Latin American Gangs Threaten Mexico and The U.S.

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MEXIDATA . INFO
Column 013006 Brewer
Monday, January 30, 2006
Latin American Gangs Threaten Mexico and the

U.S.
By Jerry Brewer
Those most likely to harbor gangs intent on terror are

those who may view the United States as a declining
superpower due to recent events. Many in countries
that find it virtually impossible to control gangs,
criminals and terrorists within their own territories – a
threat that emanates as far south as the tri-border
confluence of Argentina, Paraguay, and Brazil.
Charles Shapiro, the former U.S. ambassador to

Venezuela, states, “Almost every extremist terror group
is now represented in Latin America.” And that includes
Islamic terrorists, among others al-Qaeda, Hamas,
Hezbollah, and Islamic Jihad. Living there among an
estimated population of 25,000 Arabs, or those of Arab
descent.
Apart from Western Hemisphere criminals, for decades

there have been pockets of smugglers, terrorists, drug
traffickers, arms dealers, and organized crime figures
from Russia, Japan, China, Nigeria and others nations in
the area. And most of the successful infiltration into
Latin American nations is due to weak governments,
corrupt establishments, unscrupulous leftist leaders,
and sagging economies.
The isthmus between North and South America, with

Panama as a central hub, is a chokepoint for the
movement of land-based vehicles and people towards
Mexico and the border of the United States. Reports
have described sightings of al-Qaeda operatives in
Central America, and some observes believe their
alleged presence “conforms to their desire to secure
land routes to the United States through collaboration
with Central American gangs.”
The U.S. Justice Department recently reported that a

drug trafficker, Noel Exinia, admitted importing a
quarter ton of cocaine into the United States from
Mexico. Too, he was to smuggle in 20 men who were
“Iraqi terrorists,” charging them US$8,000.00 a head.
Exinia, according to papers filed in a Brownsville, Texas
federal court, told associates in wiretapped
conversations that these men were “Osama’s people”
(Usama Bin Laden). Although this information was
subsequently deemed questionable, it spoke
considerably of human trafficking possibilities with an
Islamic terrorist potential.
Former U.S. Attorney General John Ashcroft has

claimed that Adnan G. El Shukrijumah, a known al-
Qaeda member and suspect in the planning of 9/11,
was spotted in July 2004 in Honduras meeting with
Mara Salvatrucha gang members. This announcement
was followed by a confirmation by U.S. officials that
Shukrijumah had attempted to acquire radioactive
material for the production of a “dirty bomb” to be
smuggled into the U.S.
U.S. Government officials report that over 90 MS-13

gang member insurgents have been apprehended
nationwide since 2004. More than a third have been
caught in the Rio Grande Valley sector of Texas, with at
least 40 caught in the Laredo area.
There are reports of Kaibiles, ex-members of Special

Forces units from Guatemala, training paramilitary
“Zeta” gunmen – who are the enforcement arm of
Mexico’s treacherous Gulf Cartel, and other cartel
assassins. Gun battles throughout Mexico have clearly
shown the death and destruction brought on by
unchecked violence and the sophisticated weapons used
by these rogue commandos.
The Tucson (Arizona) Sector has reported more than a

hundred attacks against Border Patrol agents along the
border by paramilitary-looking attackers. This in total
disregard for our law enforcement at all levels. They
are bold and no longer content to keep a low profile on
and around U.S. soil, plus some have placed bounties
on the lives of U.S. law enforcement officers.
Border Patrol agents say they are not prepared to fight

an enemy this sophisticated and well armed.
A report from Dallas last year, by the Associated Press,

advised of Latin American gang violence “that’s become
all too common in Mexico, right here in Dallas.” The
report described seeing “execution-style murders,
burned bodies, and outright mayhem.”
Here too is a wake up call to go hand in hand with a

nation’s voracious drug habit, and the suppliers of the
demand from the south – according to officials in both
countries an estimated 95 percent of the unlawful
weapons seized or confiscated in Mexico were first sold
legally in the United States. In one case, Mexican and
U.S. authorities working together traced 80 confiscated
firearms to a Mexican citizen who had paid Texas
residents to buy weapons on his behalf.
The terrorism risk at our southern border is real and

requires the attention of authorities at the highest
levels of government. Yet walls and fences will not
block this threat, for many of the gangsters and
insurgents already reside in many of our cities.
Protection can only come from initiative, commitment,
diplomacy, and an international team effort by free
nations interested in stemming this cancerous world
phenomenon.
——————————
Jerry Brewer, the Vice President of Criminal Justice
International Associates, a global risk mitigation firm
headquartered in Miami, Florida, is also a columnist with
MexiData.info. He can be reached via e-mail at
[email protected], and [email protected].

Latin American Gangs Threaten Mexico and The U.S.

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Home | Columns | Media Watch | Reports | Links | About Us | Contact

Monday, January 30, 2006

Latin American Gangs Threaten Mexico and the

Those most likely to harbor gangs intent on terror are

Charles Shapiro, the former U.S. ambassador to

Apart from Western Hemisphere criminals, for decades

The isthmus between North and South America, with

The U.S. Justice Department recently reported that a

Former U.S. Attorney General John Ashcroft has

U.S. Government officials report that over 90 MS-13

There are reports of Kaibiles, ex-members of Special

The Tucson (Arizona) Sector has reported more than a

Border Patrol agents say they are not prepared to fight

A report from Dallas last year, by the Associated Press,

Here too is a wake up call to go hand in hand with a

The terrorism risk at our southern border is real and

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