A Gulf Cartel gunman who was trying to sneak into the U.S. illegally is now facing federal terrorism charges. Prosecutors allege he took part in surveillance, enforcement, and the disposal of bodies for the Gulf Cartel in Mexico. The Gulf Cartel is one of seven Mexican drug cartels that have been labeled as foreign terrorist organizations by the U.S. government.
The incident began in July 1o, when U.S. Border Patrol agents arrested 21-year-old Jose Flores Flores in Mission, Texas, shortly after he had entered the country by illegally crossing the Rio Grande between ports of entry. Initially, federal prosecutors arrested and charged Flores Flores with one count of illegal re-entry since he had a previous history of immigration arrests. The story was first reported by Dave Hendricks from the local CBS station.
While in custody, federal prosecutors charged Flores Flores through a criminal indictment on illegal re-entry charges. However, in late August, federal prosecutors obtained a superseding indictment charging him with additional counts of providing material support to a terrorist organization – the Gulf Cartel.
While the criminal indictment does not provide details about Flores Flores’ rank or specific actions within the criminal organization, the document discloses that he carried out surveillance of law enforcement, worked as a gunman, and helped the cartel dispose of bodies. As Breitbart Texas extensively reported, the Gulf Cartel has been linked to numerous clandestine gravesites and incineration sites along the Tamaulipas border. Most of the bodies found in those places are never identified or counted in Mexico’s government stats as murders.
Recently, Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum claimed that the murder rate decreased during her administration. However, political opponents point to her government playing with stats by ignoring the remains in cartel gravesites. Those victims remain listed simply as missing persons.
Ildefonso Ortiz is an award-winning journalist with Breitbart News Foundation. He co-founded Breitbart News Foundation’s Cartel Chronicles project with Brandon Darby and senior Breitbart management. You can follow him on Twitter and on Facebook. He can be contacted at [email protected].
Brandon Darby is the managing director and editor-in-chief of Breitbart Texas. He co-founded Breitbart News Foundation’s Cartel Chronicles project with Ildefonso Ortiz and senior Breitbart management. Follow him on Twitter and Facebook. He can be contacted at [email protected].
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