*GUILTY* EL Chapo - Drug Cartel Chief, arrested Trafficking/conspiracy/firearms

[YESorNO]

Keegan Hamilton‏Verified account @keegan_hamilton 36m36 minutes ago
A leak from the DEA's SIU program in Mexico also led to a massacre, as reported last year by @gingerthomp1

HOW THE U.S. TRIGGERED A MASSACRE IN MEXICO
The inside story of a cartel’s deadly assault on a Mexican town near the Texas border — and the U.S. drug operation that sparked it.

June 12, 2017

"We have testimony from people who say they participated in the crime. They described some 50 trucks arriving in Allende, carrying people connected to the cartel. They broke into houses, they looted them and burned them. Afterward, they kidnapped the people who lived in those houses and took them to a ranch just outside of Allende.

First they killed them. They put them inside a storage shed filled with hay. They doused them with fuel and lit them on fire, feeding the flames for hours and hours.

José Juan Morales
Investigative director for the disappeared in the Coahuila State Prosecutor’s Office..."

How the U.S. Triggered a Massacre in Mexico — ProPublica
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Keegan Hamilton‏Verified account @keegan_hamilton 36m36 minutes ago
Then again, it's not like the DEA has a totally unblemished record in Colombia…

DOJ Report Reveals DEA Agent ‘Sex Parties’ Funded by Colombian Drug Cartels

Mar 26, 2015

"Life is tough for American drug enforcement agents in Latin America. After billions of dollars and decades spent fighting the drug war from Mexico to Patagonia, more drugs than ever are flowing north. According to a bombshell report by the Department of Justice, agents in Colombia found a novel solution to their problems: if they couldn't beat the cartels, they would take part in cartel-funded "sex parties" with prostitutes and pay regular visits to brothels while stationed in the country.

The report, released on Thursday by the DOJ's Office of the Inspector General, found that four US agencies involved in the drug war in Colombia — the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the US Marshals Services — did not properly address allegations of sexual misconduct committed by their agents in the country. Among the four, the DEA was found to have engaged in some of the most inappropriate behavior, including sexual bacchanals, and then failed to comply with the Justice Department's inquiries...."

DOJ Report Reveals DEA Agent 'Sex Parties' Funded by Colombian Drug Cartels
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The report: (139 pages)

https://oig.justice.gov/reports/2015/e1504.pdf#page=1
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[YESorNO]

'El Chapo' trial gives inside look at his rise to power

"NEW YORK – The U.S. trial of Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman has offered a screenplay-worthy picture of the lawlessness and excesses during his rise to power as Mexico's most infamous drug lord.

Since the trial got underway on Nov. 13, witnesses have described how Guzman used tunnels dug under the border and fake jalapeno cans to smuggle tons of cocaine into the United States during the 1990s and early 2000s.

The Sinaloa cartel, sometimes referred to by insiders as "The Federation," made hundreds of millions of dollars, most of it in U.S. currency collected in such volume it had to be stashed in safe houses while the gang figured out what to do with it. Guzman spent some of it on a private zoo, a diamond-encrusted pistol and paying off police and politicians.

That's all according to a cast of characters who have taken the witness stand ranging from former cartel members to a Colombian drug kingpin with a freakish face that he chose to alter with plastic surgery in a failed attempt to stay under the radar.

Here's a look at some testimony highlights from the trial, which is expected to last until early next year:..."

'El Chapo' trial gives inside look at his rise to power
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[YESorNO]

Alan Feuer‏ @alanfeuer 6m6 minutes ago
In the afternoon session at the Chapo trial we learned how adaptable Chupeta--Chapo's Colombian supplier--could be. Chupeta said that in 1996 he turned himself into the Colombian authorities, promising to dismantle his empire, cooperate with prosecutors and serve up to 24 yrs.


Alan Feuer‏ @alanfeuer 5m5 minutes ago
He did no such thing. First, he was a sent to a prison he "controlled," as he put it. He also paid bribes in Colombia to get out after only slightly more than four years.


