drug traffickers news stories on Newser

Weeds Actress Praises Mexican Drug Lord

Rob Quinn — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 02:32:40 CST

Mexican actress Kate del Castillo, best known in the US for her role in Weeds , has shocked Mexico with praise for Sinaloa cartel boss Joaquin Guzman. In an open letter slamming the Catholic church, the media, and the Mexican government, Castillo—who played a drug boss in the Telemundo hit...

Feds Helped Mexican Drug Honcho Move Millions

Matt Cantor — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 06:48:44 CST

The New York Times last month revealed that undercover US agents have laundered and smuggled millions of dollars for Mexico's drug cartels—and today the paper shines a light on one such operation, in which federal agents helped one drug trafficker and his Colombian supplier move cash and cocaine across...

Feds Bust Iraqi Drug Ring in California

Matt Cantor — Fri, 19 Aug 2011 09:36:05 CDT

Authorities have arrested 60 alleged members of an Iraqi drug ring run out of a southern California social club, seizing some $630,000 in cash, 3,500 pounds of marijuana, and a cache of firearms and explosives, the Los Angeles Times reports. The El Cajon-based club has been a “hub...

Drug Smugglers May Have Wiped Out Amazon Tribe

Rob Quinn — Tue, 09 Aug 2011 04:41:06 CDT

Authorities in Brazil fear that a "lost" tribe deep in the Amazon has been wiped out after encountering the outside world at its worst. The tribe, which had never previously been contacted by outsiders— and was photographed earlier this year aiming bows and arrows at a plane flying over their...

Mexico Nabs Drug King 'El Brad Pitt'

Matt Cantor — Fri, 17 Jun 2011 10:37:05 CDT

Mexico’s federal police have arrested the alleged leader of the armed wing of the Juarez Cartel—one Marco Antonio Guzman, also known as “El Brad Pitt.” Guzman was nabbed on Wednesday in Chihuahua, the northern Mexican state that’s home to Ciudad Juarez, site of an estimated 3,100 killings last...

ICE Busts Hundreds in 168-City Gang Sweep

Rob Quinn — Wed, 02 Mar 2011 05:40:37 CST

A vast multi-city gang sweep shows the extent to which Mexican drug cartels have penetrated American cities—and, say federal officials, the extent to which the government is willing to go to take them down. Some 678 gang members, including 421 nationals, were busted in 168 cities during Project Southern...

Drug Submarine Seized in Colombia

Mary Papenfuss — Tue, 15 Feb 2011 03:21:00 CST

A submarine that aimed to ferry masses of cocaine to Mexico has been nabbed off the coast of Colombia. The 100-foot-long fiberglass vessel was found stashed in a jungle area in southwestern Colombia. The sub—big enough to carry four people and eight tons of cargo—was capable of traveling...

Drug Catapult Seized at Mexican Border

Rob Quinn — Thu, 27 Jan 2011 07:04:47 CST

Mexican drug smugglers trying to get marijuana across the border have resorted to medieval methods. A pot-flinging catapult was seized after National Guardsmen in Arizona spotted it being used other side of the border and alerted Mexican authorities, AP reports. The smugglers got away but left behind their vehicle, 35...

Mexican Cartel Claims to Have Retired

Rob Quinn — Wed, 26 Jan 2011 02:42:31 CST

Banners have appeared in the heartland of Mexico's La Familia drug cartel claiming that the criminal organization has been dissolved but authorities are understandably skeptical. The cartel, one of Mexico's most brutal, declared a month-long truce earlier this month and authorities believe that it is weakened and in disarray but...