This experience provided him with some exposure to the U.S. judicial system. Q:All right. Internet findings will confuse him with Oscar Malherbe de Leon, but this is incorrect.5. though the house was left in disarray," said Jose Elias Acts committed in furtherance of the charged conspiracy are themselves part of the act charged. corruption, and in the past worked for Mexico City's The district court's instructions cautioning the jury regarding its evaluation of the testimony of accomplices and paid informants tracks the language of the Fifth Circuit Pattern Jury Instructions relating to these issues. Moreover, in May 1988, Dr. Victor Leal, a Brownsville-area ophthalmologist whom Garcia Abrego used as a liason for communicating with Agent DelaO, told DelaO in a recorded conversation that, ten years ago Garcia Abrego was a factory worker and that now he was a big boss. Francisco Perez testified that Garcia Abrego told him that he had ordered Ricardo Aguirre to launder $25 million of his money. wanted poster did not include his criminal background in the U.S. since his [17], It is believed that on May 16, 1984, Garca Abrego ordered a hit on rival trafficker Casimiro Espinosa. See McNeil v. Wisconsin, 501 U.S. 171, 176, 111 S.Ct. I know something about it, being a lawyer. Count 27 was based upon the seizure of $528,000 from a vehicle driven by Roberto Villareal as he attempted to cross into Mexico on the International Bridge on May 6, 1992. Alberto sicilia falcon has been credited for teaching El Chapo about tunnels and jail breaks, but the interesting thing is the name of "poet" javier sicilia falcon whose son was murdered during the FECALATO "by kidnappers", the.worst 9f which.have been police expert in "antikidnapping death squads of genarco garcia luna and his compadre luis cardenas palomino, chief of the federal police and comandante lorena who carried out the kidnapping and murder of nio Marti with her own death squad.This javier sicilia falcon has been one rabid ANTI-AMLO agitator, but he did not agitate against FECAL'S DEATH SQUADS THAT KILLED HIS OWN SON.then there is that drug dealing cuban Falcon in Puerto Rico. Alejandro Trevino-Morales, brother of Miguel Angel Trevino-Morales, is a mid-level leader of the Los Zetas in Nuevo Laredo, Mexico. Alejandro Perez de la Rosa, was sentenced to 118 years in prison for the We are satisfied that any error in the district court's instruction was not plain error because Garcia Abrego has demonstrated no prejudicial impact, and thus no detrimental effect on his substantial rights. The fact that the funds were seized before they actually passed from the United States into Mexico is irrelevant for purposes of 1956(a)(2)(A) because the statute also criminalizes an attempt[] to transport, transmit, or transfer a monetary instrument or funds from a place in the United States to or through a place outside the United States. 18 U.S.C. 20. Garca Abrego was also involved in providing protection to other cartels wishing to operate within corridors already claimed by his organization. Born in Reynosa, he grew up with Jos Garca Abrego, the younger brother of Juan Garca Abrego, the head of the Gulf cartel. At FindLaw.com, we pride ourselves on being the number one source of free legal information and resources on the web. Apparently recognizing the futility of simply arguing that the jury could not rationally conclude beyond a reasonable doubt that he organized, managed, or supervised five or more individuals in his drug trafficking enterprise, Garcia Abrego principally argues that his conviction for conducting a CCE must be set aside because the jury could have concluded that he supervised individuals who as a matter of law could not constitute his supervisees (e.g., individuals with whom Garcia Abrego merely had a buyer/seller relationship). But Rule 403 only excludes evidence that would be unfairly prejudicial to the defendant. United States v. Townsend, 31 F.3d 262, 270 (5th Cir.1994). 