Alan Feuer‏ @alanfeuer 6m6 minutes ago
After that, however, the Americans were onto him, ultimately issuing two indictments in his name and seeking his extradition. So Chupeta improvised again. He shut down his US distribution network and cut a new deal with Chapo and Sinaloa drug cartel.


Alan Feuer‏ @alanfeuer 6m6 minutes ago
Under this deal, the Mexicans would distribute all of Chupeta's drugs in the US, keeping some of the profits for themselves and paying Chupeta a cut of the profits. In this way, Chupeta said, he could remain "behind a curtain."


Alan Feuer‏ @alanfeuer 19m19 minutes ago
The guy was a survivor. When the heat became too much in Colombia, he moved to Venezuela. When it got too hot in Venezuela, he moved to Brazil. That's where he was ultimately arrested, allegedly in the company of his lover, a Brazilian bodybuilder.


Alan Feuer‏ @alanfeuer 19m19 minutes ago
It was the end of the road for Chupeta--one that led to extradition to the US, a guilty plea in Brooklyn and his appearance as a witness at Chapo's trial. We'll likely get more on this arc--and other things--tomorrow when Chupeta faces cross-examination.
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[Niner]

Tuesday, Dec. 4th:
*Trial continues (Day 11) (@ 9:30am ET) - NY – *Joaquín Archivaldo Guzmán Loera (El Chapo) (~61) arrested & charged with smuggled 155 tons of cocaine into U.S. Sinaloa drug cartel chief. Guzmán faces 17-count indictment charging him with drug trafficking, murder conspiracy & money laundering spanning nearly three decades. Plead not guilty to all charges. No bail.
Prosecutors say Guzmán ran Mexico's Sinaloa cartel from 1989 to 2014. In that time, they allege the cartel brought cocaine, heroin, methamphetamine & marijuana into the U.S. Prosecutors also charged Guzmán in connection with the assassinations of thousands of competitors. Plead not guilty to all charges. If convicted, he faces life in prison.
Trial expected to last several months. Also for trafficking, conspiracy & firearms in California, Arizona, Texas, Illinois, Florida & New York.
Skipping Day 1 thru 9,
12/3/18 Day 10: State Witness: Juan Carlos Ramírez Abadía aka Chupeta.

 

[YESorNO]

Former Colombian Trafficker Testifies Against El Chapo

December 3, 2018

"BROOKLYN (CN) – The first cocaine supplier to testify in the trial of Mexican drug lord Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman described the drug-trafficking industry as an agile enterprise that adapted to its working conditions.

Born in Palmira, Colombia, and raised in nearby Cali, Juan Carlos Ramirez Abadia, also known as “Chupeta” or “Lollipop,” rose to become a young leader of the country’s powerful and violent Cártel del Norte del Valle, or North Valley Cartel...."

Former Colombian Trafficker Testifies Against El Chapo
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[YESorNO]

Keegan Hamilton‏Verified account @keegan_hamilton 4h4 hours ago
Hello from Day 11 of El Chapo’s trial.

Defense cross-examination of Chupeta starts this morning.

We also just dropped episode 6 of the podcast, which covers how El Chapo got caught, escaped, then got caught again.

Listen: https://open.spotify.com/episode/738NnUSvlHzFWOCRx7Giep?si=YGgCs1P1RIup945T1aVzew … @vicenews


Keegan Hamilton‏Verified account @keegan_hamilton 3h3 hours ago
This episode focuses on El Chapo's capture in 2014. We visited one of his safe houses in Culiacán. It was on a quiet street, next door to a funeral home. Nothing luxurious. Next to Miguel Angel is the garage door the Mexican Marines used to get inside when they raided the place.

Keegan Hamilton‏Verified account @keegan_hamilton 3h3 hours ago
Here's the tunnel entrance hidden underneath the bathtub that El Chapo used to flee as the Mexican Marines and the DEA were coming to get him. This happened on February 17, 2014.

Keegan Hamilton‏Verified account @keegan_hamilton 3h3 hours ago
Here's me inside the other end of El Chapo's escape tunnel.

