In Baja California they protect criminals

Translated by Otis B Fly-Wheel for Borderland Beat from a Zetatijuana article

[ Subject Matter: Cartel Arrellano Felix, Sinaloa Cartel
Recommendation: No prior subject matter knowledge required]

Arrests and recent homicides suggest a wave of attacks on the economic and operational structure of the Cartel Arrellano Felix on the part of  Sinaloan traffickers. State Police operatives are used to arrest an element of the CAF. while the intelligence section attack "El Tigre", head of the Sinaloa Cartel in this region.

Reporter: Zeta Investigations
Jorge Ernesto Penuelas Parra, a criminal in the service of the Cartel Arrellano Felix (CAF), was a fugitive from justice. Against him the State Public Ministry solicited and obtained orders of apprehension for homicide and kidnapping that date back to 2010.

The Ministerial investigators and the information from intelligence sources, allege that he is one of the men carrying out criminal activities at the side of Juan Sillas Rocha ( captured during November of 2011) during the internal war in the CAF against the criminals in the service of Eduardo Garcia Simental "El Teo" (2008 - 2011).




He is related directly to the attacks on the family of narco trafficker Raydel Rosalio Lopez Uriate "El Muletas" in February of 2010, and in the kidnapping of the nieces of the Sinalao Cartel leader Ismael "El Mayo" Zambada in September of the same year, their "footprint" as alleged criminals was already in the system prior to the arrest warrants, as prior to this he had already been arrested and released.

Despite this record, and that elements of the State Preventative Police have the technology to run the fingerprints of detainees, on the evening of Monday, November the 9th, 2015, a pair of agents captured Penuelas and presented him with a false name before the Attorney Generals Office (PGR).

According to the bulletin numbered ComTij 916. dated the 10th of November 2015, the Secretary of State Public Security of Baja California announced that they detained " about Carretera Libre Tijuana - Playas de Rosarito,at the height of the Colonia Veracruz of the fifth municipality of the area", Fabian Lopez Ruvalcaba, 42 years of age, originally from Penjamo, Guanajuato.

They detailed that, " they intervened with the driver of a model 2008 Volkswagen Jetta, colored white, with plates of ALJ4403". and the driver was in possession of a .38 caliber firearm and a 9mm pistol with various magazines, that they found along with 39 rounds. Until now there has been no clear explanation for why the subject raised their suspicion, " but the most probable is that they put it", indicated an investigator.

For guns of these calibers, all the detained left after paying bail, and that could have happened if the enemies of the criminal had not alerted the authorities. Staff of the kidnapping unit received  information about Penuelas being put at the disposal of the Federal Attorney General, and SEIDO was not informed officially of the capture of the detainee.

In the office of the Secretary of State Public Security (SSPE), Chiefs interviewed by Zeta remembered that " there was something strange" procedures of the apprehending agents, but the defending argument made by the PGR was that they could have run the fingerprints and corroborated his identity.

Since the State Prosecutor considered "strange" the proceedings that they said, " they are doing it repetitively", because the PEP does the same with the majority " of the good ones" they detain: and present them accused of common law crimes ( Otis: don't cause harm, don't cause loss, don't commit a breach of the peace), but those delivered to the PGR are charged for possession of weapons or drugs.

Also the PGJE and the SSPE received anonymous complaints of irregular actions of agents of the PEP, revealing the true identity of the detainee. Zeta received two similar complaints.

Hoodlum and kidnapper of the Cartel Arellano Felix

Captured for the first time in 2009 for an administrative offence, the intelligence section of the Coordination Group informed that according to versions of the detained members, this criminal cell  run operationally by Penuelas since 2007, even though the authorities did not locate him on a criminal map of Tijuana until 2009.

According to official information, Penuelas Parra appeared in two processes that the Federation brought against Juan Sillas, those case numbers; AP/PGR/BC/TIJ/25/22-M-IV and AP/PGR/BC/TIJ/4194/10-M-IX, that were opened because of three thrown fragmentation grenades on the 8th of November of 2010 against the installations of the Anti-Kidnapping Group of the PGJE in Tijuana.