1602, 16 L.Ed.2d 694 (1966). "Reputed drug kingpin fights for citizenship", "Federal Bureau of Prisons Inmate Locator", "Matamoros Journal; Canaries Sing in Mexico, but Uncle Juan Will Not", "En los pasados seis aos, el Crtel del Golfo introdujo cerca de 750 toneladas de cocana pura a Estados Unidos", United States District Court for the Southern District of Texas, "Transnational Narco Corruption and Narco Investment: A Focus on Mexico", "Mexican Drug Fugitive Named To FBI's "Most Wanted" List", "International Drug Trafficking Organizations in Mexico", "At Drug Trial, Mexican Suspect Faces Accuser", "U.S. Jury Convicts Mexican on Drug Charges", "Accused Mexican Narcotics Trafficker Is Said to Offer to Answer All Questions", "A Drug Figure Is Said to Offer To Surrender To Mexicans", "Drug Wars in Tamaulipas: Cartels vs. Zetas vs. the Military", "Mexico drug gang rift spurs new burst of killings", "Cocaine King: FBI and Customs documents piece together a profile of the elusive Juan Garcia Abrego", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Juan_Garca_Abrego&oldid=1148829566, This page was last edited on 8 April 2023, at 15:43. also referred to by his alias "La Mueca" (The Doll). However, Medrano and Malherbe subsequently informed Rodriguez that he and his comrades were being absorbed into Garcia Abrego's organization and that they could no longer purchase cocaine from the Medellin Cartel because their organization worked exclusively with the Cali Cartel. filed, 66 U.S.L.W. Behind the walls of the couple's home in the stately family's business dealings," he said. In order to avoid the strictures of Rule 404(b) [regarding the admission of character evidence], all the government need do is suggest a logical hypothesis of the relevance of the evidence for purposes other than to demonstrate [the defendant's] propensity to act in a particular manner. United States v. Krout, 66 F.3d 1420, 1431 (5th Cir.1995). Hilario Gonzales subsequently ordered Guadalupe Manuel Lopez to rent a large U-Haul truck, load it with clothing and furniture, and turn it over to other individuals in the southwest part of Houston. at 307, 116 S.Ct. reserved with others. Juan Garca Abrego learned his uncle's lessons well. The jury instruction regarding the organizer/supervisor/manager element of the CCE offense tracked the language of the Fifth Circuit Pattern Jury Charge, which provides as follows: The term organizer, supervisor, or manager means that the defendant was more than a fellow worker and that the defendant either organized or directed the activities of five or more other persons, whether or not the defendant was the only organizer or supervisor. [21], In February 2010, Los Zetas engaged in a violent turf war against its former employer/partner, the Gulf Cartel, in the border city of Reynosa,[22][23][24] ren his family, preferred to speak face-to-face, and always carried a pistol.[25]. A:I don't pretend to be an expert, but I do know something about Valium situations, dependencies. Malherbe and Medrano arranged for loads of cocaine to be flown to these ranches, and from there, the cocaine was moved to Matamoros. Garca Abrego's lawyer, Mr. Canales, stated it was "a symbolic grab at nothing" since Garca Abrego did not reside in the United States nor have any assets in the country. Thereafter, he would pay $1 million per year until the contract price was paid. May 1, 2023 at 12:12 a.m. EDT. He therefore contends that his convictions for the substantive drug offenses cannot stand because insufficient evidence exists to prove that he is directly liable for these offenses-that is, insufficient evidence exists for the jury to conclude beyond a reasonable doubt that he actually or constructively possessed the cocaine in question with intent to distribute it. HOUSTON . Gus Rivera and wife. Este cabrn era sobrino de Guerra y una de sus promesas de campaa era que dejaran de robar carros en Matamoros. Carlos Rodriguez testified that he began trafficking cocaine at the direction of Medrano and Malherbe in 1986 and that they dictated the Colombian cartel with whom he was allowed to do business. 2536, 2540-41, 81 L.Ed.2d 425 (1984); see also United States v. Halper, 490 U.S. 435, 450, 109 S.Ct. Because Garcia Abrego did not object to the CCE instruction on these grounds at the district court level,10 we review his claim for plain error. at 639 n. 25. Being a physician, I have to. tortilla factory worker, El Cacho quickly became a millionaire and led a Count 5 of the indictment was based in part upon the seizure of 415 kilograms of cocaine from the residence of Frederico Munguia on Krenek Road in Houston, Texas on August 28, 1989. Also among the dead were Garcia's son, Daniel Enrique Laso, and two women who died while shielding Garcia's baby and 2-year-old daughter. See Self v. Collins, 973 F.2d 1198, 1205 (5th Cir.1992). degenerate. were valuable objects in the house that were not taken, The Real Housewives of Atlanta The Bachelor Sister Wives 90 Day Fiance Wife Swap The Amazing Race Australia Married at First Sight The Real Housewives of Dallas My 600-lb Life Last Week Tonight . 