His bathtub led down into Culiacán's drainage system. This is nearly two miles away from the safe house. The tunnel is low — Chapo's name means shorty but he had to have been hunched over the whole time he was running.

Keegan Hamilton‏Verified account @keegan_hamilton 3h3 hours ago
The main interview for this episode is with former DEA Special Agent Drew Hogan. He wrote a book about leading the hunt for El Chapo in 2014.

Here's an excerpt where he describes the sewer escape. Apparently El Chapo was "nearly naked" as he ran through the tunnels.

Keegan Hamilton‏Verified account @keegan_hamilton 3h3 hours ago
After the tunnel escape, El Chapo fled to the beach town of Mazatlán. That's where Hogan and the Mexican Marines caught up to him. Here they are after the moment of truth. This was on Feb. 22, 2014.

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[YESorNO]

Alan Feuer‏ @alanfeuer 11m11 minutes ago
The two great centers of gravity in the El Chapo trial--the axes around which everything spins--are money and blood. Yesterday, Chapo's main cocaine supplier, Juan Carlos Ramirez, aka Lollipop, testified about the money. Today, he is starting to talk about the blood.

Alan Feuer‏ @alanfeuer 10m10 minutes ago
Chupeta, a fastidious businessman w/ an economics degree, scrupulously recorded his expenses for at least 150 assassinations in his accounting ledgers. The entries were so detailed they noted payments to hit men down to the dollar. One entry listed a hit squad payoff at $338,776.


Alan Feuer‏ @alanfeuer 8m8 minutes ago
Chapo's lawyers suggested that Chupeta killed his former deputy, Lauriano Renteria, after he was arrested in Colombia. Renteria was the keeper of Chupeta's secrets. He was poisoned in prison. "He died," Chupeta admitted, "and he had a lot of knowledge of my organization."


Keegan Hamilton‏Verified account @keegan_hamilton 29s30 seconds ago
Cross-examination of Chupeta is still underway. The defense has focused so far on his lies to law enforcement and murders that he ordered.

Chupeta's drug ledgers also included details about payments for assassinations. Jury got hear all about these.


Keegan Hamilton‏Verified account @keegan_hamilton 1m1 minute ago
Chupeta admitted he paid $45K to have three people murdered. He couldn't remember their names.

Another murder of a cartel associate's brother cost $338,776. Asked why it was so expensive, he replied, "It was a big group of hitmen who took part in that killing."


Keegan Hamilton‏Verified account @keegan_hamilton 4m4 minutes ago
The defense really tried to play this up for the jury. El Chapo's lawyer Bill Purpura asked about "payments for the taking of a human life." Altogether, Chupeta's ledgers showed him ordering 150 murders. Chupeta couldn't remember them all. "I haven't counted them," he said.
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[YESorNO]

Keegan Hamilton‏Verified account @keegan_hamilton 55m55 minutes ago
Purpura asked whether Chupeta had one of hist top lieutenants murdered in a Colombian prison. The man was poisoned before he could be extradited. "With his death died many secrets about your organization, is that correct?" Chupeta said that was true.


Keegan Hamilton‏Verified account @keegan_hamilton 54m54 minutes ago
Cross-examination of Chupeta expected to end before lunch break today. Stay tuned for more updates.
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[YESorNO]

Alan Feuer‏ @alanfeuer 47m47 minutes ago
One of Chapo's lawyers led Chupeta through several of the executions he ordered. A man named Tocayo was killed in 2002 for being an informant. He and a dozen of his men were lured to a finca in Colombia and "obliterated." Their bodies were heaved on a pickup and disposed of.


Alan Feuer‏ @alanfeuer 46m46 minutes ago
Two women who worked for the Colombian prosecutors office were assassinated on a highway outside Cali after starting an investigation into Chupeta's group, the North Valley drug cartel.


Alan Feuer‏ @alanfeuer 42m42 minutes ago
A retired lieutenant in the Colombian army met his end, shot in his car, after stealing weapons from the cartel. A lawyer was gunned down in a bookstore in Cali for drunkenly discussing the cartel's business.


