El Chueco Releases a Video In Which He Denies Killing The Jesuit Priests

"HEARST" and "Sol Prendido" for Borderland Beat

During the night of Wednesday, August 24, 2022, video was released of a man claiming to be José Portillo Gil, alias El Chueco, the Sinaloa Cartel member accused of killing two Jesuit priests. He details his version of events and says he did not kill the priests and he merely happened upon them after another, unknown suspect killed them.

Chueco Releases A Video

The man claiming to be Chueco is seen wearing a white button up shirt, a white balaclava and a black baseball cap worn backwards. The background appears to be a white sheet draped in front of some sort of nondescript brick or cinder block wall, giving investigators very little to work with in terms of clues to his current location. 

Chueco has been living life on the lam since June 20, 2022, when the four person killing spree in Cerohui, Chihuahua occurred, more than two months ago. 

In the video, he says the following, as translated by Sol Prendido:

Hello citizens. I present myself to you all. I am José Noriel Portillo Gil. I’ve come to talk to you guys about the case that I’m being blamed for - for the events that happened in Cerocahui in Urique, Chihuahua. I’ve come to tell you a part of what actually happened there. I know that I’m being accused. People are saying that I was responsible. But here is my version of events: 

I was in Cerocahui, driving around, when I suddenly heard some gunshots from the direction of the church. And what I did was turn around and I stopped in front of the church. Once I’m in front of the church, I parked and ran in. 

Once inside I saw a young man with a gun in his hand. So, I yelled at him “What are you doing? What’s going on here?”  

I really thought that this young man was just firing his weapon inside the church.

I approached him and then, but then I saw some individuals laying on the ground. And that’s when I once again asked him, “Hey buddy, just what the fuck are you doing?! Why did you do this?” 

So what I did next -I knew the guys who were laying there- I placed my hand over their heads and I placed my other hand on their necks to try and figure out if they were alive so that I could administer first aid.

I checked to see if they had a pulse. I couldn’t get a reading. I placed my hand over their wrists and there was nothing else that I could do for them. They were already dead. 

And when I looked up, the [a third, unharmed] priest was smiling. It angered me and so I asked the priest “What are you smiling about? Can’t you see that your friends are lying here dead? Why are you smiling? What’s so funny?” 

But he remained silent. 

So I started arguing with the attacker [of the priests]. I was talking to him, asking, “What the fuck, dude? Why did you do this? Don’t you realize the huge problem that you’ve just gotten yourself into, fool? What’s wrong with you, dude?” 

He then told me that if I didn’t get out of his way, things were going to end badly for me, and the guy, the attacker, still had his hand on his gun. 

The only thing I said in response was, “Well ok, I’ll see you later then. We’ll see how this plays out.” 

So, I made a half turn and I walked towards my car. When I’m about halfway to my car, I see the priest hug the attacker and I see them go inside, into a hallway, walking towards some wooden chairs. 

Just as I make it outside, two tourists are coming in [to the church]. They’re between 25 and 30 years old. They’re white boys. Everyone there [other witnesses] should know who they are. 

The only thing I said to the tourists was that  the priest said they couldn’t come inside and the church was currently closed.” They answered “Ok. Thank you young man.” They made a half turn and left. 

You can ask them if I was all drugged up, as people are claiming. Ask them because I personally told them not to go inside.

I once again made a half turn to face the priest and the attacker, to see what they were doing. I saw that the two men were sitting there on the wooden bench, talking. 

So, then I went up to the attacker, and asked him, “Is this what he was talking with him [the priest] about? You said nothing was going to happen to you? What the fuck, dude?”  

I started arguing with him right there and as we were arguing, the priest told him not to worry about anything. He said that the church has more dominion over this matter. 

So, I said “Ah, ok. We’ll see if that's true - we’ll see if the church really has more power over this matter. We’re going to see how this plays out for you.”  

So, with that said, I left. I made my half turn and exited [the church]. I get into my truck and leave the area. After this point, I don’t know what happened there [at the church]. 

So I’ve come here to let everyone know, to demonstrate for everyone, through this action, how things really went down on that day. 

I can say who was [really] responsible and who committed that act, so that I’m not being falsely accused, if you really want to know the truth and how things really went down. 

