Rio Grande Valley ICE arrest leader of a 'hitman' cell, Cartel del Golfo gang member
ICE HSI RGV, law enforcement partners arrested a member of Cartel del Golfo during a routine enforcement action.
HARLINGEN, Texas - U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations arrested a member of the Cartel del Golfo on Feb. 6.
Rio Grande Valley ICE Arrest
The unidentified 36-year-old Mexican citizen was arrested for being in the United States illegally. During the interaction, agents discovered his prior criminal record, which includes a felony conviction for possession of marijuana and illegal entry.
HSI identified him as the leader of a sicario cell. Sicarios are hitmen, often involved in kidnapping, and wanted by U.S. and Mexican authorities.
The Gulf Cartel (Cártel del Golfo) is a Mexican drug trafficking organization and criminal syndicate that operates in Tamaulipas, Mexico and the United States. It is one of the oldest organized crime groups in Mexico.
What they're saying:
"This enforcement action is part of our relentless fight against violent cartel members who have little regard for the law and degrade the quality of life in our communities," said HSI San Antonio Special Agent in Charge Craig Larrabee. "Our ultimate goal is to get these cartel members off the streets of South Texas and ensure they face justice for their crimes."
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Man who entered U.S. 6 times illegally arrested by ICE in Houston
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What you can do:
Individuals can report suspicious criminal activity to the ICE Tip Line 24 hours a day, seven days a week, by calling 866-DHS-2-ICE.
Former head of Cartel del Golfo
The former head of the Cartel del Golfo (CDG) from 2003 to 2012 was sentenced to life in federal prison in 2022 for his role in conspiring to distribute cocaine and marijuana from Mexico into the United States.
Jorge Costilla-Sanchez, 51, from Mexico, was sentenced Sept. 15, 2022, by a federal judge to serve the rest of his life in prison.
According to court documents, Costilla-Sanchez aka El Cos, Doble X and Dos Equis became head of CDG after the arrest of former CDG leader Osiel Cardenas in 2003. Prior to joining the cartel, Costilla-Sanchez was a municipal police officer in Matamoros, Tamaulipas, Mexico. He was arrested in 2012 in Mexico at the request of the United States and again in 2015. Costilla-Sanchez also previously pleaded guilty to threatening two federal agents from the FBI while he was being investigated for drug trafficking in 1999.
At the hearing in 2022, the court heard additional information detailing how Costilla-Sanchez profited $5 million from drug trafficking. He was ordered to pay a money judgment in that amount.
In handing down the sentence, the judge noted Costilla-Sanchez’s extensive involvement in trafficking illegal drugs into the country. The court commented that during the 10 years Costilla-Sanchez was the head of the CDG, he led a violent criminal organization, using guns and intimidation to maintain control of their illegal drug trafficking enterprise, resorting to violence, and killing to maintain power.
During the time Costilla-Sanchez was the leader, he was responsible for importing over 10,000 kilograms of cocaine and 140,000 kilograms of marijuana into the United States.
The Source: Information in this article is from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.