The prosecutor and his team were supposed to arrive in the afternoon, but they didnt arrive until that night. They said that would be difficult, since my son was incinerated along with a lot of other people. feed the animals. Catholic Church records created by parishes in the state of Coahuila, Mexico. When 40 couldnt find me, he went after them. The next morning, Saturday, March 19, the gunmen summoned several heavy-equipment operators and ordered them to tear down dozens of houses and businesses across the region. He took up residence in the capitol of the country, Mexico City and joined in matrimony with Dona Juana de Trevino. One of his responsibilities was handling the cartels communications, which gave him access to the trackable cell phone PIN numbers for the groups leaders. Soon after, former Governor of Coahuila, Humberto Moreira Valds, sued Aguayo for defamation of character due to an opinion piece labeling Moreira as corrupt. A few miles outside of town, the gunmen descended on several neighboring ranches along a dimly lit two-lane highway. They staged concerts and dances. Renowned Mexican human rights activist, Sergio Aguayo, actively led a research campaign in 2016, highlighting the institutional corruption that both perpetuated and obscured the violence in Allende. We couldnt fight bullets with water (ProPublica). August 15, 2016. Former Governor sues Mexican academic and activist Sergio Aguayo for editorial. Size. June 12, 2017. Vasquez had left the agent plenty of leverage. Your email address will not be published. After Vasquez procured the PINs, the information was released to a DEA supervisor in Mexico, who regrettably shared it with a Mexican police force with a reputation of collaborating with criminal organizations. ProPublica and National Geographic have identified about 60 people whose deaths or disappearances have been linked His wife and mother were still living in Texas. No one has been charged with murder. Not a single police car came. Name Birth Death; Aguirre, Castillo, Cruz C. 14 Sep 1888: 10 Aug 1991 - Slaton, Texas Englewood Cemetery: Family Tree: Aguirre, Mencho: Family Tree: Alviar, Medrano . And they had small boxes of dirt for any relatives who wanted them. . And they began living here. and confronting one of the DEA bosses. They said that criminals were taking over their properties. the phones to his right-hand man, Hctor Moreno. Escuela Ecuestre in San Miguel de Allende, Guanajuato, Mexico. They told us we were not authorized to respond. As for the Zetas, it wasnt hard for them to identify who within the cartel may have betrayed them since very few people had access to their PIN numbers. them if I could go there. All day Saturday I spent searching and calling people to ask, What have you heard?, One person told me, I saw armed men. Another told me, The warehouses are still on fire. Things began happening in the evening. Property Details. didnt seem to mind until you were personally affected.. They told me that the witnesses had said that among the victims there was a family with three boys, and that one of the boys was my son. Then the DEA took a gamble. It was stressing them out, so they killed him. Then they turned They had a son, Blas Garza who married Beatriz Gonzalez Hidalgo and had 17 Children of his. My husband, Rodolfo, arrived. I could no longer go out to my ranch, or even to the corner without fear that someone would mistake me for someone else, and beat me, or worse. He put me on speakerphone, so my wife could hear. Officers under my command responded to reports of a fire at one of the Garza ranches. I sat in an armchair the rest of the night and waited for him until about 6:30 a.m. Then I called my sister. Design and production by David Sleight, Rob Weychert and Jillian Kumagai. The covered rooftop terrace is noted as having one of the best views in San Miguel. One of them would marry a cousin, or the daughter of a close friend, and suddenly theyre at the same parties, or holiday dinners. He asked me what I had done with the numbers. Don Alejo gained notoriety after making a last stand against the Los Zetas cartel, in defense of his ranch, near Ciudad Victoria, in Tamaulipas. with the government or with civil society. Someone called my cellphone and told me that if I went forward with the complaint, When it comes down to it, a lot of these guys flee the United States. The Allende massacre was left largely unacknowledged and uninvestigated by the Mexican government. You understand? He told me he had gone to the police for help, and they told him there was nothing they could do. He told me, Come on, Mom. what he did for a living. He still hadnt heard anything from his parents. He was speaking so softly I could barely hear him. So she came over, and wearing my pajamas, I went with her and my brother-in-law to Toos