As chief of sicarios for Sillas, testimony of some of his criminal acquaintances, he was also involved in the kidnapping of a man called Guadalupe in January of 2010, and another identified as Rosales, deprived of their liberty on 14th of February, and the kidnapping of a woman in Valle de las Palmas,, who they mutilated, all in the same year.

He was also mentioned in the kidnapping of Diana Lopez, sister of "El Muletas", and the assassination of a boyfriend of hers, Tomas Alberto Rosales Cruz. Also the homicide of the Municipal Policeman of Tijuana, Jose Luis Torrijos.

Penuelas and another three subjects had been detained by the Municipal Police on Friday the 15th of October of 2009, for obstruction of a road in the zone of El Vergel. They were brought before the Public Ministry under Common Law Jurisdiction with case T05/1348/2009, after they offered money to be released, and, after being unable to get what they wanted, threatened to kill the uniformed personnel, they also received similar threats over the radio on Police frequencies. The Municipal Police released them almost immediately.

The following day, criminals confronted the Police in the La Mesa delegation and the authorities considered that Penuelas had carried out his threats.

They continue killing the CAF

Like Humberto Ruiz Hernandez was identified as the man assassinated around eleven in the morning of the 10th of November of 2015, when he intended to enter his house at number 481 of Calle Caracol in the Playas de Tijuana delegation. To confuse the Police, his woman also gave his name as Norberto Beltran Hernandez.

The body had an impact wound in the nape of the neck, and another in the cheekbone, crime scene specialists recovered two 9mm shell casings. In an unofficial manner, the agents at the scene of the crime were informed that the subject was related to a trafficker linked to the CAF, with the surname Avila Hernandez.

The criminal most identified with this group was Fernando Avila Valenzuela "El Tio" alias "El Cuervo", assassinated on the afternoon of the 5th of November of 2014; a member of the CAF identified by the DEA during January of 2009 as one of the most wanted, he was executed in his vehicle by assassins in another vehicle while travelling on calles Baja California and Kleper in the Postal Colonia, where he owned more than 2000 square meters.

He was shot at with 17 rounds as he left a property after collecting rent, his son attending the scene and identified the corpse under the false name of Israel Garcia, a coach-building professional.

Alonso Avila "El Moto", identified by the authorities as the brother of "El Cuervo", was killed this past October. A man identified as a friend of the victim called the authorities about midday, he told them that as was his custom he passed to say hello to his friend at his workshop on Calle Colegio Militar in the Tomas Aquino Colonia of Otay.

Worse, the place was closed, he looked in a saw on the patio of "El Moto", his friend in the middle of a pool of blood, experts found six 9mm shell casings. The man who identified him said he was dedicated to the sale of cars.

According to investigators from the Ministerial Authorities, Humberto Ruiz Hernandez, also killed that week, was a friend of the Avila brothers.

The suspicions of the Police were amplified by the actions of the widow. The lady got aggressive, contaminated the scene of the crime, moved the red vehicle that the victim drove to the house, lifted the shirt of the deceased and took out his wallet, documents and keys.

She refused to allow the car to be towed, there was a moment when she crouched on the side of the car, trying to prevent the officers approaching it, they had seem a similar reaction from the girlfriend of Alonso Avila the month before, they explained.

Ruiz had not antecedents before his capture.

Sinaloa against the Arellanos

In these crimes, the authorities are investigating the hypothesis that the assassination of Humberto Ruiz Hernandez in Playas, had been a response of the killers of the Sinaloa Cartel headed by Alonso Arzate Garcia "El Aquiles" for the killing of Yahir Jonathan Quintanar Rivera, which occurred on 9th of November in Colinas de California.

