Dozens arrested in nationwide drug sweep
May 2, 1996
Web posted at: 8:40 p.m. EDT
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Federal agents have arrested more than 130 people in a nationwide operation that targeted a Mexican-run cocaine smuggling and distribution network in the United States.
Code-named "Zorro II," the operation, which began last September, was aimed at disrupting the flow of cocaine from Colombia through Mexico to the United States. (1.0M QuickTime movie) The operation is the first to arrest Mexican drug couriers and dealers along with Colombian traffickers from the country manager down to street-level crack cocaine distributors, Drug Enforcement Administration officials said.
"Zorro II is a significant narcotics operation because it simultaneously dismantled the organization that owned the cocaine and a second organization that ran the transportation system," Attorney General Janet Reno said at a news conference Thursday. (425K AIFF sound or 425K WAV sound)
The case disclosed a previously unknown level of organization and sophistication on the part of the Mexican gangs, officials said.
Agents traced cocaine from Colombia as it was driven by Mexican couriers across the border in California, Arizona and Texas to wholesalers in Los Angeles and then to street dealers in the Washington Heights section of New York City and in Richmond, Virginia.
Officials say more than 90 court-authorized wiretaps were used in the investigation and individuals were rounded up beginning in February in Chicago, Los Angeles, Miami, Houston, El Paso and Midland, Texas. Dozens of arrests were made Thursday.
Nearly 6,000 kilograms of cocaine and more than 1,000 pounds of marijuana have been seized in the operation.
Reno said the law enforcement effort underscores an important point: Most of the cocaine produced by the Colombian cartel enters the United States through Mexico.
"Mexican individuals are not only transporting the cocaine but have developed their own large-scale organizations to do that job in the U.S.," she said, adding that the Mexican government is equally concerned about the situation and is cooperating with American officials to halt the flow of cocaine.
Drug Enforcement Administrator Thomas Constantine said the operation "demonstrates that drug trafficking is a seamless continuum -- reaching from Colombia through Mexico to the streets and neighborhoods of America."
Among key arrests Thursday were those of Cali associates Mauricio Gutierrez, who was arrested in Los Angeles, and Hernan Aquilera and Pierre Remy, arrested in Miami. Also arrested was the alleged organizer of the Mexican transportation network, Rafael Alapizco, in Los Angeles. Jorge Valazquez, alleged leader of a domestic distribution network based in Chicago, also was arrested in Los Angeles.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Related stories:
- New drug plan targets youth, crime - April 29, 1996
- Clinton targets teens in anti-drug effort - March 7, 1996
- Why do some drug cases land in federal court? - February 26, 1996
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