Héctor Manuel Beltrán Leyva[3] (15 February 1962[3] – 18 November 2018) was a Mexican drug lord and leader of the Beltrán Leyva Cartel, a drug-trafficking organization.[1][4] He was the brother of Arturo Beltrán Leyva (deceased), former leader of the cartel. Héctor was the second-in-command and rose to the leadership of the criminal organization after his brother's death on 16 December 2009 during a confrontation with Mexican marines.[5][6]
Héctor Beltrán Leyva | |
|---|---|
| Born | 15 February 1962 Badiraguato, Sinaloa, Mexico |
| Died | 18 November 2018 (aged 56) Toluca, State of Mexico, Mexico |
| Other names | "El Ingeniero",[1] "El H"[1] "El General"[2] Mario Alberto Beltrán Leyva[2] |
| Occupation | Leader of the Beltrán Leyva Cartel |
| Criminal status | Deceased |
Reward amount | Mexico: $30 million Mexican Pesos; USA: $5 million USD |
Wanted by | The Mexican PGR and the DEA |
| Wanted since | 2004 |
Career
editAlthough originally a part of the Sinaloa Cartel, the four Beltrán Leyva brothers broke ties with the organization in 2008 after Alfredo Beltrán Leyva was arrested by Mexican military special forces, and the Beltrán Leyva brothers blamed their boss Joaquín Guzmán (a.k.a. El Chapo).[7][8] In response to the supposed betrayal, the Beltrán Leyva brothers ordered the murder of 22-year-old Édgar Guzmán López, a son of Joaquín Guzmán, who was killed in a shopping center parking lot by at least 15 gunmen using assault rifles and grenade launchers.[9][10]
The remaining four Beltrán Leyva brothers established the Beltrán Leyva Cartel and forged a collaboration pact with their former rivals: the Gulf Cartel and Los Zetas. Today, the Beltrán Leyva Cartel is responsible for the procurement of firearms and ammunition from the global black market in furtherance of their criminal enterprise and is responsible for the trafficking of multi-ton amounts of illicit drugs, including cocaine, marijuana, heroin, and methamphetamine. Héctor Beltrán Leyva is also credited with rising rates of violence within Mexico, as his organization is reportedly responsible for kidnapping, torture, murder, and various other acts of violence against numerous men, women, and children in Mexico.[1] The cartel is considered one of the most ruthless and brutal in the way they dispose of their enemies. The organization is connected with the assassinations of numerous Mexican law enforcement officials,[9][11] including Édgar Eusebio Millán Gómez, the former acting commissioner of the Mexican Federal Preventive Police.[12]
Bounty
editThe U.S. Department of State was offering a reward of USD $5 million for information leading to the arrest and/or conviction of Héctor Beltrán Leyva, while the Mexican government offered a US$2.1 million bounty reward.[13][14]
Kingpin Act sanction
editOn 3 December 2009, the United States Department of the Treasury sanctioned Beltrán Leyva under the Foreign Narcotics Kingpin Designation Act (sometimes referred to simply as the "Kingpin Act"), for his involvement in drug trafficking along with twenty-one other international criminals and ten foreign entities.[15] The act prohibited U.S. citizens and companies from doing any kind of business activity with him, and virtually froze all his assets in the U.S.[16]
Arrest
editBeltrán Leyva was arrested by the Mexican Army on Wednesday, 1 October 2014.[17][18][19]
On 6 October 2014, he was transferred by federal agents to the Federal Social Readaptation Center No. 1 (commonly referred to simply as "Altiplano"), a maximum-security prison in Almoloya de Juárez, State of Mexico.[20] He was accused of violating Mexico's Federal Law of Firearms and Explosives.[21] The next day, he was formally charged in a federal court for drug trafficking, money laundering, and organized crime offenses.[22]
Death
editOn 18 November 2018, Beltrán Leyva began having chest pains. A prison guard reported this to medical personnel, who tried to give him first aid attention in his prison cell. As his symptoms worsened, he was transported to the Adolfo López Mateos Medical Center in Toluca, State of Mexico. According to the medics, he died of a heart attack in the emergency room. Upon his death, the hospital notified authorities and stated they would conduct an autopsy, as required by Mexican law. His family was notified of the death and they claimed the body. The hospital's emergency area was safeguarded by security forces while Beltrán Leyva was receiving medical attention.[23][24]
See also
edit
References
edit- ^ a b c d "Narcotics Rewards Program: Hector Beltran-Leyva". United States Department of State. Retrieved 14 November 2012.