house. The inquiry has The gunmen opened the gate. How the U.S. Courtesy of Garza Blanca Resort & Spa Los Cabos. Se trata de casas y ranchos que en 2011 fueron atacados por "Los Zetas", lo cual dej, segn autoridades locales, 50 desaparecidos, aunque . Research genealogy for Rene Garza of Atongo de Abajo, Allende, Nuevo Len, Mexico, as well as other members of the Garza family, on Ancestry. Allende Family Keeping her family's bond tight has been incredibly important to Mari, who shared that one of the things she loves most about living in Mexico is the "concept and respect we have . in the gas tank. Everyone was afraid of them, and those who werent afraid had been bought They were killing people before that happened, and they killed people after the numbers were passed. I told them, Hold on. Alongside her brother Miguel and mother Aida Garza, Veronica founded Austin-based Siete Family Foods in 2014, a brand that offers vegan-friendly, gluten and grain free chips, tortillas, and an. Emergency management personnel from the region were pressured by the cartel to ignore cries for help. One of them was Jos Pia. Thats when we figured something was going on, and we decided It was Morenos brother, Gilberto, who had been caught driving the truck with $802,000 But when the time came, Mexican federal authorities said their predecessors didnt investigate because about how to capture them. Law enforcement sources close to the case said that after Martinez gave the intelligence to his superior, it was passed to a DEA supervisor in Mexico City. I told her, Break the phones. We had toilets in the house that flush real strong, so she broke them and flushed the phones down the toilet. When Jose didnt turn himself in, and we saw that he was willing to sacrifice his wife, we knew we needed to turn the screws even harder, or put more leverage on him. To always be up to date with both of these sites follow me on Facebook. But numerous people interviewed said no one came to help. I wont fight you for nothing. Sometimes planeloads of federal police would arrive, with 200 officers. Audio production by Adriana Gallardo. In the mornings and in the afternoons, he would go to the ranch to The destruction and disappearances went on in fits and starts for weeks. Rodriguez husband raised fighting cocks for the Garza family. I have to have probable cause. This is kind of getting off subject, but I remember going to Mexico as a kid. He is a Texas native and has family in Coahuila. Still, with the death certificate I began to make the changes that were long overdue. Because I was holding 596 kilos of cocaine for the cartel, and 40 sent a guy to take it back from me. Theres going to be a lot of murders that come behind this., He was like, All I have to tell you is if you dont cooperate, theyre going to do time with you.. you could do that. In fact, from this balcony I can point to one of the houses where they lived. There was a point at which we started to see signs that [the Zetas] had begun a kind of hegemonic takeover of all commercial activities. I remember Ernest [Gonzalez] getting up from the table, going outside You want to run, but you dont know where. Records Images Family Tree Genealogies Catalog Books Wiki. It was a great opportunity. How the U.S. From Allende the gunmen moved north along the dry, flat landscape, rounding up people as they covered the 35 miles to the city of Piedras Negras, a grimy sprawl of assembly factories on the Rio Grande. Were talking about less than three kilometers away from Allende. To avoid capture, the Zetas had their closest lieutenant in Coahuila, Mario Alfonso Poncho Cullar, provide them new cellphones every three or four weeks. Interior .042 Acres Exterior Single Family Homes Property type 3N69L7 Web Id Listing Detail Market Statistics Route Planner I recently had the wonderful experience of taking Cig Harvey's Master Workshop in San Miguel Allende, Mexico, hosted by the Santa Fe Workshops. They were better armed. This is a guy who started by watching the glamour of Miami Vice, All this time, you knew what kind of business your relatives were in. Were just going to talk.. We knew that the police were controlled by criminals. When the Zetas arrived, they recruited everyone to work for them. Allende brings to life a complex South American country - the rich, the poor . Unfortunately, none of them listened to me. They ordered 50 hamburgers to go. A few minutes later, he called again. Weve got to pack. Next thing I knew, Gerardo had on the clothes we had bought him for his birthday. My wife calls me at like 6 oclock in the morning. the same thing that happened to my husband would happen to the rest of my family. I called Titled How the U.S. We already knew there had been gunfire and that there were cases of disappearances and deaths. garza family allende mexico. Your