Prepare for Statistics, Math and Shell Co's: Ruelas Torres DTO

Translated by Yaqui for Borderland Beat from : Riodoce

Special March 18, 2018

Companies and partners of the Ruelas Torres cartel , targeted  by the US Treasury Department,  are government beneficiaries and money launderers ; plus they are tied to "El Chapo Isidro".

The United States Department of the Treasury cataloged 8 people and 8 companies as "significant drug traffickers," with links with the Ruelas Torres Cartel, whom have for years benefited from  Mexican government programs and supports and /or subsidies, including some in the manner  of state government contracts.

On the blacklist of the Office for Foreign Assets Control (OFAC, for its acronym in English), which was released on March 6, 2018  includes these companies:

Agricultural Ruelas, SPR DE RI, Gael Comercializadora 4 SA de CV, Joel Constructora, SA de CV,

Vania Constructora, SA de CV, Cruzita News, Dispersiva Gael, SA de CV, Felix Tapia,SC RL de CV.

The persons mentioned are: Maria Monserrat Avila Rocha, Patricia Ruelas Lourdes Avila, Jose Maria Ruelas Avila, Avila Trinidad Ruelas, Raquel Rivera Guerrero, Cruz Medrano,  Pedro Sanchez Medrano Rivera and Sandoval Reyna Isabel.

They, along with businesses, to its  neighboring country , the US, are criminals, linked to the DTO organization operating for 20 years in Sinaloa, producing and distributing opium and heroin under the orders of Jose Luis Ruelas Torres, who died last year, while he faced the extradition process.

However, in Mexico they are considered farmers, livestock breeders and construction contractors who have requested and received government support.

Reyna Isabel Rivera Sandoval, considered one of the "key partners" of the criminal organization, along with Pedro Sanchez Medrano, who are shareholders and president of the Board of Directors of the company also targeted; Comercializadora Gael 4 SA de CV, established in the town of Genaro Estrada, municipality of Sinaloa, incorporated on November 21, 2015 in Guasave, registered with  the Public Notary,  Aguilasocho Ricardo Rubio, the former anti-corruption magistrate who only lasted three months in office.

Reyna Isabel has also received various supports/ subsidies for agricultural and livestock production.

In 2008 through the Program for the Acquisition of Productive Assets she obtained 40,000 pesos for cattle breeding and marketing.

In 2011 the producers of Santiago de Ocoroni qualified for support as compensation for Catastrophic Insurance Agriculture, SAGARPA, in the state to farmers who were affected by the frosts earlier in the year.

In 2014, Reyna Rivera Sandoval again appears as beneficiary of Catastrophe Insurance SAGARPA; she then received 7, 500 pesos.

Another "key partner" in the Ruelas DTO, Pedro Sanchez Medrano Rivera, is a shareholder and chairman of  Gael Commercializadora, SA de CV, established on June 24, 2014 and also located in the town Genaro Estrada, municipality of Sinaloa.

In the list of beneficiaries of PROCAMPO spring/summer 2014, the name of Pedro Sánchez Medrano Rivera, Ocoroni, appears four times, while Cruz Medrano once. PROCAMPO is another SAGARPA pro rural ag development program.

  Anyone interested can use the above link to look at more statistics and numbers on Procampo.

As for the Ruelas Torres clan, the Mexican federal government has also mutually benefited from their related companies:

2013 Agricultural Ruelas SPR RI, received two loans of 99,000,237 and 10,000 499 pesos from the National Guarantee Fund for Agriculture, Forestry, Fisheries and Rural Sectors (Fonaga).

While the  Alondra Produce Company, SPR de RI, obtained in 2016, 257,000, 555.90 Pesos from The Program with illiquid collateral of the Ministry of Finance and National Financial Agricultural Development, Rural, Forestry and Fisheries with illiquid collateral. 

Complict officials were not oblivious to the leader of the criminal organization, as José Luis Ruelas Torres received 14,000,175 pesos for Marketing Incentive Program in 2015.

Others linked to the criminal organization by the Treasury Department in May 2017, were also found in lists of beneficiaries of government programs, such as Hector Librado Rivera Sandoval, who received 18,000,081.85 pesos from the Program  in 2016 w illiquid collateral and the year before he was approved for a subsidy of 15,000, 750 pesos from the Trust Fund for Agricultural Development in the States (Fofae).

In addition, through a conversion program to Sorghum/ corn crop and / or pinto beans in the 2013-2014 cycle, he was awarded 14,000,445 pesos; ie ag commodities.

Leobardo Ruelas Avila, also linked to the Ruelas Torres DTO, in 2017, was favored in PROCAMPO in 2014, and the incentives for commercialization program. José Luis Leobardo Ruelas and Avila received 53,000, 946 and 37,000, 454 pesos, respectively.

Companies of Ruelas Torres:

Of the 8 companies linked by the Treasury Department to the Ruelas Torres DTO, 4 have information by registration and official constitution.

According to information from the Public Registry of Commerce (RPC), Comercializadora Gael 4 SA de CV's corporate purpose is:  the production, certification, industrialization, improvement, processing, export, sale, purchase, import and marketing of seeds, productive activities, agricultural, livestock and industrial, as well as administration of industries, factories, plants, among others.

In addition to Reyna Isabel Rivera Sandoval, the company has 16 more members of which have been boletinados by the Treasury Department, Maria Monserrat Avila Rocha, Leobardo Ruelas Avila Cruz Medrano, Patricia Lourdes Ruelas Avila, Joel Efren Ruelas Avila, son of Jorge Luis Ruelas Torres and current leader of the group.

