Federal authorities have identified illegal fishing operations by the Gulf Cartel that are combined with human smuggling and drug trafficking schemes.
The fishing operation, based on Playa Baghdad or Costa Azul Beach, just east of Matamoros, Tamaulipas, employs crews of fishermen in 20- to 30-foot-long fiberglass boats known as There is.Lancias” Fishermen are illegally harvesting red snapper and shark fin in Mexican and U.S. waters, as the U.S. Treasury revealed in a recent Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) designation. The seafood is then sold through companies in both Mexico and South Texas.
According to authorities, similar Lancias Fishermen are used to smuggle humans and drugs from Matamoros to South Texas.
The Treasury Department has identified five members of the Gulf Cartel as part of the OFAC designation. The designation prohibits U.S. citizens, businesses, and financial institutions from doing business with anyone falling under the designation.
The designation names Ismael “Mayelo” Guerra Salinas and his brother Omar “Zamorano” Guerra Salinas as regional directors for Playa Baghdad. Authorities allege the two run the beach with illegal fishing, drug trafficking and human smuggling on behalf of the Gulf Cartel.
The government sanctions also named Francisco Javier “El Bollard” Sierra Angulo as the current top leader of the Matamoros Gulf Cartel.
The government's lawsuit accuses Raul “La Burra” de Cuir García and Ildelfonso “El Chivo” Carrillo Sapien of two fishing camp owners who allegedly oversaw the Gulf Cartel's boat operations. He was also nominated.
As Breitbart Texas reported, the Matamoros faction of the Gulf Cartel has been directly involved in hundreds of murders, kidnappings for ransom, and other violent crimes targeting U.S. and Mexican nationals in recent years.
Earlier this year, the U.S. Consulate General in Matamoros issued two separate travel warnings regarding kidnapping operations by the Gulf Cartel targeting U.S. citizens and residents for ransom. The Mexican government tried to dismiss the travel warning, arguing that the U.S. consulate based its information on anecdotal rather than Mexican government statistics.
Ildefonso Ortiz is an award-winning journalist at Breitbart Texas. He co-founded the Breitbart, Texas Cartel Chronicles project with Brandon Darby and Breitbart's senior management team. you can follow him Twitter And even more facebook. He can be contacted at: iortiz@breitbart.com.
Brandon Darby is managing director and editor-in-chief of Breitbart Texas. He co-founded the Breitbart, Texas Cartel Chronicles project with Ildefonso Ortiz and Breitbart's senior management team. please follow him Twitter and facebook. He can be contacted at: bdarby@breitbart.com.
