The Bureau Of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (ATF), despite sounding like the most fun bureau in history, generally frowns on that kind of thing. Army officials said they confiscated 288 assault rifles, 500,000 rounds of ammunition, numerous grenades and several .50-caliber rifles at a house in the city of Reynosa, across the border from McAllen, Texas. The state, about a five-hour drive west of Mexico City,is known for its production of avocados. How AMLO Has Fueled Mexico's Drug War. Mexican Drug Cartels Agree: American-Made Guns Are the Best, Mexican drug and crime cartels prefer American-made guns. Pre-order it now! The reason the cartels had use for the Barrett is chilling: When you're as large as, say, Los Zetas, your "turf wars" involve the Mexican army. It works the same way when gun runners from the U.S. funnel second hand guns into Mexico. Enough-time for real action. On the Shelf. An admirer of Colombian crime boss Pablo Escobar places flowers on his . Most of the military grade stuff comes from South America and can be traced to US and Soviet shipments to a few countries back in the late 80's. They were used to set up or. There were undercover agents in the store, sometimes. How Texas's gun laws allow Mexican cartels to arm themselves to the How could the ATF make selling firearms to the cartels a more pleasurable process? *awkward shrug*, Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images News/Getty Images. Excuse the pun, but when are you gonna pull the trigger on this? Court documents show such purchasers buying as many as 20 AK-47s at a time, paying as much as $11,000 in cash. I think thats pretty fair. June 23, 2022, 4:35 PM. Mexican security personnel eventually turned him over to cartel gunmen after the arrest prompted a raging gun battle with extremely heavily armed fighters, including some with American-made . I would be one of the richest people on the planet. Sandy Huffaker/Getty Images News/Getty Images. Agents launched 534 investigations, seized $29 million and intercepted more than 1,200 guns, 4,700 magazines for semi-automatic and automatic weapons and 700,000 rounds of ammunition headed to. "The brand names are inconsequential what matters is that our laws aren't being enforced," said Andrew Arulanandam, director of public affairs for the National Rifle Association. Yes, Mexico has some house cleaning of their own to do, but it would help a great deal if the U.S. had much tighter gun control and drug enforcement. What ARE you waiting on? Every once in a while, a dolt drops a gem. See any connections here? I would take that way further. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate. Century Arms Draco 7.62X39mm pistol: Another Romanian import. More than 40 people have been charged in the Upstate of South Carolina as part of a drug-trafficking case known as "Las Seoritas," according to Attorney General Alan Wilson . He campaigned on "Hugs, Not Bullets.". [see the above; Israel, China, Brazil, and many other big arms makers also chip in plenty. They want to disarm the USA as they arm who they want. Sorry not in todays world American guns have some of the shittyist workmanship that I have ever seen compared to the U.S. guns that were made in the distant past and even those were often nothing when compared to finely made European guns. I'm like, 'makes sense, he's a military kid.' We can reduce the carnage if pols have the guts to act, Eric Holder (@EricHolder) August 5, 2019, Enough-time for real action. In the absence of sane border security policies, Guerra said, drug cartels decide who crosses, and people in their organizations use the children to enter the U.S. Weapons such as the M82 are part of a torrent of illegal arms flowing south, Mexico alleges, partly due to the manufacturers negligent business practices that had encouraged illegal arms trafficking. Mexico Sues U.S. Gun Makers For Crime While Fueling Violent Cartels According to prosecutors, the weapons are believed to belong to the Valencia gang, allies of the powerful Sinaloa drug cartel, and most of the 31 pistols found in the raid had gold or silver-plated grips or glittered with diamonds. This is a carousel. As far as American guns being the best. Sinaloa Cartel A Mexico-based cartel famous largely because their long-term leader, El Chapo, was recently captured and imprisoned, the dangerous Sinaloa Cartel is also notorious for its extensive ties to the Mexican federal police and military. See I figured they were big fans of German guns, going back to that huge illegal arms contract HK won for the cartels awhile back. Frankly, Im rather impressed you are still standing at all. They have special loopholes that allow them to form their own government or something like that. Mexico has very strict restrictions on weapon. It is cheaper at gun outlets in the U.S. Beretta 9mm. 