Ask the [third, unharmed] priest, investigate the priest. The government claims they’re investigating and all this other shit. But why don’t they start by investigating the priest then? Instead of just saying this person is being accused and all this other nonsense. Investigate into this: Why did the priest place all the blame on me, if he knows very well how things actually happened there? 

I’m doing this video so that everyone knows the truth, so that they can see who’s really responsible in this matter. 

My mistake was that I went inside that church after hearing those gunshots. Yes, that’s my mistake. I accept this. I was there, present, but by that time it was already too late. Why am I being blamed for this? The government should only be coming after me for the problems that I’ve actually caused or committed.

I don’t want you to think that I’m making this video so that the government will stop looking for me. No sir and no ma’am, I’ve created this video so that all people are aware of what happened inside the church, this church.

Many times wolves will dress up in sheep’s clothing. And that just shouldn’t be, fools. 

If the priest doesn’t want to clean his hands with me then he should just accept his mistakes and blame me here. He needs to accept everything as it actually is.

I’ve come here to demonstrate that through action, and not through lies like those people. 

What happened here just shouldn’t be. And like the governor said: this will continue until the consequences are administered here. 

Also what did the Pope say? He said he wants to classify their deaths as martyrs.

Ok, well, he needs to start by investigating the guy he has inside his home [the third Catholic priest]. He can begin by investigating him first, and then at least everyone will know the truth.. 

It’s really easy for anyone to say it was me [who did it]. It’s really easy to say this, to say that the government is searching for me. 

And in the end, they will say “captured dead or alive.” Why do they want to silence me through death?  Tell me, gentlemen, why do they want to silence me through death? 

They know very well that if I’m taken in alive, I will speak the truth. I will let everyone know what actually happened. The truth is they need to start by investigating. This is just the beginning. Sometime later, I will let everyone know what actually took place. 

A Review of the Investigators’ Version of Events

The following is a summary of the timeline of the crime presented by Chihuahua prosecutors that was covered in this previous story. If you’ve read that story before, please feel free to skip this section since it contains no new information. 

On June 19, 2022, Sinaloa Cartel group leader El Chueco got into a verbal dispute with the umpire, named Jesús Armando Berrelleza Rábago, of a regional baseball league after the team he sponsors, Cachorros de Urique, lost a game in the semifinals. 

The next day, on June 20, Chueco paid a visit to Jesús’s house but was told by Jesús’s brother, Paul Osvaldo Berrelleza, who lives with him, that Jesús was not home at the time. Of note, Paul was not in any way involved or even present at any of these semifinal baseball games. 

Chueco spoke with Paul for a bit. Chueco then prepared to leave and the men exchanged farewells. Paul reportedly told Chueco “Nos vemos al rato, ¡pero tranquilos, sin armas!” which roughly translates to “I’ll see you later then, but next time will be more calm, with no weapons!" 

This comment evidently enraged Chueco and he gunned down Paul, who was left “shot in the face and in the chest.” Chueco’s men grabbed Paul’s wife and daughter, pulling them into their vehicles, along with Paul’s dead body, then the hitmen set Paul’s house on fire. 

After this, Chueco and his men allegedly partied at a hotel which is located right next to the church, in the town of Cerohui. According to Reforma, tourist guide Pedro Palma asked El Chueco’s group if they could be a little quieter, which led to Chueco and Pedro fighting, with Chueco threatening Pedro at gunpoint.  

The state Attorney General said “They struggle. He [Chueco] takes him away, he escapes. He resorts to going into the church, and that is when things happen.” Chueco followed Palma inside, where he shot Palma. 

One priest, who saw what happened, moved to help Palma and Chueco shot him. A second priest, recognizing Chueco who grew up in the area, exclaimed “What are you doing?” and he too moved to help the bleeding tour guide. In response, Chueco shot him too. 

A third priest reportedly managed to talk Chueco down from his rampage, even getting him to confess and pray with him. Chueco spared the third priest but refused his request to leave the three dead bodies in the church. All three bodies were loaded in the truck and driven away. 

The bodies of Pedro Palma and the two priests were found two days after the shooting, on June 22, 2022, but Paul’s body remained missing. At some point, Paul’s wife and daughter were released by their captors. 

Meanwhile, the umpire for the baseball game, Jesús Armando, appeared weeks later in Choix, Sinaloa. He told investigators that as he was driving back from town, he spotted Chueco’s vehicle parked outside his house so he waited and watched the house from a safe distance away, thinking that Chueco may be trying to hunt him down.

