DEA: Intelligence Work In Mexico, Key To The Arrest Of 'El Contador'

"Sol Prendido" for Borderland Beat

US officials highlighted the coordinated work with Mexican authorities

They explained that this is the culmination of a successful international investigation that should disrupt the Gulf Cartel's ability to traffic drugs.

The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and the Homeland Security Department's Office of Homeland Security Investigations presumed that the arrest of José Alfredo Cárdenas Martínez, alias El Contador, leader of the Gulf Cartel, which occurred three weeks ago in Mexico City, was largely due to the intelligence work of its agents deployed in Mexico.

“Through the joint investigation of our office in Harlingen (Texas), in coordination with our attaché in Mexico and other partners, we were able to collect significant evidence that was essential in the case against El Contador”, said the special agent in charge of the HSI. , Shane Folden, following the announcement of pending charges against Osiel Cárdenas Guillen's nephew, by the United States Attorney's Office in the Southern District of Texas.

Meanwhile, Daniel Comeaux, the special agent in charge of the DEA in Houston, stressed that the arrest of Cárdenas Martínez represents a serious blow to the Gulf Cartel, "it is the culmination of a successful international investigation that should disrupt the ability of the Gulf Cartel to smuggle drugs into Texas and other communities.”  

El Contador, recaptured for the third time on February 27, has pending accounts in Texas, where a court in the Southern District of Texas has charged him with several charges related to his position as head of the Gulf Cartel, announced federal prosecutor Jennifer Lowery. Cárdenas Martínez is currently in custody in Mexico, pending litigation over the extradition request against him from the United States. 

A federal grand jury in Brownsville returned a nine-count indictment against him on November 10. According to the charges, Cárdenas Martínez, 42, has been the head of the Gulf Cartel since 2015. According to the account released by the Department of Justice, he rose to the top of the organization after his arrest and subsequent conviction of Jorge Eduardo Costilla Sánchez, alias El Cos, who led the Gulf Cartel after another arrest and conviction. 

This time against Osiel Cárdenas Guillén, known in the world of drug trafficking as El Mata Amigos – a nickname he acquired after assassinating Salvador Gómez Herrera, then head of the Gulf Cartel, in 1998 in order to gain control of that criminal organization – is currently in custody. in the United States, serving a sentence.  

He is expected to be released in 2024 after reaching a cooperation agreement with US authorities.  El Contador is charged with international conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine, cocaine and fentanyl.  The South Texas indictment also alleges that he possessed with intent to distribute 50 grams or more of methamphetamine, five kilograms of cocaine and 400 grams or more of fentanyl.

As head of the Gulf Cartel, Cárdenas Martínez, according to US justice, coordinated the shipment of narcotics to that country for illegal sale throughout its territory.  According to the charges, the conspiracy to transport cocaine, methamphetamine and fentanyl from Mexico to the United States began in 2015 and continued until at least 2021.

If convicted, the leader of the Gulf Cartel faces life in prison and a fine of up to 10 million dollars. The indictment against him also includes a forfeiture notice for any proceeds he obtained and property used to facilitate his drug trafficking business.

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