'Weapon of war': the U.S. rifle loved by drug cartels and feared by November 23, 2022 Contact: Phone Number: (571) 387-3831 For Immediate Release Debt Collector and Drug Distributor for Cartel Connected, Violent, Drug Distribution Ring, Sentenced to 10 years in Prison Previous slide Next slide Handgun in leather holster Plastic bag of fentanyl pills Move slider to item #1 Move slider to item #2 Tijuanas Director of Public Safety, Marco Antonio Sotomayor, says most of the guns flowing into his city come from north of the border. "As a result of the continued use and possession of many of these guns, residents of Mexico will continue to be killed and injured by these guns, and the public will continue to fear for their health, safety, and welfare," Americanattorneys wrote in the suit on behalf of Mexico. 2- Declare Antifa a domestic terror organization. View of gun butts made of gold, diamonds, emeralds and rubies to form the Mexican flag, in Culiacan, Sinaloa state on July 12, 2011. Hundreds of firearms on display before being destroyed at . Acosta and others like him across the. Have a story to share with Cracked? Soldiers stand guard around a presentation of arms captured in an operation against the Gulf cartel in Mexico City, Friday, Nov. 7, 2008. "It's a horrible epidemic, but it . not mexican. The "El Presidente" model is popular in Mexico because it is one of the few guns legally available there, according to the Violence Policy Center. Formed by ex-military men who became armed enforcers for the Gulf Cartel, the Zetas split with their former patrons nearly three years ago and have since become one of Mexico's largest and most . Declare Eric Holder a domestic terrorist and arrest him. Violence in Mexico has claimed nearly 40,000 lives since President Felipe Calderon began a military offensive aimed at overpowering drug cartels. This article would have you believe the American guns are coming from civilian sources.. one point left out of the article is that the cartels also like American hand grenades. In summer, a command intercepted a dozen tourists after being mistaken for members of a rival cartel. One thing struck him as particularly odd: " as I'm ringing up the transaction, he has one of those little drawstring backpacks. Between 2009 and 2020, authorities seized 358 M82rifles, according to official figures cited by the Milenio newspaper. SHARE AK-47 favorite gun of I came here to say this. Known as "El Mencho," he commands the 5,000 member CJNG, nowas powerful as the Sinaloa Cartel but less known. It is also the native land ofruthless Mexican cartel bossRubn Oseguera Cervantes,a top U.S. target with a $10 million reward for information on his whereabouts. Even the much worshiped pre-64 Winchester Model 70s were laughed at by the Europeans when they were first marketed even though the pre-war guns were not all that bad but workmanship after WWII went down rapidly at Winchester. Investigators found several guns inside the packages, as well as in a secret compartment in the paneling. Theres a little bit of The Dude in a lot of Jeff Bridges performances. favorite guns of drug cartels Andrea Waguespack is a features digital producer for the Houston Chronicle. Judicial Watch: Justice Department Documents Reveal Widespread Use of I do like tacos though. American guns help arm Mexican drug cartels, including CJNG - USA Today For our source, who did nothing but exactly what the law told him, watching the bloody aftermath of the scandal was traumatic: "Our initial thought was how many of these can be pointed across the border at our guys? I tend to like Belgian, Swiss, German, Austrian, and Italian guns. The drug bust was a multi-agency effort involving the. "Operation Fast And Furious," the one you've actually heard about, launched in 2009. Those associatesarrange the purchase of several guns keeping them atstash houses or handing them off to transporters ingas station parking lots or other neutral locations, Lestrange said. Those Ma Dueces & full auto Norinco Type 56 carbines arent coming from America, duh], In addition to weapons from the States working better, Mexico cartels view firearms as status symbols, retired DEA agent Jack Riley told The San Diego Union-Tribune: It is really important to these criminal organizations, who stay in business by the threat of violence and through the use of violence; and the tools that they prefer to do that with are American-made guns. [whats the status symbol aspect have to do with anything? Today, the two primary uses of the Barrett are "anti-material" (aka destroying enemy vehicles) and "ridiculous toy for rich people." I could have sworn that at one time there was a federal law that banned face masks, a law intended to force the KKK out into the open. If our source's store had just followed their guts and refused to sell to the most obviously sketchy buyers, the world would've been a little bit safer. When the Coen Brothers needed someone to show The Dude how to really roll, they could turn to only one man: Hall of Fame professional bowler Barry Asher. Since the federal law banning assault weapons expired in 2004, so-called "straw purchasers" have flooded U.S. gun stores in the Southwest, mostly in Texas and