email address will not be published. For years state and federal authorities in Mexico didnt appear to make a real effort to delve into the attack. scarred and leery of strangers. Cullar assigned the job of buying She told me that she hadnt seen him and that maybe he was out with friends. Only a few of the victims relatives mostly those who didnt live in Allende or had fled dared to seek help. His siblings were: Lisandro de la Garza (1886 - 1962) Federico (de la Garza) de La Garza (1887 - 1983) Rafaela (de la Garza) Ramirez (~1889 - ) Francisca (de la Garza) Garza . Time passed 7, 7:30, 8, 9. came to Mexico, was Marcos Alonso Garza y del Arcon, originally from the town of Lepe in the province of Huelva, Spain. I called the investigator that same day. Almost immediately, the Trevios learned theyd been betrayed. I got angry. 3.9 (12 ratings) Leave a review La Altura Pediatrics 21195 W Interstate 10 Ste 2101 San Antonio, TX 78257 Terrance Cole, Martinezs supervisor in Dallas, and Paul Knierim, then a DEA supervisor garza family allende mexicotropical rainforest biotic and abiotic factors. there. And with the other she was holding When pressed about his role, the agent, Richard Martinez slumped in his chair, his eyes welling with tears. She tells me, Hey, the house is surrounded., I said, What do you mean, its surrounded?, She said, Yeah, theres a lot of cops outside., I said, Well, listen, theyre probably going to arrest you. Ill sign all your seizure papers. American authorities eventually The original head of probably the single most influential and extensive capitalist family in Mexico was Isaac Garza Garza, the son of Juan de la Garza Martnez, mayor of Monterrey, and Manuela Garza, Jewish immigrants from Spain who had settled in the region of Monterrey, Nuevo Len. 6/27/2017 (written by Lucy Clement La Rosa)- Over six years ago, a small ranching community near the Texas border of Mexico bore witness to the vengeful assault of Las Zetas, one of Mexicos historically violent drug trafficking organizations. They doused them with fuel and lit them on fire, feeding the flames for hours and hours. All of Edgars clothes are still back there, hanging in the closet, They had farms and ranches. They began building shopping malls, hotels and casinos. She had stuffed it full of things and was carrying it like Santa Claus, with one hand. of the Garza ranches, including Gerardo Heath, a 15-year-old high school football player, and Edgar vila, a 36-year-old factory engineer. It was really bad. them. Publicado por 21 mayo, 2021 21 mayo, 2021 Something inside told me that it was true. And Lafuente didnt interfere They told me it wasnt safe. I would love for my family to go back there, but they cant. They got into buying and selling used cars. Bloom, Leonard B. He told me to get out of Allende. We drove up and down that road for like an hour or two, until we found the slip of paper. They described some 50 trucks arriving in Allende, carrying people connected to the cartel. Now those connections were proving deadly. We have testimony from people who say they participated in the crime. Whole apartment. Pedro was born in 1846, in Allende, Coahuilla Mexico. You cant go back there right now. . We had information that could have helped us capture these guys, but because of the way it was handled, the whole thing had unraveled. Indeed, these abductions and arson were performed under the radar of the federal police, an army unit, state and municipal police who failed in their duty to protect Piedras Negras, "los cinco manantiales" and all their residents. They put them inside a storage shed filled with hay. His face was swollen. 323 ft. A 12-year veteran of the agency, he led Operation Too Legit to Quit. She had turned a bedsheet into a sack. of the Lions Club. I dont care. The men kept them there and told them to stay quiet. So they escorted us in a caravan. What about my family?. He was involved with providing those numbers to the DEA. They told the children, Stay here. We were eating at Los Compadres, and two guys came in. They blamed me. Interviews for this story have been condensed and edited for space and clarity. Zetas. They told me that the forensic specialists had not been able to test the fragments towns busiest streets lie in ruins. Agren, David. They were terrified because their lives were being threatened. We were eventually successful in that regard. Earlier this year, one of the units supervisors, Ivn Reyes Arzate, turned himself in to U.S. federal authorities to face charges of sharing information about the DEAs investigations with drug traffickers. Tenemos opciones similaresque te pueden interesar. The driver said he worked for a guy he knew only as El Diablo, the Devil. I was waiting for him. You might be right. No family lost more members than the Garzas. He complained about it to the military. She doesnt remember how many days they were there before the men took her, Arturo and Mauricio to Piedras Negras. Im on my way., Theres no playbook to tell you what to do when someone steals your child. 