Central America Quickly Becoming Home to Mexican Drug Cartels

As Mexico and the U.S. agencies work together to in the fight against drug trafficking, countries in Central America are becoming the new favorites for major drug cartels. The Northern Triangle of Central America, Guatemala, El Salvador and Honduras, is quickly becoming the region with the highest murder rates in the world. Because the Central American governments are so corrupt and fragile, the Mexican cartels feel more comfortable running their operations there. Many cartels view Central America as a safe haven, thereby increasing the amount of cocaine the moves through the country significantly. Between 2004 and 2007, the number of cocaine seizures in Central America has quadrupled.

Mexican Police Find Mass Grave with 38 Bodies

Police in Mexico discovered 38 dead bodies in a mass grave this week. The grave, located near Monterrey, is the size of a soccer field and investigators are searching for more bodies. Authorities believe the dead, 36 men and two women, are victims of one of the nine largest Mexican drug cartels. The bodies were too badly decomposed to be immediately identified and authorities are search three nearby pits for more bodies. In the last four years, 120,000 cartel members and as many as 1000 police officers, prosecutors, army personnel and journalists have been killed.

Biggest Cocaine Bust in New Hampshire History

Juan Garcia Hernandez, Janeth Sarmiento, Ciro Lopez Garcia, Jose Cisneros and Marco Garcia were arrested during a seizure of 45 kilograms of cocaine, the largest single cocaine bust in New Hampshire history. The total value of the cocaine seized is worth an estimated $1.5 million on the streets. The investigation found a network responsible for trafficking cocaine from Texas New Hampshire, then to Massachusetts and New York.

Tennessee Man Charged with Possession of Cocaine Following Traffic Stop In Sumner County, TN, Adrian Burch, was charged with possession of diazepam pills and cocaine for resale, possession of drug paraphernalia and introduction of contraband into a penal facility. Burch was found to have a suspended license and eight previous arrests for driving on a suspended license after being stopped for driving 31 mph in a 20 mph zone.

Florida Couple Arrested on Cocaine Charges

A Fort Myers, FL, couple was arrested and charged with two counts of possessing cocaine and two counts of selling cocaine. After the second sale to undercover officers with the Vice, Intelligence and Narcotics Unit of the Cape Coral police. Henry Lee Taylor, 49, and Mekeba Gary, 40, were booked into the Lee County Jail and have since been released on bail.

New Jersey Trio Caught in Two-Month Long Cocaine Investigation

Jose Crespo, Peggy Van Fleet, and Cristian Portillo of Manville, NJ were charged with possession of a cocaine with intent to distribute and possession of drug paraphernalia following a two-month narcotics investigation by the Somerset County Prosecutor’s Office Organized Crime and Narcotics Task Force, along with members of the Manville Police Department. Officers searched the residence where all three live and seized a plastic bag containing 14 individually wrapped bags of cocaine, a suspected cutting agent, and $805 in currency. The cocaine seized from the residence has an estimated street value of approximately $1,500.