I was about seven in the morning of that Monday when Quintanar Rivera, still dressed in his nightclothes, arrived at a taqueria located on Calle Belice and Avenida La Paz in the fraccionamiento Colinas de California, in the Sanchez Taboada delegation.

He asked for soup and nine tacos to go, authorities dismissed that at this point he was being observed by his attackers. "They were hunting him purely at his house", they recounted.

He was sitting in the drivers seat of the gray Avenger, waiting for his food order to be filled and talking on his mobile phone. After a few minutes or seconds the shooting started. The taco man concentrating on making up his order, heard the deafening sound of gunshots and in thought to protect himself by throwing himself flat on the ground.

The taco man kept his head down and saw nothing, he waited several seconds after the gunshots had stopped before raising his head to see his client had been shot. The body of the victim was hit with 28 rounds of .223 winchester caliber.

In the primary investigations resulted in Quintanar being detained in San Diego, California, in 1999 for importation of marijuana. Questioned in this regard, his wife expressed annoyance that the PGJE investigated the background of her deceased partner, and refused to cooperate with the investigation.

In Tijuana, these assassinations between criminals have returned to another level, more than just drug dealers on corners. Carrying them out in broad daylight, in front of their homes and in areas like the Playas delegation, where they live so not to heat the plaza", said a researcher.

They are coming for "Los Erres" and their boss "El Tigre"

In the week, the PEP informed of the capture of Isaac Alhiu Chavez Cabrera, on the 9th of November. According to an information bulletin, "El Puma" was intercepted when driving on Bulvar Cuauhtemoc Sur, at the height of Aguaje de la Tuna Colonia in Tijuana, on board a 2008 Jetta.

With him was Aime Maritza Garcia Ambriz, and in the car they found " a 9mm firearm with seven rounds,  an AK47 assault rifle, known in Mexico as Cuerno de Chivo or goat horn because of the curved magazine, with 14 rounds of 7.62 x 39 mm and 9 packages that weighed in total 13 kilogrammes of marijuana".

The importance of this subject lies in that the Coordination Group had him identified as the head of criminal cell identified as "Los Erres", in the criminal service of Jose Antonio Soto Gastelum "El Tigre", one of the Sinaloa Cartel heads in Baja California.

The majority of these "Erres" started trafficking in Mexicali, in the epic internal struggle of the CAF when they transferred to Tijuana, where the majority had been imprisoned for kidnapping, homicides and drug trafficking between 2008 and 2013. Gastelum paid lawyers, who in June of 2014 had them freed, and they returned to criminality in Tijuana.

*Chavez Cabrera is a direct contact of two important cell members of "El Tigre".

*Javier Adrian Beltran "El Javi" scaled the criminal ladder after his brother Jose Antonio Beltran Cabrera "El R4" right hand of "El Tigre", was assassinated on the 12th of May 2014 in Mexicali.

*One of the sons of Jose Soto, who had contacts for in Nayarit, Jalisco for drug trafficking to the Untied States, Baja California Sur and Central America.

Information from the Intelligence section of the State Counsel of Public Security for Baja California, suspect that Chavez Cabrera and his recently detained friends, Omar Martinez ( 3rd of September 2015) and Gabriel Miramontes ( 4th of September) as allegedly responsible for no less than three armed attacks against Carlos Jhared Rodriguez - wanted by the FBI - on 5th of June 2014.

Also for the homicide of a two year old child in the Obrera Colonia on 14th of June of the same year, the assassination of a member of the gang "Los Hooligans", on the 24th of August 2015 in a funeral home in central zone of Tijuana.

However, like murderous kidnapping of the CAF, Alejandro Penuelas, mentioned at the beginning of this article, none of the "Erres" were delivered by the PEP to the Public Ministry of Common Law, not even to be interrogated or charged.

Currently the three are under processing before the Federal Judiciary for crimes against health and possession of arms for exclusive use of the armed forces.