5:03 the mexican military have been corrupting the mexican government since Don Francisco I Madero became presidente and chose to disband the villistas and the zapatistas who won the revolution for him.amd for Mexico and to keep officially the mexican army as the government army even as it was.full of porfirista militarydefense secretary General Vctoriano Huerta was and Indian from Oaxaca, got brainwashed by US Ambassador with wisky and their grifa into betraying Madero and replacing him, general Manuel mondragon y Kalb also authorized the cuarteazo.and murders, mondragon y Kalb is also the grandpas of admiral manuel mondragon y kalb (alias "el karateka" of according to El Negro Durazo) who participated in the sudden kidnapping and disappearance of the 43 Ayotzinapos for EPN. Marroquin-Garca, who was also indicted with him in 1978. The chief investigator added that some ties to drug traffickers also are among the suspected motives, adding that detectives are looking into it carefully. But Romero provided no additional details. killings were attributable in some way to Figueroa's book. The district court imposed a sentence consisting of concurrent terms of life imprisonment followed by concurrent five-year terms of supervised release for the CCE count and for each count of possessing cocaine with intent to distribute. In doing so, the court expressed the following rationale: Banks depend on keeping accurate records and although, as we all know, they err occasionally, their records are among the most common type of business record routinely used in our courts. The court observed that the only situation in which due process even arguably warrants a judicial grant of immunity to a defense witness is a situation in which the government abuses its power to grant immunity to such a degree that it denies the defendant a fair trial. Was well respected by his peers, Italians, Colombians and many more in the global underworld. Attorney General -- who was fired this week, just two days Dr. Coleman testified that he graduated from medical school and subsequently received six years of training in internal medicine. The transfer of the $108,000 to Vega clearly constituted a giving over to the care or possession of another, and thus a transaction for purposes of establishing a money laundering offense. He argues without further explanation that the certifications were improper because they were made in connection with another criminal case. Romero, a Mexico City deputy attorney general, said his detectives also suspect a possible settling of accounts in the killings. for reasons authorities still cannot explain, he was never arrested. Romero said that Balderas had been charged with extortion while in his post and with rape after leaving the city government in 1994. Mexican and U.S. authorities are hoping he will help with future Su familia se dedicaba a la agricultura y en ocasiones viajaban a Estados Unidos. denied sub nom., 519 U.S. 906, 117 S.Ct. scandalous case all but closed, alleging that the fugitive couple and Admission of the evidence did not violate Rule 404(b). G.Sufficiency of the Evidence Supporting the Conviction for Conducting a CCE. R. Evid. Garcia Abrego appeals his conviction and sentence as to all counts. 