesses also testified that the sale of illegal drugs is the life-blood of the BA. In 2011, the FBI reported that Barrio Azteca also had members in Massachusetts and Pennsylvania. [21] Back in 2005, the Barrio Azteca gang had carried out a murderous attack against members of Los Mexicles inside the same prison, leaving six dead. The remaining U.S.-based defendant, Ramon Renteria, aka Spooky, took his own life while in prison during his trial. Alongside Los Mexicles were the Artistas Asesinos, a rival gang and an enforcer group of the Sinaloa cartel. About. 9, Vilniuje. Hector Galindo, 38, aka "Silent," of El Paso, currently serving a 25-year Texas state sentence for murder, was sentenced to life in prison. On October 20, 2009, he was named by the FBI as the 493rd fugitive to be placed on the Ten Most Wanted list. [48] This was not solely a response for the incident in Ciudad Jurez, but because of the drug-related violence along the border. [43][44][45], Initial reports stated that unknown gunmen of a drug trafficking organization shot and killed a pregnant U.S. consulate woman and her husband at broad daylight in Ciudad Jurez on 13 March 2010, leaving a baby wailing in the back seat of the car. Galindo, Gonzales and Garcia pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit (RICO) on Jan. 26, 2012, Jan. 18, 2012, and Jan. 29, 2012, respectively. [5] Outside of prison, members would contact imprisoned leaders to verify a status of a person using the name of Barrio Azteca to operate and see if they were in good standing with the organization. [32], One by one, the coffins of the victims were carried out from their homes on 4 February 2010, as their families demanded for justice. By 2013, it reportedly had up to 5,000 in the Jurez area alone and an estimated 3,000 in the United States. [65] They had a membership of 2,000 strong in Ciudad Jurez alone that year. According to testimony presented at sentencing, Cardona was a leader in the Barrio Azteca gang. The motorcycle gang has roots going back to the 1960s, but only debuted on the DPS's Texas Gang Threat Assessment in 2015 after a deadly clash with the Bandidos Motorcycle Club in Waco on May 17 that left nine people dead. According to evidence presented in court, witnesses testified to the brutality of the BA. [18] When drug loads go missing while being smuggled, suspects are kidnapped and taken to Ciudad Jurez. Barrio Azteca Gang Leader Sentenced in Texas to Life in Prison Of the 35 defendants charged, 33 have been apprehended, including April Cardoza, who was found in Juarez, Mexico, last week. A principal enemy is the Sinaloa Cartel, along with its subcontractor, the Mexicles gang. The violence resulted in the deaths of 20 inmates. 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. Ravelo, who was under pressure from La Linea . Specifically, during todays hearing, one witness recalled an instance in which Gonzales tried to collect an extortion fee from a New Mexico drug dealer, and when the dealer refused to pay, Gonzalez pulled a gun, put it to dealers head, and threatened to kill him. [18] Today, the gang has expanded into a large criminal gang with presence in both the United States and Mexico, besetting by drug trafficking and human smuggling. The boss' criminal career began in 2003, with the man eventually collecting a long list of charges both for traffic of narcotics and violent activities. The Barrio Azteca gang is known to engage in a wide range of criminal activity including contract killing, murder, torture, drug trafficking and human trafficking among other offenses. Twenty-one of 22 U.S.-based defendants have pleaded guilty and have been sentenced, including another BA Lieutenant Roberto Angel Cardona, who was also sentenced to life by Judge Cardone on Feb. 17, 2012. [21], The Mexican authorities were able to militarize the area with more than 200 federal police officers, 50 soldiers, two helicopters, a plane, and an unknown number of state and municipal police forces. Beginning in the 2000s, Barrio Azteca started to assist Mexico's Jurez Cartel with operations, and the gang became an important element in the battle between the Jurez Cartel and the Sinaloa Cartel for control of the city of Jurez. Some of these trainings took place further south of the border, in Torreon, Coahuila, indicating the group has expanded its reach into Mexico and is building its connections. Arturo Gallegos Castrellon, pictured, is serving a life sentence in U.S. federal prison for leading the assassins. By Fred Burton and Ben West On Nov. 3, a U.S. District Court in El Paso, Texas, began hearing a case concerning members of a criminal enterprise that calls itself Barrio Azteca (BA). 2019. 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. Silome dienos p Family launches GoFundMe to help man shot during Fiesta in S.A. 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Witnesses also testified to the Barrio Aztecas practice of extorting quota or taxes on non-BA drug dealers who sold illegal narcotics in El Paso and the greater West Texas and Eastern New Mexico area. Barrio Azteca gang member gave bone-chilling testimony Monday about his role in the violence that ignited Jurez during the drug cartel wars and left among its victims a U.S. Consulate employee and her husband, an El Paso County jail detention officer. [34] Caldern has met with young people and representatives of the federal program to discuss and analyze the city's achievements. Official websites use .govA .gov website belongs to an official government organization in the United States. Barrio Azteca is one of the most violent prison gangs in the United States. [48], The leader of Barrio Azteca, Arturo Gallegos Castrelln, better known for his nickname El Farmero, ordered the execution of two American consulate