Institute for the study of violent groups
Arellano Cartel Losing Steam (BC)
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- Hacker Group Backs off from Naming Mexican Drug Cartel Members (VER)
- Two Dismembered Bodies Found in Mexican Border City (CHIH)
- CARRIBEAN, CENTRAL, AND SOUTH AMERICA
Arellano Cartel Losing Steam (BC)8 November 2011 UPI
(Return to Contents) Hacker Group Backs off from Naming Mexican Drug Cartel Members (VER)9 November 2011 The International Members of the prominent hacker group Anonymous have opted not to name a list of collaborators and members of the Mexican drug gang, Los Zetas, after threatening to do so in a video posted on the YouTube video-hosting service last month. This comes after the gang reportedly threatened to kill multiple members of Anonymous for every name that was published. The video that started the confrontation contained a message to Los Zetas communicated by an artificial voice dubbed over footage of a male figure dressed in a suit and a face mask from the fictional adventure film "V for Vendetta." The statement demanded the release of an unidentified member of Anonymous from Veracruz, Mexico who, according to the narration in the film, had been kidnapped by the cartel during a global protest event called "Operation Paper Storm," which involved Anonymous supporters posting the text of radical or suppressed information in public spaces. The voice in the recording added the following denouncement of the gang to its demand for the release of the captive: "We want the army and the navy to know we are fed up with the criminal group Zetas… One of them is charging every hard-working citizen of Veracruz who bust their rears every day to feed their families." The vocal track in the film went on to warn that the data would be released on November 5 if they did not receive a response from the gang. The apparent reversal is believed to be attributed to the release of the alleged kidnap victim and the fact that an established US security company Stratfor issued a statement that claimed that the Zetas were paying experts to track down the members of Anonymous in order to organize a possible retaliation to the move. The security group advised that if Anonymous continued to challenge the gang, such a stance could lead to "abduction, injury, and death" for those involved. Reuters reported on Saturday that a website operated by Anonymous acknowledged they had received the kidnap victim unharmed, stating, in Spanish, that "while he is bruised, he is alive and well." The article stated also that Anonymous had reported that "the person was freed with a note warning that if information were released, the cartel would make the kidnapped member’s family suffer and kill 10 people for each exposed name." It appears that the Zetas are serious about trying to protect themselves from hackers and are willing to demonstrate it in a manner that is intended to put off any attempts to reveal information about the group. Earlier in the month, the bodies of a man and a woman were hung from an overpass in Nuevo Laredo, Mexico in what appears to be an attempt to send a message to internet activists who confront the gang. The bodies bore a transparent warning, which translates into English as "this is what will happen." CNN quoted US government officials in August 2009, describing Los Zetas as "the most technologically advanced, sophisticated, and dangerous cartel operating in Mexico." The group is believed to be responsible for a number of incidents that lead to mass fatalities throughout Mexico, including a spate of killings in the central Mexican city of Durango earlier this year that left over 200 people dead. Reporting on the Durango incident in May, Time magazine stated that "more than 90% of Mexico’s violent crimes go unsolved." Source: [www.theinternational.org/articles/181-hacker-group-backs-off-from-naming-mexica] (Return to Contents) Two Dismembered Bodies Found in Mexican Border City (CHIH)8 November 2011 Latin American Herald Tribune
(Return to Contents) CARRIBEAN, CENTRAL, AND SOUTH AMERICALos Zetas Draws New Smuggling Routes through Belize (BZ)7 November 2011 Dialogo