They denounced two agents of the PEP

This week another family denounced alleged criminal acts committed by agents of the State Preventative Police. It was the family of Jose Guadalupe Rivera Avalos, 47 years of age, whose capture was announced on November the 1st through a press release.

According to the bulletin, the apprehension took place on Avenida de la Independencia in the Alta Brista Fraccionamiento. He was accompanied by Jorge Mario Villalobos Herrera, when from afar the uniformed officers noticed a concealed pistol, and when they noted the arrival of the Police, the detained tried to flee to a vehicle, in which the Police discovered 13 bags of Crystal, three magazine and 200 rounds of different calibers.

But for Rivera Avalos they executed and order of apprehension for a homicide perpetrated on the 7th of May 2014 in Nayarit.

The version of events of relatives of Rivera is different, they recognize the charge of homicide, but on the day of the incident, they ensure that the detainee was driving through a market with his family when he was approached by officers who asked for 30,000 dollars in exchange for not turning him in.

As he is dedicated to buying and selling cars, Rivera had money, so he asked that they take him home to get it for them and they did. If he has to pay he will, but now these agents are harassing the family trying to blackmail more money, and that makes us afraid for our safety", indicated the relatives.

In respect, the director of the PEP, Marco Montoya, bid the affected parties to present their formal complaints, meanwhile they will initiate a review of the case, as the patrol cars have geo-locators, they can verify that the complaints match the data, so we can know if officers returned to the area".

At the close of this edition, the Secretary for State Public Security officially informed that after revising the capture of Penuelas, was that all had been done according to protocols, and that the erroneous identification because he had neither biometric data or register of criminal wounds. However, they haven't offered details of how they arrived at the real identity of the criminal without having those elements.

23 assassinations and another narco manta

In the second week of November of 2015, the violent homicide unit in Tijuana has more than two dozen open cases of violent murders.

In the second period of the month, by the zone and profile of the victims, highlights the killings of Yahir Jonathan Quintanar Rivera on Monday the 9th in Colinas de California and that of Humberto Ruiz Hernandez on the 10th of November, but the sum arrived at was ten executions between the 6th and the 12th of the eleventh month.

The afternoon of Friday the 6th, the Police found the body of Juan Manuel Sanchez Gracia in the workshop for cars in the Lomas Blanco Fraccionamiento. His family said that he dedicated himself to the buying and selling of vehicles, and that the vehicles that they carried to sell to Jalisco were loaded with crystal, " but that doesn't make sense, drugs move south to north, but we are investigating said a ministerial.

On the 7th of November they killed Rodolfo Martin del Campo Sandoval, 70 years old, when they robbed his house. The same day a body of a young man was recovered with his hands and feet bound, he died of asphyxiation, he was shot in the Pacific Industrial Park, at his feet they left a manta "this is going to happen to all of "Los Chapulines".

The following day, on Sunday the 8th, the body of an obese man with tattoos was found abandoned, that said "martinez" and "El Salvador". They asphyxiated him. The body was enconbijado, around Calle Emiliano Zapata and La Colonia 20th of November.

But the most violent day registered was Monday the 9th of November with 5 assassinations. At 01:00 am was reported the assassination of Jorge Miguel Ramirez, who served time in Tijuana prison for drug dealing. They shot him with a .40 caliber pistol, he was shot in public on calle Epiteto in the Camino Verde Colonia, around 7 am they gunned down Jonathan Quintanar in Colinas de California and at 10 am they found the corpse of a man in a dumpster in the Cerro Colorado delegation. He was killed with a bladed weapon. He had a tattoo with the name of Lucrecia and another with two Santa Muertes.

The day ended with the assassination of Florentino Romero Pena in the Valentina Bar in the north zone of Tijuana. The first versions indicate that he was leaving with two other men that they fought over a whore and he was stabbed.

Hector Javier Negrete Rodriguez was shot to death inside a house, about 8 that evening in the Chilpancingo ejido. According to neighbours, he came running and asked for help while they shot at him from two cars.

Original article in Spanish at Zetatijuana