Pubdate: Wed, 13 Aug 2003
Source: Brownsville Herald, The (TX)
Copyright: 2003 The Brownsville Herald
Contact:  http://www.brownsvilleherald.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1402
Author: Angeles Negrete Lares

POLICE ON GUARD WHILE NEARBY DRUG CARTEL WARS RAGE

MATAMOROS, -- Bloody gunfights that have plagued northern Mexico border 
cities in recent weeks will continue until a new leader emerges to fill the 
void left by the arrests and deaths of drug cartel leaders, experts said 
Tuesday.

That means Matamoros could be the scene of another dangerous shootout like 
the March incident that resulted in the arrest of Osiel Cardenas, who 
headed the notorious Gulf cartel from his Matamoros home.

"The wars are going to increase until somebody emerges. In the meantime, a 
lot of people are going to get hurt," said Andres Cuellar, a former social 
studies professor in Matamoros. "I don't see any possibility of stopping 
them by the way we are doing things.

"Here in Matamoros, we can expect a worse or a similar situation like Nuevo 
Laredo or the recent killing in Reynosa." On Sunday, a former military 
commander was shot and killed in Reynosa in a hail of machine gun fire. The 
assassination came less than two weeks after an Aug. 1 gun battle in Nuevo 
Laredo between police and suspected members of Pacific Coast cartel.

Three suspects were killed in that incident and close to 150 police 
officers have been suspended as part of a corruption investigation related 
to the incident.

Ruben Dario, Tamaulipas State Attorney's General office's spokesman said 
Nuevo Laredo has seen more than 30 murders so far this year, most of them 
attributed to drug trafficking disputes.

And while authorities in Matamoros say the city is safe, they also 
acknowledge that turf wars are bound to erupt.

"Anytime an individual of his (Cardenas) stature is immobilized, the 
natural thing that happens is you have power struggles and turf wars," 
Cuellar said.

Cardenas, who some say still controls the Gulf cartel, is known to have 
shipped billions of dollars worth of illegal drugs each year from Mexico 
into the United States. He was arrested March 14 and taken to a 
maximum-security prison in Mexico City following a 20-minute shootout that 
terrified residents.

But while Cuellar worries, officials at Matamoros Police Department said 
Tuesday the city is under control and prepared for any violence.

"It has been very quiet," said Matamoros Police Chief Hiram Gonzalez. "We 
don't have any indication that the wave of violence can touch Matamoros."
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MAP posted-by: Beth Wehrman