- ^ a b México ofrece millonarias recompensas por 37 líderes del narco. Noticias Univision. 23 March 2009. Retrieved 11 June 2013.
- ^ a b Funeral de Héctor Beltrán Leyva, "El H", se realiza en Hermosillo, Sonora
- ^ De la Luz González, María (4 January 2010). "Héctor Beltrán asume el mando del cártel: PF". El Universal (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 8 October 2012. Retrieved 14 November 2012.
- ^ "Mexican navy kills top cartel kingpin in shootout". USA Today. Associated Press. 17 December 2009. Archived from the original on 6 October 2014. Retrieved 11 November 2012.
- ^ Malkin, Elisabeth (17 December 2009). "Mexico Deals a Blow to a Cartel but Warns of Continued Drug-Related Violence". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 31 January 2013. Retrieved 14 November 2012.
- ^ Wilkinson, Tracy (27 May 2012). "Sinaloa cartel, Zetas push Mexico's drug violence to new depths". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on 11 November 2012. Retrieved 11 November 2012.
- ^ Fox, Edward (6 June 2012). "7 Dead in Sinaloa Alongside Banner Claiming State Collusion With Chapo Guzman". InSight Crime. Archived from the original on 14 November 2012. Retrieved 14 November 2012.
- ^ a b "Mexico plagued by new wave of gangland murders". Monsters and Critics. 11 May 2008. Archived from the original on 2 October 2012. Retrieved 14 November 2012.
- ^ Valdez Cárdenas, Javier (10 May 2008). "Sinaloa, en jaque por la violencia tras ser asesinado hijo del Chapo". La Jornada (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 28 June 2011. Retrieved 14 November 2012.
- ^ "Planearon los Beltrán Leyva homicidio de Edgar Millán: PFP". El Informador (in Spanish). 2008. Archived from the original on 20 April 2012. Retrieved 14 November 2012.
- ^ McKinley, James C. (9 May 2008). "Gunmen Kill Chief of Mexico's Police". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 4 January 2013. Retrieved 14 November 2012.
- ^ "Mexico's 24 most wanted traffickers". Los Angeles Times. The Associated Press. 23 March 2009. Archived from the original on 3 February 2011. Retrieved 14 November 2012.
- ^ Olson, Alexandra (24 March 2009). "Mexico offers $2 million for top drug lords". U-T San Diego. Archived from the original on 14 November 2012. Retrieved 14 November 2012.
- ^ "DESIGNATIONS PURSUANT TO THE FOREIGN NARCOTICS KINGPIN DESIGNATION ACT" (PDF). United States Department of the Treasury. 15 May 2014. p. 9. Archived from the original (PDF) on 14 May 2013. Retrieved 28 May 2014.
- ^ "An overview of the Foreign Narcotics Kingpin Designation Act" (PDF). United States Department of the Treasury. 2009. p. 1. Archived from the original (PDF) on 28 May 2014. Retrieved 28 May 2014.
- ^ "Detienen al narcotraficante Héctor Beltrán Leyva" (in Spanish). Mexico City: Diario de Juárez. 1 October 2014. Retrieved 1 October 2014.
- ^ "Detienen en San Miguel de Allende a Héctor Beltrán Leyva" (in Spanish). La Crónica de Hoy. 1 October 2014. Archived from the original on 6 October 2014. Retrieved 2 October 2014.
- ^ "Reputed drug capo hid in plain sight in Mexico". MSN. Archived from the original on 3 October 2014. Retrieved 3 October 2014.
- ^ "Ingresa Héctor Beltrán Leyva a penal de máxima seguridad" (in Spanish). Milenio. 6 October 2014. Archived from the original on 8 October 2014. Retrieved 6 October 2014.
- ^ Michel, Elena (6 October 2014). "Consignan a Héctor Beltrán Leyva" (in Spanish). El Universal (Mexico City). Archived from the original on 8 October 2014. Retrieved 6 October 2014.
- ^ Ramírez de Aguilar L., Fernando (7 October 2014). "Consigna a Beltrán Leyva por narcotráfico, lavado de dinero y delincuencia" (in Spanish). Mexico City: El Financiero. Archived from the original on 7 October 2014. Retrieved 7 October 2014.
- ^ "Mexican ex-cartel boss Beltran Leyva dies in prison". Yahoo! News. 18 November 2018. Archived from the original on 19 November 2018. Retrieved 19 November 2018.
- ^ Gandaria, Manrique (18 November 2018). "Héctor Beltrán Leyva muere en hospital de Toluca". El Sol de Toluca (in Spanish). Organización Editorial Mexicana.