Galindo, Gonzales and Garcia pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit (RICO) on Jan. 26, 2012, Jan. 18, 2012, and Jan. 29, 2012, respectively. [26] Moreover, the prison was highly overcrowded, with over 2,700 inmates in a facility with a capacity of only 850 prisoners. [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. DPS also cited the 2014 indictment of 55 Barrio Azteca members and associates as handicapping the gang's effectiveness. Valuable assistance was provided by the Criminal Divisions Offices of International Affairs and Enforcement Operations. 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. [48] This was not solely a response for the incident in Ciudad Jurez, but because of the drug-related violence along the border. Inside and outside of prison, the gang thrives on violence - from gang beatings to drive-by shootings to murder - all in order to discipline its own members or fight against rivals. [12] Some undocumented Mexicans arrested in the United States are imprisoned in Texan prisons and consequently join Barrio Azteca. 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. Secure .gov websites use HTTPS Generator vs power station: Which one is right for you? 2019. The Barrio Azteca was organized in the El Paso, Texas, County Jail in 1987 from where it moved to the streets and the Texas Department of Criminal Justice prison system. [15], Eduardo Ravelo, the current leader of the Barrio Azteca, began his criminal career in the year 2003, amassing a list of charges for racketeering and numerous conspiracy charges with the intent to distribute narcotics. [69] Drug-sniffing dogs were also under a bounty. [4][5][6] Currently one of the most violent gangs in the United States,[7] they are said to have over 3,000 members across the country in locations such as New Mexico, Texas, Massachusetts, and Pennsylvania as well as at least 5,000 members in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico. Barrio Azteca has approximately 600 active members who engage in murder, assault, extortion, human and drug trafficking, and other crimes. The Bloods, Crips, Surenos and Latin Kings are the most active street gangs, while Tango Blast cliques in San Antonio (Orejones) and Austin (La Capirucha) rule the prisons, along with the Texas Mexican Mafia and Aryan Brotherhood. [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. 9, Vilniuje. 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. [6] The DEA estimates that about 70% of the cocaine to enter the United States does so through the area. "[67], Gang members in the organizations refer to each other as "carnal," a slang term for brother. dollars. Infighting Hurt the Barrio Aztecas Who Worked for Juarez Cartl "I never even gave the United States much thought," said one of the family members, "But Mexico has abandoned us, betrayed us. 6 on a list of border crime suspects sought by U.S. and Mexican authorities. Not all the killings carried about by Ravelo's gang are a result of drug disputes. [20] At one point, inmates could be seen lighting mattresses and bodies being thrown from second-story windows. FBI New Top Ten - Barrio Azteca Leader [34][36] The parents of the victims hung huge placards outside their houses accusing Caldern of failing to solve the massacre and explicitly saying that "until those responsible are found, [he was] the murderer. Boozy Hill Country golf course tees off in New Braunfels, What to know about the invasive hammerhead flatworms in Texas, Cardi B speaks out on viral 'mean girls' TikTok at Astros game. [18], A fierce battle between rival drug trafficking organizations broke loose inside a prison on the outskirts of Ciudad Jurez on 5 March 2009. In 2010, Barrio Azteca members allegedly murdered 15 teenagers at a party, and later that same year, killed a US Consulate employee, her husband and the husband of another employee in Ciudad Jurez. Some are shot dead, while others are tortured and then shot. 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. 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. 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. While gang activity is widespread, only about 15 percent have more than 11 members. Domestic Cannabis Suppression / Eradication Program, Red Ribbon Toolkit - Resources For Your Community, DEA National Prescription Drug Take Back Day, Intelligence Research Specialist Job Announcements, Schedule A Hiring Authority: Intelligence Research Specialist, Privacy Impact Assessment and Management Information Systems, Victim Witness Assistance Program Resources. [65] In March 2010, the FBI and the police department in El Paso stated that Barrio Azteca was more powerful than Los Zetas in the Jurez plaza. 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. [68] After fulfilling their mission, the gang members return to safe houses throughout the city or return across the international bridge to El Paso. The gang's key ally is the Jurez Cartel and its armed wing, La Linea. 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. 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. The. 