Narcos Control Chihuahua's Sierra

Translated by Yaqui for Borderland Beat from: El Heraldo

                                                   Sierra Tarahumara, Chihuahua
By: Ricardo Holguín

The wood that illegal groups steal or cut clandestinely from the mountains of the State of Chihuahua, identified as the Juarez Cartel through "La Línea" and the Sinaloa Cartel through "Gente Nueva", is marketed in different small and large businesses in the furniture industry, mainly in municipalities such as Parral, Delicias, Chihuahua, Madera and Guerrero.

According to some of the owners of sawmills in the most dangerous areas for timber trade in the state, such as Uruachi, Bocoyna and surroundings, organized crime criminals sell stolen or felled wood at affordable costs to different businesses, which for this reason they are forced to acquire it.

For security reasons, having sawmills in operation in the Sierra Tarahumara, the merchant decided to remain anonymous and explained that there is a quota for some workers who want to enter the business, which has triggered the dispute over the control of wood in the mill, as has happened in recent days.

A family is in charge of the control of drug trafficking and all its sub-activities, identified as "Manjarrez Alonso", known as "Los H's", who have the domain of wood theft, fuel, narcotics and different activities,  are practically the owners of most of the mountain businesses in Chihuahua.

At the service of the Sinaloa Cartel, the head of the plaza is César Daniel, known for his love of horses and outdoor activities and is nicknamed "El H2", leader of the group and its main operators are his brothers Homero Manjarrez Alonso, "El H7" and José Alfredo, "El Harry".

This criminal group is credited with the theft of wood on the roads that lead to Bocoyna, Uruachi, Guerrero and other parts of the sierra, where its extensive criminal structure seizes the examples of the sierra to carry out its business, which seems to leave more income than the sale of drugs in the mountainous area.

The owner of the sawmill explains that the population has fully identified "El H-2" as the person responsible for the violence in the place, because nobody can do anything against him, since there is not even a department to file a complaint and in the only ones offices that exist tell them that they should go to the state capital.

With the lack of opportunities to present a formal complaint and with the delay that could be a process of investigation against a criminal leader in charge of the wood business, those affected and citizens who know the subjects, decide to remain silent and prefer to continue with your daily life.

He mentions that the security in the place is scarce, because in addition to being very extensive, the necessary elements do not exist to cover or take care of the most conflictive municipalities that currently go through the theft and felling of trees in the mountain area in order to generate more income illegally.

For its part, the Federal Office of Environmental Protection (Profepa), has not made any research folder against elements of organized crime for issues related to illegal logging or wood theft in the mountain municipalities of the state, but instead has insured mainly wood charcoal

Similarly, the State Security Commission (CES) is responsible for highlighting agents in the area, but only people without logging permits and trucks that move wood have been arrested without determining their legitimate origin, which is not related to the structures of the organized crime groups.

The state security commissioner, Óscar Aparicio Avendaño, said that 14 individuals related to illegal clandestine logging in the western zone have been arrested, but none of them belongs to or is said to belong to an organized crime group, who allegedly lead this market from the felling until the sale.

Illegal logging is a crime against natural resources that leaves a significant number of profits, which is currently exploited by organized crime in Chihuahua and in what is known as the "Golden Triangle", where the main drug cartels operate in the north of the country.

Many mining interests are also held hostage by DTO's operating in the area. Stay tuned.