Uninhabited Geoff’s Caye, a favorite of scuba divers and snorkelers, is one of about 450 islands and keys off the coast of Belize often used as dropoff points by drug traffickers. [Larry Luxner] Uninhabited Geoff’s Caye, a favorite of scuba divers and snorkelers, is one of about 450 islands and keys off the coast of Belize often used as dropoff points by drug traffickers. [Larry Luxner] “We recognize that we face a regional challenge,” Singh said. “As such, we must engage with our regional partners in finding a regional solution.” Los Zetas operates in Belize Recent drug and weapons seizures near Belize’s northern border with Mexico show that Los Zetas and other Mexican and Colombian drug-trafficking organizations are drawing new smuggling routes through the sparsely populated nation. In November 2010, Guatemalan drug lord Otoneil Turcios Marroquín, with alleged links to Los Zetas, was captured in Belize and turned over to the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency. He had been sought by the United States since 2003 for allegedly smuggling 1,600 kilos of cocaine, which were subsequently distributed on the streets of New York. After Los Zetas perpetrated a massacre in a farmhouse in Petén, Guatemala, earlier this year, Guatemalan authorities reported that a four-wheel-drive vehicle with Belize license plates had been used by its members and found in the ranch. Police said the diplomatic vehicle had been stolen from a Guatemalan driver assigned to an outpost of the Organization of American States along Guatemala’s border with Belize. Stories of drug-toting tourists are not uncommon in Belize. More than a few backpackers have been found with packs of cannabis in their pants pockets. “Many have been arrested for openly smoking marijuana on the keys such as San Pedro and Caye Caulker,” said Belize News 5 analyst José Sánchez. “They think it’s OK.” The biggest concern, of course, is for the larger amounts of hard drugs that are passing by undetected. Belize has 450 keys, most of them uninhabited. Belize, a hub for meth Belize not only has seen increases in cocaine trafficking, but also in marijuana and in precursor chemicals en route to Mexico as well. In 2010, Belize seized 97 metric tons of marijuana, in comparison to the 291 kilos confiscated the year before. Noteworthy, said Sánchez, are the recurring attempts to introduce loads of pseudoephedrine in the country. “It was relatively unknown until 2008,” he said. From that point on, port authorities regularly found shipments coming from China and other Asian countries via Germany, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom and Spain. In Belize, it is illegal to import any medicine that contains pseudoephedrine, which can be chemically combined with other substances to produce methamphetamine or crystal meth. Souvenir shops crowd the main street of San Pedro, a tourist attraction where foreigners are routinely arrested for possession of marijuana and other illegal drugs. [Larry Luxner] Souvenir shops crowd the main street of San Pedro, a tourist attraction where foreigners are routinely arrested for possession of marijuana and other illegal drugs. [Larry Luxner] Several loads of pseudoephedrine have disappeared from the port in Belize City. All attempts to hold somebody accountable for the theft have failed, said Sánchez. In early October, three Customs officers were acquitted of two counts of forgery in relation to the disappearance of a container of pseudoephedrine tablets in September 2008. The Comptroller of Customs also has been under attack for cracking down on drug trafficking. In March 2009, a live grenade was thrown onto the third-floor balcony of the home of Gregory Gibson, who had earlier received several death threats. “It is widely speculated that because the Customs Department was determined to halt pseudoephedrine shipments, neighboring cartels hired local thugs to throw a grenade at the Comptroller of Customs as a warning,” Sánchez said. The influx of illicit substances has meant an increase in the country’s crime rate. “Murder is at an all-time high,” said Singh. “Drug activities have certainly contributed to this increase.” The UNODC report corroborates Singh’s statement, noting that “the murder rates in Honduras, Guatemala, El Salvador, and Belize are three to five times higher than in Mexico, and both the economy and the state are far less robust and resilient.” Source: [www.dialogo-americas.com/en_GB/articles/rmisa/features/regional_news/2011/11/07/aa-belize-los-zetas] (Return to Contents) Directory: gifiles -> attach -> 136 attach -> Adaptability Sustainment attach -> Pop-up 1 ("C" Chechnya) Header Text: Emir of the Caucasus Emirate Doku Umarov Image attach -> Russia and Islam are not Separate attach -> Chapter 13: The Northern Caucasus attach -> Russia 100209 Basic Political Developments attach -> The evolution attach -> The devolution 136 -> How the World will Change in the Next 30 Years: World Experts Talk about Global Trends and Forces that will Sweep the 21 136 -> Unclassified//for official use only Download 159.92 Kb. 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