Vania Constructora, SA de CV, was established on October 23, 2013 in the town of Genaro Estrada in Sinaloa municipality, with capital of 50 BILLION pesos. According to information, Joel Efrén Ávila Ruelas appears as commissioner and the company has two partners, of whom Raquel Rivera Guerrero was linked to the criminal organization.

One year later, on June 24, 2014 , the disperser of Gael, SA de CV was formed in the same town of Sinaloa. The minimum fixed capital was 1,000,000, 500 thousand pesos. In the company is dedicated to operate as pro-finance agent between credit institutions with  32 shareholders, including the Agricultural companies: La Revuelta SPR RI, The Laurel of SPR Cubs RI and RI Agricultural Leoba SPR as they are listed officially.

Partners were sanctioned by the Treasury Department in 2017 and 2018, Toribio Lugo Alberto Leon, Avila Leobardo Ruelas, Cruz Medrano. As chairman Pedro Sanchez Medrano appears as secretary to Maria Jesus Espinoza Rodriguez.

Partners are officially located  in the towns  of Ocoroni, La Playa, Genaro Estrada.

The other company whose information is online at Siger portal is Felix Tapia, SC de RL de CV Inc;  formally incorporated on February 24, 2015 in La Playa, Sinaloa. Its purpose is agricultural activity and credit management.

It has five members, according to the United States, Hector Sandoval Librado Rivera is the chairman.

Agricultural Ruelas, SPR DE RI, Alondra Produce, SPR DE RI, Joel Constructora, SA de CV and Cruzita News, no information was located.

Companies linked to the Ruelas, Joel Constructora and Constructora SA de CV Vania, SA de CV, is located in the register of contractors 2014 the state government and the Sinaloa Institute of Educational Physical Infrastructure, which appears to contracts ISIFE- PC-037-14 and ISIFE-PC-038-14, respectively, without specifying the type of hired labor.

Joel construction company won a contract drilling and equipping drinking water wells in Sinaloa, Sinaloa, which makes a reference to a proceeding before FIRCO.

Gael Comercializadora 4 SA de CV is part of the latest directory for the third quarter of 2017 Producers and Distributors Breeders Seed Inspection Service and National Seed Certification of SAGARPA.

Torres Ruelas Cartel, 20 years operating in Sinaloa:

Ruelas Torres cartel has operated for about 20 years in the production and distribution of opium and heroin, according to the US government.

Ríodoce published on December 24, 2017 in issue 778, that the criminal group is involved in the manufacture, importation and distribution of heroin from Sinaloa to the United States; and distribution of the drug to the cities of Phoenix, Denver, Salt Lake City, Albuquerque, Sacramento, Los Angeles, Milwaukee, Columbus, Detroit and New York.

José Luis Ruelas Torres, who was their leader, was arrested in April 2017 by elements of the Navy at home on 14th Street, in the Ejido Eufemio Zapata, the town Genaro Estrada.

According to court documents, Jose Luis Rules Torres died on October 25 , 2017 at the General Hospital Medical Tower Tepepan located inside the Women's Social Rehabilitation Center in Mexico City, when faced extradition proceedings.

The leader of the cartel, considered independently by the Justice Department, was accused in the  Federal Court of Colorado in  June 2015.

US officials point to Ruelas Torres as an associate of Fausto Isidro Meza Flores, "El Chapo Isidro", the main operator of the Beltrán Leyva Cartel in the region.

In May 2017 the Treasury Department unveiled Ruelas Torres Cartel and its structure:

In the organization José Luis Ruelas Torres was sharing the leadership with his son José Efrén Ávila Ruelas, 39 years old.  Eight men and one woman were also involved , all relatives.

"The Treasury Dept is aiming to take down José Luis Ruelas Torres as a significant foreign narcotics trafficker under the Kingpin Act because he and his organization of drug trafficking are the major contributors to the heroin epidemic in our nation," Steven T. Mnuchin said on occasion, the Secretary of the Treasury.

He explained that: "The Torres Ruelas DTO smuggles heroin from Mexico to the United States for distribution in cities from Los Angeles to New York City."

The Treasury Department announced it was freezing the assets of Ruelas Torres in May of 2017 and identified as cartel members are , once again : Joseph Ephrem Ruelas Avila, Hector Librado Rivera Sandoval, Toribio Alberto Lugo León, José Carlos Barraza Aceves, Gilberto Ruelas Torres, Sigi Mondaca Alfredo Avila, Avila Jesus Ruelas, José Luis Ruelas Leobardo Ruelas Avila and Avila.

The Ruelas Torres were charged with drug trafficking and money laundering in Federal Court of Colorado in June 2015.

According to the indictment filed in court, plus a heroin distribution network, they had a network of money laundering  businesses to return to Mexico money the profits they made by selling drugs in the United States.

For 11 months the DOJ tracked shipments of cash that made it back into Mexico:

The money was returned by transfers through the shipping company's  cash  Sigue Corporation. To avoid identifications in both countries they lower shipments of cash to $1000 USD, because at that time in the United States was not required to present identification in amounts less than $2,000 USD and to collect in Mexico was not necessary if the amount was less than $1,000.

Responsible for collecting the money from the sales of heroin were: Armando Gutiérrez Núñez, Raul Estrada Carrillo, Ivan Haro Pérez, José Vidal León Peñuelas, Carlos Alberto Pérez García Bernal and Pavel.

In Mexico, Maria de Jesus Espinoza was the bookkeeper and who gave the fictitious names used as recipients and data to fill submission forms.  Maria de Jesus gave instructions via Whatsapp using coded language and the images received documents checked deposits.

During the 11-month investigation conducted they detected more than 2,000 transactions.