Alan Feuer‏ @alanfeuer 40m40 minutes ago
A Senor Canoso was executed for stealing $2 million from Chupeta. Chupeta told his sicarios to make Canoso feel comfortable then shoot him in the back of the head. Chupeta admitted he once worked under a North Valley hitman, Ivan Urdinola, whose favorite weapon was a chainsaw.


Alan Feuer‏ @alanfeuer 38m38 minutes ago
After the blood, Chupeta returned to the money. He testified that when Ernesto Samper was running for president of Colombia he gave Samper's campaign $500,000. He also said he gave more than *$10 million* to influence the Colombian congress's debate on changing extradition laws.


Alan Feuer‏ @alanfeuer 37m37 minutes ago
Members of the Colombian media were also on his payroll, he said. He would pay for stories that were helpful to him and to kill stories that were harmful to him.


Alan Feuer‏ @alanfeuer 37m37 minutes ago
Through an elite unit of the Colombian National Police, Chupeta also said he tried to corrupt DEA agents in Colombia by paying for prostitutes and apartments.


Alan Feuer‏ @alanfeuer 36m36 minutes ago
He certainly had enough to money to spread it around. When he was arrested in Brazil, the local authorities seized $120 million, at least one yacht, a collection of luxury watches and a large art collection, including two Boteros worth more than $500,000 each.
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[YESorNO]

Alan Feuer‏ @alanfeuer 18m18 minutes ago
After the jury in the Chapo trial was released for lunch, Judge Brian Cogan said he didn't believe that all the testimony just offered by Chapo's main coke supplier, Chupeta, about murders he had committed was relevant. Chapo's lawyer, Jeff Lichtman, was baffled.


Alan Feuer‏ @alanfeuer 16m16 minutes ago
Defense lawyers are generally allowed to cross examine witnesses on their so-called bad acts. Lichtman and his team were trying to do that. Judge Cogan, however, was not thrilled by the gory level of detail they were trying to elicit even though Chupeta's body count was gory.


Alan Feuer‏ @alanfeuer 16m16 minutes ago
The parties discussed the violence issue at a sidebar during Chupeta's cross examination. It's not available yet but will be later today. Then we'll have a clearer picture of how much the testimony about gruesome cartel assassinations has been cleaned up for the jury's ears.
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[YESorNO]

Alan Feuer‏ @alanfeuer 15m15 minutes ago
It's not the first time Judge Cogan has expressed wariness about hyper-bloody evidence being presented. Just before the trial began, prosecutors said they wanted to detail 33 of Chapo's murders. Judge Cogan said it was "way too much" & "out of control."

Prosecutors’ Plan for El Chapo: Tie Him to 33 Killings


Alan Feuer‏ @alanfeuer 13m13 minutes ago
He is clearly taking a conservative & cautious view of evidence in the case. He has offered similar limitations on evidence about narco-corruption in Mexico. Which is to say, for all that the jurors are hearing, there is much that they--and we--are not.

El Chapo Trial Has Yet to Reveal Mexico’s Dark Secrets of Narco-Corruption
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[YESorNO]

Keegan Hamilton‏Verified account @keegan_hamilton 4h4 hours ago
Some very heavy **** in the latest cross-examination of Chupeta.

He admitted to ordering multiple murders in the United States, including a family in New Jersey who was suspected of informing or stealing from one of his stash houses in Ft. Lee.


Keegan Hamilton‏Verified account @keegan_hamilton 3h3 hours ago
Chupeta also admitted to ordering the murder of a man named Vladimir Beigelman in Mill Basin, Brooklyn, on Dec. 2, 1993.

Here's a NYT story about the hitman charged in 2001 with killing Beigelman and six others.

Queens Man Faces Charges In Six Killings In Early 90's


Keegan Hamilton‏Verified account @keegan_hamilton 3h3 hours ago
El Chapo's lawyer Bill Purpura said Chupeta ordered the murder of a woman who ran one of his stash houses in Queens. She was apparently was "shot four times her place of employment" on Chupeta's orders.