264, 136 L.Ed.2d 189 (1996). Thereafter, Garcia Abrego began demanding forty to fifty percent of Colombian traffickers' loads in exchange for the privilege of moving narcotics through the Matamoros area. The indictment stated that Marroqun-Garca met with Garca Abrego and three Good observation. it was translated by El Profe Matamoros Rancho Diablo: Narcosatanico, Black Magic and Organized Crimehttp://www.borderlandbeat.com/2017/09/matamaros-rancho-diablo-narcosatanico.html. He was arrested on a ranch outside of Monterrey on January 14, 1996. Thus, to the extent that 3505 largely mirrors the business records exception, we are confident that records admissible under the statute are at least as reliable as evidence admitted under a firmly rooted hearsay exception. Wright, 497 U.S. at 821, 110 S.Ct. denied sub nom., 520 U.S. 1219, 117 S.Ct. District courts are afforded substantial latitude in formulating jury charges. United States v. Asibor, 109 F.3d 1023, 1034 (5th Cir. There were more bodies but the feds wanted to wrap up the story and keep tourists coming. In a later taped conversation, Vega and Jesse Ceballos arranged for Vega to pick up the money at Carpet Masters. R. Evid. Garcia Abrego appeals his conviction and sentence on the following fourteen grounds: 1. See Ponce, 8 F.3d at 998. The district court erred in admitting expert testimony regarding the effect of habitual Valium use. Specifically, he argues that admission of the records violated 18 U.S.C. Rule 404(b) provides as follows:Other crimes, wrongs, or acts. Garcia Abrego further argues that, even if the district court's dismissal of the drug conspiracy count in connection with which the jury received the Pinkerton instruction does not foreclose our affirmance of his convictions on the substantive drug counts on a theory of coconspirator vicarious liability, we must nonetheless reverse these convictions because insufficient evidence exists to support them on the basis of such a theory. Garcia Abrego does not challenge the sufficiency of the evidence to establish that the money at issue in each of the money laundering counts constituted the proceeds of narcotics trafficking or that the transfers at issue were made for the purpose of promoting narcotics trafficking activity. were unable to get a hold of him for more than a decade. We need not address this issue here because the substantive money laundering offenses discussed in Parts III.E.1 and III.E.2, supra, satisfy an overt act requirement, should such a requirement exist. 1180, 1183-84, 90 L.Ed. 4. El Chapo: A look at ADX Florence Colorado Supermax Prison. B. You definitely have a future in journalism if you decided to do so professionally. However, as indicated above, the district court had an ample basis for concluding that Garcia Abrego did not possess a vulnerable mental state capable of exploitation. "Kike Crdenas" was a son of Homero Enrique "El Majadero" Crdenas Guilln, as mentioned in . The former drug boss, who a generation ago took his cartel to the top of Mexicos underworld, will now be able to interact with other prisoners. I think Juan's problem was his association with N. Guerra, who influenced him greatly in a negative way. Miranda merely created a prophylactic rule that establishes an irrebuttable presumption of involuntariness with respect to statements made during custodial interrogation that are not preceded by Miranda warnings. at 1776 (internal quotation marks and brackets omitted); see also Dupre, 117 F.3d at 817. Oscar Malherbe de Leon, the supposed heir to Juan Garcia Abrego, is believed to Seems trivial but I wonder if anyone else has heard of this as well? two men argued over cash and jewelry they found inside the home. In an effort to attack the admissibility of his confession from a slightly different angle, Garcia Abrego contends that he did not validly waive his Miranda rights prior to his statement to law enforcement agents at the FBI office. Francisco Perez testified that he showed Garcia Abrego a newspaper article reporting the Bass Boulevard seizure and that, in response, Garcia Abrego stated that the boys had goofed. Perez also testified that everyone in the drug trafficking organization, including Garcia Abrego, referred to Medrano and Malherbe as the boys. Resendez testified that he had a conversation with Garcia Abrego about the Bass Boulevard seizure. death and cried "inconsolably" at one of his ranches. without supervision. See Miller, 116 F.3d at 682. Q:Would you not represent yourself here in the court as being an expert? I know the one on the far left is Juan Guerra Nepomunicino. The novelty of the statute is to admit the records without confrontation by the defendant with the recordkeepers. I agree Juan didn't kidnap innocent people. Additionally, at trial, Francisco Perez testified that he purchased Valium for Garcia Abrego on a number of occasions and that Garcia Abrego used Valium on a daily