Tijuana, Mexico. The United States government deported Osiel C\u00e1rdenas Guill\u00e9n, former leader of the Gulf Cartel and founder of Los Zetas, to Mexican authorities at the border city of Tijuana on Monday, the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) confirmed.<\/p>\n
C\u00e1rdenas, who had been serving a 25-year sentence in the United States, was released in August, 21 years after his initial arrest and 17 years following his extradition to the U.S. There, he pleaded guilty to drug trafficking, money laundering, and extorting U.S. federal agents.<\/p>\n
“This day, Osiel C\u00e1rdenas was transferred under controlled deportation at the Mexico-U.S. border in Tijuana, Baja California. He was subsequently taken to the Altiplano prison in the State of Mexico for organized crime, drug trafficking, and money laundering charges,” a federal Mexican government source reported.<\/p>\n
The 57-year-old former cartel leader is accused of orchestrating some of the bloodiest turf wars in Mexico\u2019s history and transforming the drug trade with hyper-violent tactics, including beheadings. Under his leadership, the Gulf Cartel became one of Mexico’s most feared criminal organizations, responsible for smuggling thousands of kilos of cocaine and marijuana into the U.S.<\/p>\n
C\u00e1rdenas also founded Los Zetas, the cartel\u2019s armed wing composed of former Mexican military special forces.<\/p>\n
Samuel Olson, a director at ICE\u2019s Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) in Chicago, stated: “By returning this dangerous individual to Mexico, where he faces serious charges, we\u2019ve taken a significant step to protect our communities and uphold the rule of law.” Olson emphasized the operation\u2019s success as a result of collaboration between law enforcement agencies.<\/p>\n
C\u00e1rdenas had been held at Terre Haute Penitentiary in Indiana but was transferred to the Otay Mesa Detention Center prior to his deportation. Officials escorted him across the San Diego port of entry, where he was handed over to Mexican authorities without incident.<\/p>\n
Nicknamed \u201cEl Mata Amigos\u201d (The Friend Killer), C\u00e1rdenas was arrested in 2003 in Tamaulipas and extradited to the United States in 2007. In 2010, he was sentenced to 25 years in prison and fined $50 million.<\/p>\n
The Gulf Cartel, once a dominant criminal force, has weakened in recent years, splintering into multiple factions. Despite his incarceration, C\u00e1rdenas remains a significant figure in Mexico\u2019s violent and turbulent narco-history.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Tijuana, Mexico. The United States government deported Osiel C\u00e1rdenas Guill\u00e9n, former leader of the Gulf…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":456,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[16],"tags":[109,104,106,102,111,108,112,103,115,114,107,101,113,110,105],"class_list":["post-455","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-mexico-today","tag-bordersecurity","tag-deportation","tag-drugtrafficking","tag-gulfcartel","tag-ice","tag-justice","tag-lawenforcement","tag-loszetas","tag-mexicocrime","tag-narcohistory","tag-organizedcrime","tag-osielcardenas","tag-publicsafety","tag-tijuana","tag-usmexico"],"yoast_head":"\n