workers and a Mexican with ties to the agency in Ciudad Jurez on 13 March 2010. The U.S. Attorneys Office for the District of New Mexico provided significant assistance in this case, including by Assistant U.S. Attorney Sarah Davenport. Witnesses also testified to the extensive communication web of the BA, including utilizing coded letters, contraband cell phones within state and federal prison facilities, and distribution of membership rosters and hit lists. Despite US efforts, the gang has apparently regained strength, and maintains significant power in Jurez, particularly as the power of the Jurez Cartel has declined. [69] Drug-sniffing dogs were also under a bounty. According to the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Barrio Azteca also has members in Massachusetts and Pennsylvania, and Texas authorities have reported a Barrio Azteca presence in New Mexico. [68] Barrio Azteca has also authorized the killings of U.S. law enforcement officials for cracking down their criminal operations, offering up to $200,000 U.S. [28] Some of the teenagers were shot as they tried to flee and their corpses were found in the neighboring houses. Infighting Hurt the Barrio Aztecas Who Worked for Juarez Cartl The gang also controls local drug distribution, extortion rackets and human smuggling in Jurez, and uses other smaller, local gangs for manpower, as well as charging other criminals to operate in its territory. The most extensive database on organized crime in the Americas. Evidence was presented that Gonzales and Garcia were BA soldiers, whose duties included distributing drugs, picking up money from dealers and enforcement operations within their area of responsibility. Hector Galindo, 38, aka Silent, of El Paso, currently serving a 25-year Texas state sentence for murder, was sentenced to life prison. [53], On March 9, 2020, Mexican police arrested Luis El Tio (The Uncle) Gerrado Mendez, a former member of Barrio Azteca who later became the reputed founder of La Empresa (The Company), for his connection to the consulate murders as well. Secure .gov websites use HTTPSA lock ( The Department of Public Safety has released its 2015 Texas Gang Threat Assessment report. [17] In El Paso Ravelo's gang is known as Barrio Azteca, a gang originally morphed from the so-called Mexican Mafia prison gang. [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. Hector Galindo, 38, aka Silent, of El Paso, currently serving a 25-year Texas state sentence for murder, was sentenced to life prison. The Barrio Azteca gang, also known as "Los Aztecas," was formed in theEl Paso, Texasprison system in 1986. [70] Ravelo, who was also on the FBI Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list,[70] is believed to have been in charge of the gang's operations in Jurez. [64] The "life-blood" of the gang is the drug sale, which they buy at a low cost due to their alliance with the Jurez cartel and profits from its own importation to the U.S.[64] They also tax ("quota") independent drug dealers in El Paso, in other parts of West Texas, and in the Eastern part of New Mexico. El Paso Intelligence Center: Mexican U.S. Consulate Murderers Gang [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. 3 Five things to know about the return of Barrio Azteca as top gang threat; 4 Negotiating Violence and Protection in Prison and on the Outside; 5 Ink in the Clink: Prison tattoos explained | Truecrimedaily.com; 6 Reputed Barrio Azteca 'Old Guard' gang leader on wanted list arrested; 7 El Paso Intelligence Center: Mexican U.S. Consulate . FBI New Top Ten - Barrio Azteca Leader The organization, also known as Los Barrios, derives some of its strength through alliances with Mexican drug cartels. These command sergeants, who are not always fully-fledged members, and finally soldiers, or "indios," who are often underage and are used for the local distribution of small amounts of drugs. [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. The gang's highly organized nature has helped it gain membership on both sides of the border, and it could now be in a position to make the leap into large-scale transnational organized crime. Barrio Azteca Research Paper - 628 Words | Internet Public Library [31] They gave no official statement for the motives behind the killing, but the massacre bore all the signs of the drug violence that Ciudad Jurez was living for the past three years. All 20 of the dead were members of Los Mexicles and Artistas Asesinos, indicating that the prison fight was instigated by members of the Barrio Azteca group. Under the tutelage of Ravelo, the gang moves narcotics along the border with the aid of Vicente Carrillo Fuentes' cartel. 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). As members of the Barrio Azteca gang, Hector Galindo, Ricardo Gonzales and Adam Garcia participated in a brutal criminal enterprise dedicated to spreading fear and violence on both sides of the border, said Assistant Attorney General Breuer. RELATED:21 alleged members of drug cartel-affiliated Barrio Azteca gang arrested in West Texas. DPS says the 2014 arrest of cartel leader Vicente Carrillo Fuentes diminished the gangs influence. Some, however, are beheaded. According to court documents and information presented in court throughout this case, the Barrio Azteca is a violent street and prison gang that began in the late 1980s and expanded into a transnational criminal organization. U.S. and Mexican law enforcement are actively seeking to apprehend the two remaining fugitives in this case, including Luis Mendez and Eduardo Ravelo, an FBI Top Ten Most Wanted Fugitive. [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. [68] Ciudad Jurez is filled with safe houses, armories and garages with stolen cars for the cartel members and assassins to use.