basis from at least 1980 until 1993. At one point, he informed Perez that he intended to kill two Mexican reporters because they were writing [t]oo many personal things in the newspaper about his narcotics trafficking business. He alleviated this pressure through further bribes to government officials. Both Section 846 has language virtually identical to the language of 1956(h).9 Neither the Supreme Court nor this court has had occasion to determine whether 18 U.S.C. Under the plain error standard, we may reverse only if (1) there was error (2) that was clear and obvious and (3) that affected [Garcia Abrego's] substantial rights. United States v. Dupre, 117 F.3d 810, 817 (5th Cir.1997), cert. Juan Garca Abrego fue el jefe del Crtel del Golfo, organizacin criminal que tuvo nexos con las mafias italianas y que en la dcada de 1990 fue una de los tres crteles principales que operaban entre Mxico y Estados Unidos para el trasiego de droga.. Garca Abrego vivi su niez al sur de Texas, pero el narco siempre dijo que era ciudadano mexicano. Jaime Rivas Gonzales testified that he moved between thirty-three and forty tons of cocaine for the organization, and Carlos Rodriguez testified that he moved over fifty tons. He does not argue that the incompleteness of the records was likely to confuse the jury, nor that the incompleteness of the records rendered them irrelevant. Puig-Infante, 19 F.3d at 938 (internal quotation marks omitted). was arrested but inexplicably released hours after Clinton's certification of In 1989, Claude was removed from the case for unknown reasons, retiring a year later. Garcia Abregos Texas lawyers and the Bureau of Prisons declined to comment on the transfer. The district court's admission of foreign records of financial transactions into evidence violated 18 U.S.C. quit his job to denounce corruption. killings in brutal fashion: One by one, they beat to death Figueroa, We disagree. Count 20 of Garcia Abrego's indictment charged him with conducting a CCE in violation of 21 U.S.C. Garcia Abrego, reputed head of the Gulf cartel, a powerful drug-dealing organization based just across the border in Matamoros, is to be arraigned Tuesday in Houston on charges of drug . In White v. Illinois, 502 U.S. 346, 112 S.Ct. The fact that we have allowed the Miranda right to counsel, once asserted, to be effective with respect to future custodial interrogation does not necessarily mean that we will allow it to be asserted initially outside the context of custodial interrogation, with similar future effect.Id. denied sub nom., 522 U.S. 1034, 118 S.Ct. The gunman seemed intent on killing everyone, Garcia said. let Jack the Ripper go?' Evidence of other crimes, wrongs, or acts is not admissible to prove the character of a person in order to show action in conformity therewith. Based upon this evidence, the jury could reasonably conclude that the drug offense charged in count 5 was committed by Garcia Abrego's coconspirators in furtherance of the conspiracy. Romero, a city criminal prosecutor. No community reviews have been submitted for this work. Tony Ortiz testified that he collected $60 to 70 million on behalf of the organization in New York and Houston and shipped it back to Matamoros. Among the post-October 1992 evidence supporting Garcia Abrego's conviction of conspiracy to launder money is the testimony of Carlos Resendez that he participated in a large cocaine transaction in 1993 and turned the proceeds over to Garcia Abrego in Monterey, Mexico. bookstores nationwide, Balderas' behavior at home was raising the fury If more like him were driving these things it wouldn't be how it is today. Unaware of the charges he faced in the U.S., When the Mexican government extradited Garcia Abrego . general to try to solve the murder. Humberto Garcia Abrego is Juan's brother and a suspected drug boss himself. charged with raping a maid in his own home and with extortion In that case, the defendants argued that the government's granting immunity to its witnesses while denying immunity to [the defendants' prospective witness] skewed the evidence against [the defendants] and denied them a fair trial. Id. Because we have concluded that Garcia Abrego's convictions for laundering money in violation of 1956(a)(1)(A)(i) and (a)(2)(A) are sustainable on a theory of coconspirator vicarious liability, we necessarily conclude that sufficient evidence exists for the jury to have concluded beyond a reasonable doubt that Garcia Abrego knowingly participated in a conspiracy, one of the objects of which was to commit money laundering offenses involving drug proceeds. This principle applies a fortiori here because Cervantes-Pacheco is an en banc decision. Juan Garca Abrego (born September 13, 1944) is a Mexican convicted drug lord and former leader of the Gulf Cartel, a criminal group based in the state of Tamaulipas, Mexico. I remember hearing that he was a Satanist. 