US Indictment Alleges Drug Lords Continued to Run Operations From Mexican Prisons

A mugshot of the Zetas drug cartel leader Miguel Angel Trevino Morales is shown on a TV screen during a news conference given by the Mexican government in Mexico City on July 15, 2013. Christian Palma/AP Photo

An indictment unsealed on Wednesday in the District of Columbia has charged leaders of the Cartel del Noreste (CDN), a successor to the notorious Los Zetas cartel, with a range of offenses.

The indictment specifically targets Miguel Trevino Morales, 51, known as “Z-40,” and his brother Omar Trevino Morales, 48, known as “Z-42,” and accuses them of continuing to run their criminal enterprise from within Mexican prisons following their arrests in 2013 and 2015, respectively.

The charges include drug trafficking, firearms violations, and international money laundering.

According to the indictment, the Trevino Morales brothers assumed control of Los Zetas, originally a military wing of the Gulf Cartel, following the 2012 death of its previous leader, Heriberto Lazcano Lazcano.

They subsequently rebranded the organization as CDN and are alleged to have maintained operational control over CDN through family members and associates despite their incarcerations.

The CDN dominates the border city of Nuevo Laredo, across from Laredo, Texas, and is notorious for its violent confrontations with Mexican security forces, including an attack earlier this week on an army patrol in which a soldier was killed as well as two adults and an 8-year-old child.

The indictment accuses the brothers of orchestrating several murders, kidnappings, and acts of torture to further their criminal empire.

“As alleged in the indictment, the defendants ran a transnational drug trafficking organization that was responsible for committing extreme violence and trafficking massive quantities of narcotics into the United States,” Nicole Argentieri, principal deputy assistant attorney general, said in a Wednesday press release.

“The Justice Department is committed to holding cartel leaders like the defendants accountable for poisoning American communities and fueling violence here and abroad.”

Since at least 2003, the Trevino Morales brothers allegedly led the organization in importing significant quantities of cocaine and marijuana into the United States, according to court documents.

Additionally, the indictment charges them with conspiracy to distribute more than 5 kilograms of cocaine and more than 1,000 kilograms of marijuana for importation into the United States.

This includes one instance in January of importation of 1 kilogram of cocaine and another in April of 10 kilograms of cocaine in Texas.

The indictment details instances where they directed members of their organization to use firearms, including machine guns, in violent acts across Mexico and the United States.

“This superseding indictment underscores the Justice Department’s commitment to pursuing the leaders of the world’s most dangerous drug cartels, no matter how long it takes,” U.S. Attorney Breon Peace for the Eastern District of New York said in a statement.

“The defendants’ prolific crimes and extreme acts of violence have wreaked havoc in the Eastern District of New York and across the country, and we look forward to holding the defendants accountable in a U.S. court of law.”

The indictment also sheds light on the cartel’s extensive international money laundering operations, detailing transactions across Mexico, Colombia, Venezuela, and the United States.

The United States has requested the extradition of Miguel Trevino Morales, but court appeals have held it up for about a decade, according to The Associated Press.

The Trevino Morales brothers face life imprisonment if convicted on the charges.