U.S. DOJ Charges Sinaloa Cartel Lieutenants with Terrorism — $10 Million Total Reward

The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) formally charged two top lieutenants of the Sinaloa Cartel with terrorism and is offering a $10 million reward for information leading to their capture.

This week, the U.S. DOJ announced a superseding indictment naming 42-year-old Rene “La Rana” Arzate Garcia and his brother, 52-year-old Alfonso “Aquiles” Arzate Garcia. The indictment charges the two men with various counts of narco-terrorism, providing support to terrorism, and various drug-related charges. As part of the announcement, authorities announced a $5 million reward for information leading to the capture and conviction of each brother.

Federal authorities describe La Rana as the Sinaloa Cartel Plaza Boss or regional leader in the Tijuana, Baja California area, with his brother as his right-hand man. The two men are described as extremely violent and are reportedly responsible for numerous kidnappings and murders in the region. Federal authorities point to the Tijuana cell of the Sinaloa Cartel as being responsible for moving multi-ton quantities of various drugs, including fentanyl and meth, as well as other drugs such as cocaine and marijuana. Rene Arzate is also linked to a large-scale extortion operation in Tijuana on behalf of the Sinaloa Cartel.

The hyperviolent tactics of La Rana have earned him musical fame with several highly popular Mexican ballads praising him and his gunmen’s violent tactics on behalf of the cartel.

The unsealing of the indictment against the Arzate Garcia brothers comes just days after the U.S. government led Mexican authorities to the hideout of Ruben Nemesio “El Mencho” Oseguera Cervantes, the leader of the terrorist organization Cartel Jalisco Nueva Generacion. As Breitbart Texas reported, in that raid, Mexican military forces clashed with CJNG gunmen and killed El Mencho. The cartel’s response came in the form of terrorist attacks nationwide that included carjackings, setting up roadblocks, torching buildings, and even a large-scale prison break near Puerto Vallarta.

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 Iortiz@breitbart.com. 

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 bdarby@breitbart.com.