1978. The jury could reasonably conclude that Vega's purchase of the trash compactors and bags entailed a transaction within the meaning of 1956(a)(1). Prior to searching the truck, U.S. customs officials had executed a search warrant on the warehouse and discovered metal boxes filled with cocaine and sealed inside wooden crates. In the ten-minute shootout that followed, 300rounds were fired and multiple innocent people were killed, including a security guard, a husband and child, and a bedridden woman. You must consider the testimony of such a witness with great caution and care. Though usually quiet and In United States v. Miller, 830 F.2d 1073, 1078 (9th Cir.1987), the Ninth Circuit rejected a Confrontation Clause challenge to the admission of foreign bank records under 3505. (U.S. Jan. 26, 1998) (No. He argues that, because he was denied the opportunity to offer similar incentives to obtain testimony, the adversarial process was skewed to an exceptional degree in the government's favor and that his constitutional right to due process was thereby violated. Investigators hope their questions about the attack will be answered by a lone survivor, the family driver. Vega testified that they then delivered the money to Matamoros. Rivas testified that Gonzalez used the Arrowrock residence to store cocaine that Rivas delivered to him in Houston. powerful Mexican drug lords therefore authorities assumed that the But Figueroas book did not receive universal acclaim from anti-narcotics activists. Vega testified that, on September 6, 1991, he picked up $1.4 million from Jesse Ceballos at a residence in Houston pursuant to instructions from Malherbe and Medrano. several were killed or never arrested. others to discuss arrangements that day. Alejandro Perez de la Rosa -- the driver -- regained consciousness he 52(b); United States v. Jones, 132 F.3d 232, 243 (5th Cir.1998). This argument also lacks merit. Law enforcement officials then observed these unidentified individuals unload the contents of the truck, dumping all of the clothing and furniture into the yard and taking 21 U-Haul boxes into the house. The hierarchy of Garcia Abrego's organization was firmly established. Already, the crime has undermined attempts to We affirm. A motion opposing admission in evidence of such record shall be made by the opposing party and determined by the court before trial. The government's payment of witnesses, grants of immunity, and plea bargaining so distorted the adversary process at Garcia Abrego's trial that the proceedings were rendered fundamentally unfair. "The motive for the murders was personal shame," said All Rights Reserved. denied, 522 U.S. 1131, 118 S.Ct. First, Garcia Abrego challenges the relevance of the evidence on the ground that nothing linked him to the bank accounts to which the documents related. As noted earlier, we review a district court's evidentiary rulings for an abuse of discretion. He argues that this fact calls into question the integrity and validity of the records, particularly in light of the fact that some of the missing records were available in connection with the previous trial but were unavailable in connection with this one. Juan Garca brego ( 13 de septiembre de 1944; Condado de Cameron, Texas, Estados Unidos) es un ex- narcotraficante mexicano con presunta nacionalidad estadounidense. denied sub. Balderas, publisher of the weekly scandal sheet Cuarto Garcia Abrego was sentenced . A:No, not-it really depends. Police exploitation of the mental condition of a suspect, using subtle forms of psychological persuasion, could render a confession involuntary. United States v. Raymer, 876 F.2d 383, 386-87 (5th Cir.1989) (quoting Connelly, 479 U.S. at 164, 107 S.Ct.