Keegan Hamilton‏Verified account @keegan_hamilton 3h3 hours ago
Chupeta admitted that he used to be involved w/ a Norte del Valle hitman named Ivan Urdinola.

El Chapo's lawyer: "He seemed to favor — and I'll say it in Spanish — a motosierra. That's a chainsaw. He would kill and dispose of the bodies in the Cauca River."


Keegan Hamilton‏Verified account @keegan_hamilton 3h3 hours ago
Chupeta also admitted to going after a Norte del Valle cartel leader named Victor Pitiño who was cooperating after being extradited to the US. He killed "36 of his family members and close associates."


Keegan Hamilton‏Verified account @keegan_hamilton 3h3 hours ago
El Chapo's lawyer noted that Chupeta's cooperation agreement with the US government means he could receive a sentence of just 25 years. With Chupeta's 150 killings, he noted that works out to a sentence of "60 days per murder."
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[YESorNO]

Keegan Hamilton‏Verified account @keegan_hamilton 3h3 hours ago
We also got some new details on Chupeta's plastic surgery. El Chapo's lawyer went through a list of his operations:

"Nose altered"
"A piece in your chin — a cleft chin"
"Cheekbones"
"Hair transplant"
"Lip implants"
"Eyes opened up"


Keegan Hamilton‏Verified account @keegan_hamilton 3h3 hours ago
Purpura has a shiny bald head, and when he said "hair transplant" he paused and asked, "How'd that work out? Maybe I should try it."

Everybody the courtroom laughed, including Chupeta and El Chapo.


Keegan Hamilton‏Verified account @keegan_hamilton 3h3 hours ago
Purpura: "Would you lie to avoid apprehension, arrest, time in prison?"

Chupeta: "At that time of course I lied, I changed my appearance."

Purpura: "Would you lie now?"

Chupeta: "I'm not lying, sir."


Keegan Hamilton‏Verified account @keegan_hamilton 3h3 hours ago
Purpura also noted that Chupeta had multiple fake identities, including a phony Venezuelan passport, and ID cards from Paraguay and Argentina.

Asked whether these were all lies, Chupeta replied: "Absolutamente mentira" — absolute lies.


Keegan Hamilton‏Verified account @keegan_hamilton 3h3 hours ago
We also heard about Chupeta's lavish lifestyle. He had a yacht, an art collection with at least two pieces valued at over $500K, and a watch collection. When he was arrested, Colombian police seize $120 million in gold and cash.


Keegan Hamilton‏Verified account @keegan_hamilton 3h3 hours ago
Chupeta admitted to paying large bribes. He paid an elite Colombian police unit to "supply prostitutes, apartments, and gifts" to DEA agents stationed in Colombia. This was the DEA's Sensitive Investigative Unit. More:

1) https://news.vice.com/en_us/article/438ky3/doj-report-reveals-dea-agent-sex-parties-funded-by-colombian-drug-cartels …

2) Exclusive: DEA took years to fix secret program linked to a massacre in Mexico


Keegan Hamilton‏Verified account @keegan_hamilton 3h3 hours ago
Purpura asked Chupeta about his nickname. "Lollipop, pacifier, what does it mean?"

Chupeta: "In Colombia it's candy, a bon bon."

He smiled as he said this. It's also a play on his sexuality. Chupar means "to suck" Spanish. He was arrested in Braizl w/ his bodybuilder lover.


Keegan Hamilton‏Verified account @keegan_hamilton 3h3 hours ago
Chupeta is done testifying. Next up on the witness stand this afternoon are several DEA agents.

Speaking of DEA agents, we interviewed one for the latest episode of the podcast. He captured El Chapo in 2014. Listen: https://open.spotify.com/episode/738NnUSvlHzFWOCRx7Giep …
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[YESorNO]

Keegan Hamilton‏Verified account @keegan_hamilton 2h2 hours ago
Early afternoon witnesses were two DEA agents who testified about a couple large cocaine busts in Brooklyn. They were:

1) May 23, 2002, 400 3rd Ave — 1,923 kilos
2) January 2003, 5118 Grand Ave - 1,954 kilos

Still unclear how exactly Chapo is connected to either of these.


