Sergio Villarreal, "El Grande", Freed after Serving 10 Year Sentence, Now US Protected Witness

Yaqui for Borderland Beat from: Vanguardia/ LSR/ DeptJusticeMx

Sergio Villarreal, lieutenant of the Beltrán Leyva in the US, is released as a protected witness; he was a judicial police officer in Coahuila.

He started as a judicial police officer in Coahuila and then went into the ranks of organized crime

Almost two meters tall, a robust complexion and a frown, Sergio Villarreal Barragán, nicknamed “El Grande” , was released after spending almost 10 years in prison, and now he will be a protected witness for the US authorities.

He started as a judicial police officer in Coahuila and then went into the ranks of organized crime;

Sergio Villarreal served as a police officer in the State and subsequently joined the crime with different cartels. This Post barely scratches the surface of his involvement with Organized Crime.

Villarreal Barragán was born in Torreón, Coahuila on September 21, 1969. He began his criminal career as a car thief in the state of Coahuila, and in 1990 at age 20, he was admitted to the Coahuila Judicial Police force.[3][4] Several years later, he was admitted to the Federal Police, which is led by the office Attorney General of Mexico and was stationed at Nuevo Laredo. Villarreal Barragán was then stationed at Reynosa, Tamaulipas, where he worked until 1996, when he established a business relationship with the Juárez Cartel. Between the years 2007 and 2010, Villarreal Barragán left the Juárez organization to work along with the Gulf Cartel and for Los Zetas, but later incorporated into the Sinaloa Cartel, commanding a criminal cell of the Beltrán Leyva Cartel.

On September 12, 2010 he was arrested in a raid by Mexican Marines in the central state of Puebla. Villarreal has been charged with multiple murders and other crimes. The Mexican government had been offering a $30 million pesos (US$1.7 million) bounty for information leading to Villarreal's capture.

Villarreal Barragán was extradited to the United States on 23 May 2012, and may possibly serve as a "protected witness" for the DEA. when his sentence is completed.

In the first half of the 1990s, “El Grande” was a judicial police officer in Coahuila , despatched in Torreón, as well as an element of the Federal Police, in Tamaulipas.  By 1996, Sergio Villareal was already working for drug trafficking, beginning with a long list of cartels with which he was related.

First, with the Juarez cartel with Amado Carrillo Fuentes, "The Lord of the Skies."  Then, with the Gulf cartel and "Los Zetas" , when these were still allies led by Osiel Cárdenas Guillén and Heriberto Lazcano, "El Lazca".

Then he linked up with the Sinaloa cartel, headed by Joaquín Guzmán Loera, "El Chapo", and Ismael Zambada García, "El Mayo".  Finally, he allied himself with the Beltrán Leyva when they broke up with Guzmán Loera and Zambada García. A protected PGR witness pointed out “El Grande” as having links with politicians, mainly with the PAN.

In their versions, released by Proceso, they say that a brother of Sergio, Adolfo Villarreal, was married to Elsa María Anaya Llamas , sister of the former senator and former PAN candidate to the government of Coahuila, Guillermo Anaya Llamas.

The protected witness even said that through Anaya Llamas, “El Grande” met Felipe Calderón when he was president-elect. The meeting took place at the christening of a daughter of Anaya Llamas, where both were present. Calderón and Anaya rejected the accusations.

In September 2010, "El Grande" was arrested by the Navy in Puebla . Two years later he was extradited to the United States.

DATA:

* Sergio Villarreal was an element of the Judicial Police of Coahuila.

* He was married to Elsa María Anaya Llamas, sister of the former senator and candidate for the governorship of Coahuila Guillermo Anaya, as published by Proceso.

* According to Villarreal, he met Felipe Calderón Hinojosa when he was president-elect, during the baptism of a daughter of Guillermo Anaya Llamas. Both PANistas denied the meeting with the member of organized crime.

From Mexico Dept of Justice 2012:

“El Grande” Extradited to United States:

05/25/12 – Sergio Villarreal Barragán, known as “El Grande” because he stands over six and a half feet tall, was extradited to the United States on Tuesday May 22. Villarreal Barragán was an alleged former leader and lieutenant of the Beltrán Leyva Organization (BLO) from 2007 to 2010 where he was heavily involved in the drug trade, specifically cocaine, and handling the cartel’s finances. The United States requested his extradition to a Texas court where he will face charges of drug trafficking and money laundering. According to the U.S. Department of Justice spokeswoman, El Grande allegedly confiscated upwards of $100 million (USD). He appeared before a court on May 23 and, while in the custody of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA), now awaits his next court date.

Perhaps equally as important as the extradition was significant to the cooperation between the U.S. and Mexican governments is the report from multiple sources that El Grande was responsible for naming the four Mexican military officials that were apprehended earlier this week on suspicion of colluding with the Beltrán Levya Organization in the past. Of the four arrested, one was the former undersecretary of National Defense (subsecretario de la Defensa Nacional) and one other was still active in the service at the time of his arrest while the other three had retired within the past decade. (Read more about the officials here). While the investigations into the officials are still ongoing, El Grande’s role in naming names and exposing the connections could be significant. Additionally, as Proceso reported, El Grande cooperated with the Federal Attorney General’s Office in Mexico (Procuraduría General de la República, PGR), and very well may do the same in the United States, perhaps becoming a protected witness for the DEA.

Before joining the Beltrán Leyva Organization, Villarreal Barragán served as a policeman in the Coahuila Judicial Police force and then became a member of the Federal Police (Policía Federal). After becoming involved in organized crime in 2007, he quickly rose through the ranks among the Beltrán Leyva Organization. In 2009, the leader of the cartel, Arturo Beltrán Leyva, was killed in a shootout by members of the Mexican Navy, which severely divided the cartel as various factions arose to battle for the vacancy. El Grande took part in the infighting at the time, but was captured not a year later in the state of Puebla, also by the Navy. At the time of his arrest in September 2010, the Mexican government had a reward out for the cartel leader of 30-million pesos.