3,127 were here. a few other important people. The properties belonged to one of Allendes oldest clans, the Garzas. by relatives, friends, victims support groups, court files or news reports to the Zetas siege that year. It was a couple of friends of Gerardos from There were no more independent groups. Size. Less than a year later, Prez himself disappeared. Several months before the Allende massacre, the DEA persuaded Jose Vasquez, Jr., a Zetas operative, to submit the personal identification numbers (PINs) of Miguel and Omar Trevios cell phones. The 21st most prevalent Hispanic surname in the USA. Felipe Garza: Family by Aline Smithson December 27, 2016 Felipe Garza, Four Mothers. I thought to myself, Gerardo was so strong that if only he could have gotten away and made it to the highway, he would have easily managed to make it home. Let me call [my lawyer]. Velas husband, a factory engineer, was watching a soccer match on television at a friends home when Zetas gunmen arrived looking for the friends brother, who was connected to the cartel. Just go.. outsiders were not wanted, and were disappeared.. I left with only our clothes and [my daughters] bedroom furniture. I got a call from a man who worked with my husband. He worked closely with the DEA on Too Legit to Quit and later prosecuted several Zetas operatives in a case tracing the cartels drug supply chain from Mexico through Guatemala to Colombia. why I got involved. But the Zetas arrived, and they killed Omar Rubio, of the Tejas. The Garzas were one of the oldest Allende families, owning multiple livestock ranches in and around the region. the killings couldnt be linked to organized crime, but acknowledged that they also have not investigated. In the northern Mexican state of Coahuila, he was the Trevio brothers right hand and even godfather to some of the traffickers children. has failed. leak in the Allende case. He was born in Las Vegas on Sept.. Ill be back.. But according to family members, some of them also worked for the cartel. school. +17 photos. How can I explain how I felt? I begged him to He told me, My head is killing me. he would first make sure he had taken back their merchandise. The smoke is really black, as if someones burning tires. We dont know whats happened to all the people. I asked, What do you mean? But at that point in the investigation, it had the opposite effect. Andrea said the men dropped her and Arturo in a park, but they took Mauricio with them. As specified by Thompsons publication, the Zetas violent retribution can be traced back to premature information sharing by the DEA and institutional corruption in Mexico. They broke into houses, they looted them and burned them. without him. Although the Zetas misidentified Garza as the leak, Vasquez also held ties to Allende. The family mostly raised livestock and did odd contracting jobs, He said that several of the men who worked with my husband had not arrived home the previous night. One practice that Cig employs is for students to be paired off and interview each other about their lives, and . I wont be late., At around 10 that night, my husband called Gerardos cellphone to see what time hed be coming home. the drug trade, would be picked up and killed. Unfortunately, Whole apartment. It was as if they had kidnapped me that day too. So he came to me, and he gave me a handwritten letter for the president. Garza 4 San Miguel De Allende, Guanajuato 37700 Mexico $769,000 Photos Video Map 3 BD 3/2 BA Single Family Homes 1 of 31 $769,000 Change Currency 3 Bedrooms 3 Full Baths 2 Partial Baths 3,767 Sq Ft. I got in, next to the driver. We couldnt fight bullets with water. Garza Gaytn was a member of a Los Zetas cell led by Mario Alfonso "Poncho" Cuellar, a former Mexican federal police officer. Federico De la Garza was born on 22 Apr 1899 in Allende, Mxico, son of Ventura de la Garza (1863 - >1907) and Maria del Refugio (Ramirez) de la Garza (>1869 - 1907). There is no first step. He didnt need to. Just make sure you dont tell them nothing. The cuisine of San Miguel de Allende is one of the best aspects of any visit there, with gorditas, mole, and stuffed chiles topping any foodie's list of things to savor. In March 2011 gunmen from the Zetas cartel, one of the most violent drug trafficking organizations in the world, swept through Allende and nearby towns like a flash flood, demolishing homes and businesses and kidnapping and killing dozens, possibly And for a long time, there was only one boss, named Vicente Lafuente Guereca. The most popular month to go is September, which has the largest number of tour departures.