Arturo Martínez Herrera “El Texas” or “El Negro” Freed from Prison After Serving 25 Years

Yaqui for Borderland Beat from: Zeta y MuralGdljra

           Arturo Martínez Herrera released from prison after serving 28 years in federal prisons

After being in prison for more than 28 years, drug trafficker Arturo Martínez Herrera “El Texas” or “El Negro” regained his freedom from the Federal Center for Social Readaptation Number 1 “Altiplano”, in Almoloya de Juarez, State of Mexico.

The administrative authority confirmed to a district judge of the Second Circuit of the Federal Judicial Branch that the former inmate was released and sent a certified copy of the preparatory liberty order that ruled in Martínez Herrera's favor.

Before leaving the “Altiplano” prison, the now ex-convict filed a petition for amparo against any possible arrest warrant that could be executed by ministerial authorities against him, but when the doors of the maximum security prison opened, no one was waiting for him.

Arturo Martínez Herrera, considered the founder and chief ringleader of the criminal organization called "Los Texas", which in the 1990s operated a drug and human trafficking ring at the border points of the states of Coahuila and Tamaulipas, served a 28-year sentence of prison.

His specialty became being and then using mules, passing drugs across the border, and increasingly began to be used as professional thugs.

The Third Unitary Court of the Third Circuit in Jalisco reduced the sentence for Arturo Martínez Herrera, "El Texas" from 40 to 28 years in prison, who was being held for weapons charges and health crimes.

This modification derives from the individualization of the penalty suggested in Amparo 239/2000, promoted by Arturo Martínez Herrera in the Second Collegiate Court in Criminal Matters, based in Guadalajara.

“El Texas” was arrested on August 19, 1994, a month after federal agents inspected a building located in Nuevo Laredo, where various quantities of cocaine were located, as well as 36 firearms, magazines  and cartridges for exclusive use of the armed forces. In addition, in a business on their property they located 10 kilograms of marijuana.

The sentence handed down to Arturo Martínez on July 15, 1996 when he was interned at the Federal Center for Social Rehabilitation number 2 , in Puente Grande, Jalisco; and was originally sentenced to 40 years in prison. He was criminally responsible for crimes against health, weapons collection, storage of cartridges and magazines, as well as criminal association, but the penalty was subsequently reduced to only 28 years.

 “El Texas” worked  together with Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán and Jesús Héctor “El Güero” Palma Salazar, who were responsible for corrupting the penitentiary system of Cefereso 2 “Occidente” between 1999 and 2001, which triggered the first infamous escape of the leader of the Sinaloa Cartel from the federal prison.

Guzmán Loera, Palma Salazar and Arturo Martínez Herrera  exercised control over the inmates and staff of the center, through inmates and former federal agents Jaime Valencia Fontes and Juan José Balbontín Bolaños. However, "El Texas" came out well.

Just a Little History:

In the 1980s in Nuevo Laredo, one of the most dangerous organized crime gangs operating in the country was born. At first it was the members of the Martínez Herrera family; then they were recruiting by drug traffickers from other mafias, such as Martínez Pruneda, who were fugitives from justice. 

The head was Arturo Martínez Herrera, called "Texas 1" , who in August 2001, after being one of the men who controlled the "high security" prison in Puente Grande, along with the escaped Joaquín "El Chapo" Guzmán and Héctor Luis "El Güero" Palma. He was transferred to the prison of Almoloya de Juarez, in the State of Mexico, to try to cut off the virtual management that Martinez Herrera still had of the actions of his organization from Puente Grande prison.

"Los Texas" were among the first to force  caravans of undocumented immigrants to transport drugs. One of the stories known to this band is when, in the late eighties, they moved a group of 14 Salvadorans to Houston, Texas. 

When the undocumented people realized that they were being used to traffic drugs; they tried to denounce "Los Texas" to the American authorities which was discovered by Arturo "El Texas" Martínez Herrera and his brother Guillermo, "El Borrado"  who in response killed 13 members of that group; Only one was left alive, the one who gave them away. Since then "Los Texas" were wanted by the authorities of the United States.

They set up their base of operation in Nuevo Laredo, Tamaulipas. It is known that from the beginning they were colluded with the judicial authorities of the country.


They had the protection of the then commander of the Federal Judicial Police, Guillermo González Calderoni, who when ascending to the position of director of Air Interception of the PJF. Gonzalez Calderoni was sent part of the PJF seizures, "Los Texas" were responsible for marketing it and performed various jobs for him and  his close partner, Juan García Abrego who was leader of the Gulf Cartel.

The bad luck of "Los Texas" began in 1982:

Guillermo Martínez Herrera, along with his brothers Arturo, Agustín, Heriberto and Daniel were  international polleros band called "Los Texas", who operated in the states of Tamaulipas, Coahuila and Texas.

Arturo's bad luck began in April 1982, when in the state of Texas, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Border Patrol and the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) held the "Los Texas" responsible of the murder of seven undocumented Central Americans and one Mexican, which occurred in Fort Bend County, near Houston, Texas.

On July 17, 1994, a municipal police officer arrested Guillermo Martínez Herrera ,"El Borrado", when he fled after having participated in a hellish shooting against PGR agents in which the commander Luis del Moral Zamudio lost his life, who tried to stop him, as well as Guadalupe Martínez Espino or Karina Magali Escamilla, who accompanied  Guillermo Martínez Herrera.

On August 19, 1994, the head of coyotes Arturo Martínez Herrera "El Texas" was arrested in Piedras Negras, Coahuila. Martínez Herrera was a fugitive from justice for his complicity in the murder of the commander of the Federal Judiciary in Nuevo Laredo.

Arturo Martínez  was held in the Puente Grande prison, while Guillermo Martínez was transferred to the Almoloya de Juárez Maximum Security prison.

During his transfer, "El Borrado" responded to an interview about his private life. He said he was born on October 16, 1954 and that before engaging in illegal activities, he was a regular cargo carrier. 

Let's go back to the story: "Los Texas" are born in the early 80's, as a local band, made up of small drug dealers who were familiarly linked. Since then the boss had been Arturo Martínez Herrera, detained for some years in the Puente Grande prison in Jalisco. 

Number two was the detainee, his brother Guillermo "El Borrado". Following his arrest the band was directed by Daniel Martínez Herrera, aka "El Negro", who was the liaison with "El Borrado" in prison and Agustín Martínez Herrera, "El Tilín", who was on the outside.

From the beginning they were linked to drug trafficking but then they became well known for controlling the passage of undocumented immigrants at that border point and, subsequently, for being hired for paid murders. Not surprisingly, in the network of human trafficking that began in Central America and ended in Texas, this group was characterized by being recognized as the most bloodthirsty. 

Just for fun and because I love Ramon Ayala: