Pubdate: Sat, 19 Aug 2000
Source: San Diego Union Tribune (CA)
Copyright: 2000 Union-Tribune Publishing Co.
Contact:  PO Box 120191, San Diego, CA, 92112-0191
Fax: (619) 293-1440
Website: http://www.uniontrib.com/
Forum: http://www.uniontrib.com/cgi-bin/WebX
Author: Anna Cearley, Staff Writer

JUDGE KILLS ONE CHARGE AGAINST SUSPECT LINKED TO DRUG CARTEL

TIJUANA -- A Mexican federal judge dismissed a charge this week against 
alleged drug cartel member Ismael Higuera Guerrero that linked him with 
secret airstrips used to transport cocaine into Mexico.

Although Higuera remains in prison on additional charges, the dismissal is 
considered a blow to investigators' efforts to detail his alleged 
drug-trafficking activities.

Higuera, also known as "El Mayel," was captured by soldiers and federal 
agents May 3 after a morning shootout at an Ensenada beachfront house.

He is believed to have operated as the chief lieutenant for the 
Tijuana-based Arellano Felix drug cartel, overseeing the group's vast 
transportation and storage networks.

The notoriously violent cartel is thought to be responsible for shipping 
cocaine, marijuana, heroin and methamphetamine into the United States.

The federal charge dismissed against Higuera stemmed from the 1995 capture 
of an airplane carrying 10 tons of cocaine. The plane landed at a hidden 
airstrip in the southern part of Baja California.

Higuera still faces charges connecting him with organized crime and 
bringing cocaine into the country. He also is charged with illegally 
carrying a firearm.
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