Arizona, sweeping up these and other weapons. Workers repair the facade of City Hall riddled with bullet holes in Villa Union, Mexico, in December 2019, after a gun battle between a heavily armed drug cartel assault group and security forces. He was badly wounded, while two bodyguards and an innocent bystander were killed. We'll sell those guys so many guns they drown in them!" An estimated 19% came from California, 15%from Arizona and 25% from other states. They only wanted a couple of us dealing with it fill out this form, have the money counted, so we can bring drug dogs in to check the bills for drugs. , Mexican Drug Cartels Say Americas Gunms The Best , , , , , , fck n A ,HiPoint told yah so. John Allen Muhammad, the D.C. sniper, and his youthful accomplice, Lee Boyd Malvo, used a Bushmaster .223 in nine of 10 sniper-style murders that terrorized the Washington area in 2002. Officers found all of those brands, except Century Arms,in the shipments smuggled by Diaz, court records show. California already has background check laws & every other useless gun control policy you fools have dreamed up. CJNG members posted a video that went viral on social media in July2020 showing off their arsenal of tanks and .50-caliber guns. Roger Clemens makes surprise appearance at Astros' Spring Training, Hiker captures 'once-in-a-lifetime' photo of wildlife at Brazos Bend State Park, Houston Rockets poised to reap benefits from Eric Gordon trade, Texas congressman's breaks with GOP could lead to censure, Proposed Texas bill gives tax cuts to heterosexual families only, These bites won big at the Houston rodeo's foodie awards, Heres how you can watch 'Daisy Jones and the Six', Here's what Lina Hidalgo carb-loads before a long run, Houston police ticket man for feeding homeless people. In Mexico, the weapon has disrupted the balance of power between criminal groupsand poorly equippedpoliceforces, according to Romain Le Cour Grandmaison, Program Director at the Mexico and Central America Office of Noria, a think tank. Some are Russian, some Cuban made. Whats so hard to understand about that? He didn't know much about it beside the fact that he wanted it.". Its a weapon of war, added the official. Are insane ticket costs pricing Astros fans out of Opening Day? Mexico Sues US Gun Makers Over Illegal Guns Flowing Across - Insider ", The Barrett is a rifle with almost no practical criminal uses. That included riflesmanufactured in Tennessee and Arkansas capable of downing aircraft or ripping through armored police cars andtanks. https://www.npr.org/2019/02/21/696561255/heckler-koch-fined-4-2-million-over-assault-rifle-sales-in-mexico, For no other reason than eric holder lead the investigation, I question everything we know about the Oklahoma City bombing, wow is that guy nuts. The article, titled, "The U.S. Must Defeat Mexico's Drug Cartels", . https://tucson.com/news/national/mexican-drug-cartels-using-grenades/article_9bafe2d8-ecf2-5925-8e85-167e066dd2e9.html. Distraction. Oh, surprise, surprise, who was AG of California when this was happening?? Guns and munitions confiscated from alleged Mexican drug dealers Alberto Sanchez Hinojosa aka "El Tony", Francisco Arteaga Espino and Leonel Cruz Hernandez are displayed to the press in Mexico City on September 7, 2008, after they were detained in Villahermosa, Tabasco state. Whether it's the Juarez Cartel or Sinaloa's 'Chapo' Guzman, one thing the cartels in Mexico and South America have in common are flashy weapons. You took their 4473 and transcribed all that, then it asked what type of transaction it was, how many 100s, how many 50s, how many 10s, ones. Not with all their progressive laws. The gun should not be in the hands of civilians, the official said. Theyre American-made guns, Sotomayor told the Union-Tribune. A straw purchase is when someone buys a gun legally, but then hands it over illegally to another person. Working together across 18 different countries over the course of 10 months, the consortium investigated the global networks of Mexican drug cartels and their political connections around the world. NPR's Steve Inskeep speaks with Ioan Grillo about the illegal flow of guns from the U.S. to Mexico. That figures to 17.6 percent of the 29,000 figure for guns seized in Mexico, as given by the country's attorney general. Reports suggest the Fast and Furious guns are tied to at least 69 killings. "The gun traffickers supplying Mexican drug organizations have become more selective and sophisticated in the weapons they acquire,"' said Kristen Rand, legislative director of the Washington-based Violence Policy Center, which extensively studied the issue. No way the Democrats would support increasing the numbers of guns in the world. In November 2009, the ATF's Phoenix field office launched an operation in which guns bought by drug-cartel straw purchasers in the U.S. were allowed to "walk" across the border into Mexico. Miguel Diaz Calderon never made it out of Texas. Yes, it was stressful but, at the same time, you knew what you had to do, and you did it