He then witnessed Chueco shoot his brother Paul and realized how deadly intent Chueco was about the baseball game dispute so Jesús Armando fled the area on foot, hiding and traveling while off the grid for weeks until he finally felt it was safe to enter a town, on July 4.  

One of the numerous men who authorities have nabbed in their manhunt for Chueco alleged that he knew where Paul’s body had been buried. He led investigators to an area where they were able to find Paul’s remains.

How His Story Differs

So, lets define some key points at which these two versions of events differ. 

To start off, Chueco did not tell any version of events related to the homicide of Paul, the brother of the umpire, or the tour guide Pedro Palma. At the end of the video, Chueco alludes to potentially releasing more videos in the future, with further details, so maybe he intends to cover these at a later time. He may deny he was involved in those homicides or admit to being involved, it's just not clear right now. 

Some may argue that, behaviorally, it is odd for an innocent person to not address whether they were involved in two of the four homicides of a killing spree they are accused of committing.

His failure to address half of the murder within the killing spree, even in passing, during any part of his lengthy video may be an indication that Chueco suspects investigators have clear cut evidence that ties him to the murder of Paul and Pedro Palma, so he is choosing to avoid making public statements which can easily be disproven. 

The remains of the two priests and the tour guide were found two days after they were killed, in an area known as "Pitorreal", outside of the the town of Cerocahui, Chihuahua. The Attorney General did not make any statements about the state of the bodies, so it's unknown if they were buried in the ground or simply laid out on the grass. Its worth noting that the level of exposure to the elements, particularly water, can play a big role in the speed of bodily decomposition.  

Chueco remained careful in his version of events to account for potential forensic evidence, such as hair or skin DNA, that might tie him to the crime, saying he tested their pulse at their neck and their wrist.

The Claims: Chueco also did not specify if he visited the Mision Cerocahui hotel at any point during June 20 or if he entered into a dispute with Pedro Palma inside, whereas prosecutors assert he did both. 

Potential Evidence: If the hotel has any security cameras in public areas like the lobbies, that footage could be used to verify the prosecution’s version. 

Footage from traffic cameras as well as security cameras from surrounding buildings could be used to verify if Chueco’s vehicle, or a man matching Chueco’s appearance, was seen in the area of the hotel on the day of the crime. 

Note, whether there are many working traffic or security cameras within the town of Cerocahui is unclear. The town is relatively remote yet, at the same time, a decent amount of foreign tourists visit the town each year. Unfortunately, the personal safety of foreign tourists can sometimes be prioritized higher than that of native citizens by local government institutions due to the amount of revenue tourism can bring. 

The Claims: In Chueco’s version, he heard gunshots from inside the church while he was driving nearby so he turned his car and drove towards the church, parked, and entered the building. 

He does not specify if anyone else accompanied him into the church or if he had any weapon on him at the time. But he does make it clear that he was not chasing anyone at the time and he did not see the alleged attacker until he entered the church, specifically saying “Once inside I saw a young man with a gun in his hand.” 

In the prosecutor’s version, Chueco approached the church because he was chasing after tour guide Pedro Palma who Chueco was attempting to kidnap. Whether Palma was being led away on foot or was being driven away as part of this kidnapping attempt is not specified. 

Potential Evidence: Traffic and security camera footage could be used to determine if anyone unknown entered the building prior to Chueco. It could also be used to determine if Chueco was chasing after another person when he entered the church, if someone jumped out of his vehicle and ran, etc.

Security cameras very rarely have audio recording capability, but on the off chance that one nearby did, the timing of the gunfire being either before or after he entered the church could be key. A forensic ballistic profile was likely created for the firearm used within the church. Any firearm found on Chueco or any which can be linked back to him could be compared against this ballistic profile. 

Catch Up on Any El Chueco Stories You Missed

June 23 Article - Chueco Kills Two Jesuit Priests

June 27 Article - The Manhunt for Priest Killer El Chueco

July 1 Article - 11 Men Close to El Chueco Arrested

July 12 Article - Chueco, Baseball, & The Brothers: What We Now Know About His Rampage

July 18 Article - Chueco's Uncle Is The Local Chief of Police

August 1 Article - Another Cousin of El Chueco Arrested

August 12 Article - El Shakira, Another Cousin of El Chueco, Arrested

August 23 Article - El Shakira Charged in 2018 Killing of US Tourist