Feds Arrest 24 Members Los Zetas-Tied Drug Ring in Texas

OLDENBURG, GERMANY - NOVEMBER 11: (EDITOR'S NOTE: IMAGE WAS PIXELATED AT SOURCE) Nikolai H
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Federal authorities have arrested 24 members of a Los Zetas-tied drug trafficking group that operated on the Texas side of the border moving large quantities of narcotics and cash.

On Thursday afternoon the U.S. Attorney’s Office announced the arrest of 24 individuals named in a nine count drug trafficking and money laundering indictment. All of the arrested individuals in the indictment are from Eagle Pass, Del Rio and Cristal City. Two other suspects remain at large and are considered fugitives.

The criminal indictment claims that since October 2012, the suspect began to operate as a criminal organization helping move large quantities of marijuana, cocaine, cash and weapons.

As part of the move against the drug trafficking organization, federal prosecutors are looking to seize nine properties in Eagle Pass an in Cristal City that were allegedly bought with drug money. Prosecutors are trying to secure a money judgement of $5.98 million against the criminal organization that represents the proceeds made from drug trafficking.

As part of the ongoing operation against the group, authorities have already seized 36 firearms, 35 vehicles, a bullet proof vest and $110,000 in cash.

While U.S. court documents do not identify the Los Zetas cartel by name, the border city of Eagle Pass is just north of Piedras Negras, Coahuila.  As Breitbart Texas previously reported, Coahuila has been used for a long time by the Los Zetas cartel to move large quantities of drugs into Texas. Virtually unchallenged, the Los Zetas have been able to keep a low profile while moving ton quantities of drugs throughout Coahuila.

As Breitbart Texas previously reported, the State of Coahuila has a long history of working alongside the Los Zetas cartel. As previously reported by Breitbart Texas, their former governor Humberto Moreira spent some time in a Spanish jail during an investigation into him having received bribe money from Los Zetas.

After a three month investigation, Breitbart Texas reported that from 2011 to 2013, the Los Zetas cartel had kidnapped and incinerated more than 300 victims including women and children from some small towns in the northern part of Coahuila. Public officials turned a blind eye to the massacre where half of the victims, including women and children, were incinerated in the Piedras Negras prison.

Ildefonso Ortiz is an award winning journalist with Breitbart Texas you can follow him on Twitter and on Facebook.

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