and tried not to spook him, or whatever.". The Most Dangerous Cartels To Ever Exist - Grunge.com It all started in 2017, when Norma Llamas Rodriguez, 47,. Somehow, gum made out of tree bark is still softer than Bazooka. Why havent you closed your northern border with a massive military presence to stop south bound smuggling? One of the most dangerous pockets of Mexico City: Teptio, the primary-black market area, under the thumb of the Union Cartel. Between all the illegal guns and millions in gold, jewelry and diamonds, there are armed guards on constant watch. We were a large store you meet these border patrol agents coming to pick up extra stuff. We sat down with "James," who worked at one of the gun stores the ATF ordered to sell firearms to drug cartels. Of those murders, at least 20,005 were carried out with guns. [and I wonder what fraction of those murders were carried out at the behest of federal authorities by their cartel buddiesthe same Federales that prohibit citizens from arming up to defend themselves against the cartels.]. Weapons and jewelry seized to alleged leader of "El Cartel del Golfo" Jorge Eduardo Costilla Sanchez, aka "El Coss", are presented to the press in Mexico City, on September 13, 2012. Much of firearms traffic from the U.S. to Mexico happens illegally Or is it because the CA border is not a barrier to trafficking contraband? Sorry, man -- at least 150 Mexican civilians have been hurt or killed by weapons the ATF let enter Mexico. Instead, the ATF lost 1,400 (or more!) A gold-plated AK-47 rifle seized to alleged leader of "The Resistance" drugs cartel, Ramiro Pozos Gonzalez, aka "El Molca", is presented to the press in Mexico City, on September 12, 2012. "But we also know most of the violence the Mexican government is concerned about against police and against institutions is coming from CJNG and the Sinaloa Cartel" run by the notorious kingpin "El Chapo,"Lestrange said. U.S. Customs agents searched hisvehicle at the Eagle Passcrossing and found 43 shotguns, rifles and pistols. So CA is itself one of those neighboring States that is (cough) responsible for illegal firearms/use across a boundry? In addition to weapons from the States working better, Mexico cartels view firearms as status symbols, retired DEA agent Jack Riley told The San Diego Union-Tribune: It is really important to these criminal organizations, who stay in business by the threat of violence and through the use of violence; and the tools that they prefer to do that with are American-made guns.. Cartels exploiting border chaos to smuggle fentanyl into US - New York Post To lose that many military, cops, politicians and citizens murdered by gangsters is phenomenal. MEXICO: Stop the flow of Immigrants going north and maybe we will do something about guns going south across the border. Say hello to our favorite little Al Pacino movie: The Brian De Palma classic from the '80s that has cemented Tony Montana, his little machine gun friend, and Michelle Pfeiffer's stunning slip dresses in cinema history. 24 of 29 25 of 29 A handgun covered with gold and money sized to alleged financial agent of the drug "Cartel . It was run by brothers Jorge Luis, Juan David, and Fabio Ochoa Vasquez; Pablo Escobar; Carlos Lehder; George Jung; and Jose Gonzalo Rodriguez. Last week, the Treasury sanctioned two Mexican businessmen and four Sinaloa Cartel members in connection with the illicit methamphetamine and fentanyl trade. Drug cartels have the flashiest of weapons in their arsenal. Mexican drug cartel threatens to kill TV reporter - BBC News RELATED:Documents allege Texas DPS spying on Mexico. It was weird that, one, he came in with $10,000 cash. floating around in pictures. Maybe if the border was more of an obstacle], Theres no way for people to buy guns like these in Mexico. Top ATF officials have said in congressional testimony that 90 percent of the guns submitted for tracing by Mexican authorities are from the United States. Some of the reasons so many guns come from Texas: people can cross the border on land or by theRio Grande River, and"in places like Houston and San Antonio, theres a gun store on every corner, said Will Glaspy, formerly in charge of DEA's Houston Division. These Are The Twitter Accounts Of The Sons Of Mexico's Drug Cartel Leaders A large-scale drug investigation in the Valley led to the seizure of millions of fentanyl pills, thousands of pounds of meth and more. How about we lock up a guy who sold the cartels weapons used to kill people including Brian Terry. A gold plated pistol and jewelry, allegedly seized from Manuel Alquisires Garcia, alias "El Meme," sit on display during his presentation to the press of in Mexico City, Monday Sept. 12, 2011. But then, he broke out the huge bag of cash. Diaz's attorney, Gregory Torres, declinedcomment. He claimed he didn't know the names of the gun buyers or their cartel affiliations. Other than "buying the same $10,000 gun multiple times" and "paying in whale-choking bundles of cash," there was nothing particularly shady about the dudes