Keegan Hamilton‏Verified account @keegan_hamilton 2h2 hours ago
Funny moment: Prosecutors had put out cardboard boxes w/ bricks of cocaine for the jury to see. DEA agents used gloves when handling.

Chapo's lawyer @balarezolaw grabbed one w/ his bare hands. Prosecutors asked him to use gloves.

He replied: "I need a pick me up right now."
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[YESorNO]

Keegan Hamilton‏Verified account @keegan_hamilton 2h2 hours ago
Next up on the witness stand this afternoon: Germán Rosero, one of Chupeta's lieutenants in the Norte del Valle cartel. He handled contacts with the Sinaloa cartel in Mexico.


Alan Feuer‏ @alanfeuer 16m16 minutes ago
This afternoon at the Chapo trial we got a look at a new witness: German Rosero, a Colombian lawyer who was "the link" between the Colombian North Valley cartel and Chapo's group, the Sinaloa cartel. Rosero worked for Chapo's main supplier, Chupeta, after he was arrested.


Alan Feuer‏ @alanfeuer 17m17 minutes ago
In what may be saddest drug world origin story, Rosero was working as a public defender in Colombia yrs ago when someone threatened his life. He went for protection to Chupeta, who he'd known since college, and to Chupeta's deputy, Sergio Ramirez, who he'd known since childhood.


Alan Feuer‏ @alanfeuer 17m17 minutes ago
The traffickers wrangled legal work out of Rosero in exchange for their help. It started rather slowly: prepping documents for cartel real-estate purchases or helping get Chupeta's underlings out of jail.


Alan Feuer‏ @alanfeuer 14m14 minutes ago
Soon enough, however, Rosero was neck deep in Chupeta's illegal business. In 1996, when Chupeta turned himself in to the Colombian authorities under "an arrangement," Rosero bribed wardens and jail guards to get the boss special visiting privileges and good food.


Alan Feuer‏ @alanfeuer 13m13 minutes ago
The next year, he paid millions of $'s of bribes for something more important. The Colombian congress was debating a law that would reinstate extraditions to the US. The cartel leaders didn't want the law to be retroactive or else those already in jail would face American justice


Alan Feuer‏ @alanfeuer 11m11 minutes ago
"All the cartels had senators and representatives in their pockets," Rosero said. His plan? Use those politicians to help bribe the rest. Chupeta had already said that he spent $10 million on swaying the lawmakers. It worked. The extradition law passed but it wasn't retroactive.


Alan Feuer‏ @alanfeuer 10m10 minutes ago
In short order, Rosero was Chupeta's man in Mexico. He lived in Acapulco and traveled the country pitching coke deals to Sinaloa bigwigs like Chapo, Nacho Coronel, Hector Beltran Leyva and Mayo Zambada.


Alan Feuer‏ @alanfeuer 8m8 minutes ago
He retired briefly in 2001 to become--how poignant--a gentleman dairy farmer. But he was soon dragged back into the drug trade and returned to Mexico, making the rounds again pitching coke deals. We'll learn more when Rosero is back on the stand again tomorrow.


Alan Feuer‏ @alanfeuer 23m23 minutes ago
Fun fact of the day from the Chapo trial (especially for the Brooklynites out there): One of Chapo's drug stashes, where 1,900 kilos of coke were found in 2002, was a ordinary looking warehouse at 400 3rd Avenue--about a block from the Whole Foods in Gowanus.
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[oceanblueeyes]

Thanks for the updates YesorNo.

Can I ask you some questions please since I havent followed this case closely?

Are all of these witnesses testifying for the prosecution in some type of witness protection?

Also how about the jurors sitting in judgement? Are they hidden behind some type of protective screen so no one knows who they are?