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. [15] Whatever the reasons, the attack sent shock waves and huge concern for the United States' role in Mexico, and how American street gangs are quickly adopting the violent tactics of Mexico's drug trafficking organizations and making alliances with them just across the border. The gang expanded after 1996, due in part to increasing deportations of imprisoned Mexican criminals by the United States. 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. He allegedly pays his sicarios (hitmen) less than 500 pesos (or about $40 U.S. dollars) a week to carry out assassinations. To update those lists, members and other leaders would contact Galindo on his contraband prison cell phone to verify the status of persons claiming to be BA members and ensure that they were in good standing with the criminal organization. A lock (LockA locked padlock) or https:// means youve safely connected to the .gov website. Those not in good standing were targeted by the BA for assault or murder. [20] Todays sentencing by U.S. District Judge Kathleen Cardone of the Western District Court of Texas marks the closure of the case against the U.S.-based defendants charged in the superseding indictment. 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. We then verify, write and edit, providing the tools to generate real impact. When quota is collected by the BA, members and leaders deposit the money into the commissary accounts of incarcerated BA leaders, often using fake names or female associates to send the money by wire transfer. "Negotiating Violence and Protection in Prison and on the Outside: The Organizational Evolution of the Transnational Prison Gang Barrio Azteca." 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. The Barrio Azteca prison gang - which has chapters in El Paso, Texas, and Juarez, Chihuahua, Mexico - has historically been linked to the Juarez Cartel. 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. [1] 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. [20] One report issued by Los Angeles Times stated that members of Barrio Azteca stole the keys of a prison guard and were able to free their cohorts and begin a rampage in cells controlled by their rival groups. [60] The killing in Horizontes del Sur bore striking similarities with the massacre in the Villas de Salvrcar neighborhood earlier that same year, which took place just a mile away and where 15 were gunned down at a party too. [12] The Barrio Azteca has long sold drugs moved by the Jurez Cartel. WASHINGTON, D.C. - A leader and two soldiers in the Barrio (BA), a transnational border gang allied with the Juarez Cartel, were sentenced in El Paso, Texas, to life, 30 and 20 years in prison, respectively, announced DEA Administrator Michele M. Leonhart, and other federal officials. [52] Reportedly, the gang leaders wanted the guard dead for mistreating members of the gang in jail. [46] Later on that same day, gunmen killed the husband of another consulate worker and wounded his two young children. FBI 10 Most Wanted fugitive, Texas Barrio Azteca gang leader arrested Some, however, are beheaded. Barrio Azteca Gang Leader Sentenced in Texas to Life in Prison The DPS projects Bandidos members will attempt to change their public perception by adding new members with clean criminal backgrounds and organizing charity events. A locked padlock The group members face charges including drug trafficking and distribution, extortion, money laundering and murder. We go into the field to interview, report and investigate. 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. We will continue aggressively to pursue the Barrio Azteca and other gangs so that communities in the United States and Mexico can live free from the violence and destruction of organized crime. These sentences represent the FBIs commitment to the aggressive pursuit of criminal enterprises such as the Barrio Aztecas whose presence pose a significant risk to citizens on both sides of the border, said FBI Special Agent in Charge Mark Morgan. The gang also tortures and murders its victims in front of a large and cheering gang audience. March 16, 2010. 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. Furthermore, if the cartel needed to intimidate or carry out an assassination in the United States, they would simply call on the Barrio Azteca. 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. "[29][31] What was troubling for the authorities was that the victims were not gathered inside a bar or at a rehab center, but rather at a private home. [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. The list of 10+ barrio azteca tattoo meanings [20] The brawl, which was between Barrio Azteca and Los Mexicles, erupted at around 6 a.m. after the conclusion of a series of conjugal visits. [3] The gang was formed in the jails of El Paso in 1986 and expanded into a transnational criminal organization. Family launches GoFundMe to help man shot during Fiesta in S.A. 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