making these straw purchases. of violence in this conflict: intra-cartel disputes, inter-cartel rivalries, and the overall war that Mexican President Felipe Caldern's government is waging on the cartels. . Blood Gun Money: How America Arms Gangs and Cartels. Mexican Ambassador Arturo Sarukhan argued against doubts raised by the National Rifle Association that ninety percent of all assault weapons seized in . Sincerely, Smuggled guns used in cartel hits - CNN.com A Washington man drove to a U.S. border crossing last year in his teal Ford pickup truck loadedwith a hidden arsenal bound for a Mexican cartel war zone. Im having a memory lapsewhich guns are made in Mexico, exactly? Former Mexico security chief convicted in U.S. for taking cartel bribes Our source and his employer had just been drawn into the ATF's latest kooky adventure. Mexico's Weapons Seizures Map Out Cartel Firepower - InSight Crime We know theyre being illegally trafficked through California into Tijuana. 1 gun in the Hearst survey was the AK-47 imported from Romania by Century International Arms of Delray Beach, Fla. Century Arms, as it's commonly known, legally circumvents a federal law stipulating that imported rifles must be suitable for "sporting purposes." U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents contend Vasquez told them he was headed to the city ofMatehuala, a seven-hour drive south of Laredo, Texas, in the Mexican state of San Luis Potos. The Mexican government claims that more than 68% of illegal guns smuggled across the border are made by those companies, along withBarrett and Witmer Public Safety Group, which acquired Interstate Arms. And four years ago, two sons of El Chapo Guzmn were kidnapped in another restaurant 500 meters from where they shot the former governor two days ago. Along Mexico's Riviera Maya, Tourists, Drugs and Violence "Their goal is the bulk purchase of maximum firepower.". The main character, Franklin is brilliant. Agents launched 534 investigations, seized $29 million and intercepted more than 1,200 guns, 4,700 magazines for semi-automatic and automatic weapons and 700,000 rounds of ammunition headed to. btw Based in northwest Mexico's Sinaloa state, the Sinaloa Cartel is widely considered to be the most powerful drug trafficking organization in the Western Hemisphere, according to Insight Crime. Drug Cartels: 5 Most Powerful in the World | Desert Hope The M82 can easily penetrate bulletproof vests, concrete walls and even tanks, says its manufacturer Barrett Firearms. Many interesting behind-the-scenes bits have happened during the 20 years of telling tales about our favorite trailer-park residents, Bobs never bought Christmas seals he told me he wouldnt know what to feed them, Below you, an entire other world operates. From the finest gems, to gold-plated weapons, law enforcement officials say these accused drug dealers have a passion for flashy things. From 2006 to 2013, the program expanded until it exploded into the stupidly named "Fast And Furious" scandal. 19 Cartel Movies and TV Shows to Watch If You Love Narcos - Oprah Daily The Medellin cartel surged to power in the 1980s. And he didn't want any ammo for it or any optics for it. Fast & Furious: Obama's First Scandal | National Review Mexican Drug Cartels Agree: American-Made Guns Are the Best Bingeworthy Mafia and Drug Cartel TV Series - Really Into This "It's hard to pinpoint exactly where we think a particular load (of guns) we seized was going,"Lestrange said. Because they could be doing a hell of a lot more to fight smuggling into the country and to protect their own good guy guns from being stolen. Mexican Army: War Against Powerful Drug Cartels - YouTube In Mexico City, the military has a museum used to train officials, diplomats, and cadets about the war on drugs. MLB legend makes surprise appearance at Astros' Spring Training, Hiker takes 'once-in-a-lifetime' photo at Brazos Bend State Park, Eric Gordon trade looking better and better for Houston Rockets, This Texas Hill Country town is the new, cooler Fredericksburg, This is what Houston looks like from space, Oops! blames CJNG and the Sinaloa Cartel for the bulk of America's illicit fentanyl, U.S. Southwest Border Counternarcotics Strategy, Your California Privacy Rights/Privacy Policy. A Draco, purchased in Joshua, Texas, near Forth Worth, was used in the attack and shooting death of Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent Jaime Zapata in Mexico in February. ", It was a good gig for a while. Answer (1 of 16): There a ton of AK and Russian type military machine guns (I've seen a Russian equivalent 12.6 MM of the .50 caliber machine gun mounted on a truck. LMFAO. In 2018, the homicide rate in Mexico hit a record high of 35,964, spiking 12 percent from the year before, according to the countrys National Institute of Statistics and Geography. If you want to keep guns out of the country, you do not appear to be making any real effort at it. ATF agents say almost 100 of those weapons have turned up at cartel-related crime scenes in.