I certainly wouldnt want to be either in this particular case. I think it would be very dangerous for both witnesses and his jurors.

I sure wish they could capture the drug lords who are trafficking all of the fentanyl into our country from the southern border that is killing so many American citizen now. Right now it seems to be the most lethal illegal drug recently and it's so dangerous for our police officers too.

TIA

 

[YESorNO]

Keegan Hamilton‏Verified account @keegan_hamilton 32m32 minutes ago
Trial is over for the day. Last witness was Germán Rosero aka Barbas or The Beard. He testified that he handled the Norte del Valle cartel's business in Mexico, coordinating cocaine shipments with El Chapo and the Sinaloa cartel. This is what he looked like back in the day.

Keegan Hamilton‏Verified account @keegan_hamilton 28m28 minutes ago
The other key guy for Norte del Valle cartel in Mexico was Alvaro Palau aka Olfato. The word literally translates to "sense of smell" but the nickname is a reference to his giant schnoz. This is him.

Keegan Hamilton‏Verified account @keegan_hamilton 6m6 minutes ago
Turns out drug cartels are a lot like regular businesses.

This is a spreadsheet created by Chupeta to track expenses for a cocaine shipment to Mexico.

It's a submarine that carried 3,200 kilos. It was seized by the US Coast Guard.

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[YESorNO]

Thanks for the updates YesorNo.

Can I ask you some questions please since I havent followed this case closely?

Are all of these witnesses testifying for the prosecution in some type of witness protection?

Also how about the jurors sitting in judgement? Are they hidden behind some type of protective screen so no one knows who they are?

I certainly wouldnt want to be either in this particular case. I think it would be very dangerous for both witnesses and his jurors.

I sure wish they could capture the drug lords who are trafficking all of the fentanyl into our country from the southern border that is killing so many American citizen now. Right now it seems to be the most lethal illegal drug recently and it's so dangerous for our police officers too.

TIA

I don't know about "all" witnesses so far- only these 2:

Juan Carlos Ramirez Abadia ( a Colombian whose North Valley Cartel was a major supplier to Guzman’s organization) known as Chupeta, or “lollipop”, had numerous plastic surgeries aimed at concealing his identity . When he got out of prison 11 years ago, he has lived in the United States as a professional witness, his endless appearances in courts across the country a condition of the visa he hopes to receive- he is currently in witness protection.

Miguel Angel Martinez, a former top lieutenant to "El Chapo" , is in the federal witness protection program also.

I haven't read anything about a protective screen for the jurors or anything to protect them. I think, like in most trials, their names will be released to the media eventually- unless their names will be sealed, but I never heard of that, so...

 

[YESorNO]

Keegan Hamilton‏Verified account @keegan_hamilton 14m14 minutes ago
Here's another spreadsheet created by Chupeta. This is from his cartel's main accounting ledger or "Caja Mayo." It's written in code but it shows income (entrada) and payments (salida). He was meticulous about balancing his books.

Keegan Hamilton‏Verified account @keegan_hamilton 7m7 minutes ago
Here's a graphic created by the prosecution to show the Sinaloa cartel's business arrangement with Colombian cartels on a typical 10,000-kilo load.

The Mexicans would get a cheaper price per kilo in exchange for shouldering the risk of moving the cocaine into the US.

Keegan Hamilton‏Verified account @keegan_hamilton 4m4 minutes ago
And here's a map that shows the typical shipping route for Colombian cocaine through Mexico.

The Colombians would ship the drugs via fishing boat or submarine to a drop-off point off the coast of Mexico. The load would be offloaded at sea, then moved through Mexico to US hubs.

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[YESorNO]

Keegan Hamilton‏Verified account @keegan_hamilton 2m2 minutes ago
That's all for today. Will be back at it again mañana, when we expect more testimony from Chupeta's lieutenant Germán Rosero aka Barbas.

In the meantime, listen to the new episode our podcast.

https://open.spotify.com/show/3iZGZfoQX9kfzdZtAYi2s2 …
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