Mexico anti-drug general is ousted; U.S. guns arm drug cartels
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In Mexico’s drug war, Gen. Sergio Aponte Polito racked up crime-fighting credentials worthy of the Dark Knight, making record seizures of drugs and weapons and forcing out top Baja California law enforcement officials he accused of corruption and of having links to organized crime, writes the L.A. Times’ Richard Marosi.
‘But in a surprise move Thursday, the general was relieved of his command, abruptly ending his controversial 20-month stint as the leader of President Felipe Calderon’s army-led battle against organized crime in the northern states of Baja California and Sonora.’ ‘Aponte won broad public support for aggressive tactics against drug gangs whose turf wars have left hundreds dead here, but he generated controversy by denouncing scores of police officers, prosecutors and officials by name in blistering letters published in newspapers across the state.’
Meanwhile, Richard A. Serrano reports on how high-powered automatic weapons and ammunition are flowing virtually unchecked from U.S. border states into Mexico, fueling a war among drug traffickers, the army and police that has left thousands dead.
‘The munitions are hidden under trucks and stashed in the trunks of cars, or concealed under the clothing of people who brazenly walk across the international bridges. They are showing up in seizures and in the aftermath of shootouts between the cartels and police in Mexico.’ ‘More than 90% of guns seized at the border or after raids and shootings in Mexico have been traced to the United States, according to the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Last year, 2,455 weapons traces requested by Mexico showed that guns had been purchased in the United States, according to the ATF. Texas, Arizona and California accounted for 1,805 of those traced weapons.’
Click here to read more on Gen. Sergio Aponte Polito and here for more U.S arms heading south of the border into Mexico.
For more on the drug trade in general, click here.
— Deborah Bonello in Mexico City